The Best Breakfast Spots in Denver, Colorado

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Situated near Wash Park, this southern restaurant is the perfect place to end a morning walk around the area. The bakery offers divine pastries and coffee for takeout while the cookery next door is a full-service restaurant. The eclectic interior is filled with knick-knacks and has a homely atmosphere. The chicken and waffles and shrimp and grits are savory standouts, while the challah French toast will satisfy your sweet tooth.

Until a few years ago, a good bagel in Denver was nearly impossible to find. Luckily, New Jersey-born and raised Joshua Pollack decided to solve that. Dedicated to his craft, Pollack installed a water filtration system to mimic the mineral content of NYC’s tap water to bring Denver the best bagel possible. The Five-Points neighborhood shop serves a variety of schmears, spreads and smoked fish to top your freshly made bagel, true to a traditional Jewish deli.

One step into Lucile’s Creole Cafe and you will be transported directly from Denver to New Orleans. The Denver outpost of this Boulder restaurant boasts a large porch and patio just a few blocks from the historic Pearl Street neighborhood. Don’t miss the chicory coffee, the warm beignets or the cajun breakfast for the most authentic Creole experience available in Denver. On the weekends, come early or be prepared to wait – luckily the bar offers mimosas, bloody marys and the New Orleans sazerac to make the time pass quickly.

Illegal Pete’s is a Denver-based, fast-casual Mexican chain specializing in burritos and bowls. While widely known as a lunch spot, Illegal Pete’s serves the best breakfast burrito in town – and at the bargain price of $3.95. The build-your-own set-up starts with a base of eggs and potatoes and the choice of toppings including salsa, guacamole, bacon, chorizo, queso and the famous green chile sauce. Most locations in the city serve breakfast but come early before they switch to lunch.

Located off Santa Fe Drive, Breakfast King is one of Denver’s best diners. The 24-hour establishment serves breakfast favorites all day, perfect for a late-night waffle or early-morning omelet. The orange booths and wood paneling will transport you back to the ’70s at the height of classic diner decor. The extensive menu, affordable prices and generous portions are crowd-pleasers at any hour of the day.

Located steps from the University of Denver’s campus, Pete’s University Park Cafe is the quintessential Greek diner owned by the late Denver restaurateur Pete Contos. Immigrating from Greece in 1956, Contos opened several Greek restaurants throughout Denver and today his family keeps his legend alive by serving traditional staples to the local community. His University Park Cafe is the ideal stop for breakfast. Unpretentious and welcoming, the casual diner is full of young families, local professors and hungover students on any given weekend morning, all eagerly awaiting affordable Greek–American breakfast favorites. The real show-stoppers are the skillets, filled with hash browns and eggs topped with a variety of Greek ingredients such as home-made tzatziki, feta cheese, fresh tomatoes or chicken kabob.

Snooze is a Denver breakfast institution started by brothers Jon and Adam Schlegel in 2006 with a dream of reinventing the morning meal. Today, they oversee a breakfast empire with a cult-like following and a passion for quality, sustainable ingredients. The retro, colorful decor is inviting and is coupled with a friendly staff who serve breakfast favorites with a signature Snooze twist. Five types of eggs benedict, funky takes on French toast and Mexican-inspired egg dishes fill the menu, along with an impressive breakfast cocktail list far beyond standard mimosas and bloody marys. Whatever you order, make sure you get a pancake for the table; the fluffy pancakes come with creative toppings that can’t be missed, inspired by everything from pineapple-upside-down cakes to cinnamon rolls.