Brookline Lunch

Before you actually eat at Brookline Lunch, you may find it hard to imagine why people brave the long weekend waits for a table and even longer waits for their food -- especially when the staff doesn't always make the process more tolerable. But the answer is simple: it's the food, which is dirt-cheap and very good.

Brookline Lunch cooks up breakfasts with a lot less grease than its diner-style counterparts. Delicious eggs benedict with hash browns ($3.95) is the most expensive breakfast platter; other standouts are the airy omelets ($2.95 to $3.50), and the big, slightly crispy waffles ($2.75). Pancakes ($2.50), french toast ($2.75), and large side dishes of sausage, bacon, toast, eggs, or hash browns ($1.75 to $3.25) are also available. Most breakfast dishes come with a dill-flavored medley of cooked spinach, carrots, onions, peppers, and tomatoes. There's also a full lunch menu available, consisting mostly of sandwiches, salads, and pasta ($1.95 to $5.95).

Brookline Lunch, located at 9 Brookline Street (Central Square), in Cambridge, is open daily from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Call 354-2983.

-- Theresa Regli