Best brunch
Gone are the days when plain old breakfast was what was for brunch. Now savvy chefs treat the inherent indeterminacy of the late-morning meal as an opportunity for experimentation. Take the Blue Room, whose Sunday buffet has long been the standard for Beantown's eclectic eateries. In its decidedly non-blue surroundings, you'll savor such funky signatures as hot salted head-on shrimp, sweet plantains with chipotle ketchup, couscous-like fregola with chickpeas, and even whole roasted lamb. What you won't find is the same old, same old. And to that, you can truly say amen.

Meanwhile, when it comes to Tremont 647, you can say ditto. Thanks to Andy Husbands's sense of culinary adventure, leisurely brunches at this South End hang would be memorable even if servers and patrons alike weren't sporting pajamas for the duration. Aside from the compulsory dumplings called momos, devotees opt for the fab, and surprisingly elegant, breakfast pizza or seasonally souped-up pancakes (currently apple with cranberry syrup). And what can you say about co-winner Centre Street Café? That what it lacks in culinary audacity when compared to the other two, it makes up for in reliability - with an emphasis on organic products, vegetarian options, and Southwestern flavors - and infectious good cheer.

The Blue Room, 1 Kendall Square, Cambridge, (617) 494-9034, www.theblueroom.net; Tremont 647, 647 Tremont Street, Boston, (617) 266-4600, www.tremont647.com; Centre Street Café, 669A Centre Street, Jamaica Plain, (617) 524-9217.