The Best Brunch in Jacksonville
Some of the country’s favorite brunch brands actually started right here. Here is where Jacksonville does its biscuits, chicken-and-waffles and breakfast burgers best.
Updated June 2026
Jacksonville has serious brunch pedigree
Here is a thing locals love to drop on out-of-town friends: two of the brunch brands you have probably eaten at in some other city were actually born in Jacksonville. Maple Street Biscuit Company and Metro Diner both got their start on the First Coast before they ever went national, which means when you order a biscuit or a plate of chicken-and-waffles here, you are eating at the source.
That heritage sets the tone for the whole scene. Brunch in Jax leans Southern and unapologetic — buttermilk biscuits the size of your fist, fried chicken, sweet-and-savory plays on maple and bacon — but it is wide enough to fit a breakfast burger washed down with a serious specialty coffee or a crab-cake benedict on a Sunday morning. Below are the spots we send our own out-of-town friends to, plus exactly what to order when you get there.
Pair a slow morning with the rest of the city. When the plates are cleared, our full Where to Eat hub points you toward dinner, and our Things to Do guide fills the hours in between.
The Jax originals
Start here. These two began in Jacksonville and grew into names you already know — which makes the hometown locations a little extra special.
More great mornings
Beyond the famous names, these are the spots locals actually rotate through — from beachy coffee bars to a long-running Five Points Sunday tradition.
Make a whole day of it
Brunch is just the opening act. Here is where to go next once the coffee kicks in.
Where to Eat in Jacksonville
From brunch to seafood shacks to dinner downtown — the complete hub for eating your way through the Bold City.
The Jacksonville Brewery Trail
Bottomless brunch can roll right into a beer flight. Here is how to spend an afternoon on the city’s craft-beer trail.
Mayport Shrimp & Seafood
The other side of the Jax food story: dockside shrimp and fresh-off-the-boat seafood out at Mayport.
San Marco
Walk off brunch around the historic Square — boutiques, the fountain lions and the diner that started it all.
Riverside & Avondale
The leafy historic heart of the brunch scene — Five Points, the Shoppes of Avondale and tree-lined streets to stroll.
Common questions
What brunch restaurants started in Jacksonville?
Two national brunch brands were actually born here: Maple Street Biscuit Company, which started in Jacksonville in 2012, and Metro Diner, whose original location opened on Hendricks Avenue in San Marco in 1992. Eating at the hometown spots means you are ordering at the source.
Where is the original Metro Diner in Jacksonville?
The original Metro Diner is on Hendricks Avenue in the San Marco neighborhood. It has been a brunch institution since 1992 and a longtime Guy Fieri favorite, and the chicken and waffles is the order to get.
What should I order at Maple Street Biscuit Company?
Go for The Sticky Maple: crispy fried chicken, bacon and a drizzle of maple syrup stacked on a scratch-made, slightly sweet biscuit. It hits every salty-sweet note at once and is the order to beat.
Where can I get brunch near Jacksonville Beach?
Southern Grounds & Co. has a Neptune Beach location (plus one in Avondale) that is part coffee bar, part full kitchen. It is the easy answer when one person wants a real meal like the breakfast burger and another just wants a great specialty latte.
Do you need a reservation for brunch in Jacksonville?
Jacksonville brunch is a weekend sport, and lines at the famous spots can stretch long by mid-morning on Saturdays and Sundays. Come early or come hungry-and-patient, especially at Sunday favorites like The Mossfire Grill in Five Points, and always confirm hours with the restaurant before you make the drive.