Brunch Bites: mas and Chicken Shop

In this week's batch of brunch bites, mas launches brunch service and Soho House beckons brunch at Chicken Shop. 

(Chilaquiles at mas)

Want more brunch? The latest entrant to Chicago's colossal brunch scene is mas. The modern Mexican restaurant in the West Loop hones in on spicy, scintillating flavors for their next weekend menus, which roll out August 23 from 11:00 a.m. until 3:00 p.m. Expect two kinds of chilaquiles, pozole, huevos rancheros, cajeta-sweetened French toast, and hot cakes with rosemary butter and piloncillo syrup. Mas is also cooking up unique originals like the verdolagas (braised pork, tomatillo sauce, chorizo Scotch egg, pumpkin flower, homemade tortillas), huitlacoche quiche, and molletes made with ciabatta, black bean truffle puree, chorizo, and cilantro sprouts. To drink, there's Bloody Marys, prickly pear bellinis, micheladas, tamarind daiquiris, and more. Plus, the first 50 people to visit mas for brunch this weekend each day receive a complimentary order of chilaquiles rojo. #MASFIRST50. 

In case you live under a rock, Soho House opened its largest location in the world in Chicago. And with it came public restaurants such as Chicken Shop, which marks the first U.S. location for the London-based restaurant. Sourcing chickens from an Indiana farm and preparing them meticulously to ensure the rotisserie-focused menu is concise and delicious, the restaurant does a dutiful job shining the spotlight on poultry in a new way. i.e. in a way that is not just fried chicken. Following the advent of dinner service, Chicken Shop is now serving weekend brunch as well, featuring a focused menu of chicken-centric dishes such as poached egg and avocado on toast, fried chicken and waffles, corn hash, and egg gravy. Egg gravy! And of course, those rotisserie birds will be on deck all day long. 

- Matt Kirouac