By Brandon Rodriguez

Tre Kronor Restaurant

When going out for brunch on a beautiful day in Chicago, one hardly ever thinks, “Scandinavian sounds good.”  However, upon visiting Tre Kronor Restaurant in the cute North Park neighborhood, that may just become the first thing you think of when waking up in the morning.  Everything is made from scratch, from the breads to the desserts all the way to the scrumptious omelets.

You may be a little underwhelmed by the look of the adorably hand-written menu, but have no fear.  Your server should ask if you’d like to hear the specials of the day, and do not hesitate to say yes, as you will not be disappointed.  Not only do they have a set menu, but they also have one that rotates daily. So if nothing strikes you immediately, I promise one of those specials will.

On my visits, I always have a difficult time choosing my meal.  There is so much to choose from, including house made sausages, fresh omelets, and the Vanilla and Orange French Toast.  They even have amazing lunch options, like a delicious Reubenssen sandwich  and fresh quiche.  I decided to go with the Koben Ham Omelet, which includes Danish bleu cheese and sautéed spinach with a side of seasoned breakfast potatoes and white toast. My father had the traditional Two Eggs, Potatoes, Bacon and Toast.  We also ordered the Belgian Waffle with fresh strawberries, blueberries, sliced banana and powdered sugar, whipped cream on the side.

If you’re visiting Tre Kronor in the summer you must sit on the beautiful patio.  The garden is filled with colorful flowers and tall trees for extra shading in case the sun is too strong.  They have just recently expanded the entire space, adding a second dining room on the second floor of the main building, as well as extra seating outside including a cute little hut.  It is still a bit of a work in progress, but, by the looks of it, when it is finished it will be stunning.

When our food arrived, I had a hard time starting to eat because the presentation was so beautiful, but I was starving, so I dug right in!  I have to say, Tre Kronor is one of the only places where you can get an omelet this beautiful.  No weird brown burnt marks here!  The flavors were phenomenal, but my only wish was for a bit more cheese since the spinach seemed to overpower it.  The potatoes were delightful, as usual, and I have to tell you about the toast!  It comes out freshly made, hot and already buttered.  Each table even has its own small selection of different flavored jams, such as raspberry, orange spice, and blackberry.  I also had a bite of my father’s bacon, and it was some of the best I’ve had in a long time.  If you enjoy a bit drier, crunchier, saltier bacon, this is your place. We were both staring at empty plates at the end of the meal.

Now onto the waffle. Those chefs have their work cut out for them because just about everyone had one on their table.  The waffles are piled high with strawberries, blueberries, and sliced bananas.  Syrup is almost not needed because the whipped cream adds that needed sweetness.  The waffle is delicate, fluffy, and as big as my head.  I thought I couldn’t eat anymore, but I found a few more buttons on my pants to loosen.

Tre Kronor is the ideal brunch location, with not just many options to munch on, but also with many choices of where to sit.  You can’t ask for a better place to enjoy your meal than a gorgeous outdoor patio.  Make sure when you go to also try some of their specialty sodas!