The quest for weekend brunch in Boston is one fraught with obstacles. The recommended mimosa-infused Beacon Hill and Newbury Street hotspots require abundant funds, and competition for a table with families wielding strollers as weapons is fierce. Most fast-food joints stop serving their plastic-y egg sandwiches before noon. BROOKLINE LUNCH, the cramped, hole-in-the-wall Central Square restaurant, is the solution. Brookline Lunch is perfect in its imperfection. Yes, you might endure a half-hour wait, hovering awkwardly over a stranger’s Eggs Benedict leftovers. Yes, there is only one server, usually a harried, perspiring waitress, bouncing frantically between tables. But these are Brookline Lunch’s essential charms — they’re as vital as its all-day breakfast service, which includes eggs, pancakes, hash browns laden with perfectly-seasoned veggies, and other breakfast musts, with most entrées priced under $5. It’s neither fast nor upscale, but it’s cheap and tasty (cue a communal sigh of relief).

BROOKLINE LUNCH | 9 Brookline Street, Cambridge | 617.354.2983