RESTO RECO: This is the perfect new spot for a low-key Euro-inspired patio brunch in Toronto

There may not be any Eggs Benny on the menu, but at one of Toronto’s newest brunch spots, it’s possible you might not actually have to fight for a spot on the patio on a weekend morning.

Cafe Gigi is the cafe component of a new combination concept that’s a coffee shop by day and a bar called The Dirty Laundry at night.

While the cafe space is adorable but tight, the coffee shop still opens up the large side patio during the day for sipping coffee, cocktails and snacking on small bites. The patio is first come, first serve, and has a range of casual seating.

It’s a system that can be a tiny bit confusing at first, but is ultimately super chill: simply order your coffee and cocktails and carry them out to the patio. While this means there’s no table service, it also means you don’t have to deal with a lot of the little details of a typical brunch, like lining up for a table and waiting to be seated.

While there may not necessarily be Eggs Benny and three egg breakfasts on the menu at Cafe Gigi, the coffee shop still has more than enough options to sate your early morning hunger, and maybe even cure your hangover (perhaps with the help of a little hair of the dog).

The food menu is short but sweet: larger options include a Spanish tortilla of egg and potato served with a creamy sauce on the side, or a breakfast sandwich with baked egg, chive dill mayo and bacon on white bread. For a lighter eggy brekky, there are “Gigi Bites,” with the option of bacon and egg or egg white and spinach.

Continuing on throughout the day, for a snack with your cocktail there are cute stracciatella boquerones, little crostini topped with stracciatella cheese and white anchovy, which are creamy, crunchy and briny.

For something to go with your coffee, there’s sugar pie and flan in rotating flavours (a grapefruit version is punchy and sinfully sweet) plus a daily selection of pastries that might include muffins, cookies and brownies.

All the usual coffee options are on deck, plus some more trendy choices such as an iced matcha with strawberry cold foam. If you’re looking for an afternoon cocktail, there are plenty of great selections for day drinking, like nitro espresso martinis and Hugo Spritzes.

Cafe Gigi is now open at 1186 Queen St. W.