11 Breakfast Chains We're About To See Everywhere

Even though dining out for dinner gets the most attention, there's something special about hitting up a great restaurant for your first meal of the day. Whether you're sitting down to a stack of pancakes, enjoying a leisurely brunch, or looking for something quick and easy before heading to work, having a reliable breakfast restaurant can be as much of a joy as it is a convenience. And these days, Americans seem to agree: Revenue from breakfast restaurants and diners in the United States has increased 7.5% in the last half decade and is expected to hit $15.6 billion in 2025, according to market research firm IBISWorld.

Many breakfast chains are taking advantage of this upward trajectory in morning meal enthusiasm with expansion plans of their own. From bustling brunch spots beloved for their Bellinis to international hits making their move in the U.S., there's a decent chance you'll be seeing a lot more of these chains in your neck of the woods — maybe, you'll even find yourself a new favorite. It's time to wake up, smell the coffee, and dig into these burgeoning breakfast restaurants.

In 2022, the chain Keke's Breakfast Cafe was purchased by breakfast giant Denny's. And just a few short years later, Keke's Breakfast Cafe is beginning a new expansion planned for 2025. The chain currently has 140 more locations planned to open in the coming years, which should take the company to roughly 200 locations. The most recent wave of openings in Tennessee, California, Georgia, Texas, Nevada, and Colorado brought restaurants outside the company's home state of Florida for the first time.

And it's not just the number of locations that's changing. Since its acquisition, Keke's is also beginning to revamp its style, with an interior design overhaul that it is beginning to roll out. What you order might also change as the expansion continues, as the company recently revamped its kid's menu, began experimenting with expanded beverage programs, and even started testing some seasonal menu items. It also doesn't hurt that the company is coasting on a gaggle of recent awards from 2024, including taking home iHeartRadio's prize for the best pancakes in Florida.

Things appear to be looking up for Eggs Up Grill. This South Carolina-based breakfast restaurant has seen exponential growth since bringing CEO Ricky Richardson on board in 2018. Then, in 2024, the chain announced plans to open at least 50 additional locations in the coming years. It currently operates 170 locations, which is especially impressive when you find that the chain had only around 20 locations when Richardson took the helm.

There are no plans to pump the brakes on the breakneck expansion, and Richardson says there could be as many as 500 locations soon. Over the course of the last two years, the chain has signed development deals and cut ribbons across the South and Mid-Atlantic, including in Florida, Georgia, Texas, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Mississippi. At this rate, the company's ambitious growth is set to bring its Southern-focused menu to even more markets by the end of the decade.

Quick and easy breakfasts are about to get even easier to come by — especially if you're a fan of French pastries and lattes. Paris Baguette is coming off a busy year in 2025. The company says it opened one cafe per week in 2024 and it expanded to five new states. That brings the total number of North American locations to just over 200. The quick expansion comes as the brand celebrates 16 back-to-back quarters of increased sales.

Naturally, the brand isn't planning on scaling back its ambitions anytime soon. The company says plans are already in place to open about 100 more locations in the U.S. before the end of 2025, approximately doubling the previous year's expansion. The next phase of growth will be focused in different areas throughout the country, including in places like Connecticut, Missouri, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Indiana, Idaho, Delaware, Puerto Rico, and Guam, ultimately aiming to surpass 300 cafes across the continent.

The U.S. isn't the only country with an increasing appetite for breakfast. After opening its first location in 2016, Canadian brunch chain Pür & Simple has grown steadily across eight provinces in its home country. It even had 11 new openings in 2024 alone. Now, after kicking off 2025 on a celebratory note with the opening of its 50th restaurant, the Quebec-based chain is starting to set its sights to the south of the border with plans for an American expansion. The company says it has 29 new U.S. locations in the pipeline, planning to launch in Florida and Texas in 2025.

Pür & Simple takes a familiar yet refined approach to the first meal of the day, with sleek interior design and elevated variations of brunch and breakfast staples. Items include fried chicken eggs Benedict, a Korean sunrise skillet, coconut crunch French toast, Bananaberry waffles, espresso chocolate pancakes, breakfast burritos, a selection of gourmet omelets, and even a breakfast version of Quebec's beloved delicacy, poutine.

Even with more than three successful decades behind it, there's plenty to look out for when it comes to First Watch. The restaurant has become something of a darling in the daytime dining segment, thanks in part to its relatively healthy take on brunch and breakfast. Besides some of its core items like quinoa power bowls, light wraps, and fresh juices, the company also focuses on fresh ingredients used in its seasonal menu (which changes five times each year). This success has translated into some notable adulation, including topping the list of restaurants in Yelp's 50 most-loved brands in 2023.

Now, the company is looking to cash in on the strength of its brand, with some good old-fashioned expansion. Last summer, the burgeoning breakfast chain announced it had over 130 new restaurants in the pipeline that will significantly increase the company's existing footprint of around 530 locations it operates across 30 states. Part of the next phase of the push has involved buying back existing franchises so that they are under the company's direct control. However, the restaurant is also pushing into new markets, including the recent opening of its first New England location and a pair of restaurants in the Las Vegas area slated to fire up the grills in 2025.

To say that social media has transformed the way we experience food is nothing short of an understatement. But while most restaurants hope to just get the word out about a new special or promotion, Fluffy Fluffy Dessert Cafe has been able to turn a knack for viral menu items into a driver for success and expansion. This Japanese-style pancake-focused brunch and breakfast chain just capped off a very busy 2024, having opened locations in Florida, California, and Georgia.

Recently, the brand known for its (surprise, surprise) incredibly fluffy soufflé-style pancakes announced that it plans to open even more U.S. locations in 2025. The new outfits in New Jersey and New York — including one in Manhattan — will add to the company's existing five American locations. It also revealed future plans to expand in Atlanta and across California. Over the course of its growth, the restaurant has also expanded beyond its signature flapjacks, with new dishes such as savory croffles (a croissant-waffle hybrid), specialty burnt-top cheesecakes, and a selection of desserts.

It appears that Another Broken Egg Cafe has ambitions to become another big player in the breakfast restaurant space. In recent years, the company has leaned heavily into franchising to help achieve its goals and expand its footprint. In 2024, it announced that it would be opening at least 13 new locations in the coming years, including restaurants in Kansas and multiple across North Carolina, Texas, and Florida.

Then, in June of 2024, the Louisiana-founded chain said it would be adding three new locations in Northern Virginia, which brought the total number of in-development restaurants for the company to over 100. Compared to its competitors, the white-hot chain stands out for its relatively upscale Southern-style menu, with brunch cocktail offerings and seasonal specials. Diners can expect classics like chicken and waffles, shrimp and grits, and smoked salmon eggs Benedict when they sit down to order, as well as in-house creations like a Mardi Gras omelet and Bourbon Street pancakes.

Don't let the name fool you: Grumpy's Restaurant appears to have nothing but a rosy outlook about its future in the restaurant business. After a quarter of a century of making a name for itself in its home state of Florida, the popular breakfast chain is now looking to widen its presence even more in the Sunshine State. Specifically, the company said in 2024 it was actively looking for more franchise partners to increase its footprint around Jacksonville, while also eyeing Orlando, Gainesville, and St. Augustin. Then, in early 2025, the Grumpy's team said it was now looking to offer its first franchises in Tampa's burgeoning food scene, as well as eyeing expansion into Georgia. 

At the time of writing, the restaurant chain boasts five bustling locations that have earned it a slew of local awards. The chain also proudly adheres to a strict 2 p.m. closing time at all of its locations, which it says helps staff maintain a healthy work-life balance while keeping prices affordable for its customers. It's also ramping up the customer experience, using the second half of 2024 to launch and test a brand-new alcoholic beverage program in some of its most popular locations.

These days, this New Jersey-based chain is living up to its name when it comes to expansion strategy. Turning Point spent 2024 opening doors and putting the final touches on its latest outposts, including announcing two new locations in Virginia set to open early 2025. This is on top of the company already having nearly a dozen new restaurants in the works slated to open before 2026, including three new spots in Pennsylvania, a pair in the company's home state of New Jersey, and more in Connecticut, Maryland, and Florida.

Altogether, the company announced late 2024 it would be adding 40 more locations to its existing 28-restaurant footprint before the end of 2025, which includes entering new markets. The latest surge comes roughly six years after the brand pocketed a considerable investment from a private equity firm. And it's not just new franchises that are fueling the growth: The chain also launched a new location in Ocean Township, New Jersey, that doubles as a menu-testing restaurant and the company's corporate headquarters.

It's not exactly a secret that franchising can be one of the most powerful tools when it comes to quick, successful expansion for a restaurant. That's why it shouldn't be surprising that Wild Eggs has begun to expand its footprint after announcing it was looking for new operating partners across its home state of Kentucky, as well as in Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina, Ohio, South Carolina, Tennessee, and West Virginia. Most recently, the chain opened up a new location in Greenwood, Indiana, marking the seventh location in the state and seventeenth overall.

But that's not all the fast-growing brand has been up to. Late 2024, the company acquired Crazy Bowls & Wraps, a Missouri-based chain that specializes in healthier lunch options. Not long after, the company converted one of its existing Louisville-area Wild Eggs locations into the new concept. However, the chain has no plans to abandon breakfast, announcing it has plans to open at least three more Wild Eggs locations before 2027.

Sometimes, it can take decades for restaurants to recognize their full growth potential. And if recent news is any indication, it would appear that Sunny Street Café has reached this point in its history. The company has built its way up since it was purchased by its current president in 2007. After undergoing a short-lived name change, the chain has since surged to just over 20 locations across Alabama, Illinois, Missouri, Ohio, and Texas. The brand has also managed to earn a reputation for itself by living up to its cheery name, providing unique, family-friendly menu items, and offering catering packages.

Now, the brunch and breakfast outfit is capitalizing on a recent string of strong sales by increasing its current storefront count of nearly two dozen locations across five states. Efforts are primarily focused in the company's home state of Ohio: Late 2024, it announced plans to launch as many as 20 more locales in its home city of Columbus, as well as expanding in Missouri.