[BoorishBears]

You could be in a smaller city and have next to no cool places, and have an even bigger line at those fewer cool places.

Then leave for the smaller, but still not short, line at Waffle House instead because it turns out no matter where you are, meal-time rushes are a thing...

[ghaff]

Or you could, you know, make breakfast for your friends. I don’t really get the brunch lines thing. Most of the food is pretty easily made in even a minimal kitchen. (And bread can be bought the day before.)

[icebraining]

I'm guessing people in tiny apartments may not be able or willing to deal with a bunch of friends crowding it in the morning. Or maybe they don't live near each other, so they'd rather brunch near the office. Or would rather brunch during a work pause, rather than before getting to the office.

[ghaff]

What working people have brunches with friends during the week--except perhaps on a very rare basis?

I'll grant the tiny apartments but I'll also observe that, in undergraduate, we had space for a sizable number of people in a shared kitchen area. If where you live once you start working in a tech job is a downgrade from college, personally I consider that a problem.

[BoorishBears]

I mean, this isn't just brunch around here. A dinner spot that would be one step above counter service in a larger city can have a line out the door in a smaller one because there's just that much less competition