Brunch — it’s one of the most tempting weekend meals we can treat ourselves to, offering special menu items you don’t easily find other times of the week. Part breakfast, part lunch, and all delicious, there’s no meal quite like it.

You may associate it with a lazy start to the weekend, mimosas, and bloody marys after church. And that’s not wrong, but it’s not all there is to the story. Brunch has a fascinating history.

According to the History Channel’s website, brunch hearkens back to fox hunting days, when upper-class British people would take a break between chasing small wildlife to enjoy an indulgent late morning meal featuring meats, eggs, and alcohol. Eventually, brunch made its way to Chicago, where celebrities and other big wigs stayed overnight during coast-to-coast train trips during the days before planes became a common form of transportation.

Now, it’s a meal that Green Country loves enjoying on weekends with friends and family.

A sweet cinnamon roll can be disguised as a meal. Mixed drinks can be ingested before noon. Your Sunday’s finest or haggard sweatpants are both acceptable at most places. It’s almost a wild terrain.

Food is such a central part of our community, and the meal of brunch combines eating with a social hour aspect that just a regular lunch or dinner don’t touch. Brunch isn’t to be enjoyed alone, but surrounded by friends, family, a significant other, or even a date.

Whether you serve up your Saturday morning meal with bottomless mimosas or coffee and Tylenol, we’ve got some options for you. For this article, we’re defining brunch pretty narrowly. The restaurants we’re highlighting here either have a special brunch menu that is different from their breakfast or lunch menus, or they are known for being a go-to place during midmorning into early afternoon on Saturdays or Sundays.

We invite you to wake up to smell the hash browns and dive in forks first to brunch.

When you’re ready to have a wonderfully flavorful, palate-pleasing experience with your meal, you know you can count on Asian restaurants to deliver. Delightful dishes presented with artistic touches of flair and vibrant pops of color invite a foodie to linger over their plates and enjoy the experience of eating well. Tulsans know this to be true, which is why some of the best Asian restaurants in Tulsa have been around forever and aren’t going anywhere any time soon.

For the most part, Asian restaurants keep it simple — meat, rice, and veggies. But what sets it apart from the other food categories is the fantastic combinations of herbs and spices that send our taste buds into the heavens. Ingredient after ingredient is combined in complete harmony, in a way the average person at home in the kitchen can’t replicate.

The diverse flavors of Asian cuisine are abundant in Green County. The area is home to seemingly countless sushi bars, pan-Asian bistros, Chinese eateries, Vietnamese restaurants and beyond. If you’re in the mood for sashimi, makis, dim sum, pad Thai or pho, the choices are sure to delight. Asian dining establishments range from laid-back and casual to formal and high-end.

Check out any one of these Asian food establishments, and you’ll understand what we’re talking about.

Ever stop to think about why we love buffet restaurants so much? In part, it’s because we love getting a good deal. The idea of unlimited food for a set price is kind of hard to argue with, especially when we love the restaurant. If you enjoy shrimp and the buffet serves it, it’s time to eat all the shrimp you can. If it’s pizza your heart desires, then eating slice after slice of that delicious pepperoni with cheese is pure heaven.

Another reason we’ve fallen for buffets is that they’re quick. Walk into one, and you can have a piping hot plate of your favorite food sitting right in front of you, ready to be devoured, lickety-split. In some restaurants, you might be lucky to get an appetizer in 15 minutes, much less the food you came in for.

Perhaps the reason most of us like the buffet is because it offers variety. In the early 1900s, Sweeden introduced the smorgasbord. What started as a plethora of cheese and meat and other finger food items in Europe, 100 years later has turned into the all-out buffet in the United States.

In Tulsa, we love trying all sorts of food and drink. Walking into a restaurant with the chance to try every last thing on the menu is paradise.

And from time to time, there’s something undeniably satisfying about a meal that doesn’t end until you decide it should. When no matter how much you eat, it costs the same. And where no one’s going to judge you for grabbing yet another plate, since you’re all there on the same mission.

This area is filled with such endless experiences, from casino buffets to all-you-can-eat Asian joints, Brazilian steakhouses to bottomless breakfasts. So, strap on a bib, use a napkin, tip your server, and check out our 27 favorite all-you-can-eats.

America’s insane love affair with its Italian cuisine is as alive and kicking as ever. Green Country’s enthusiastic restaurant scene is evidence of that. If you don’t think Tulsans appreciate Italian cooking, think again. We love it all — pizza out the wazoo; plate after plate of bruschetta; lasagna layer upon layer; spicy meatballs; veal parmigiana — all served with tons of zesty Italian sausage and garlic, garlic and, dare we say, more garlic. Let’s not forget all our favorite cheeses piled on top — provolone, gorgonzola, ricotta, and mozzarella, to name just a few.

Is your mouth watering yet? Well, let us tempt you with what comes after you eat your dinner. We’re talking the good stuff, like cannolis, gelato, and zeppoles. These are desserts we thank the heavens for. And remember, you can top it all off with excellent Italian wine, amaretto, Sambuca or a quick shot of espresso.

So what were our classifications for an Italian restaurant? A prevalence of Italian or Italian-inspired dishes on the menu? Of course. We were OK with pizzerias. We were also good with restaurants that are Italian-inspired. A great Italian restaurant has many of the same standards that make any restaurant great: impeccable service, high-quality food sourced from the finest purveyors, creative-yet-classic preparation and craftsmanship, and an overall experience that leaves you happy and content in the fact that you just ate a world-class meal.

Some of our favorite Italian restaurants made their reputations on outstanding wine lists. Others go beyond Tuscan or Roman cuisine to acquaint diners with the pleasures of culinary traditions from other regions of the boot-shaped country.

What’s certain is that each of these 40 restaurants is a destination worth checking off your list.