The Gilbert House: Family Brunch in a 1920s Sears Home, Now in Its Second Generation
This week's hidden gem is The Gilbert House, the breakfast-and-brunch staple that has been filling bellies in Gilbert since 2004, all from inside an original 1920s Sears kit home in Farmhouse Village. Founder Susan Wright grew up on a South Dakota dairy farm, and that farmhouse heart is all over the menu: fresh-baked bread, homemade pickles and jams, and all-natural buffalo from her sister's ranch. In April 2025, Susan handed the restaurant to her niece Caitlin Erickson, who got her start here as a server, and the family story just keeps going. It is the kind of place that makes Gilbert feel like a small town, and we are thrilled to share it.
A 1920s Sears Home With a Farmhouse Heart
The Gilbert House sits at 397 S Gilbert Road inside Farmhouse Village, a cluster of shops and eateries built around vintage farmhouse charm. The restaurant operates out of an original kit-built Sears Craftsman home, and that is not a theme, it is the actual building, a piece of early 20th century Americana that has been serving eggs and pancakes for two decades now.
Susan Wright opened the restaurant in 2004 after years in the restaurant business, and she brought her Midwestern farm roots with her. She grew up on a dairy farm in South Dakota, and the menu reads like a farmhouse kitchen: fresh-baked bread, homemade pickles and jams, and free-range buffalo raised on her sister's ranch back home. That is the whole point of the place, honest food made from scratch, served in a room that feels like someone's grandmother's kitchen.
What to Order
Breakfast and brunch are the show, served daily from 7:00 a.m. until 2:00 p.m. The pancakes are the headliner, and Susan's Apple Pancakes are the order the regulars know by name. The quiche is built on Susan's butter crust, the biscuits and gravy are the real thing, and the country fried steak has a devoted following. Lunch leans on classic sandwiches, the BLT and the chicken and tuna salads, plus the free-range buffalo burger that carries that South Dakota ranch story straight to your plate.
- Susan's Apple Pancakes, the signature stack the regulars order
- Quiche with Susan's butter crust, biscuits and gravy, and country fried steak
- Free-range buffalo burgers and classic sandwiches, with fresh bread baked in-house
A Family Business, Passed With Care
The best part of the Gilbert House story is what happened in April 2025: after more than 21 years at the stove, Susan Wright passed the restaurant to her niece, Caitlin Erickson. Caitlin moved to Arizona from Philadelphia about two decades ago, got her start at the Gilbert House as a server, and after college and starting a family of her own, she came back to buy the place. The food, the recipes, and the farmhouse spirit all stayed, and the handoff kept a Gilbert institution in the family.
That is why the Eastside should show up for the Gilbert House. Every plate supports a family business that has been part of Gilbert for more than two decades, one that chose to pass the torch to the next generation rather than sell out. In a town growing as fast as Gilbert, places like this are how a community keeps its soul. Go for the apple pancakes, stay for the farmhouse porch, and tell Caitlin the Eastside sent you.
An original 1920s Sears kit home, a founder who grew up on a South Dakota dairy farm, and a niece who started as a server and came back to buy the place: the Gilbert House is a family business in the truest sense, and it has been feeding Gilbert since 2004.
Stop in for breakfast or brunch any day of the week, and save room for Susan's Apple Pancakes. The Gilbert House is at 397 S Gilbert Road, Suite 170, in Gilbert's Farmhouse Village, open daily from 7:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., and you can browse the menu and the full family story at gilberthouserestaurant.com.
This week's hidden gem is part of our Small Business Spotlight series, where we introduce the independent shops, cafes, and makers that give the Eastside its character. Know a small business we should feature next? Send Tricia a note.
Know an Eastside Small Business We Should Feature?
Nominate your favorite local shop, cafe, or maker in Gilbert, Chandler, Mesa, or Scottsdale. We would love to tell their story.