Diner breakfast! Whatcha having?

American cheese omelette, home fries, rye toast — extra butter and no jam. Side of sausages. Large V-8 or tomato juice with lemon on the side. Ice water. Probably no coffee, ‘cause I already had it at home.

It’s an INDULGENT breakfast, we only have it a few times a year! What’s your’s?

(Obviously, I’m a savory breakfast guy. Feel free to tuck into the pancakes or waffles or heaps of fruit and sugared yogurt)

Usually just 2 eggs over medium, bacon, wheat toast or hashbrowns extra crispy.

No thanks, I’ll find a proper cafe where I can get actual espresso. Diners, and drip coffee, are an abomination.

I’ll have a bacon, egg and cheese sandwich plus hash browns, please. Mayo on the side.

Chicken-fried steak and eggs, hash browns, biscuits and gravy, OJ, coffee light and sweet.

This. Except with rye toast and coffee.

2 eggs over easy, white toast toasted to a deep brown (or cinnamon raisin toast) slathered with butter, and 10 strips of bacon.

Ooooo, I’ll amend mine to rye as well. Though just water for me.

Two eggs scrambled, sausage, hashbrowns, wheat toast and a glass of milk.

If I’m especially famished, I’ll add OJ and a short stack of pancakes.

Either eggs benedict or corned beef hash with basted eggs. Coffee, spicy V-8.

OOOOOOOOOO nice. Hard for me to find chicken fried steak for breakfast in Brooklyn, though, or decent biscuits and gravy anytime. Or scrapple, for that matter.

Only a few hours drive south to Philly to have scrapple for breakfast…I’ll have to consider that.

Western hashbrowns and toast (ww) and coffee.

Biscuits and gravy, if it looks like the kind of place that makes them from scratch. Otherwise, short stack, and try to scope out other diners’ plates to see what the hog choices look like. Failing that, over-easy with whole wheat toast and search all the tables for a little plastic box with strawberry jam.

A ham and cheese omelet and hash browns (which I will put ketchup on). Wheat toast (which I will put jam on). Hot tea, no milk or sugar.

Weirdly, most NYC coffee shop corned beef hash comes out of a can.

Weirdly, I still love it. I should do this as a HOME breakfast. Heat up some of the canned stuff, poach a couple of cage free farm eggs…

Two eggs, over easy, ham, a biscuit and gravy, with a bowl of grits on the side. Coffee, cream and sugar.

Once served, eat eggs, ham, and biscuit and gravy, with sprinklings of hot sauce. Ignore grits, and finish plate, but leave swaths of egg yolk, gravy, and tiny bits of ham behind.

Now pick up plate and scrape leftovers onto bowl of grits. Add more hot sauce, salt, pepper, and pats of butter. Mix carefully. Ignore stares or share banter with fellow diners as you scrape, add, and mix.

Enjoy with refills of coffee.

A waffle with butter and syrup, and two eggs, usually scrambled, once in a while over medium. And lots and lots of plain black coffee.

And when I leave I always take a toothpick from the counter and chew on it a while.

Crispy corned beef hash with a poached egg on top, sourdough toast.

One of three options:

  • Country-fried steak and scrambled eggs
  • Biscuits and gravy
  • Omelet with sausage, bacon, spinach, and cheddar cheese

Sides would be hash browns (extra crispy), and either whole-wheat toast or an English muffin. Coffee to drink (cream and Splenda).

Central Illinois didn’t have a whole lot going for it, but it did have haystacks. As in, a pile of hashbrowns topped with a split biscuit, sausage, fried eggs, and a whole lot of sausage gravy.

Mmmmmmm.