Great Breakfasts of Yesteryear - On the Road, in the Air, etc.
 

I mourn the dulling down of Breakfast....

It's been almost 40 years since I recall seeing salt mackerel on a Breakfast menu, the last I remember at the old Menger Hotel in San Antonio. I recall a couple of Gulf Coast hotels which often prepared fried fillets of Speckled Trout for breakfast buffets.

About the most enjoyable moments of most US-based tourist cruises involve the breakfast plates of smoked salmon, admittedly not very good SS, but any SS (or even Gravlax) raises my spirits early in the day.

Grown accustomed to by naval service and only seen once in recent years one morning at the J. W. Marriott in DC, chipped beef in cream sauce, the legendary "Foreskins on Toast".

First experienced a teen, a Sunday morning breakfast in the patio of Club #8, Cd. Acuna, Mexico, dining with the "entertainers", Huevos co Chorizo, the fresh highly seasoned "mostly parts" sausage - vinegar dosed - of Mexico (unlike Spanish chorizo of the Portuguese style of similar name) sauteed and scrambled with eggs. These days, available at Taquerias, in convenient guise, stuffed in a tortilla (for purists, "de mais" not "de harina") with a few chunks of potato.....

"Beaten" biscuits with "real" Country Ham (not the insipid rose-tinted stuff sold as ham these days). A good baguette with ham from places like Parma or Bayona serves well.

Bacon, in many styles and from a variety of cultures, but best of all, thick sliced and crisp, maybe pepper cured, and with plenty of "seconds". With soft airy biscuits, sweet butter and tart plum jam or jelly. Fresh "Country sausage" patties, well seasoned and cooked brown, can be substituted for bacon.

"Cheese Toast" - a healthy slice of sourdough, partly toasted, then buttered lightly and covered with a layer of Sharp melting Cheese, then run under the broiler until bubbling and browned in spots.

"Cheese Grits" - a casserole of cooked grits, beaten eggs, sour cream, sharp cheese, & red or green hot sauce, baked until semi-firm.

Losers.....

Pancakes lathered with cornstarch-thickened fruit fillings, especially when slathered in whipped cream, fake or real. I continue to be of mixed emotions toward some Dutch pancakes, remaining a member of the "Not Ready for Fried Egg" Club

Most waffles, over-rated, over-sweetened and over-here.

Most Eggs Benedict, Sardou, and similar. Only in New Orleans and furrin imitations never quite make the grade.

Most hotel buffet omelets. Ambition outweighs quality.

Any scrambled eggs prepared more than 3 eggs at a time, or held for more than 60 seconds after coming from the pan. I want scrambled. If I wanted them vulcanized, I'd have ordered "Rubber Eggs".

Corn Flakes - Even Eve's Apple would not make them edible, the same flavor which would come from frying chips of the heavy paper covering sheet rock/gypsum board..
Grape Nuts & Raisin Bran are the "Breakfasts of Avatars"

Oh great. Now I'm starving. Thanks a lot. :mad:

:D ;)

I <3 cream chipped beef.

I also love sausage gravy-n-biscuits, which I haven't had in years.

Hmm, I wonder why Americans are morbidly obese ?:confused:

The three best breakfast places in America, in my personal experience:

Lou Mitchell's in Chicago--great atmosphere and cinnamon rolls the size of a dinner plate. Great coffee, too.

Moody's Diner, Waldoboro, Maine--Go in the fall; you can't beat autumn in New England. Had breakfast there one morning (pancakes, I'm fairly sure) and came back a couple days later for lopstah chowdah. The Downeast pronunciation of my first name, when shouted over a roomful of waiting patrons, is hysterical. :D

Loveless Cafe, Nashville--the best country ham and biscuits anywhere, and it's right around the corner from where I used to live; people would travel hundreds of miles to have their photos taken in front of the sign, and it was my neighborhood restaurant. I miss it. :(

I just want a decent omelet. I can't find any breakfast place in NYC that I truly enjoy--the diner omelets are all too big, greasy, and tasteless. I also miss "skillets" which I could get in the midwest but can't find here.

Well, I seriously doubt it was from the breakfasts described. 40 years ago, people ate very differently. Note that TMOliver's list is protein heavy, and mostly savory not sweet. Compare that with all the empty, sweet carb we consume today. On a hot summer day, an 8-oz bottle of Coke (made with real sugar) was a rare treat, now the 44-oz, corn syrup sweetened drink is the norm, and folks consume them all day, every day. People mostly ate at home, imbibing smaller portions and recycling leftovers till they were gone. Even for upper middle class families it would be rare if they ate meat at every meal. Now the only meal not getting a heavy dose of meat is breakfast, where we like our sweetened cereals and high-fat granola bars for their convenience.

What TMOliver is describing is not everyday eating, but eating in better hotels or on planes of yesteryear. A special treat, because the cost of travel was so high.

I love creamed chipped beef aka SOS. I used to get it homemade as a kid, and while I think Stouffer's makes a decent rendition, it's just not the same.

While we allow a significant amount of latitude as to the subject matter of OMNI threads, we also like to promote the use of other threads on FlyerTalk.

And this thread sounds ideally suited for our popular DiningBuzz! forum.

So please prepare to chow down and follow the thread at it's new home.

Thanks.


___________________

Cholula
OMNI Co-Moderator

What were the beaten biscuits like?

I used to read recipes for beaten biscuits and think, someday. . . . But it always sounded like too much work.

I haven't done it in years, but it's not hard to make. You need to find the jar of Armour chipped beef at the grocery store, which I cannot. Then, a white sauce, seasoned as you like (maybe black pepper, paprika, salt). I love the stuff, have only eaten it at home other than what was served at summer camp in the 60's. I admit to succumbing to the convenience of Stouffers and won't complain about the quality or taste, but I do grind a lot of pepper over it or add Cholula.

At 69, 6'2" and a hair over 200 with acceptable BP and blood sugar levels, I suspect I may be healthier than you (or relatively so as a matter of age). I am a little creaky, but 7 decades will do that to you.

Living in Southern California may be worse for your health than sausage....

i miss rascal house in miami....

To those with sea time, "SOS" is something else, almost like "Sloppy Joes",served over toast for breakfast. Chipped Beef, now available in vacuum packets instead of jars, was used for "Foreskins on Toast" in the wardrooms in which I dined.

Then there was the classic Saturday breakfast when "Captain's Inspection" was scheduled forthe ship's spaces before Liberty Call. Baked beans and hard-boiled eggs. Followed by an afternoon/evening on the beach drinking beer, the local level of flatulence exceeded allowable levels.

Same with freshly cooked bacon. I don't bother ordering it in NYC anymore.

I think most NYC diners have a rule that bacon should be partially cooked yesterday and then barely reheated before serving

Grannie's in Starke, FL still serves ham steak with the bone in ^^
Youder's and Troyer's in SRQ have a great sausage gravy w/home made biscuits ^^

Bon appetit :)

My votes go to the following:

JoAnne's Cafe in South San Francisco

and

Walker Brothers Original Pancake House (several locations in Suburban Chicago)

. . . and the one in Boca :(

Memories of The Moana
 

Lazing on the Banyan Veranda early in the morning with Eggs Volga, and a lovely rendition of "As Time Goes By" being played on the harp. The ocean calm and infinite shades of blue...a feast for all the senses.

http://www.globalgourmet.com/food/sp...fast/eggs.html

This sounds like my experiences with SOS. My dad was ex-navy, so my mom would make it for us once in a while. I love it!

However, when I make it with the jar of beef, I would run it under warm water to get rid of some of the excess salt. Using it straight up is way too salty.

Since WM has changed distribution centers in the mid-atlantic region (I'm in southern WV), I've been able to get both the Esskay and Knaus brands of chipped beef in the meat section. Both are much better to me than the jarred beef. Neither brand is too salty, and Esskay actually makes a low sodium version, which I often use. I'd rather add a touch of salt than have it too salty.

I agree with you, BamaVol... I have to have a lot of freshly ground pepper on it.

I miss Gorkey's in downtown Los Angeles, where I could get a breakfast of Matzo Brei or their Siberian omelet (chicken livers, onions, and mushrooms with a dollop of sour cream) after a too early trip to the wholesale flower market. (it was across the street)

Odd you say that. My father was Navy and he always called it "SOS", though he would just say the three words and not the acronym. I have never until now heard it called "Foreskins on Toast", nor did I ever think calling it "S&%! on a Shingle" would sound more appetizing.

Yes, Loveless in BNA is still good for country ham breakfasts, and for lunches too (love their chicken livers :D), but a couple of decades ago the family migrated toward Wendell Smith's on Charlotte Pike for the communal breakfast fix. To me, it's both the quintessential breakfast joint and the best meat'n'three (even better than the nearby Sylvan Park) in BNA. Regrettably, it's on the other side of town from the airport (as is Loveless) so a car rental with GPS would be in order for access to casual visitors.

I remember back in the early '80s, regularly hitting a nondescript breakfast spot downtown in BNA near City Hall for biscuits and gravy before work, with a side of sliced tomatoes. It left me with a sense of probity and direction after such an unctuous morning meal that lasted me the whole day. Older now, sometimes I yearn for that same sense.

Ponder for a moment the visual image of the two recipes.....

There's simply no "S" in a vision of chipped beef in cream sauce, while the sauteed ground beef with tomatoes/sauce, seasoning, does have a "S"ie sort of look about it.

The debate has been played out in other forums, once subject to high volume, frequency and extreme emotion over on alt.folklor.urban.

Next, you'll be claiming that officers and crew serve "on" a ship, not "in" it.

I was never much for SOS (the dark sort), but sought out the "adobo" the Mess Stewards cooked for themselves, the "MidRat" of Champions, guaranteed to keep you alert thru the long, dark 0000-0400 on the Bridge.

There were a few of those downtown--the Pie Wagon and the US Diner (next to the then-Post Office) come to mind.

In Boca Raton Florida try "Boca Breakfast & Lunch Club." The best breakfast in South Florida without question.

171 SE Mizner Blvd
Boca Raton, FL 33432
(561) 362-0018

A total dive/dump but the food is amazing.

We were in TN this past weekend and had country ham from a place in Murfreesboro that was the best I ever ate. Brought a bunch of it home. Then our friend made wonderful beaten buttermilk biscuits too. Man, they know good eating!

For me, warm eggs works. Of course...

• If it's scrambled eggs, make sure it's slightly moist and delicate. No powdered eggs, last night's puke or something that has the same consistency as a tyre which has been figuratively put in a blender.
• If it's boiled or poached eggs, if you want to bake the yolk, fine, but again - no rubber eggs!
• If it's fried eggs, make sure I'm getting an egg, not a 0.1mm-thick crispy-fried coupon that looked like an egg.

Outside of the US - and certainly in Australia - rarely sports the colourful dishes you so list. Although I have seen some breakfast buffets making a distinct difference between American bacon and English bacon. Personally I can't quite tell (or taste) the difference.

Most of the "losers" you quote are not bad foods - but their preparation requires a delicate hand and an intricate mind that is - naturally, of course - in severe short supply. These are the ones you can't stuff up, otherwise you might as well toss it in the bin unless someone is really, really hungry.

I refer to things like pancakes, waffles, eggs Benedict, omelettes and scrambled eggs.

Corn Flakes seems to be everywhere. In Australia, you'll always find Corn Flakes, Sultana Bran and mixed museli (usually a combination of museli and sultanas).

Stuff that lacks severely in many breakfast offerings:

• Something else besides white bread, e.g. wholewheat bread.
• If I say I do not want butter on the toast, I mean it! What's wrong with leaving the butter on the side?
• Bacon which has greater than 20% of real meat on the rasher.
• Some warm vegetables with a warm breakfast is nice, e.g. mushrooms (not mushroom water!) or spinach. Baked potatoes and hash browns do not count!
• If you're going to offer spaghetti or baked beans, could you offer something that doesn't taste sickly sweet?

One of the better breakfasts Mrs. Italy and I have seen was at the Hilton Barcelona Hotel. At least eight different types of bread, the best freshly squeezed OJ we've tasted (and we live in FL), a variety of cold and cooked meats, and fresh and cooked veggies.

As much as I miss "Great Breakfasts of Yesteryear", I look forward to an upcoming trip to Hungary, Austrai and the Czech Republic. I've always thought that some of the best hotel breakfasts in my life were in Germany, cold meats and cheeses being a real treat (as long as there was something beyond that increasing trend to set out for toasting what we Southern 'Merkins call "Store-Bought Light Bread", actually made from unused wall paper paste dehydrated and baked in loaves).

Then there's France, especially in smaller tiowns/cafes, where one still finds local bread and what I recall as almost soup bowls of cafe au lait for drinking and dipping.

Then there's:

"Start your day the Italian way! Cafe Correto!" (sp?), that little alcohol boost that works better than a Bllody Mary.

It's entirely possible that the name of the dish evolved as it passed from the ship to the home and then passed down generations. I could not imagine my grandmother ever using the word foreskin in reference to something she cooked. :D

Ahh, bella Italia :)

I always like walking through the small towns with my nose following the scent of freshly baked bread and purchasing something for breakfast. Nothing better :D

Unless your gradmother spent part of her hitch messcooking, she would be unlikely to have heard it....

Now, on the otherhand, if in her youth she carried on with marine(s), she might have heard of SOS.:D

I've been pleasantly surprised by the upgraded BA Club World Full English breakfast. Gloucester Old Spot sausage and decent bacon. No fan of scrambled egg but this stuff is just about edible.

Breakfast for me is my favourite meal of the day especially when travelling.The only thing I look forward to when staying in a hotel is the breakfast and I have to say (and I'm not being biased about this) by far the best hotel breakfast I have had was in the Hilton in Edinburgh. The choice was outstanding and there was something for everyone,they even had a bottle of Whisky out next to the pot of porridge. ^

One other breakfast that sticks in my mind was during a cycle camping tour in Estonia just after the Russians gave up and left. I pitched my tent in a farm where the owners supplied breakfast which was included in the fee for camping. I was the only "guest" and out in the garden on a lovely sunny summers morning the table was set for me.
The farmers wife just kept coming with food. Fresh yoghurt,natural berry juice,cereals with fresh milk,bacon,eggs,a type of sweet cake thing made with honey from their hives,home made jam and crusty bread.So many things I've forgotten the rest and all produced on the farm which was the best thing about it.
The price of it all left me feeling somewhat embarrassed and I would gladly have paid many times over what I was asked for. I can still remember that morning as if it were yesterday so fond are my memories are of that stay and the kindness shown to me during my time there.

Nowadays you get real, sometimes very good quality meats and cheeses in Deutschland. In the late 70s when I first lived there with my family it was all horrible pre-packaged industrial melts. Maybe the influx of Italians and other foreigners into German gastronomy has had a positive effect?

Speaking of great breakfasts, anyone found great even good breakfast inside LHR T5?

Cheers

I've read Gordon Ramsays Plane Food at T5 is not bad at all.

Sears Restaurant, 439 Powell St in San Francisco has always been consistent in serving a great breakfast - always a line in the mornings.

Very pricey, but good service and mostly tasty food.