Favorite Breakfast spots..... | Heather Email | 04-Aug-2005 19:32
I'm rather new around here, so I apologize in advance if this has been done already! Just curious where you fabulous foodies like to go out for breakfast??? It's an eternal quest of ours...lol...Thanks in advance!

My husband is from Jersey, and while we have found the best examples of acceptable pizza and bagels, a real diner has been a fruitless search. HHmmmm maybe we should go into business?!?

    
Wagner's | Ron Johnson | 05-Aug-2005 13:14
This is very much along the lines of an old school diner located within an old pharmacy next door to Churchill Downs. I eat breakfast there a lot. Very good, cooked to order, diner-style breakfasts. Lunches are also very good.

    
Favorite Breakfast spots..... | Gayle DeMersseman Email | 04-Aug-2005 22:25
Haven’t gone out for breakfast as opposed to brunch in a while but I used to love Nalley’s and the Twig and Leaf. Are either still open? Of course there is always the Blue Dog Bakery and Cafe.

       
Blue Dog! | Robin Garr Email | 04-Aug-2005 22:44
Another of my favorite places. Again, I didn't think of it in response to Heather because it's a far cry from "diner-style," but their breakfasts are awesome.

       
Favorite Breakfast spots..... | Leah Email | 04-Aug-2005 22:43
Nalleys?? You mean the one in Old Louisville? It's a "slice of life!" Are you a resident of the 'hood? (I am.)

          
In the hood | Ron Johnson | 05-Aug-2005 13:13
I am in the hood, and have stopped in Nalley's more than a few times.

          
Favorite Breakfast spots..... | Gayle DeMersseman Email | 05-Aug-2005 00:42
No, I live in the Eastern "burbs," but I used to have good friends who lived in Old Louisville. Unfortunately they moved far, far away.

    
Favorite Breakfast spots..... | Steve Shade Email | 04-Aug-2005 20:39
Whitneys Diner in Fern Creek if you live in the area. Quick, good service, standard fare, and extremely cheap. Not really worth a long trip however. Don't get the grits .. wallpaper paste. Owners must be some kind of damyankee.

We usually go to a farmers market Sat am and breakfast and have found (gasp)Shoneys on Hurstbourne Ln breakfast bar quite acceptable.

    
"Real diners" | Robin Garr Email | 04-Aug-2005 20:01
Diners are really a Northeast phenomenon, Heather ... you get much south and west of Eastern Pennsylvania and they kind of die out.

The Twig & Leaf at Bardstown and Douglass used to come close, although under new (Indian) management, it's lost a little of that New Jersey accent. Mr. Z's downtown at Third and Breckinridge is run by a Bosnian family, but they do a good job of diner-style fare. And lots of places have good breakfast in a more Southern tradition (grits in place of hash browns). I've been enjoying the little Lazy Jane's on Frankfort, next door to El Mundo. And of course, as Tanya says, Lynn's Paradise Cafe is pretty much one of a kind.

And don't forget Jade Palace for dim sum!



       
"Real diners" | Heather Email | 04-Aug-2005 20:28
Too bad diners are a 24 hour operation or I would LOVE to open one here......breakfast, lunch, or dinner 24 hours a day. A menu pages long and a bakery case of goodies baked in house! Thanks for the tips Robin! I wasn't familiar with a couple of those spots. We really do need to try lazy jane's as it is right up the street from us! But they are closed on sundays.

Tanya - Dooley's is really about it on the bagel front. NO offense meant to Nancy, but montana bagels aren't our thing. Regarding pizza - the ONLY pizza he will eat around here is Spinelli's. And if you want an authentic east coast style calzone - HAS TO BE CAPRI! ;-)

          
Bagels | Jay M. Email | 04-Aug-2005 22:13
It's great to get your insights on bagels and pizza - there's been a lot of talk in this forum about NY/NJ-style pizza and where to find "real" bagels.

Funny you should mention Nancy's bagels: I read a blurb in a local publication recently that was written by a purported New Jersey native. She claimed Nancy's has the best bagels around, and they remind her of home. Nancy's is roundly slammed in this forum ("gummy little balls of dough" is my favorite), so I didn't believe what I read. I like Nancy's bagels. I think she should call them something else, because they're not most folks' idea of a bagel - I'll just call them "carbohydrate delivery devices".

My latest favorite breakfast spot is Caffe Classico. It has a small selection of breakfast items (bagels, scones, muffins), great coffee, attentive service, and very attractive surroundings.

             
My ritualistic defense of Nancy's Bagels | Roger A. Baylor Email | 04-Aug-2005 23:13
No need for me to provide details any longer; suffice to say that I had one this morning (garlic encrusted with lox and capers), then ambled down to Classico for a double with Tommie.

Roger A. Baylor
Owner & Publican, Rich Os, Sportstime Pizza & New Albanian Brewing
                
Well defended, and in the small world department... | Jay M. Email | 05-Aug-2005 03:16
Nancy, of Nancy's bagels, is Nancy Haner (who just recently married and I don't recall her married name). She is a first cousin to Greg Haner, who owns both Mazzoni's and Flabby's.

                   
I didn't know that! | Robin Garr Email | 05-Aug-2005 04:07
That Nancy was a newlywed OR a relative of Greg. Small world indeed, Jay. Thanks for the insider info.

                
I accept and respect that, but ... | Robin Garr Email | 04-Aug-2005 23:18
... I just get my knicks in a wad over the urban legend that they are "authentic" New York-style bagels. They're about as authentic as Augie Busch's Budweiser is to Budvar.

                   
I accept and respect that, but ... | Roger A. Baylor Email | 05-Aug-2005 01:59
And I respect that. Good analogy.

Roger A. Baylor
Owner & Publican, Rich Os, Sportstime Pizza & New Albanian Brewing
             
Caffe Classico! | Robin Garr Email | 04-Aug-2005 22:43
I should have mentioned that ... I didn't think of it in the "diner" context since they only have pastries, but it is absolutely one of my favorite hang-out places in the entire city. Something about that glossy-yet-casual Euro-style works just right for me. And the true excellence of its coffees.

As for Nancy's ... I do believe that I was the author of "gummy balls of dough." I didn't see the letter you spoke of, but I'm certain it was a scam.

                
The "Euro-style" | Jay M. Email | 05-Aug-2005 03:11
right down to the little motorscooter that is usually parked outside the front door on Saturday mornings when I go.

          
Pizza & calzone | Steve Shade Email | 04-Aug-2005 20:42
Pizza .. my favorite is Clifton .. since you live close, have you tried it?

             
Pizza & calzone | Heather | 04-Aug-2005 20:49
I love clifton's but usually get the calzone rather than their pizza. I'm not the picky pizza eater - I love pizza in any form. It's the poor new jersian that I imported down here that is Mr. Picky Pants ;-)


                
breakfast | Steve Shade Email | 04-Aug-2005 21:02
Since you live in that neighborhood, for breakfast you should try Gennys Diner. I assume they are still serving breakfast.

A rather strange operation "sit anywhere you want" but a good place. They were a customer of mine until I retired. Never been for breakfast but fairly often for lunch and dinner.

    
North End Cafe | Brittney Email | 04-Aug-2005 19:59
YUMMY, perfect way to start out the day or end the night!

    
Favorite Breakfast spots..... | Tanya D. Email | 04-Aug-2005 19:46
Being formally from NJ, I would love your opinion on the best place(s) around here to get good bagels and pizza. As for breakfast, I know Lynne's Paradise Cafe is a popular spot.


       
Favorite Breakfast spots..... | Joe C. Email | 06-Aug-2005 16:57
Being from NJ myself, I prefer the thin crust Pizza's. So far, the best that I have found is Spinelli's - they call it Philly style.
Nice thin, floppy crust.

       
Favorite Breakfast spots..... | Dan Baumann Email | 05-Aug-2005 01:38
I, too, being an eternal Jersey boy, have come to accept that certain things will not be found outside of the NY/NJ area. Bagels and pizza are high on the list. Dooley's bagels are indeed the closest, but it has to be on a really, really good day. Lately, they've been tasting like round bread. Pizza? Nothing. Not a single place comes close, unfortunately. Several are good, but none are like Jersey.

How about some of the others you can't get here? Chinese food - totally different here. Don't know why. Chinese delivery - I can't believe I can't have Chinese delivered!? How can that be? Portuguese rolls - or even better - a "hard roll and buttah". "Taylor ham 'n egg on a hard roll". . Miss 'em all.

Don't get me wrong - love the food in Louisville. I just miss what I can't get here!



          
Favorite Breakfast spots..... | Gayle DeMersseman Email | 05-Aug-2005 01:41
Don't know beans about "Taylor ham 'n egg on a hard roll," but the Fresh Market deli sells Taylor Pork roll, which I have know clue what its use is. Are the two related?

             
Oops! | Gayle DeMersseman Email | 05-Aug-2005 03:48
Okay, I let another "boo-boo" slip through Spell-Check. I do have a college degree, in English no less, so I do know the difference between "know" and "no". The “fat finger” syndrome won again.








ch

             
Favorite Breakfast spots..... | Dan Baumann Email | 05-Aug-2005 02:15
They are one and the same. I shop there all the time and I've never seen it there! Thanks for letting me know.

Now if I could only find the proper hard rolls...

                
Hard rolls | Suzi Bernert Email | 05-Aug-2005 15:21
I end up "importing" them from NJ when I visit my daughter, along with decent bagels. I have been known to bake them, but really don't have the time right now. Right now I am in WV laying a stock of pepperoni rolls and Oliverio's sweet pepper sauce to take home.

                   
Hard rolls | Dan Baumann Email | 05-Aug-2005 15:59
Oh that's funny - I do the same thing! When I go back east about 4 times a year, I bring home bagels and Taylor ham. I haven't brought home any hard rolls because they just don't last long enough to bring home. They seem to get stale fast.

Now that I know Taylor ham is available locally - woohoo!

                
Tayor Ham (pork roll) | Tanya D. Email | 05-Aug-2005 12:51
The Kroger on Brownsboro Rd. near the Watterson also had Taylor ham in the specialty items section ("fancy" cheeses, pate, etc.) last time I checked. I also remember buying it by the slice in the deli section somewhere here in town, but for the life of me I can't recall where (maybe Fresh Market?).



                   
Tayor Ham (pork roll) | Heather Email | 05-Aug-2005 15:36
OH MY GOODNESS!!!! You all have made my husband's weekend and he doesn't even know it yet! The elusive taylor ham, egg, and cheese on a hard roll (he likes his with salt, pepper and ketchup)! I am off work today running errands to prepare for a very busy weekend. I'm going to see if I can fit in a stop at The Fresh Market!!! He might have to live without the hard roll but he will have taylor ham by god!
;-)

Again - if any of you NYC/Jersey folks are craving a REAL (his words - not mine) calzone - give capri a shot. You will be eating on it for 3 days, but he LOVES it.

So where are you Jersey folks from???

                      
Tayor Ham (pork roll) | Tanya D. Email | 05-Aug-2005 16:04
I lived in the Highlands (by Sandy Hook), Long Branch, Browns Mills, and mostly Jackson (I was so close to Six Flags I could hear the roller coasters). Where are you guys from?

                      
Tayor Ham (pork roll) | Dan Baumann Email | 05-Aug-2005 16:02
I'm originally from Roselle/Roselle Park, near Elizabeth.

                         
Tayor Ham (pork roll) | Heather Email | 08-Aug-2005 13:51
My husband is from Hackettstown/Delaware Water Gap area. Beautiful area! Who knew there were so many New Jersey/NYC folks around here!