Breakfast the Most Important Meal of the Day

We’ve all gotten the memo that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, but who actually has time for breakfast at breakfast time...this is why the ‘breakfast all day’ trend is one of my favorite culinary trends and it seems that Charleston loves it too because within the last few months, several new restaurants have opened serving brekky into the late afternoon and even dinner time.

Betty’s Eatery: Betty’s Eatery took the place of Aya Cookhouse, in the Whole Food’s shopping center and boasts grandma’s cooking (apparently everyone has a grandma named Betty, except me). Betty’s Eatery serves breakfast all day (they are currently only opened until 4pm, but have said they will consider opening for dinner in the future) with burgers, sandwiches and salads available beginning at 11. Breakfast options include southern staples; shrimp and grits, biscuits and gravy and chicken and waffles as well as classics like pancakes and french toasts, several different omelets selections and handheld options like breakfast sandwiches and croque madames. I went on a Sunday thinking that because their menu is already brunch-y, that classic breakfast items would be what was offered, but they had a special brunch menu that was the only thing available. I ordered the Chicken Fried Steak off of the brunch menu and have to say I was really impressed. The chicken was perfectly seasoned and fried and sat atop white toast with a really tasty sausage gravy. I personally like my gravy covered food to be SWIMMING in gravy so I could have done with a little more, but overall the food was flavorful and well cooked. My only complaint about Betty’s is that it is counter service, so you have to find a way to get your water cup, coffee mug, silverware and condiments to your table yourself, but hey, I’m sure not hungover me would have had a much easier time. Betty’s also serves fantastic desserts, must tries are the grilled pound cake or any milkshake off the standard menu or their bourbon glazed cinnamon bun off of their brunch menu. For what’s cooking grandma Betty’s kitchen follow them on Instagram at @BettysEatery

Millers All Day: Millers All Day (MAD for the purposes of this post) has received some rave reviews and quite a bit of press since its opening earlier this year, and rightfully so. I like that the menu has a little something for every mood/craving and for a breakfast spot there is a pretty extensive cocktail list. The menu includes healthy items such as salads, healthy-ish items like strata, cereal parfait, rice and grits bowls and then what I really want for breakfast salisbury steak, fried chicken biscuits and patty melts (side note: why are there not more patty melts on menus?). A couple of items that stood out to me are the BEC and the waffles. The BEC is so much more than a bacon, egg and cheese sandwich, the breakfast trinity is topped with an herb mayo and romesco sauce all sitting atop an everything brioche (everything brioches are what breakfast sandwich dreams are made of). The waffles, which came as a surprise for me, because I am always a savory breakfast sort of girl, are spectacular and topped with bananas, meringue, caramel and popped sorghum for a little texture (and cute factor). The cocktail menu alone at MAD is worth visiting for with three variations of bloody’s classic, golden (made with roasted corn and yellow tomatoes) and verde (made with tomatillos and tequila as the spirit) and some really fun cocktails such as yogurt daiquiri, chai greyhound, and dessert cocktail (spiced rum, six twenty cream, amaro, pimento dram and espresso). The champagne remedy is a personal fave (vodka, st. germain, blueberries, basil, lemon and bubbles). MAD also has an incredible bakery selection including pies by the slice (the brown coconut is to die for). For rainbow grits (yes, I somehow forgot to mention these), dessert cocktails and pies follow them on Instagram at @MillersAllDay

1 Broad Street: While 1 Broad’s full breakfast menu is only available until noon, their breakfast sandwiches are available all day. Of all the the breakfast restaurants, I find their menu to be the most interesting with a lot of different culinary influences. Their full breakfast menu includes options like Tamagoyaki (Japanese style omelet), Shakshuka (eggs poached in tomatoes) and corned beef with schmaltz (chicken fat) roasted potatoes, kimchi and egg as well as more classic options like omelettes and avocado toast. If you are not a up and at ‘em before noon type of person, there are still many breakfast options at 1 Broad like a classic bacon, egg and cheese sandwich, pork roll on a bagel and scrapple hard roll. I personally went for the pastrami lox bagel with pickled onion and cured egg, I love the addition of pickled onion over standard onion because it gives it a little acidity (and less onion breath). The trout schmear bialy (a bialy is very similar to a bagel) would probably be my order on my next visit, because it’s fun to say and looks really tasty. Neither of the breakfast menus have any sweet offerings, but 1 Broad has a pretty extensive selection of baked goods (it’s owned by the same owner as Bar Normandy/Normandy Bakery) which vary daily. Some items that caught my eye were their strawberry and hazelnut & chocolate poptarts, cinnamon rolls, donuts and their chocolate banana bread. For pastries and schmear bialys follow them at @1broadstreet

Daps: Hashbrowns (best way to eat potatoes in my opinion) are my favorite breakfast food, because they are pretty much always delicious and provide such a versatile canvas for toppings. With that said, Daps is probably the menu I was most excited to see from this list because they know hashbrowns > breakfast potatoes. They have several hash options, a classic potato and onions topped with cheese sauce, spinach and mushroom, ‘the big meaty’ with bacon, sausage and ham and my personal favorite ‘the special #1’ which includes brussel sprouts, kale, butternut squash and ricotta. While brussels and kale may not sound like dream hash toppings, they both crisp up really well which make them perfect for a hash. The Daps menu also has egg sandwiches: standard, chickpea patty and Mexican chorizo gravy topped. A really popular section of the menu are their pancake offerings, which include a classic pancake ‘OG’, and then some really fun options like fruity pebble, applejack and sorghum butternut squash. I tried the sorghum butternut squash pancakes and really loved the combination and texture provided by the pepita topping. Daps also does a really good coffee and is where I discovered a cortado, which is similar to a latte, but with less milk (I think it’s a better milk to espresso better ratio). They also have some great house-made flavorings chocolate, vanilla, rosemary and my personal favorite caramelized miso. For beverages with a little more kick, Daps has mimosas on tap, several cocktails (their Bloody is made with sake, which sounds interesting) and a pretty full list of “breakfast” wines (available by the half glass, which is cool). For hashbrowns and fruity pebbles pancakes follow them at @dapschs