Brian Nagele
Take a culinary excursion at one of America’s top breakfast chain restaurants to start your day off right. This article examines the morning treats offered by places that have perfected the art of breakfast, from vintage diners to hipster cafes. From freshly constructed omelets brimming with savory richness to fluffy pancakes dripping with maple syrup, experience a symphony of flavors and sensations. These establishments offer a variety for every palate, catering to those who enjoy innovative twists on morning classics like bacon and eggs, as well as those who appreciate more traditional breakfast options. Join us on a virtual tour of the finest places for morning dining, where each bite commemorates the importance of the first meal of the day.
Denny’s
Denny’s has been an American breakfast staple for nearly 70 years. Initially opened as a coffee shop named Danny’s Donuts, Denny’s grew into a 24-hour breakfast, lunch, and dinner establishment open every day, night, holiday, and moment in between. One of Denny’s most popular breakfast dishes is its Slams, which come with various breakfast staples. The All-American Slam comes as a plate packed with toast, eggs, sausage, bacon, cheesy eggs, and hash browns. Or, you can create your own Slam and add pancakes, French toast, or anything else you’re craving. Denny’s has locations in 49 states plus Washington, D.C. (sorry Delaware, you’ll have to go out-of-state for your Denny’s kick).
Bob Evans
Bob Evans is another long-established family dining experience in operation for over 70 years. The chain has grown from its small-town Ohio roots into a nationwide establishment with locations in 18 states, mainly in the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic. Bob Evans offers up all sorts of breakfast dishes, from omelets and skillets to hotcakes and French toast. Their family-size breakfast option is available for pickup or delivery. Enjoy a Southern-style meal with the honey butter chicken and biscuit family breakfast, or order brunch with their brunch for a bunch bundle.
Biscuitville
If you live in North Carolina and Virginia, you have the deliciously delightful opportunity to eat at Biscuitville, a local chain specializing in, well, biscuits! Established in 1975, Biscuitville has 50 locations across the two states, where customers can drive through, eat-in, or take food to-go. Biscuitville’s most popular meals include a classic bacon, egg, and cheese biscuit and a grilled chicken, egg, and cheese on an English muffin. They also have spicy chicken, muffins, pancakes, and honey buns on the menu. In a classic Southern mode, you can order a side of grits with any meal and add cheese.
Another Broken Egg Cafe
Another Broken Egg is a Southeastern breakfast chain restaurant quickly growing into a nationwide franchise. With locations as far north as Cleveland, Ohio, and as far west as Los Angeles, the chain initially opened in 1996 in Louisiana, so Southern charm is their specialty. The restaurant offers sweet and savory dishes like lemon blueberry goat cheese pancakes and a smoked salmon benedict. If you can’t choose, try out the pancake trio, and choose from any three pancake flavors from the menu. Another Broken Egg also offers numerous vegetarian and gluten-free options. If you’re a brunch enthusiast, they have inventive brunch cocktails, including six flavors of mimosas.
The Original Pancake House
If you’re a pancake lover, you’ve probably already been to The Original Pancake House, an old-timey chain that uses traditional recipes to cook up some of the best pancakes in the country. Go for classic buttermilk pancakes, or try out a new flavor and order the restaurant’s sourdough flapjacks, Swedish pancakes, the Three Little Pigs in Blankets (sausage links wrapped in pancakes and dusted with powdered sugar). Whether you love chocolate chips or bacon on your pancakes, there’s something for every taste bud. The Original Pancake House opened in Oregon in 1953 and now has locations in 29 states. Their big dishes and homey atmosphere will fill your belly and give you a memorable dining experience.
First Watch
First Watch is an American breakfast chain that’s relatively new compared to the others on this list. First opened in 1983, the cafe has grown to 26 states. The restaurant specializes in offering traditional breakfast favorites with the freshest ingredients possible. The menu is customized to every location, but you’ll find breakfast classics wherever you are. Order the A.M. Superfoods Bowl for a healthy start to your day, or go all out with the biscuits and turkey sausage gravy dish. First Watch also has various juice beverages, like the kale tonic, which includes kale, apple, cucumber, and lemon.
Village Inn
The Village Inn is a breakfast staple known throughout 19 states for its variety of breakfast, lunch, and dinner dishes. You’ll find your favorite breakfast dishes all day long at this no-frills chain restaurant. You can build your own breakfast or get the VIB (Village Inn Breakfast), a meal consisting of four items of your choice. The restaurant cooks up signature skillets like the chicken-fried steak skillet topped with country sausage gravy. For the sweet tooth, the Village Inn has French toast, Belgian waffles, and even Crepes. The Village Inn is most notably renowned for its variety of pies, including cherry, apple, peach, triple berry, and more.
Huddle House
Huddle House is an American franchise founded in 1964 that operates in 23 states. Initially from the South, Huddle House offers up some tasty Southern breakfast in its dining rooms across the country. If you love big breakfasts, Huddle House is the place to go. Their Big House Platter features eggs, hash browns or fruit, biscuit, sausage gravy or grits, toast or biscuits, and bacon or sausage. Order the MVP for a delicious meal complete with pancakes. Huddle House also has waffles, French toast, inventive omelets, and almost anything else your breakfast cravings may be.
Perkins
Perkins has been serving up quality all-day breakfast for more than 60 years. You can find their delicious dishes and signature pies in 32 states. Whether you like a sweet or savory breakfast, Perkins has something for you. The dishes come in smaller portions than many other breakfast chain restaurants, but you can always order seconds! Build your own breakfast and customize it with turkey sausage patties, tater tots, or fresh biscuits. Order the Hearty Man’s Combo for a protein-packed meal of bacon, sausage, and eggs, or go for the steak and eggs meal. Don’t forget to take home a fresh-baked pie for dessert!
Cracker Barrel
Cracker Barrel may not be a breakfast-only chain, but its breakfast takes the cake for deliciousness and variety. Served all day, there’s something for everyone, including fresh-squeezed orange juice, premium blend coffee, and apple cider. Cracker Barrel’s buttermilk pancakes are some of the best around, served with the restaurant’s own pure maple syrup. They offer pecan pancakes and blueberry pancakes served with blueberry syrup. There are a variety of traditional breakfast dishes available. The Old Timer’s Breakfast includes classic eggs, grits, gravy, biscuits, jam, and a choice of meat and potatoes. You can combine sweet and savory with Momma’s Pancake Breakfast, which offers three pancakes, two eggs, toppings, and a choice of meat.
Waffle House
Waffle House is another Southern staple established over 60 years ago that has grown into a regional and national favorite in 25 states. Even though they offer lunch, breakfast is their specialty—particularly waffles, of course. When you order waffles at Waffle House, you’ll be able to watch as the chefs pour the batter into a flat waffle maker and top your dish with pecans, chocolate chips, or peanut butter chips. Waffle House’s specialty hash brown bowls are also gaining popularity as a staple American breakfast. Each bowl comes with hash browns topped with your favorite foods—ham, eggs, sausage, cheese, and bacon.
IHOP
If you haven’t been to IHOP, do you even do breakfast? This 60-year-old chain restaurant is the place to go for pancakes, waffles, and all-day breakfast favorites. And they’re not called the International House of Pancakes for nothing. Their inventive pancake dishes are what make IHOP one of the top breakfast chain restaurants in the country (and worldwide, for that matter). Bacon lovers will rejoice for the candied bacon pancakes. Sweet tooths drool over the cupcake, New York cheesecake, and Mexican tres leches pancakes. There are even gluten-free options so everyone can enjoy the sweet deliciousness of pancakes. In addition to pancakes, IHOP serves up various omelets, including chicken fajita and spinach and mushroom. You can order Belgian waffles and Swedish crepes, too.
You should have checked out Skillets in SW Florida.