According to the National Institutes of Health, nearly a quarter of Americans skip breakfast – widely considered to be the most important meal of the day – every morning. But that means that at least three-quarters of us indulge in a morning meal. Just what that consists of varies substantially, according to our tastes, lifestyles, budget, and other factors – including where we live.
Some of us grab a bagel or a doughnut and a cup of coffee. Some spoon up some yogurt, with or without fruit or granola added. Others just want a nostalgic bowl of corn flakes or Rice Krispies soaking in milk, or prefer a fast-food or deli breakfast sandwich or breakfast burrito.
The fearless, with time on their hands and a healthy cholesterol count, might sit down to sausage, ham, or bacon with eggs and fried potatoes, or waffles or pancakes drenched in melted butter and maple syrup.
But as with any other culinary habits, there are distinct regional preferences in various parts of the country. While most of us may have fallen into certain predictable morning-meal patterns, there’s nothing that says breakfast has to include eggs or cured meats or bread products – or that it has to include them in the conventional way. And you might be surprised to learn how people in certain corners of America start the day. (Check out the best breakfast sandwich in every state.)
By reviewing regional websites and online restaurant menus from around the country, 24/7 Tempo has compiled a list of novel breakfast specialties from 19 U.S. cities, states, and regions, from Alaska to Florida, Hawaii to New England.
There are certainly eggs involved in some of these, but they might be combined with oysters and bacon, or put on top of a hash involving corned beef and beets. There are plenty of pastries here, too, sweet or savory, mostly fried. And sausage is a common element, though it might be made with pork liver or even reindeer meat. (You might number some of these dishes as among the strangest foods from every state.)
Whatever the particulars, these are all authentic specialities of various places and examples of the delicious diversity of the way we eat.
Here is a list of what America eats from breakfast:
Breakfast item: Goetta
- Where it’s eaten: Cincinnati, OH
- What it is: Sausage (without casings) made of ground pork or pork and beef with steel-cut pin-head oats and spices
- How it’s eaten: Fried in patties with eggs or pancakes
Breakfast item: Reindeer sausage
- Where it’s eaten: Alaska
- What it is: Sausage (in casings), often Polish-style, made with reindeer or caribou meat, usually mixed with pork and/or beef
- How it’s eaten: Grilled, as part of a hearty cold-weather breakfast
Breakfast item: Hangtown fry
- Where it’s eaten: San Francisco Bay Area
- What it is: Omelet with oysters and bacon, invented in the Gold Rush town of Placerville, CA, and popularized by Tadich Grill in San Francisco
- How it’s eaten: By itself
Breakfast item: Grits and grunts
grunts and grits blackened atlantic grunt fish, anson mills grits, garlic scapes, sautéed wild dandelion greens, petite swiss chard and housemade bacon
- Where it’s eaten: Florida Keys
- What it is: A relative of shrimp and grits, but with fileted fried grunts, a variety of local fish, or some other fish served over the grits
- How it’s eaten: As a breakfast dish, sometimes with wilted greens on the side
Breakfast item: Malasadas
- Where they’re eaten: Hawaii
- What they are: Fried dough pastries of Portuguese origin, typically filled with custard or fruit-flavored cream
- How they’re eaten: With coffee or fruit juice
Breakfast item: Beignets
- Where they’re eaten: New Orleans, LA
- What they are: Fried dough pastries with no filling, generously dusted with powdered sugar
- How they’re eaten: With chicory-flavored coffee
Breakfast item: Scrapple
- Where it’s eaten: Pennsylvania
- What it is: Mush or loose sausage made of pork with cornmeal and wheat or buckwheat flour and spices
- How it’s eaten: Fried as a breakfast side dish, with apple butter or syrup or a savory condiment like ketchup
Breakfast item: Red flannel hash
- Where it’s eaten: New England
- What it is: A fried hash of leftover corned beef, potatoes, onions, and beets
- How it’s eaten: By itself or topped with a fried egg
Breakfast item: Taylor ham/pork roll
- Where it’s eaten: Northern New Jersey (Taylor ham”), elsewhere in New Jersey (“pork roll”)
- What it is: Processed meat, made according to secret recipes from smoked pork and spices
- How it’s eaten: Fried as a breakfast meat or in a breakfast sandwich with fried or scrambled egg and American cheese
Breakfast item: Deli breakfast sandwich
- Where it’s eaten: New York City
- What it is: Bacon, American cheese, and fried egg on a Kaiser roll or some other bread
- How it’s eaten: By itself or with coffee, often walking on the street or sitting at a desk
Breakfast item: Fretta
- Where it’s eaten: Syracuse, NY
- What it is: A local term based on “frittata” – typically scrambled eggs mixed with sausage, pepperoni, potatoes, and various vegetables
- How it’s eaten: By itself
Breakfast item: Livermush
- Where it’s eaten: North Carolina
- What it is: A relative of scrapple (see above), but with at least 30% pork liver, according to North Caroline law
- How it’s eaten: Fried, alongside eggs and/or grits
Breakfast item: Johnnycakes
- Where they’re eaten: Rhode Island
- What they are: Cornmeal batter cakes
- How they’re eaten: Fried and drenched in butter, by themselves or with bacon or sausage
Breakfast item: Shrimp and grits
- Where it’s eaten: South Carolina
- What it is: Shrimp cooked in a slightly spicy sauce, sometimes with bacon, atop creamy grits (hominy porridge), possibly with cheese added
- How it’s eaten: By itself
Breakfast item: Kolaches
- Where they’re eaten: Texas
- What they are: Sweet or savory pastries in various shapes, Czech in origin brought to the Texas Hill Country by Czech immigrants
- How they’re eaten: With coffee or tea
Breakfast item: Kringle
- Where it’s eaten: Racine, WI
- What it is: Wisconsin’s official state pastry, a Danish-inspired ring of flaky dough filled with fruit or nuts and iced
- How it’s eaten: With coffee or tea
Breakfast item: Biscuits and gravy
- Where it’s eaten: Southern states
- What it is: Soft biscuits covered in white sauce, often with loose sausage and lots of black pepper
- How it’s eaten: By itself or with grits or fried potatoes
Breakfast item: Cider doughnuts
- Where they’re eaten: Connecticut
- What they are: Doughnuts made with apple cider and “pumpkin spices” like nutmeg and cinnamon, usually covered with sugar or cinnamon sugar
- How they’re eaten: With coffee or tea
Breakfast item: Slinger
- Where it’s eaten: St. Louis, MO
- What it is: Eggs, hash browns, and a burger patty, topped with chili and shredded cheese and onions
- How it’s eaten: By itself