Breakfast of Champions…?

I work with an interesting group of people at my new job.

There are three graphics designers who sit in the room opposite ours (by “ours” I mean me and two web developers). We share a “window” with graphics – really just a pair of rectangles cut into the wall – so conversations are anything but private. Which is great, because I have been thoroughly entertained by the topics those three have been discussing all week long.

Most interestingly has been the ongoing debate over which is a more appropriate breakfast food: soup or cheeseburgers.

The girl in the group had a bowl of soup for breakfast on Monday, and the two guys in her work area chastised her mercilessly for her strange food choice. Then on Tuesday, one of them ate a burger for breakfast, and she in turn gave him hell for that. All playfully (and hilariously), I might add. Their rapid-fire rapport back and forth has caused me to laugh out loud for real on several occasions. Every day since, a conversation has commenced first thing in the morning, with salvos being fired in all directions in the war over which item is the odder breakfast choice.

It’s all gotten me to thinking: which item is the weirder breakfast food?

At first, I was on the girl’s side. Because I’ve eaten soup for breakfast before. Not often, and only when the weather outside is frightful and the fire is so delightful there’s leftover homemade chicken noodle soup in the fridge, but when I have I’ve enjoyed it. Plus, in a lot of Asian countries, soup is considered standard breakfast fare. A burger, on the other hand? Just seems weird to eat something with ketchup and pickles so early in the morning.

But then the guy who ate the burger started talking about how it’s got dairy (in the cheese) and I was thinking, hmm, dude’s got a point there. Ain’t no dairy in chicken noodle soup. Plus, the bun might be toasted, and everybody knows toast is synonymous with breakfast.

This morning, the girl said, “I’d eat a breakfast sandwich with sausage, but not beef,” an argument that really didn’t win her any points because isn’t a hamburger patty basically a stripped-down, less-seasoned version of a sausage patty anyway? Suddenly, my allegiance was shifting to the guys. And then I remembered that our beloved local fast-food chain, Burgerville, actually started serving a breakfast burger about six months ago. It’s made with a beef patty instead of sausage, making it a true burger, but it’s also got bacon and a “cracked to order cage-free egg.” What, I ask you, could be more breakfasty than bacon and eggs?!

Nothing. Therefore, soup is out, and the burger wins.

And when I forwarded an email to the graphics department with a menu attachment of Burgerville’s totally appropriate breakfast burger, there were oohs and ahhs and somebody was going to go pick some up for all of us to try, but the cutoff for their lunch menu was only twenty minutes away, so time was an issue.

Maybe one of these days. Something tells me I haven’t heard the end of this debate yet.

I’m curious now, though: what is the strangest thing you’ve ever eaten for breakfast?

Leftover pizza is a no-brainer. Everybody does that. And I really dig cold fried chicken for breakfast, but is eating that unusual enough to warrant strange looks and endless debates? I’m pretty sure I reheated leftover lasagna once. Maybe that choice was a bit odd, though it tasted good at the time. I know my kids ate ice cream once, when I was still in bed. And really, why should the time of day dictate what we eat? Does a pork chop at 7:30 AM taste any different than a pork chop at 7:30 PM? I think not!

Speaking of food, Tara and I went to another concert last night. We caught The Moondoggies again – the third time we’ve seen them this year. We were chatting with Carl the drummer before the show and he said, “You guys were at our show at the Hotel Oregon earlier this year, weren’t you?” Great. He recognizes us. His stalker! senses were probably working overtime. Granted, there may be a little bit of an obsession with the band, but they’re really good, and last night was no exception. Anyway. We got there early and were scoping out a place to eat. Right across from Mississippi Studios is a little joint devoted entirely to mac ‘n cheese. Their house Bloody Mary even features a salt-and-pepper-and-cheese-powder rim. How very Portlandia! After much thought, I ordered the cheeseburger mac ‘n cheese, which included hamburger meat and crumbled barbecue  potato chips on top. Let’s just say it was divine and we will be going back to try more of their varieties.

Also speaking of food, Tara and I have a joint, top-secret project we’re working on that kicks off on January 1^st. I don’t want to say too much about it yet, other than the fact that I’m spinning off a new blog called Eat My Words. We have come up with a big challenge for 2013 and will be posting daily updates all year long. I’ve registered a domain name and set up a Facebook page already; a Twitter feed may follow. That’s all I’ll say for now – we’ll do a big reveal sometime before Christmas. Trust me, you’ll want to follow along.

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