Recent breakfasts at familiar haunts: Mr. Filet, Walnut Café, Papa Kerns.

A Greek Omelet with crispy hash browns at Mr. Filet is one of my favorite things for breakfast. Caramelized onions dredged from the insides were sweet and tender. Whole potatoes are baked, chilled, then hand-grated; the hash browns are some of the best in town.

The hash browns by themselves are first rate, but fixed up with cheese, onion and peppers, then topped with three eggs? Oof! On the rare occasion I’m at Mr. Filet for lunch, I'll just stick with a gyro, simply adorned with tsatziki sauce and jalapeños, and a side salad.

Above left was that particular day's insomnia fueled breakfast at the Walnut Café in the Neal Smith Federal Building. All animal, no carb. On the right, a Denver Omelet with splashes of Louisiana Hot Sauce, plus hash browns with gravy, at Papa Kerns Cafe. I had to walk all the way back downtown to work this bad boy off.