No Tough Breaks Here

I love a good breakfast place. Who doesn't?

So, I'm really happy to report that I've added Broken Egg Café in Broken Arrow to my growing list of locally owned and well-run places to go on a Saturday or Sunday morning -- or on any other morning.

Sue Lowe and her husband Dale have a really great little place with a lot of fun stuff on their menu. After 30 years of putting in the time and sweat for other people in the business, Dale and his wife decided to strike out on their own.

Sue puts it this way, "We recognized the opportunity and need in Broken Arrow for a café offering a wide variety of delicious foods featuring an affordable menu prepared to order using only fresh high-quality ingredients and consistently served with a unique presentation." And they did it well.

With Dale running the kitchen and Sue handling the front of the house and catering, they have a good team going.

They have a really diverse menu, and it's obvious they had a good time writing it with a sense of humor. With items such as Moon Cakes, The Kitchen Sink Sub, Nurse Lowe's Wrap and Chunky Monkey Cakes, it's obvious they know when to take themselves seriously and when to be tongue-in-cheek about it. When it comes to fast service, good food and reasonable prices, they get serious, the rest of the time -- not so much. It's a good combination. Everything we saw indicates they go the extra mile.

As we entered, a large blackboard advertised the daily breakfast special, and I'm sure it is changed for the lunch meal as well. It was called, "The Cornball Benny," a toasted English muffin piled with tomato slices, corned beef hash pressed into a patty and grilled, two poached eggs perfectly cooked and a lemony hollandaise sauce to top it. It also came with a huge pile of shredded hash browns that were crisp and brown on the outside and steamy hot and soft in the middle, and a small dish of fresh fruit that included melon and strawberries for $7. They had me right there. I ordered it. It was great.

My wife opted for The Fruity Waffle Breakfast($7). It was a big crispy and sweet waffle, sprinkled with wheat germ and powdered sugar and absolutely smothered with fresh strawberries, kiwi and bananas and served with butter and warm syrup. So often, places use frozen or canned fruit for a dish like this, but The Broken Egg obviously makes the effort to use the freshest and tastiest. As a matter of fact, there was a common theme of fresh fruit throughout most of the dishes I witnessed coming out of the kitchen.

We happened to be playing grandpa and grandma that day, so we had two of our four grandkids with us. The obvious choice, at least for our two, was a kid's waffle.

As I mentioned, Sue appears to always go the extra mile, and this dish was no exception. It was half of a large waffle topped with fresh banana, strawberries and kiwi, plus eyes, nose, ears and mouth out of whipped cream, a paper umbrella (presumably so the waffle's little face didn't get a sunburn), and a little pitcher of warm syrup. Now that's a kid's waffle. They were delighted and ate every bite. (Well, grandpa might have helped a little bit.)

Listen to some of these other great options: Loaded Potato Cakes which are two grilled potato cakes topped with diced bacon, sautéed onions and cheese, a pair of eggs your way, and if that isn't enough a half side of meat($7); Chunky Monkey Cakes consist of two pancakes with walnuts and bananas cooked in cinnamon and vanilla, topped with chocolate chips and whipped cream($7); and Cranberry/Pecan Oatmeal, which is oatmeal with cranberries, pecans and bananas, brown sugar and an English muffin for $5.50.

Rather have an omelet? Try the Greek To Me with roasted red bell peppers, feta cheese and spinach and topped with black olives and red onions, or a Popeye Omelet with bacon, spinach, Swiss and tomatoes. All their omelets run from $6.50 to $7.25 and come with hash browns and an English muffin.

Watching your waistline or cholesterol? Choose a mini-omelet made with two eggs and served with fruit and a fresh muffin or pick from the Health Department section. (No connection to the Tulsa City-County Health Department since this place is spotless!)

The Fruit Crepes wrap two paper thin pancakes around fresh fruit and then top it all with strawberry yogurt, cinnamon and sugar and come with a fresh muffin and granola.(Help your health for $6 on that one.)

And if they still haven't caught your eye, create your own scrambled egg skillet ($7) from a list of ingredients or creative numbers from the crepe and egg section.

We arrived on a Saturday around 10:30am, and there was a line of folks waiting to get a table. The line moved fairly quickly, and it wasn't a huge wait, but it could have been quicker.

Here's why: A small restaurateur isn't going to say anything to you for fear of offending a paying customer, but if you are one of those folks sitting in a restaurant at prime rush hour with your laptop, papers and your Blackberry out on the table using the area as your office, while you nurse a $1.00 cup of coffee, shame on you! If there are 20 people standing in line for your table, use your head and move on. You are not being fair to the small business owner who needs that space to make a living.

If you want them to be there in six months, let them make a living today.

The service was fast, friendly and efficient, and as busy as it was, we were served quickly and pleasantly. The owner is always working, always visible, and it makes for a well run operation. It's nice to see.

If you had a rough night and can't get your little hung-over self out of bed in time for breakfast, drop in for lunch. Broken Egg Café offers a nice selection of hot and cold sandwiches, burgers, melts and entrée salads from $6.50 to $7.50.

And if you spent all your lunch money on beer last night, they offer several items from a section titled "Lunch on a Lincoln and a George." (That's a $5 and a $1).

Dessert items include fried apple dumplings, hot fresh cobbler, both topped with ice cream, a banana boat -- Sue's rendition of a banana split -- or a good old fashioned Root Beer Float.

They have a drive up window for quick service. Call ahead at (918)254-0455. Catering is available as well.

One word of advice: If you are coming from Tulsa, it's likely your GPS will take you to the Broken Arrow exit at 71st St., which is miles further east than you need to go. Instead take the 71st St. exit off of Highway 169 and you'll get there a lot quicker.

Broken Egg Cafe

3120 W. Kenosha Broken Arrow, Okla.

(918)254-0455

Web site: www.brokeneggcafe.com

HOURS: Sunday-Saturday, 7am to 2pm

Service *** 1/2

Food *** 1/2

Atmosphere *** 1/2