Breakfast International

Ontbyt, Mëngjes, إفطار, նախաճաշ, Gosaria,早餐, Snídaně, Morgenmad, Ontbijt, Almusal, Aamiainen, Petit Déjeuner, Frühstück, Πρωινό, ארוחת בוקר, नाश्ता, Reggeli, Bricfeasta, Prima Colazione, 朝食, 아침 식사, Prandium, Frokost, Śniadanie, Café da Manhã, Завтрак, Desayuno, Frukost, อาหารเช้า, Ăn sáng, Brecwast…


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HaKmCZaDGMI
 
(However, I am not so sure that I really would want kippers[1] for breakfast, mommy dear, mommy dear.)


breakfast (ˈbrɛkfəst)

- n
1.a. the first meal of the day
b. (as modifier): breakfast cereal; a breakfast room
2. the food at this meal
3. (in the Caribbean) a midday meal

- vb
4. To eat or supply with a breakfast

[C15: from break + fast]


I have had breakfast in a few different ferren countries in my travels and was just wondering what exactly other people ate to "break their hunger". (Or is that supposed to mean "to quickly break" something?) Everyone knows about "French Toast", "Belgian Waffles", "Swedish Pancakes", and "Canadian Bacon"; however, what else do they eat in these strange and ferren lands for (respectively) petit déjeuner, ontbijt/petit déjuener (again)/frühstück (take your pick, the stupid Belgians can't even decide on which neighboring language they want to steal), frukost, and breakfast, eh?

I actually lived in Greece (Ελλάδα) for three and a half years, but really couldn't tell you what they ate every morning. I would assume it is some kind of baked goods/pastries (don't get me started on all the good stuff that they have to offer in the baked goods department) and maybe some Greek yoghurt (just not any τζατζίκι, please, Pam), along with some strong coffee. I can't believe that I never once really ate a breakfast out while I was there, or maybe if I did, I just went to some 'mericanized place that catered to stupid touristas.

I know of what a "Full English Breakfast"[2] entails (and "entrails" may very well be one of the ingredients in their "breakfast puddings"; don't let the intriguing names like "black pudding" or "white pudding" fool you ~ this is not a chocolate or vanilla choice, believe me): tea with milk (but more and more places are going to coffee instead), some kinda juice, two eggs (fried/over easy/scrambled), bacon (large, thick slices ~ more like slices of ham, not the wimpy 'merican strips), sausage (one or two of the normal link style), black pudding (and/or white pudding in Ireland and Scotland), mushrooms (grilled or sautéed), baked beans (yes, baked beans), hash browns, toast (with different types of jams or marmalades), and half a grilled tomato. Now this is more food than a normal person should be able to eat at one sitting and it also should be a full week's ration of any sane person's dead decaying animal flesh. There is also the healthier (but not really much lighter) British breakfast of simple oatmeal/porridge (some like it hot, some like it cold). Plus, where would we 'mericans be today without that breakfastary staple "English Muffins"?

Having lived in Germany for two years (and traveled there a few additional times while living and holidaying in Europe), I am pretty familiar with what ein typisches Frühstück[3] is: lots of different types of sliced breads and various rolls (Brötchen), several types of sliced cheese (Käse), sliced meats, eggs of some kind (generally one hard boiled egg ~ gekochtes Ei ~ or some scrambled eggs ~ Rührei), jams and butter, and lastly (but by no means leastly) a small, personal pot of coffee (ein Kännchen Kaffee). This was a breakfast that I had many times (aber ohne all die toten verwesenden Fleisch von Tieren) am Ku'damm in Berlin and whenever I traveled to "mainland Germany" and stayed at "Bed & Breakfast" joints (Gästehäusern). You could usually have tea (Tee) or hot chocolate (heiße Schokolade) substituted for the coffee if you were so inclined (that would be a 90° incline for me though).

I can talk about a good desayuno mexicano, but only from a local San Franciscan/Mission District point of view. I don't ever remember having any breakfasts on my few forays into Ciudad Juarez (across the border from El Paso, Texas) or Ciudad Acuña (across the Rio from Del Rio, Texas); however, if you want to know where to buy cheap blankets, Tequila, and switchblades, I know just the places.

My brother Kerry lived in Thailand for about five years or so, and I think he said that breakfasts there usually consisted of rice (lots of rice) and fish. Granted, he lived in the boonies, in a poor village, and I really doubt they had any IHOP's there from which to choose.

Some of my other favourite cuisines are Italian, Burmese, Chinese, Japanese, Indian, Korean, and Ethiopian/Eritrean; however, I really have no idea what they would consider a typical morning repast. I have had a breakfast pizza before (well, it was actually for dinner and it was in England, not Italy); this was basically a standard Pizza Margherita with a raw egg dropped on top, in the middle, during the last few minutes that the pizza is baking.
 
I guess no matter how you say it (or spell it), it's all good.


Glen Bacon Scale Rating: Breakfast ~ 8.5


[1] Somewhat of a stupid, useless cunning linguist pointer of the day:
 
"Kippers" stand for "kippered herrings". A "kipper" is a whole herring, that has been split from tail to head, gutted, salted or pickled, and cold smoked. 
 
The English word "kipper" comes from Old English "cypera" ("male salmon"), perhaps related to "coper" ("reddish-brown metal", see "copper"), on resemblance of colour. Another theory connects it to "kip", the name for the sharp, hooked lower jaw of the male salmon in breeding season, from Middle English "kippen" ("to snatch, tug, pull").
 
Greg and Cindy, take note: similarly, the English word "kipe" denotes a basket used to catch fish.
 
[2] See 'blog-entry from January 1st, 2011 for more information.
 
[3] See 'blog-entry from August 13th, 2011 for more information.