We visited Martha’s Place at 5202 N. Nebraska Avenue on 28 June 2009. This is our second visit to Martha’s, the first being at least a year ago when Marek still needed a booster seat.

Walking into Martha’s is like walking into your own grandmother’s house. The setup, decoration, and even the dishes give a well-worn feeling of hand-me-downs and yard sales where everyone in the family has had a part in making a house a home. But if there was air conditioning, either it wasn’t working or they’d not kicked it on yet — it was hotter inside than it was out!

Marek was not his usual cheery self this morning. He had a hard day yesterday, with a long drive to his Cousin Simone’s birthday party in Gainesville. So he asked that we give a half-pancake boost to Martha’s just because he was a grouch.

We started out with some coffee. If you remember the television show Twin Peaks, you may recall that Agent Cooper had many memorable coffee experiences. One was all the various coffees he’d get at the diner and another was at Pete’s place. Let’s say that I found Martha’s coffee to be more like Pete’s than the diner’s. But you’ve got to give some credit for the Morris the Cat coffee cup dating to at least the 80s if not the 70s!

The most unique thing about Martha’s is that there’s catfish on the breakfast menu. You don’t see that every day! Well, unless you eat at Martha’s every day, I suppose, but Martha’s is the only place in town that I know of with this specialty!

We had breakfast. The bacon was very nice and very crispy, in the way that Steve from Yankeetown would probably like. The pancakes were very reasonable and I didn’t mind finishing mine and Mareks. We’re Pancake Professionals, perhaps the only such professionals working in the Tampa Bay Area today, so we’re duty-bound to report on bad food even when served by good people. The eggs were simply not what I expected out of scrambled eggs. A single bite and I was done.

Marek, being cranky from yesterday’s events, didn’t eat a thing. He just wanted to play cars and be left alone.

So I had my breakfast and Marek’s breakfast and some of Pete Martell’s coffee. And it was a nice time.

Marek paid the bill. Or tried to, while holding on to his cars. He was lacking focus in his task and had to be coached a bit this morning.

But he finally got the bill paid. A full breakfast and coffee for under six bucks!

Martha’s was hot inside, the eggs were not my favorite, and they served Pete Martell coffee, but the bacon and pancakes were good and the people were just plain friendly and welcoming. And while Marek didn’t get a pop, he did get a gumball from the nice lady so it was all good. We’re going to give a 2.5 pancake rating and plus it up to a 3 because Marek was in a bad mood and we’re not going to hold that against the super folks at Martha’s!

We visited the Pine Grove Family Restaurant at 9399 N Florida Ave on Father’s Day, June 21st. Most things on the menu are very nicely priced, though the omelets seem to be a bit on the high side. Marek and I have been here a few times before and have always been treated well. The people are always very friendly and the customers have the look of folks who sit in the same booth every week, if not every day. This is a classic Tampa mom and pop greasy spoon.

On this visit our waitress recognized us immediately and remembered that Marek gets his own coffee cup. Automatic plus-up of 1/2 a pancake on the rating! The most unique thing about Pine Grove is the “Goody Goody Burger” … a Tampa specialty for 80 years, though I’ll admit we’ve never tried one as we stick to what we know (that’s breakfast!). The inside is very spacious and even has a great lunch counter. Maybe next year Marek will be tall enough for us to try it.

This was a very special Tampa Bay Breakfast, as we had an array of guests with us. We had Grandma and Huppa, who drove all the way from Inglis.

And we had mom! Tampa Bay Breakfasts got its start as a project to let mom sleep. We were very excited that she joined us today.

And of course, it wouldn’t be a Tampa Bay Breakfast without Marek.

We started out with coffee. It was hot and black, the way we like it.

We had breakfast. This requires some history to put in perspective. Marek and I had a really good breakfast here a while back. Then we came back one afternoon for pie. Because, to be perfectly frank, I just really like pie. Several of the chairs from the lunch counter were missing seats and the pie itself was just not very good at all. So we thought, meh, this isn’t such a great place after all. Today’s breakfast made up for that sketchy visit. The bacon was a little under-done, but the eggs were great and the pancakes were top-notch.

Marek promptly got down to business. That’s pancake business.

For the five of us the tab was just under $30. That’s not bad at all. When we were done, Marek paid the bill. He’s started chanting “pay, pay, pay” whenever he sees the check come. He’s good at what he does and he knows it!

Like a shot, he’s off across the dining room.

Where he caused a bit of a stir. I was on the other side of the room so I’m not sure what was said, but it appeared to be along the lines of, “Hey! Where’d this kid come from?” “Heck, I don’t know, but he’s got money.” “Oh, well, OK then. Here’s your change, kid.”

Marek made friends with the good folks at Pine Grove, even though there weren’t any pops for him. I’m sure we’ll be back!

We all went away full of good food for a great price and we all had a great time. This is what breakfast is all about. We’re pleased to give the Pine Grove Family Restaurant a four pancake rating.

We visited a weekly breakfast provided to Tampa’s homeless by several church groups in the area. The breakfast is held in the parking lot at 1312 N Tampa St every Saturday morning at around 0800.

Marek jumped right in to help.

And off he went to lend a hand.

His assigned task was to distribute toothpaste.

We spent some time with Denise, our neighbor and good friend.

This breakfast group accepts donations of all sorts and acts as a distribution point for food and clothing for Tampa’s homeless population. If you’d like to donate or help out you’re welcome to just show up. Alternately you may contact Andy at andy@sonador.com to find out more.

We are pleased to give this Tampa Bay Breakfast a five pancake rating!

We visited The Pink Flamingo Cafe at 304 E. Davis Boulevard on 7 June. The Pink Flamingo Cafe was our first official recommendation (as you can see, we’ve got a tremendous backlog of Breakfast work!). The Pink Flamingo Cafe also has a nice web site at http://www.pinkflamingo.us/. This was our first visit to the Pink Flamingo Cafe. It won’t be our last.

We had breakfast. And it was good.

I was a bit disappointed that we couldn’t get our old standby of pancakes, bacon, and eggs as a set unit. And they don’t have blueberry pancakes. But the Flamingo did have “banana walnut” pancakes. I gave this a try, and was not disappointed. Making pancakes with a bunch of crazy crap in them can be a good way to get a plate of mushy goo for breakfast, but the Flamingo pulled this off most excellently! And the syrup was nicely warmed up, and rumor is that it’s home-made too. That’s a good touch!

Marek wasted no time digging in, and he ate a lot for his little belly.

The Flamingo has some unique flair. While we were having pancakes, they played some newer Jimmy Buffet and a track from one of my favorite albums, Donald Fagen’s “The Nightfly”. The dining room is full of classic Florida kitsch as a theme (it IS on an island, after all, so we’ll forgive them for this).

They have a fish tank, which is guaranteed Marek fascination! (Though Marek thought it could use more fish.)

The best thing, the most unique thing about the Flamingo, is that folks can bring their dogs for breakfast, so long as everyone sits outside on the patio.

By the time we were done, there were several dogs with their families. (Our beloved hound, Zimno, will need about $67,453 worth of obedience training before we take HIM here!). Marek was enthralled to find dogs out the door!

Lest we forget, we had coffee. And it was good. And bottomless!

Marek paid the bill.

He got into some sort of discussion with the management. I have no idea what they talked about, but I’m betting he was trying to negotiate to get a pop. They must not have had any, as all he brought back was change. But it’s a credit to how good this place was … he didn’t even notice!

The bottom line on The Pink Flamingo Cafe is that this is simply a top-notch Tampa Bay Breakfast. Great food, super-nice people, lots of regulars, dogs and fish, and plenty of strong black coffee. We had a long discussion on the way home if this should be a 4.5 or a 5 pancake rating. We decided that we’d say 4.5 because it was a little pricey (not that it’s wasn’t worth the premium, but it usually we can get breakfast for under 10; today we had to lay out a Jackson to pay). If they’d had pops or blueberry pancakes, it would be a strong contender for the Best Breakfast Ever in Tampa Bay. (That’s a title currently held by Skyway Jack’s, in case you were wondering.)

We’re pleased to give The Pink Flamingo Cafe a 4.5 pancake rating. Thanks to Christine for the great recommendation!