Motto

Never work before breakfast; if you have to work before breakfast, get your breakfast first.

--Josh Billings (1818-1885)

Sunday, May 8, 2011

Lynn's Paradise Cafe, 984 Barret Avenue, Louisville, Kentucky

Lynn's Paradise Cafe needs no help from me to get the word out that this is probably the best place to eat breakfast in North America.  There is nothing not to enjoy about this place.  It's worth a weekend trip to Louisville just to eat a meal or two here.  The wait staff is friendly, funny, courteous--quite frankly everything you'd ever hope to have in a favorite breakfast place.  When they heard my phone chirping and saw me taking pictures, they were immediately curious about "The Perfect $4.00 Breakfast."  They laughed about the premise of the blog and gave me a press kit.

I ordered the Kentucky Farmer Scramble with coffee and orange juice.  It's everything you see right here. I have no recollection of how much I paid for breakfast, so it's impossible for me to give them a real score, but I promise you that whatever you order here will be satisfying and delicious.

I'll be back in Louisville in June, and I'll make up for not reviewing the Kentucky Farmer Scramble as thoroughly as I should have, but you'll find Lynn's recipe at http://www.foodnetwork.com/.  That's not surprising.  Owner Lynn Winter and staff are just that generous.
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Scoring Guide

The best score a breakfast can receive is, of course, The Perfect $4.00. A base score is determined by the cost of the entree. That score could rise if the other factors that contribute to breakfast (service, atmosphere, and food quality, for example) warrant a penalty, scored in penalty pennies. The worst score a breakfast can receive is $10.00.

Theoretically, a breakfast could score better than a $4.00 if we walked in, were given the best seat in the place, got called by our names, were served pancakes, two eggs, bacon or sausage, and hash browns for $3.95 with great coffee or ice cold juice. But, if that happens, we won't tell a soul about it because we don't want a horde of other cheapskates messing up the place.

Let's say that Shelby ordered a plain Belgian waffle, a side order of bacon, and orange juice. Since the waffle cost $5.25 and the bacon and orange juice were sides, the breakfast's base score begins at $5.25, and Shelby could opt to begin the score at $5.00 if the conditions warranted it. If the service were bad, then Shelby might add a quarter penalty. If the seats were uncomfortable, he might add a dime, and if his syrup had that icky film on the top, he might add a nickel, resulting in a final score of $5.65. I have to say that $5.65 is a very respectable score.

Let us know how well the scoring guide works for you.