Mare's Journey: Breakfast at Ikea

Hey!

So, I guess when you think of Ikea, your first thought is not breakfast. Light Swedish furniture, cheap, colorful kitchen tchotkes, some assembly required bookshelves. But not bacon and eggs.

Well, kids, think again.

The last time we were at Ikea (well, I guess the time before last, actually), we noticed the larger than life poster on the building, touting .99 cent breakfasts. Hmmmm... The Husband and I, who lament that there is no dollar breakfast menu at Mc'D's, were intrigued. So, we arranged our Sunday so that we could present ourselves at the Costa Mesa Ikea at 9:30, when the cafe opened.

Here is the official menu:

Eggs, bacon and fried potatoes .99
Eggs, bacon, fried potatoes and French toast sticks $1.99
Eggs, bacon fried potatoes and Swedish pancakes $2.99

Unofficial menu:

Belgian waffles $?? You must have to use a password to get those since we didn't see them on the menu

I enjoyed my French toast stick meal. The FTS's were, to my delight, not greasy like the ones at Burger King. The bacon was lovely. The eggs and potatoes were good but bland enough to make me reach for the salt shaker, which almost never happens. Also had to equip myself with ketchup for the potatoes, but that's my norm. The Husband, big spender that he is, was not impressed with the pancakes. I took a bite and they're very dense, not fluffy like in the US of A. But they were covered with lingonberries, so they weren't a total loss.

Had to laugh since we went for the .99 breakfast and we both got the more expensive ones. Our small effort to keep the economy going...

As we enjoyed our early morning repast, we were pretty amazed at the number of Ikea breakfast patrons. We came in at a slower time but after we sat down, the line was continuous. They provide your typical cafeteria trays that hold two plates somewhat comfortably but for bigger entourages, there are little wire rolling tables that fit several trays one atop the other. Pretty cute, especially when little kids are pushing them. One older gentleman was following his wife and tiny granddaughter, who was "pushing" the table. He turned to us and said, "You gotta start 'em working young!" Cheap eats and comedy!

Conclusion: If you're at an Ikea early enough for breakfast, give it a try. Where else can you eat at a furniture store? And such a bargain, even for the more "expensive" meals. Skol! (Is that Swedish?)

Other edibles I recommend at Ikea:

Swedish Chocolate! The perfect snack to bring to the movie theatre!