Edgartown for Breakfast

I spend a lot of time going on and on about breakfast at The Black Dog Tavern and rightfully so. It is my favourite place on Martha’s Vineyard to have breakfast. Guaranteed a character or two will end up there in each of my Martha’s Vineyard Mysteries. This is because, at least for me, it embodies everything I’m looking for in a Vineyard vacation. There isn’t one solitary moment that I am not reminded over and over again of where I am; however, having said that, the truth is that breakfast is a big part of my Martha’s Vineyard vacation and there are a lot of places to have a great one! For example, this time, what if we stayed in Edgartown for breakfast?

The Edgartown Diner

As soon as you walk into The Edgartown Diner, you cannot help but smile. Not only are you met with the aromas that make any breakfast delicious—a hint of bacon, toast, fresh-baked cornbread (my favourite), and pots and pots of delicious black coffee, you are invariably met by Esther and/or her daughter Mavis. If there is a better hostess anywhere on the island than Esther, I haven’t met her. I think I even remember Esther receiving a customer service award at one point last year! Esther also works as the hostess at The News From America, my favourite pub in the whole world. I live in Toronto, Canada and I travel to the Vineyard as often as I can, but there are months that go by between my visits. Yet, every time Esther sees me, she greets me by name—every single time.

American history at The Edgartown Diner

But let’s put that aside. What if we take the incredible front of house staff out for a minute, what do we have left? The Edgartown Diner is decorated as a fifties diner. You feel like Archie, Jughead, Veronica, and Betty (who’s your favourite Veronica or Betty?) could walk through the doors at any minute. It’s a warm and friendly vibe. It’s a slice of Americana that is almost on par with the cornbread. I love their cornbread. I always get the bacon and eggs—I tend to be a traditionalist when it comes to breakfast—and a buddy of mine always gets the New Hampshire omelette. They make a mean omelette.

The Dock Street Coffee Shop

The coolest thing about The Dock Street Coffee Shop for me, is when I’m there. I really feel like a local. I tend to go early and that means that it’s usually populated by me and a bunch of fishermen. That’s it. There are fishermen at the counter and there are fishermen who come in and grab a whack of breakfast sandwiches to go. The grill is going constantly, right in front of you, and there is a whiff of coffee in the air. The other thing I like about Dock Street is that you get a lot of tasty food for a really low price. The only downside to that is that is that I am guaranteed to eat a breakfast bigger than my head. I believe it was Miss Piggy back in the seventies who said, “Never eat anything bigger than your head.” Clearly, Piggy had never been to Dock Street. I know that it was around in the seventies because you can see it in JAWS 2!! That, of course, is one of the other things I love about Dock Street…of course, it is.

Dock Street Coffee Shop

When I go, I tend to get the combo with eggs, meat, potatoes, toast and french toast—I love french toast! As for my choice of meat, I know what you’re thinking, and you’d be right—I’m a bacon guy. However, when I’m at Dock Street Coffee Shop, I’m all about the linguica sausage!! Linguiça sausage (lin-GWEE-sa) is a Portuguese, smoked pork, sausage, and it’s freaking delicious. I highly recommend it.

The Right Fork Diner

There is no question that of all of the breakfast spots in Edgartown, The Right Fork Diner has the best setting. This spot is right on The Katama Airfield! So, not only is the food excellent and the staff really friendly, but on a beautiful day, you can sit out on the patio and watch the World War I bi-planes take off and land! How cool is that?? It’s pretty cool. As I mentioned, the food is excellent. At Right Fork, my go-to dish is the Lobster Benedict.

The Right Fork Diner

If you know me at all, you’ll know that when I’m on The Vineyard, I try to get as much lobster in my system as humanly possible. Yes, there are other tasty options, but the thing is that the lobster I can get on Martha’s Vineyard is significantly fresher than anything that I can get in Toronto. There have been island restaurants where I suspected my waiter of catching the damned thing himself! So, I no longer bother to eat it in Toronto at all. While I’m on the island, I eat a lot of it. Lobster Benedict? I mean come on…

The Lobster Benedict at The Right Fork Diner

There Are More…

I know there are more breakfast places in Edgartown. In fact, I had an excellent breakfast at Lucky Hanks last year, but I don’t have any photographic evidence. I will add it to a follow up piece. There will also be more posts about breakfast in other towns. Beetle Bung definitely warrants a post all its own—what an experience that place is! So I leave you here. If my posts encourage you to do anything, I hope they encourage you to get up early, see the sunrise, and grab a fantastic breakfast, because even in August, you won’t have to wait for a table at seven a.m.

11 Comments

  1. We always go to among the flowers!! Or more recently grab bagel sandwiches st the little place on the corner… by the harbour…forgetting the name!! Will definitely be broadening our horizons this year and checking out some of these spots!!! And can’t wait!!! Boat is being prepped for a 4/19 launch!!! Let the new season begin!!!!

    1. I love Among The Flowers too! I will definitely be talking about it in the next Edgartown Breakfast post. Lucky Hanks will be in there too. As for the place on the corner… Do you mean McPhails? I haven’t been there for breakfast! So many options…

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