April 1, 2012 Research, research and more research. This is how one can find the hidden gems of restaurants in vacation cities. We decided to try and find a place that served simple breakfast food. You know, eggs, some sort of meat, some sort of bread, and some decent coffee. The reviews we found said this was a throwback to another era type of restaurant. These reviews were just what we wanted, so we went off in search of the Belvedere Coffee Shop.

When we arrived, we found a full restaurant, with only two seats at the counter, where we promptly took our seats. These seats provided a great view of the beach. Yes, this simple diner is right on the beach front, making Belvedere Coffee Shop worth the trip and wait for the view alone. There was one small downside, you won't get any food pictures today. While we had a great view of the beach, we also felt exposed, and kept the camera put away. The only picture you get today, is the picture below, which shows the view of the restaurant from the boardwalk. If you stay until the end of the article, I promise to make up the lack of pictures to you.

Belvedere Coffee Shop (click to enlarge)

I went simple and ordered two eggs, two pancakes and ham. What arrived was a great simple breakfast, just the way I like it. Generally, the alphageek saves the innovative meals for lunch and dinner. Mrs. alphageek ordered the Eye Opener. It had a fried egg, ham, and fried tomato on it. The egg was fried along with some parmessean cheese, giving the sandwich a taste unique to Belvedere Coffee Shop. It was fast, simple and delicious. I was a little jealous, and am going to get my own Eye Opener, if we ever go back.

So, the review is out of the way. If you stayed this long, I promised more. Mrs. alphageek kept hearing me say "Belvedere, come here boy" while we were driving to this restaurant. She did not know where the line came from. I told her it was a classic cartoon, that everyone should know. I went and found that cartoon. I present Dog Gone South for your viewing pleasure.

So there you go, a great write up and a great cartoon. I hope you find this review entertaining and informative, all at the same time. Hopefully, you now know where the "Belvedere, come here boy" come from, if nothing else.

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