breakfast triathlon

Each year for the past 3 years, my guy Tony has participated in the NYC Triathlon. And each year, I go to watch. Being a triathlon spectator is a lot of fun, but it includes long stretches of time when the object of your spectating is out of sight. During this stretch of time, I have begun my own tradition of going out for a nice big diner breakfast. This year, I was joined by Julia for the second year in a row, in what we have come to consider our "Breakfast Triathlon" (this year at EJ's Luncheonette on Amsterdam & 81st).

I give you the Lumberjack Breakfast: pancakes, bacon and sausage, eggs, and home fries (I guess that's more than 3 items, but whatever).

I've eaten a lot of diner breakfasts in my life, but I'd have to rank this as one of the very best. Every single thing on the plate was cooked perfectly.

And before you start thinking that I'm cruel for waving this decadent meal under the nose of someone who missed it because he was out completing a grueling athletic endeavor, I will say in my defense that I did buy him a beer and giant cheeseburger with fries afterward, at what has become our favorite post-race Irish bar (P.D. O'Hurley's on 72nd & Amsterdam).

Of course, I also treated myself to kind of a ridiculous "snack" as well... a plate of "disco fries" (fries with mozzarella cheese melted on top, and a side of gravy).

When I requested it (this not being a standard menu item, but one that any respectable Irish bar has the ingredients for), the bartender gave me a look of bemused disgust, the likes of which I've never gotten. If only he knew what I'd eaten a few short hours earlier... but this triathlon spectating is hard work!

This post is in honor of Tony: awesome and dedicated triathlete. 
Well done, you :-)