DINEROOOOO: SAM'S MORNING GLORY DINER

Any good ol' American loves a good ol' diner. And these days diners come in all kinds of shapes and sizes: greasy spoons, cafeterias, Jewish delis, gourmet delis, even trendy diners. The bottom line is that a diner is a place where you can order a side of fries with your morning waffle... most of the time.

On a recent, and out-of-the-blue, excursion up north to our neighbor city of Philadelphia, PA, I - along with two friends - had the pleasure of "brunching" at Sam's Morning Glory Diner located in the Bella Vista neighborhood of South Philly. A friend of mine did her due-diligence, and researched the place after seeing it on TV a while back. When we got there, we placed ourselves on a list that lasted about 40 minutes or so. Needless to say, the wait was well-worth it.

The diner is truly a busy one, and you're better off taking what seating you can get once something becomes available. Luckily (or un-luckily, depending on how you look at it), we were offered three seats at the counter... but right smack across from the main griddle and the oven where delicious-looking frittatas quietly baked. At first, the heat was unnerving, and I felt like I was going to die from sweating. And I felt like a complete idiot for ordering a hot cup of coffee, which they serve in a tin cup. *OUCH!* But I got past all that as I saw how quickly, and thoughtfully, the cooks behind the counter got to working no each and every order that came through. (Yes, even the frittata woman with all the tats and piercings and ear gauges.)

In fear of over-stuffing (which my friends and I just NEVER do... *ahem*), I opted for a simple order of Glory Cakes. And glorious they were. The cakes I ordered were laden with blackberries and nectarines, which combined to offer a fresh and sweet twist to my first meal of that day. My friend, Aydee, chose the Monkey French Toast --a heaping serving of "Frenched" challah bread smothered with bananas and cream. To add to the frenzy was a side order of mac 'n cheese (always a winner), turkey sausage, eggs, and "home-style" potatoes.

Monkey French Toast

Glory Cakes w/blackberries & nectarines

The rumor is that if you're NOT nice (ie, complaining about food, being demanding and/or rude, etc.), you'd not get served, or get kicked out. So we were being nice the whole time we were there, and we were treated very well. (Thank GOD!)

The small, unassuming diner is surely a "must do" when traversing through Philly.