The Empire Strikes Back with Breakfast

The Empire Diner makes its presence known on busy Route 46 East with a red, white and black Art Deco sign that faces the highway. Diners are much-loved places in New Jersey, and Parsippany’s Empire is no exception, although its fans and detractors seem equally split.

We’re partial to breakfast at the local diners we visit and have been known to order pancakes or omelets at whatever diner we visit late at night after seeing a show or taking in a concert. Come to think of it, that’s probably how we became most familiar with diners, when we were in high school and could get around minus parents. A lifetime of breakfast in the wee hours had begun.

But this time it was Saturday in the summer and we needed to get a lot of things done. We also didn’t want to skip our favorite meal of the day. When we ignore hunger pangs in the morning, we end up being crabby by mid-day. Not a good thing.

We entered the Empire at around 10 a.m. and were handed two to-the-point breakfast menus that featured the usual suspects: eggs, coffee, orange juice and a host of options for enjoying the main event. You could have a trio of pancakes or a short stack. There were waffles topped with various kinds of fruit including strawberries, blueberries, bananas and whatever combination you might desire. Omelets in whatever combination you would like. There was ham, bacon, sausages and corned beef hash. It all looked, sounded and smelled delicious.

The multi-room restaurant boasts 35 tables and is marked by frosted glass panels, giving it an elegant touch that probably works during dinner and late night. This day we saw families and friends enjoying a multitude of combinations such as eggs and bacon or sausage and pancakes. No matter how many times the nutritionists tell us we need to start the morning with a hearty bowl of oatmeal, when we go out for breakfast, hot cereal is never an option.

For me, it was a toss-up between Eggs Benedict or French toast. To make the decision a little simpler, I checked with the waitress to see what she thought was a good choice.

“Well, since I don’t like eggs I never order them, so I’d go with the French toast,” she said.

Not like eggs? How could she work in a diner and look askance at eggs?

My husband had been hankering for pancakes and sausages, so it was no trouble for him to give his order. Another minute or two and I veered toward my childhood favorite: French toast with an egg to go on top and keep company with the butter and syrup.

Speaking of syrup, unless we’re in Vermont, we usually can’t find real maple syrup, which is a terrible shame. The commercially produced stuff is basically just corn syrup with caramel coloring. It’s sweet but there’s no depth of flavor—but unless we’re willing to bring our own supply to the breakfast table, we usually accept what the waitress plunks down in front of us. (At home, we make sure to have the real thing on hand all the time.)

Even without 100 percent pure maple syrup, we had to admit the thick slices of French toast were neatly bathed with egg and given an expert turn on the griddle that left them soft on the inside with a nice outer coating. These were probably some of the best that we’ve enjoyed lately.

The pancakes were equally rewarding—in fact my husband’s first comment was, “Wow.” The flapjacks were light and hot without the regrettable “tire patch” consistency we sometimes encounter. His sausages were fat and robust with a nice pork flavor. By the time he finished his breakfast, he didn’t have room to pounce on one of my remaining French toast slices.

All in all, it was a first-rate breakfast that surprised us, since Web chatter about the Empire tends to run hot and cold. Some patrons said in self-penned online reviews that the diner was past its prime, its staff  indifferent and its food mediocre. Other reviewers stood solidly in its corner.

This Saturday morning we had nothing but good stuff to say about the Empire.

Empire Diner 1315 Route 46 East near Baldwin Road, 973-335-2729. Open 24 hours serving breakfast, lunch and dinner as well as cocktail service. Major credit cards accepted.