Breakfast on The Mother Road

The 100th Anniversary of an Iconic Diner

Photo: Jolene

If the words “diner”and “breakfast” fill you with joy, you’ve come to the right place. There’s something so familiar and satisfying about going to a good diner on a Saturday or Sunday morning. Or any morning, really — but especially on the weekend.

All that coffee and bacon, the leatherette booths and the counter where you can sit and watch the short-order action and overhear tidbits of other conversations.

Breakfast at Lou Mitchell’s.So good. Photo: Jolene

Diner breakfast is comfort food and then some. Exhibit A is the photo above. Bonus points for being served in a skillet, keeping everything hot and looking so good.

This was a breakfast I thoroughly enjoyed at the 100-year-old classic diner, Lou Mitchell’s. I sat at the counter and had country sausages, thin-sliced fried potatoes, toasted Greek bread with homemade orange marmalade and the fluffiest omelette — it was like a cross between the best scrambled eggs and an omelette.

I asked Audrey, the wonderful manager of Lou’s for the past sixteen years about the eggs and she told me it’s 3 steps: 4 eggs go into a blender for a few seconds, then into the skillet for a bit, and then finish in the oven. I’m trying this at home.

Outside Lou’s, with the Sears Tower in the background. Photo: Jolene

Lou’s is family-owned and opened in 1923 as a place specializing in breakfast and lunch dishes. That vision continues to this day — the hours are 7am-2pm.

The original Lou’s was right across the street from the current spot built in 1949. It was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 2006.

Jackson Boulevard, where the diner is located, was the start of the original Route 66, known as the “Mother Road”.

Route 66 was created in 1926, and when the signs went up on Jackson Boulevard, commuters found Lou Mitchell’s waiting for them. We’ve been feeding the hungry travelers with comfort food since 1923.

— Lou Mitchell’s, 2024

My seat. Photo: Jolene

How did Route 66 become known as the “Mother Road”? That’s John Steinbeck’s doing.

In The Grapes of Wrath, his 1939 Pulitzer Prize winning novel, Steinbeck describes escaping the Dust Bowl on the road to California this way:

66 is the mother road, the road of flight.

— John Steinbeck, The Grapes of Wrath, 1939.

It’s at places like Lou’s that I really feel the ghosts tugging at my sleeve. I was seated at one of the stools in the photo above — they are original.

I looked at the empty one next to me and thought of the decades of history, all of people who sat there enjoying a meal or some conversation or maybe just quiet time alone with a cup of coffee.

Moments like this give me a sense of perspective and a feeling of continuity and connection and are as comforting as my perfect breakfast was.

If you come to Chicago, treat yourself to a morning at Lou’s while you’re here, I think you’ll love it.

Thank you so much to Audrey and Ariel and Virginia—you make Lou’s so special!

At the counter with the fantastic Virginia, who has worked at Lou’s for 20 years. Her lovely daughter, Ariel, is a college student and musician who is hostessing at Lou’s this summer.

Photo courtesy of Lou Mitchell’s from the cover of their cookbook.

Follow-Ups

Mustard Speaks!

JustSomeMustard

is a Substack publication that’s written by a self-described “semi-sentient condiment” who loves music and interviews musicians. Everything “Mustard” posts on Notes makes me laugh, so you can imagine how thrilled I was to get a shout-out from the beloved condiment and writer after my visit to the Wienermobile.

Thank you so much, Mustard. It was a pleasure meeting you as well! 😂🌭

Egg Cream Surprise!

My latest egg cream made in my official u-bet glass. Photo:Jolene

The nice folks at Fox’s u-bet syrup saw the egg cream photo I posted on Instagram and sent me a pair of official u-bet glasses and a big bottle of syrup. Thank you, u-bet! I feel like I won the Oscar for egg creams!

The same week I wrote my post,

Michael Rubel

wrote this fantastic piece about “sparkling milk” with great recipes, too. Egg creams are en vogue! Definitely check out Michael’s post, linked below.

The drink of the summer is Sparkling Milk?

Thanks for reading, see you soon. Let me know in the comments if you have any favorite diners where you live!

Jolene

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