So I know this is technically a brunch blog…but sometimes I eat breakfast, too! Today I wanted to brag on a couple of places that may not immediately come to mind if you’re searching for tasty early morning fare, but that should definitely be on your radar for next time!
1. Whole Foods Market, Greenville, SC
Image credit: Sweet Tater Blog
If you’ve never been to the Greenville Whole Foods please, just go. I guarantee you’ll be going back afterwards. Beside being my go-to grocery store for things I don’t (or can’t) get at the farmer’s market, Whole Foods is also one of my favorite sources of pastries. Their chocolate croissant is incredible – and if you read my earlier post on pastries, you know I’m picky about them. I can safely and assuredly say that Whole Foods’ croissant recipes are almost exactly like what you get in France, although perhaps a little bit crisper, but not enough to deter me. Their blueberry muffins are also quite good. However, today I’m not here to discuss their breakfast pastries, at least not at Whole Foods. Today I bring to you the wonder and glory that is breakfast pizza.
Pizza for breakfast?! you may gasp, horrified. No, I don’t mean cold leftover pizza from the party the night before. I mean genuine, baked at 7 am, topped with breakfast goodies, breakfast pizza. The Whole Foods in Greenville does “Breakfast at the Bistro” from 8-10:30 am every day (yes, every day!). Don’t be confused by the name if you’re new to the store – the Bistro is the big area near the bakery/gelato that has the big pizza oven in the center. This past weekend I was up early to run errands and decided to get breakfast while doing so, since I had to stop by Whole Foods anyway. It was magical, because I stumbled upon this delicacy:
Breakfast pizza. Yum!
Yes: breakfast pizza Florentine. In a word, it’s incredible. I’m a big fan of white pizza anyway, so this was a huge hit with me. Homemade pizza crust, garlicky white sauce, fresh spinach, scrambled eggs, bacon, and goat cheese – or, as I like to call it, heaven, and for less than $6 after tax it’s a very affordable slice of heaven at that [pun definitely intended]. Now before you rush off tomorrow morning to get your own, let me lay out this disclaimer: I believe that their breakfast pizza selection, like their regular pizza selection, rotates, so this one may or may not be available all the time. However, this was good enough that I’d go back and try pretty much any of their breakfast pizzas or strombolis, or any of their other breakfast offerings for that matter. Go try it!
2. The Bakery Off Augusta
This time, I am going to talk about pastries. Another absolutely adorable house-turned-food purveyor, The Bakery Off Augusta is (unsurprisingly) a bakery right off of Augusta Street. These guys are open early (usually 7 am) every day except Sunday, and have one of the best selection of authentic pastries you could ask for. They’re a routine stop for my early morning weekend errands (when I’m not headed to Whole Foods, of course), and are always there to greet you with a smile and excellent customer service, no matter how busy it is or how inquisitive a customer you may be. I’ve had a number of things from here but my all-time favorites are their fruit pastries and danishes.
L to R: cherry danish, pecan spinwheel, Danish horn.
Everything here is always baked fresh with no preservatives, so you never have to wonder or worry what you’re biting into. I’ve eaten here lots of time and have never been disappointed, and with a price tag of around $2 per pastry, my wallet has never been disappointed, either. The pastry selection rotates, but you can pretty much always count on one or two varieties of danish, probably a pecan spinwheel, a few kinds of scone, one or two types of breakfast biscuit (the last time I was there it was a roasted sweet potato biscuit with ham and eggs), and various other goodies in the case (cookies, cakes, etc.). I’d also like to add that they make the best strawberry cake I have ever had in my life, and I’d like to thank my friends at GHS for introducing me to this wonderful hidden gem!
So while I technically broke the rules for the blog and wrote about breakfast instead, I hope you’ll go check these places out!
Bunches of Brunches 