Almond croissants, black and white pudding, huevos rancheros, halwah poori and sweet bean curd.Welcome to breakfast along the No. 7 train line.
You won’t need a passport to savor any of these authentic breakfasts from around the world — just a MetroCard and $10 or so.Here are some stops along the movable feast:
If the street outside the first Queens stop of the eastbound No. 7 appears empty in the morning, maybe it’s because seemingly everyone is having breakfast at Cafe Henri. Fresh croissants, tartines (baguettes with butter and jam), omelets and other items served with fresh-brewed tea or cafe au lait in a bowl make the 35-seat eatery a popular destination, especially on weekends.
“The French toast is good and the crepes are all good,” said recent law school graduate Thad Anderson. “And they leave copies of the Sunday New York Times lying around.”
Cafe Henri is located at 10-10 50th Ave. at Vernon Boulevard in Long Island City, near the first stop in Queens at Vernon Boulevard-Jackson Avenue. Open: 8 a.m. to midnight, daily. Phone: 718-383-9315.
Named for owner Michael Gaynor’s grandmother, Rose Restaurant offers customers a friendly Céad mÃle fáilte (“100,000 welcomes”) — and a hearty Irish breakfast — from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m.
“It’s the most important meal of the day,” noted Gaynor, who hasn’t lost the brogue of his native Ireland. A Rose Restaurant breakfast includes Irish sausage, Irish bacon, black and white pudding and two eggs, any style. “And it comes with french fries or home fries,” added Gaynor, who came to the United States from County Mayo 15 years ago.
Black and white pudding is made with pig’s blood, oatmeal and spices, Gaynor revealed, a little concerned that knowledge of the contents would send customers away. Clearly not. The small diner-style establishment was nearly full, even on a recent Tuesday. Rose Restaurant is located at 44-07 Queens Boulevard in Sunnyside, near the 46th Street stop. Open: 6 a.m. to 10 p.m., daily. Phone: 718-784-0745.
When La Flor chef Juan Ortega whips up the Mexican breakfast dish huevos rancheros (“eggs ranch-style”), it almost looks like a flower, appropriately enough, given the eatery’s name. Huevos rancheros at La Flor (“The Flower”) bakery, restaurant and cafe is served with refried beans, soft tortillas and sunny-side-up eggs, topped with a decorative pattern of red and green sauces made of avocado and costeño — a chili pepper that grows in Mexico.
“They’re very, very good,” said local business owner and satisfied customer John Mancuso.
La Flor is located at 53-02 Roosevelt Ave. in Woodside, near the 52nd Street stop. Open: 8:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily; breakfast is served until 2 p.m. Phone: 718-426-8023.
When you enter bustling Kabab King, blink — and suddenly you’ve arrived in South Asia. The restaurant’s popular morning offering is halwah, a wheat-based sweet, accompanied by poori or fried bread, a dish typically sold by street vendors in northern India and Pakistan.
“We all come — Pakistani, Indian, Nepali and Bengali,” chef Musadi Lal said in halting English, describing the myriad South Asian customers he serves around the clock.
But get there early for breakfast: It’s offered only from 6 a.m. to noon — and the halwah poori runs out fast.
Kabab King is located at 73-01 37th Road at 73rd Street in Jackson Heights, near the 74th Street stop. Open: 24 hours, 7 days a week. Phone: 718-457-5857.
Named for the fifth son in owner Chang Liang King’s family, King 5 Noodle House is No. 1 with many fans of traditional Taiwanese breakfasts. Sweet soybean milk, sesame cakes, beef with sesame cakes and fried buns with chives and eggs are popular with customers, who pack the eatery on weekends.
“It’s very famous and very good,” said business owner and customer Henry Chin, who came all the way from New Jersey for the meal.
King 5 Noodle House is located at 39-07 Prince Street in Flushing, near the Main Street station, the eastbound No. 7’s last stop in Queens. Open: Breakfast is served only on weekends, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Phone: 718-888-1268.
