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I don't think most Americans would consider McDonalds or IHOP typical breakfast food. I've lived in the US for 10+ years and only been to IHOP and Denny's 3 or

I don't think most Americans would consider McDonalds or IHOP typical breakfast food. I've lived in the US for 10+ years and only been to IHOP and Denny's 3 or 4 times combined, and only go to McDonalds for breakfast when I absolutely can't take the time to eat at home.

csydas 10y ago
Eh, mildly disagree. While they might not consider that they need to go to McDonalds or IHOP, ask what people think of for breakfast and for sure they'll say "cereal, pancakes, waffles, donuts, muffins, scrambled eggs, sausage, bacon, sweetened oatmeal, etc.", which certainly are all central to the McDonalds/iHop menu. While it's not exclusive to the sweets the article discusses, there are a lot of sweet things involved, and for quite a few, drowning the product in syrup or honey or sugar is pretty common, if the product itself isn't already. Heck, most people I know add sugar to the already sweetened instant oatmeal they prepare. It was a bit different when I moved abroad and breakfast instead was just as others in the topic are describing it - an open-face sandwich with a small bit of butter, vegetables, and meat of some accord, usually with a coffee and maybe some cheese. I first was shown it by my partner, who I thought was just too tired in the morning to bother with anything else, but soon learned it's what she grew up with.
- JPKab 10y ago
  Just to be clear, there is a difference between the commercial, industrialized restaurant breakfast offerings vs. what people traditionally eat in their homes. I grew up in the rural south, and our traditional breakfast fell into seasonal categories. In the colder months, we'd eat 2 eggs, a small helping of buttered grits, and bacon. Warmer months or autumn depended on what was available, but often times we'd eat fresh shrimp or "trash fish" (stuff we'd caught like spot, croaker, trout, flounder) fried up with grits. The grits were always only buttered, never sweetened. Never pancakes or any starchy, sugary items. Older folks knew these things were energy killers, and ironically the families I knew that ate tons of starches were the ones whose parents had bought into the whole "fat kills you, eggs are bad" mantra pushed by the government. I find it extremely ironic that these families were eating less healthy than the "redneck" families they assumed were killing themselves. No older American who grew up doing farm work thinks the IHOP breakfast is remotely healthy.
  - csydas 10y ago
    To some degree yes, but truthfully, I don't think the "IHOP Breakfast" for lack of a better term is unique to non-farmers. My grandparents were farmers, their neighbors are farmers, their parents were farmers, and they grew up on short-stacks, sausage, oatmeal, the works. I never suggested that the IHOP breakfast is the only breakfast Americans eat, but I do posit if you grab a person on the street and ask them what is "breakfast food", you'll hear the IHOP breakfast in some way

csydas 10y ago

Eh, mildly disagree. While they might not consider that they need to go to McDonalds or IHOP, ask what people think of for breakfast and for sure they'll say "cereal, pancakes, waffles, donuts, muffins, scrambled eggs, sausage, bacon, sweetened oatmeal, etc.", which certainly are all central to the McDonalds/iHop menu. While it's not exclusive to the sweets the article discusses, there are a lot of sweet things involved, and for quite a few, drowning the product in syrup or honey or sugar is pretty common, if the product itself isn't already. Heck, most people I know add sugar to the already sweetened instant oatmeal they prepare. It was a bit different when I moved abroad and breakfast instead was just as others in the topic are describing it - an open-face sandwich with a small bit of butter, vegetables, and meat of some accord, usually with a coffee and maybe some cheese. I first was shown it by my partner, who I thought was just too tired in the morning to bother with anything else, but soon learned it's what she grew up with.

JPKab 10y ago
Just to be clear, there is a difference between the commercial, industrialized restaurant breakfast offerings vs. what people traditionally eat in their homes. I grew up in the rural south, and our traditional breakfast fell into seasonal categories. In the colder months, we'd eat 2 eggs, a small helping of buttered grits, and bacon. Warmer months or autumn depended on what was available, but often times we'd eat fresh shrimp or "trash fish" (stuff we'd caught like spot, croaker, trout, flounder) fried up with grits. The grits were always only buttered, never sweetened. Never pancakes or any starchy, sugary items. Older folks knew these things were energy killers, and ironically the families I knew that ate tons of starches were the ones whose parents had bought into the whole "fat kills you, eggs are bad" mantra pushed by the government. I find it extremely ironic that these families were eating less healthy than the "redneck" families they assumed were killing themselves. No older American who grew up doing farm work thinks the IHOP breakfast is remotely healthy.
- csydas 10y ago
  To some degree yes, but truthfully, I don't think the "IHOP Breakfast" for lack of a better term is unique to non-farmers. My grandparents were farmers, their neighbors are farmers, their parents were farmers, and they grew up on short-stacks, sausage, oatmeal, the works. I never suggested that the IHOP breakfast is the only breakfast Americans eat, but I do posit if you grab a person on the street and ask them what is "breakfast food", you'll hear the IHOP breakfast in some way