I have a confession: I’ve never been a huge fan of breakfast.
Breakfast is usually cereal hastily gulped down before rushing to school, toast being nibbled at a work desk while reading emails, or in most cases, just a cup of tea slowly getting cold as the demands of the day take priority.
But on weekends, breakfast is an activity to be enjoyed slowly. And then breakfast becomes a spread of my mom’s homecooked traditional Chinese items, a leisurely brunch with friends, a quiet time to myself as I snuggle up with movies in bed…
One of the best things about full-time travel is that days of the week no longer matter. Every day is a weekend day. Everyday, we have the luxury of lingering over a hot breakfast. And indeed, the first question we ask each other upon waking up is often, what do you want to eat for breakfast? We’ve discovered such a delicious and varied world of breakfast, and so I thought it’d be fun to show you how different cultures start their day!
Here’s a look at what breakfast has looked like for us over the past year+!
London
Oh the English breakfast. It’s certainly not for the weak hearted. This wins for the heaviest breakfast on the planet. If you’re on a tight budget (which is probably the case for most people as London is a ridiculously expensive travel destination) and can only afford one meal a day, then you’d better make it breakfast. Trust me, this is all the energy and calories you will need for the entire day.
Okay, all jests aside, I already wrote a full length post on the English breakfast experience, so check it out here!
Paris
Duh, when in France, what else are you going to eat for breakfast? Crossaints are pretty much synonymous with France, and who can resist this buttery and flaky pastry (though I’m more of a fan of the pain au chocolat, as pictured)?
But I gotta admit, currently in Lyon, I’ve been more in favor of a different, yet still very French, kind of food for my first meal…
Lyon, France
The charcuterie and cheeses are superb in Lyon and one of our favorite things to do is to hand select a few blocks of cheese, a few cuts of cured meats and pates, a couple baguettes, and put together our own platter. And of course, finish with a strawberry tart, because who said you can’t have dessert after breakfast? ;)
(This is only a once-a-week kind of indulgence! Trust me, neither our wallets nor waistlines can afford to eat like this everyday.)
Thailand
Rice for breakfast?? Yep, welcome to Asia! Rice with some sort of meat/veggies and a fried egg is a staple. And because this is Thailand, you can expect that your dish will have a pretty strong kick of spice, which is actually an excellent way to work up the appetite in the morning.
Wuhu, China
China is so large that each region has its own local breakfast. One of the most interesting ones I had was in Wuhu. This local specialty is made up of lightly rice-battered pork and tofu strips over sticky rice. One breakfast item that can be found throughout most of China, though, is warm tofu pudding. This one here is in the savory style with picked veggies and soy sauce.
Istanbul
The Turkish breakfast is one of my favorites, because it’s mostly sweet! Freshly baked simit (sesame rings) are accompanied with a wide assortment of jams, spreads, cheeses, salads, and my favorite: clotted cream and honey. And of course, wash it all down with multiple cups of Turkish tea.
Philippines
Quite a few Asian countries do rice + meat + eggs for breakfast, but what makes the Filipino one stand out for me is the garlic rice (as I’m obsessed with anything garlic)! My preferred meat option is tapsilog, which are spiced, dried, and grilled pieces of meat. And since we were on Boracay, you can’t beat a side of fresh mango.
Poland
There’s no better way to get an authentic regional breakfast than getting it made by a local. We were lucky to be able to stay with D’s relatives both times we visited Warsaw, and eat a full breakfast everyday prepared by the house staff. Breakfast always consists of eggs, sausages, tomato slices, cheese, and bread with butter. A solid start to the day.
Buenos Aires
The food culture in Buenos Aires draws heavily from French and Italian influences, and breakfast is no exception. Crossaints is the popular pastry of choice, but I quite enjoyed this ham and cheese sandwich. I find that the people in Buenos Aires like their eggs (like the poached egg here) rather on the runny side, which I’m not a fan of. Orange juice and coffee (tea for me) come with most breakfast sets.
Hong Kong
Dim sum is the traditional breakfast choice in Hong Kong. We often got a couple of steamer baskets of shrimp dumplings and shumai (and braised chicken feet for D!). I also really like the steamed minced pork patty over rice. It may sound (and look) really plain but the meat is so flavorful and the steaming of it ensures that it’s soft. Yummm!
Vietnam
I think Vietnam wins for my favorite breakfast! To me, there is nothing as comforting as a big steamy bowl of noodle soup, and I gotta say that pho is my favorite one of all. Pho in the north comes mostly unadorned while in the south, it’s dressed with all kinds of fresh herbs. Either style is absolutely delicious!
What is your all time favorite breakfast food?
This post is linked up to The Weekly Postcard.
Yummmmm. I never used to be a breakfast person but I feel like that’s all changed in the past year. I do have to say I have a weakness for sweet breakfasts… and French ones, too! :)
Me too, I love sweet breakfasts!! Like pastries with chocolate and scones with jam. Ugh I think I may have spoken too soon about liking pho the best, because I don’t think I can never resist a sweet breakfast!
Oh my, I totally adore this post!! I think it’s actually one of my favourite ever. I love posts that do these types of comparison and your photos and descriptions are great. It’s so interesting to see how breakfast varies around the world, especially between the sweet and savory tastes.
Totally agree with you that during the week breakfast is a rush but during the weekend and holidays it becomes amazing. My favourite is the French breakfast because who doesn’t love a fresh, flaky croissant yummm! I find English breakfasts really heavy too and sometimes so greasy that all I feel I can taste is grease. Excited for part 2! :) x
Ahh thanks so much Marcella! :D
The English breakfast is so heavy and I don’t imagine that you guys actually eat that on a regular basis! D loves the English one, which I prefer French pastries too. Hehe I think it’ll be another year before part 2 because I need to travel to more countries to build up another collection!
I’ve been a rice-for-breakfast addict since living in Thailand last year! Whenever I have leftover curry or stir fry and rice for dinner, I save it and too it with a fried egg for breakfast. It’s become one of my favorite ways to start the day :) love this post!
Oh I love that you make breakfast the Thai style! We were in Chiang Mai for a week and right next door to us was a breakfast street vendor who would put out a spread every morning. They always sold out of stuff so fast, so it was a real treat whenever were able to get up early enough and grab some breakfast. Where in Thailand did you live? I will need to check out your blog!
I’m with you Anna for brekky in Paris, pain au chocolat are my fav, but rice for breakfast ugh! Hubby enjoyed laksa in Singapore… oh well, when in Rome! Thanks for linking up with us at #TheWeeklyPostcard
Hehe I guess the Chinese do rice porridge for breakfast a lot so I didn’t think rice was too far off. It was a little weird eating spicy curry for breakfast though, but it really fired up your appetite! We also had laksa a few times in Singapore, so maybe that will make it in my Vol. 2!
I loved having pho when I was in Vietnam.
However, since I live in Taiwan I love having an egg pancake roll, called dan bing in Chinese.
Oooh I can’t believe I missed dan bing. We had that a few times in Taipei. We’re actually going back to stay in Taipei for several months at the end of this year, so I”m so looking forward to seeking out more breakfast items! Where in Taiwan do you live?
This is such a great post. Although I do like breakfast, I’m not much of a breakfast eater on a day-to-day basis. But when we travel we tend to eat breakfast and dinner, skipping lunch. My husband is more a fan of breakfast. He loves his congee and Vietnamese soups, especially Bun bo Hue. My favorite breakfasts are all carb heavy- bread and cheese, esp bagel with cream cheese, pain au chocolat with coffee, or masala dosai. Unfortunately, I do better with a protein-based breakfast, blah. Adding this to my pin queue.
Thanks so much for coming by Karen!
I didn’t eat breakfast regularly until we started traveling too. It’s really fun to see what the locals are eating! I like the more carb heavy breakfasts too (and especially the sweet ones). Mmmmm I really like good toasted everything bagel with cream cheese too (and smoked salmon if I’m feeling fancy). I haven’t had that in so long! It’s such an American thing.
Great post! We agree, daily breakfast is a luxury we typically only enjoy while traveling. Haven’t been to Vietnam or Hong Kong but we can’t wait to try those dishes.
The pho in Vietnam is sooo good! We were in Saigon for 2 weeks, and every single day, we went to the pho place for breakfast and I never got sick of it! For Hong Kong, My boyfriend is more of a fan of dim sum than I am, and I like just pork over rice more!
Mmm all of those look so good. Those pictures are making me hungry!!!
I was putting together this post late at night and I got so hungry too, hehe.
Thanks so much for coming by Julie!
So interesting! I’m not a big breakfast eater (just coffee, please) but it’s so interesting to see who eats what around the world!
For a while, I just drank tea for breakfast because I was doing that intermittent fasting thing. But now I love eating the local breakfasts when traveling!
Like you I like a weekend breakfast. My favourite breakfast is a properly done eggs benedict, though I do love the breakfasts in Istanbul too
Oooh I love eggs benedict! I would say that’s one of my favorite American breakfast items. If I see it on the menu, I will always be tempted to get that!
Your post made me a little sad because I realized how right you are: I never take time to really enjoy breakfast, except for the times when I travel. Seeing all that good stuff that you display makes me want to have a more relaxed life.
It’s so hard to set apart time for a proper breakfast while working. This is just one of the many things I am grateful about being able to full-time travel. Maybe just waking up an extra 30 minutes earlier a day can allow for a bit of time to relax in the morning (I know I say that but I would always prefer to sleep instead!).
Breakfast is my FAVOURITE meal of the day… breaking the fast, man! Am about to hit the bed and I am sop excited about waking up coz its breakfast time then.. haha…
But yes, us Asians.. rice and us, never the twain stays apart… India, like China, has a variety of breakfasts.. but where I come from, we make this dish with leftover rice and dal (lentil stew-curry) tempered with tons of onions in butter.. Trust me, it is delicious.. like all home-y breakfasts are :0
Super post, Anna.. loved every bit!
Thanks so much Shruti!
Oh my goodness, what you describe sounds so good! I love dah, onions, and butter (and rice of course since I’m Asian), so it sounds right up my alley! From your Indian food talk, i’m wanting to travel to India more and more and eat!
No American breakfasts? You know, I read your comment on London’s breakfast being heaviest and I thought, that’s bullshit! Maybe you have been eating breakfasts at home when in America so you don’t realize, but I think an IHOP or Denny’s breakfast would trounce London’s big breakfast by a huge margin in terms of heaviness! :D
I never eat at IHOP or Denny’s (because, gross :P), but yes, you’re right! They give you like a full plate of eggs, meat, potatoes, and then a side of a stack of pancakes. How can one people eat all that?!
I couldn’t find a picture I had of an American breakfast in America, but I also didn’t try very hard. Maybe I’ll be able to find one for Vol. 2!
I am not a big fan of breakfast in here but when I am traveling I like to indulge. From my travels, I can say my favorite breakfasts were in China and Thailand. There were so many options of things to try. And in Thailand, they had the sweetest pineapple I have tasted.
Yay! I’m so happy to hear that you loved the breakfast in China (my homeland, hehe)! I LOVE Chinese breakfast too (especially fresh fried dough sticks & green onion pancakes… yummmm). My only regret is that when I was in China this year, I couldn’t make myself wake up early enough for breakfast too often :/.
Pho is my favourite breakfast too! One of the best things about trips to Vietnam is having pho every morning (although I often follow it up with one of their fabulous croissants too!) I love the look of the Lyon breakfast, and I think I spyed some tulum cheese in your Istanbul photo? That was my favourite element of a Turkish breakfast.
We had pho for breakfast almost every single day in Vietnam too. Oh gosh I miss it!
I don’t know what cheese is called in the Turkish breakfast, but I think it’s the standard cheese? My favorite element is the clotted cream and honey… I don’t thing I’ve ever tasted such a heavenly combination!
Great post idea! Although I have been trying to eat healthy last couple of years (e.g. granola w yogurt or just yogurt fruit and kale smoothie), growing up in Eastern Europe we ate an open faced simple sandwich of small toast with cheese or cured meat- and that is what I still crave for with my morning coffee! honestly, these breakfasts look like lunch to me:) I almost wish they would not offer big breakfasts when we travel- cause then we overeat!
Where in Eastern Europe did you grow up? The breakfast you grew up eating sounds so good!! I love cured meats and cheese… I seriously think I could eat that with bread everyday!
Yeah the Asian breakfasts are really different from the Western idea of breakfast. I grew to kind of like having a big meal first thing in the morning!
You put my measly breakfast that I had this morning to shame! I’m not really a breakfast fan and we only tend to make time on the weekend, but by the time we’ve got up we tend to just go straight for lunch haha
Oh we do that a lot too, haha! Luckily, a lot of places are still serving breakfast late in the morning. I’m not too big of a fan of American breakfast, but I love what other countries eat!
Breakfast is my absolute favourite meal! I love a good English breakfast and dimsum too! But I find that when I’m traveling I don’t really spend a lot of time on breakfast. It’s normally a ‘let’s just grab something quick so that we can head out early’ sort of deal.
Awww I love taking my time to enjoy a good local breakfast. Well to me, food is what I love best about traveling, hehe. I would rather eat than see the sights!
Love this post because I love seeing food habits in different cultures! Not going to lie, I detest breakfast habits in Britain! I’m not for eating meat in the morning, much less 3 kinds of meat! But anyhow, I’d definitely say that I’m more of a Paris breakfast person – guilty! But that Thailand one is looking delicious – for any time of the day ha!x
I love pastries for breakfast too! And I’ll pick those over meat + potatoes as well. I agree, the Thai breakfast is good at any time of the day! But strangely, I could only find food like that at breakfast time while in Thailand.
It’s so interesting seeing just how different breakfasts can be! I’m with you on being poor at breakfast in general. I struggle to find food that agrees with me early in the morning, although I got really into rice for breakfast when in Asia. As for mixed meats first thing in the morning…. That’ll be a polite no thank you from me!
Ahhh I loooove cured meats and I think I could happily eat that every single day, no matter what time of the day it is! I’m not really sure if French people actually eat it for breakfast, but I love doing it while in France, hehe.
Such a great idea to share your breakfasts around the world!! Sooo yummy!!
I love having breakfast, and always like to have it slowly. My favourite ones are the American and French breakfasts :D
#TheWeeklyPostcard
I need to have an American breakfast in my next one! American breakfast is so diverse too, and I tend to go on the sweeter side. What do you guys eat over there in Germany?
The Lyon breakfast looks wonderful!
I love love LOVE breakfast, especially that of the sweet variety. Luckily for me I live in Melbourne, which I’d venture to claim is the brunch capital of the world! Seriously, we do a MEAN brekkie here. Nowhere I’ve travelled has quite compared!
Ooh I’ve been wanting to visit Australia for a long time and now that’s an extra incentive to visit Melbourne! You’re setting my expectations very high! x
My absolutely favorite breakfast food is Scandinavian: smoked salmon. Sometimes with a bit of lemon, sometimes sour cream and capers, but almost always accompanied by some cheese. My current cheese of choice is soft chevre (goat cheese), but just about any type of cheese will make me happy.
Pork, on the other hand has been my travel bugaboo. It’s everywhere but … it makes me sick to my stomach to even think of eating porcine products. Eeeew.
I love smoked salmon too! Especially with cream cheese and capers on a toasted bagel (the American way). And mmm I’ve recently become a fan of soft goat cheese as well. That combination actually sounds wonderful!
I read your post just before breakfast. Now I think I’ll skip my bowl of cereal and indulge in something a little more creative–and tastier.
Haha yay! I don’t think I’ve eaten cereal since I was in school, haha. Though I do like granola + fruit over yogurt now and then!
AH THE BREAKFAST! My mom always made me eat it in the mornings, and for us that meant salami and cheese sandwiches and hard boiled eggs ;) Your photos are making me very hungry for a second breakfast now!
Wow that actually sounds delicious… seriously. I love love cured meats and cheese. I actually made a sandwich like that for myself for breakfast the other day! Hard boiled eggs are my favorite egg style also.
This post is EVERYTHING! Now you just have to try breakfast in Japan– it’s amazing!
What IS breakfast in Japan by the way?? I can’t wait to try it! It will definitely be included in Vol. 2!
It’s absolute perfection!!!
Ok, so it varies from region to region, but there’s usually smoked fish, miso, rice, eggs (tamago that’s out of this world!), and of course tea. sooooo good.
Yum, yum, yum such a fun post! You are right about the English breakfast being super filling – I pretty much never get through a whole plate of this and here in England, it’s often thought of as hangover food for the morning after the heavy night before! My favourite on the list has got to be the sound of the Turkish one – love the sound of the sesame rings with cream and honey though garlic rice is pretty good too and you are SERIOUSLY making me want to visit Lyon with all your drool worthy photos!
If you’re planning to go back to France again, make a stop in Lyon!! The food is SO amazing here. I have so many more pictures that I haven’t shared yet and can’t wait to write about it!
D says the English breakfast is one of his favorites in the world, but I think it’s too heavy! American diner food is kind of the same way and it’s often hangover food too, hehe.
Ahhhh, how I miss pho! I was also never a big fan of breakfast, but my ex was MAD about it, so over time I also grew obsessed with it! I do love a big breakfast now. Looking forward to seeing what that is in Barcelona in a couple of weeks!
Oh I bet breakfast going to be amazing in Barcelona! Tweet me a picture! Spain is next up on my Europe wishlist.
Will do! :-)
Oh this is so neat! Breakfast around the world!!! :) Rice for breakfast is totally a thing here in South America too… in some places at least. They’ll serve a huge bowl of soup, then a plate of meat/egg/rice/fried plantain! It’s crazy the amount of food they eat in the mornings sometimes. A Parisian breakfast of chocolate pastry and coffee is right up my alley! As are the Thai, Pilipino, and Istanbul breakfasts!
Ah I LOVE fried plantain! I’m starting to enjoy eating a good full breakfast, and then eating lighter meals the rest of the day. So the Peruvian breakfast sounds really good actually!
this is a really nice post :) Well my favourite is the Parisian one :) sweet and minimal however not that light…but coffee can’t be missed for me (I just tell you I’m italian:)
Arkitalker | https://arkitalker.wordpress.com/
Hello! I’ve been in Italy for the past 2 days and I had cappuccino for breakfast. It was lovely! :) But I agree, you can’t beat Parisian pastries!
Great post! Tried some of them already and can’t wait to try them all!
Maria | http://www.mariamilea.com/
Thanks so much Maria! They are all so good :).