A weekend brunch in Auckland is something of an institution. Aucklanders flock to their favourite cafes in the weekends to eat familiar dishes they can easily prepare at home. Big breakfasts, eggs benedict, creamy mushrooms on toast…all delicious and all can prepared at home for a fraction of the price. Dining out for brunch is a treat. Sometimes you just want to be waited on first thing in the morning. Sometimes you need someone else to do it all when you’re hungover or just want to relax on your day off.

People eat brunch and breakfast all over the world, so why are there no restaurants and cafes that specialise in food from other countries?

Okra, one of my favourite local brunch spots used to offer Bus-Stop Eggs (served in the pan). This was a dish of spiced lamb koftas and capsicum in a tomato sauce, baked with eggs ($15.50). Fairly exotic. Unfortunately, they took that off the menu, but they’ve replaced it with what they call Spanish Breakfast which is pretty similar, still served in a cast iron pan, but with beans and ham instead of lamb and capsicum.

So some cafes and restaurants offer breakfast dishes with a twist of exoticness to them. But it seems that the majority prefer familiar, tried and true dishes for breakfast.

Is it because our tastebuds revert to basic, mild-loving tastebuds in the morning? Is it because exotic food is too scary that time of day?

Cantonese Yum Cha is often eaten as a brunch and many Yum Cha restaurants around here open at 10.30am to serve the breakfast crowd. Kiwis prefer to eat Yum Cha a bit later for lunch. Steamed chicken feet first thing in the morning is only for the adventurous!

Why can’t I have an Indian breakfast in Auckland? There are over 100 Indian restaurants in my city. I can dine at 2 new Indian restaurants every week for a year and not run out of places to eat, yet I’ve yet to see an Indian breakfast.

What do the Japanese of Auckland eat for breakfast? Do they ever dine out for a traditional Japanese breakfast? There are also over 100 Japanese restaurants in Auckland. Do any of them offer breakfast?

Do you have any exotic breakfasts in your neighbourhood?

Someone, please tell me where the world’s breakfasts can be sampled?

The very last serving of Bus-Stop Eggs ever made.

On a momentous day last summer, Okra were on the brink of changing their menu to one that didn’t include Bus-Stop Eggs. I ordered the last Bus-Stop Eggs for the day and therefore the last serving in history. What an honour! I don’t think the last serving of Bus-Stop Eggs in history could have been eaten by a bigger fan.