Breakfast: Bisbee Style

The Dish: Copper Queen Skillet, D’s Potato Cakes, and the California Omelet
The Place: Bisbee Breakfast Club
The Location: 2909 S. Dobson Rd., Mesa

By: Laura Stoddard

One of the greatest things about Arizona is the diversity of its regions. We’ve got hiking and harnessing our inner zen in Sedona, skiing in Flagstaff, wine tasting in Sonoita, bird watching in Tucson, and of course, hiking at the Grand Canyon. But one of the most unique, quirky, and beautiful spots in our state is in a little town just north of the Mexican border. A little town called Bisbee. Small though it may be, this colorful hamlet is absolutely bursting with personality, and the entertainment, activities, and dining are well worth the drive.

Fortunately, however, you don’t have to roadtrip all the way down south to experience the gloriousness that is their most popular restaurant, The Bisbee Breakfast Club, because, guess what?!—there’s a location much closer, in Mesa! I sojourn to Bisbee several times a year (because it’s seriously one of the coolest, funnest places you’ll ever visit), so I’m well acquainted with this particular restaurant’s fare, and trust me, it is out-of-this-world delicious.

Most of the dishes come with one of the BBC’s homemade, ginormous biscuits, which if you start with, you’re guaranteed to only make it halfway through the rest of your meal. Slather on some butter and honey, heaven. The three dishes we tried (devoured) were D’s Potato Cakes, basically big patties of grilled hashbrowns, accompanied by two sunnyside eggs, a gigantic slab of ham, and a side of applesauce. Sidenote: I hate it when meat has nasty vestiges of fat still attached to it (some people say it adds extra flavor, I say gross), but there was none of that here. Just a big ole’ hunk of beautiful ham.

The next dish was the Copper Queen Skillet. You may have had skillets at other places (not gonna lie, Z’Tejas’ brunch skillet has always been my go-to), but it pales in comparison to this guy. This skillet is a glorious concoction of scrambled eggs, meat of your choice (in this case, bacon), cheddar cheese and onions, all atop home fries, and then covered in a spicy sausage gravy. I mean, ridiculous.

Finally, on to one of the best omelets I’ve ever had, the California. Bacon, jack and cheddar cheese might sound kind of blasse and ordinary, but add in mild chilies and hefty slices of avocado, and you’ve suddenly got a kick of unexpected flavor, and the delicious texture of thick, creamy avocado. Add a side of hashbrowns, and one of those biscuits, and it’s all over.

I am not exaggerating about this food! In Bisbee proper, the wait time is a minimum of 30 minutes, and by the time we were licking our plates clean (that’s a lie–we couldn’t finish, so were scooping the delicious remains into to-go boxes), the line at the Mesa location was out the door. Go early, get started with one of those biscuits and wear stretchy pants.

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