On a recent visit to Niagara Falls, Canada, we ate at a Perkins Restaurant for breakfast. As our delicious meal was delivered, a friend who was along commented on his plate. "This $16 breakfast is a $3.75 Breakfast Special at The Triangle in Batesville, " he noted. It was really very good and a great start to our day.
As I awakened from my sleep on our first morning home, I remembered our comparison and became hungry. It didn't take arm twisting to convince Mickey to go out for breakfast at our local dive which is infamous in its own little way in Batesville.
We were greeted with a familiar, "Hey, y'all" as we entered and found our own seat while waitresses buzzed around and quickly we had coffee sitting in front of us in one of their new Triangle cups. The local ads wrapped around the outside of the cup, reminded me of the undeniable familiarity of the establishment to our small town.
I picked up the triangle shaped menu which was sitting between the salt and pepper stand and the stacked jelly packets which were next to the tin filled with butter and cream. Our cute blonde waitress whisked by asking if we were ready to order while she warmed someone else's coffee. She smiled a sweet southern smile and her words were as thick as the butter and syrup that would come on a thick battered pancake.
After we ordered, I looked around and took in the charm of this quaint little restaurant that sits on a triangular shaped piece of land at the top of the mountain just south of the White River at Batesville. One of the charms of The Triangle is the characters who share the small dining room. To my right was the coveted round table - a gathering place for mostly men, who have stopped by for a cup of coffee, sausage and eggs and the works and a little jawing before a hard days work. To my left was an elderly couple who were silently eating a quiet breakfast of hardy oatmeal and toast. Closer to the front was a young couple, bearing tattoos and nose rings, each on their phone and drinking a tall glass of orange juice waiting for their waffles and bacon. Everyone looked content and relaxed and didn't really notice one another. Once in a while, someone would come in and a table or two would wave or laugh and greet an old friend who was often seen early mornings at this little cafe. It is a friendly and warm place to be.
The ceilings are corrugated tin and the lights are dim. There are some ceiling fans for warmer days and bamboo shades that cover the big sunny windows. The tables and chairs are simple and the decor is rustic. The floors are old grey concrete - not like the trendy stained kind that you see in industrial design, but the original practical concrete, and so no one minds a little mud on your boots. The place is clean though. The waitresses are constantly moving. When they aren't serving customers, they are wiping and cleaning.
Customers have a clear view of the kitchen area, right past the little home-made sign that says, "Picnic Tables in Back". Now, I've never seen anyone sitting out there in the sweltering summer sun and 90% humidity, but it is good to know they are there. Somehow locals just seem to know how to space themselves perfectly so that everyone gets a seat with no waiting, however every seat is almost always full.
At one time The Triangle was known for the thick smoke that would hover over the tables in the air. The cooks, waitresses and customers all enjoyed a good smoke, in that day. When Arkansas made a new law forbidding smoking in restaurants, everyone wondered what would happen to The Triangle. Most folks thought it wouldn't stay open. But the cooks began taking smoke breaks and the customers complied and people like me began to make breakfast or lunch a weekly ritual - and for some, even more often.
As was said earlier, you can get a two egg, sausage or bacon and biscuit and gravy (white or chocolate) breakfast special for $3.75 daily. You can add a side of home-made hash brown potatoes for another $1.75. Their biscuits are melt-in-your-mouth delicious. My grandson likes their big ol' pancake - one will do you. It fills the whole dinner plate upon which it is served. Their waffles are mouth watering and their oatmeal is made from scratch and served with brown sugar and raisins on the side. The food is just excellent.
I am pretty sure that this little restaurant who just began accepting credit cards and debit cards in the past year, will be around for many to come. I have wondered what Diners, Drive-In's and Dives from the Food Network would think of this place. I'm not sure I would want anyone to challenge them to come here. I don't want anything to change. It is just fine the way it is.
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