Beto's

This morning, after Ken trimmed the Christmas tree so that it actually fit in the house and didn't crowd the dining room table into a corner, I decided we should go out for breakfast. I love American-style breakfasts: hashbrowns, eggs, toast, coffee, pork product...mmm-mmm. A good bet for breakfast usually is the Gold N' Silver (self-proclaimed as Reno's oldest family-style restaurant). The portions are large, the service is quick, and the booths fit 3 people per side quite comfortably. We hopped in the truck and drove down (10 minutes, tops). The parking lot was only moderately full and we figured we had missed the Saturday morning breakfast crowd (it was just after 11 am when we left). We went in, grabbed a booth (one of the few free tables), were served coffee, and looked over the menu. Finally settling on ham & eggs (me) and a mushroom & cheese omelet (him), we waited for our plates of steaming eggy goodness. And we waited. And we waited. And we had another cup of coffee and waited some more. The folk who came before us were given their own steaming plates of food, and most of the people who arrived after us were served fairly quickly. When a half-hour had gone by, I jumped up to find our waitress, who had not been seen since she took our order.

I smiled and tried to put on my friendliest face, "Hey, sorry to bother you but we've been waiting for over a half-hour and usually it doesn't take this long."

She scooped up two plates of French toast from the kitchen window, "We're slammed. Where are you sitting?"

"Second booth in over there," I pointed and went back to my seat. She delivered the French toast and followed me over.

"We're busy. It should be coming."

"Can we just have our check, please?"

She walked away without saying anything. Then she came back over and said, "Your food is up. Do you want it or do you still want your check?"

"Just the check please."

She walked away again and came back to let us know they wouldn't charge us for the coffee.

Ken and I got back in the truck and debated where to go next. We decided on the Pneumatic Diner, another of my favorite eating spots, which is right down the street. We pulled into the parking lot and I said, "You know, let's just go to Beto's instead." So we went to Beto's.

We spent maybe five minutes in line and five minutes waiting for our food. Usually I have the ceviche tostada (lime-soaked white fish with cilantro on top of a fried tortilla), but today I went for two chicken enchiladas and a spicy pork taco. It was worth the wait.

Two chicken enchiladas and a spicy pork taco

Shortly after the plate was set down in front of me

View from our table