#27: Two Eggs Over-Easy, Bacon and Hash Browns at the Courtesy Diner

Denny's isn't America's diner. There's no such thing. Instead, there are tens of thousands of diners, each different in its own way, however slight those differences might be. Everyone has his or her favorite. Mine is the Courtesy Diner, and this -- two eggs over-easy with bacon and hash browns (and toast, of course) -- is what I pretty much always order.

I know there are restaurants where the eggs are better, the bacon thicker and more flavorful, the hash browns not from a box. But I also know that here the eggs will be exactly over-easy, the bacon crisp, the hash browns nicely browned on top and not too soggy underneath. The coffee refills arrive without asking, and the sizzle of the next round of bacon and eggs on the flattop eases me out of the fog of the previous night and into the patter of another day.

Two notes:

1. This is the Courtesy Diner on Kingshighway. The one on Hampton just doesn't have the same ambience.

2. It is odd -- wonderfully, wonderfully odd -- to sit in the Courtesy Diner and not be enveloped in cigarette smoke.

Courtesy Diner
3155 South Kingshighway
314-776-9059
$4.95

I'm counting down -- in no particular order -- 100 of my favorite dishes in St. Louis. Some are well-known, others obscure. Some are expensive, others dirt cheap. All of them, I guarantee, are delicious. Please do not hesitate to share your own favorites via the comments thread.

Previously:

#28: Seafood at Farmhaus
#29: The "Edgar Allan Poe" at Dewey's Pizza
#30: The "Heart Stopping BLT" and a chocolate malt at Crown Candy Kitchen

#31: Smoked half-chicken at PM BBQ
#32: The smoked chicken pizza at Onesto Pizza & Trattoria
#33: The baby-back ribs (or the burger) at the Piccadilly at Manhattan
#34: Albóndigas caseras con patatas at the Guido's Pizzeria & Tapas
#35: The "Sweet Burger" at SweetArt
#36: Buffalo fries at Blueberry Hill
#37: Tom yum gai at Pearl Café
#38: Cassoulet (and Sweetbreads) at Franco
#39: The "Papasan Roll" at Miso on Meramec
#40: Lasagna at Mama Josephine's

#41: The "Bucktown" Pizza at Pi Pizzeria
#42: Pla song kruang at Basil Spice Thai Cuisine
#43: Chori pollo at Mi Ranchito
#44: Pizza at La Pizza
#45: Fried chicken at Young's Restaurant & Ice Creamery
#46: The Philly Cheesesteak at 9th Street Deli
#47: Smoked chicken wings at Flavors BBQ Sports Bar & Grill
#48: Coffee and a pastry at 222 Artisan Bakery
#49: The torta ahogada at Taqueria Durango
#50: The "Morganford Mediterranean" Sandwich at Local Harvest Café & Catering