The Eye Opener
 Akron, Ohio        Date of Visit  10/19/12         http://eyeopenerakron.com/ 

A new Kent connection (Thanks Em…AKA Snow Leopard) sends us to Market Street in Akron to try a local breakfast joint called The Eye Opener. Only open for breakfast and lunch the restaurant has a very small frontage in the plaza on the corner of Market and Hawkins but runs deep through the building. The interior is clean and features darker shades of primary colors and vintage pictures of Akron. Pseudo busy mid Friday morning the tables and booths are filled with unique collections of diners which promises good things.
 

Hot Chocolate
 

Our server would best be described as just below par. She had some difficulty keeping her head together and I don’t know if the kitchen or she forgot half of our order but most of Steph’s breakfast lagged almost ten minutes behind mine which is a healthy drag for French toast. Hot chocolate and coffee were standard…they do offer a number of different and interesting Bloody Mary’s and other libations on the menu but that just wasn’t in the cards for this morning.

Steph ordered the E.O. Toast and a side of potato browns. I went with the Red Eye Hash. I made out. The E.O. Toast is manufactured with Texas toast coated in an egg batter studded with vanilla and nutmeg. The toast is a little above average. Thick enough to take a brown crust while still maintaining a moist interior. The vanilla comes through pretty cleanly but the nutmeg was harder to suss out, add whipped butter and syrup and you have a fine French toast.

Having been on a hash kick, (Corned Beef Hash, Thank you. Yes, when you hang around with counselors all the time you need to be specific or they will start an AOD assessment) I was pleased to see the Red Eye Hash on the menu. Corned beef and potato with eggs and toast…no surprise. First the hash is not comprised of a small dice of starch and meat but of chunks nearly an inch square. For me, hot sauce is mandatory for all hash, but not at the Eye Opener. Their red eye version does not refer to a pan dripping and coffee gravy but a kick. The chunks were imbued with chilis, hot sauce and pepper cheese resulting in a sharp warmth that runs through the serious savoritude of the hash. Top it with two over easy and a side of rye toast and it is pretty much perfect the way it sits. Very nice.
 

There are singles of Smuckers Jellies on the tables for your toast which I understand is an adjustment from when they opened. They sell Crooked River Farms jams and jellies in jars but used to serve them on the tables. If patrons smeared the stuff on toast like we do at Twig’s the Smuckers makes sense.

Of course Twig’s makes their own and The EO has to buy theirs in so I’m certain it would hurt them more on the bottom line. I did pick up a jar of Dazzleberry (a mix of rasp and blue berries) which is pretty tasty. There are all sorts of interesting sounding jars and I’ve learned the new address for the farm is right here in Wadsworth. I wonder if they have a store. The Eye Opener has some nice takes on familiar breakfast options, we may have to try their lunch sandwiches if we are in the neighborhood again.