Convenience Big Store: Houston's best breakfast spots, according to our food team

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What's cooking?

It's been a while since I've had as much fun getting to know a restaurant as I did at Harry's, the venerable Montrose/Midtown breakfast institution that I reviewed this week.

I hadn't kept up with the place since the Platsas family took over in the early '90s. Over the decades, they've developed an unusual menu that celebrates their own roots (Greek on Johnny Platsas' side; Ecuadoran on Patricia's, his wife's) and keys into Houston's Mexican, soul and southern culinary strains.

It's a happy mix, and a democratic (little d!) place — the kind of lively scene that fills me with joy every time I cross the threshold. The family commissioned an all-new building along the way, and a 2018 makeover left the corner space fresh, pale and inviting, from big arched windows on the patio side to outsized olive tree branches painted on white walls.

I'm always torn on where I want to sit. At the small counter, with its towers of fresh fruit and never-ending activity as staffers make espresso drinks, sling fresh-pressed orange juice and mimosa, and mix bloody marys or even up-to-the-minute espresso martinis for the faithful.

Of course, at the counter I can't see around the corner to the long expo counter where dishes sit for a moment under warming lights before they are borne away. I'm always curious to see what other people order. On my last visit, on my way out the door, I spotted an all-brown plate of fried chicken, hash browns and grilled buttermilk biscuits. Yeah, baby.

I mention the Platsas' family's attention to detail in my review, which extends to amusingly specific caveats on the menu on how certain dishes may or may not be ordered; and which finds its fullest expression on a long list of crowd-control and other rules posted in the foyer by the hostess stand.

Ordinarily I might find such a document annoying. But I figure the Platsas family puts such care into their operation that they've earned the right to set standards. They know how they want Harry's to run — and it is run very, very well.

I promise to behave if they'll let me become a regular.