Three years ago, I visited Boston for the first time. I was freshly 15 and already knew I wanted to go to school in the area, so instead of an eighth grade trip to Washington D.C., my parents gave me a college tour trip to Boston.
My father and I stumbled out of a red-eye flight from sunny California to a muggy Massachusetts and there was only one thing on our minds; breakfast. We made a pact to only try local places so we drove past the McDonalds and went to the first place that came up on Apple maps: Mike & Patty’s.
It was a tiny joint and we had to park illegally a block away. We were determined and sleep deprived. It quite literally is a hole in the wall, chipped out of the corner of a brownstone and can’t hold more than two people inside at any given moment.
Within walking distance of the Boston Common and Public Gardens, its small confined location is worth it. Even without walking away, sitting on the curb beside the cobblestone roads is just as peaceful. Especially at the start of the semester or once Spring brings its budding face around.
The menu is about as straightforward as it gets, your typical breakfast sandwiches but taken a level or two up. The ingredients are elevated, with fancy cheeses and in-housemade bread.
Admittedly, the food is a bit of a mess to eat, usually with egg dripping down your arms and cheese pulls sticking to your chin. But, the crunch of the bread as your teeth sink through and the plethora of bacon makes it worth the mess.
While you can’t go wrong with anything on the menu, my go-to order is their “Breakfast Grilled Crack” sandwich. The conglomerate of cheeses brings a strangely sweet taste, partnered with the bacon and runny eggs makes for an unforgettable breakfast. (P.S. add the hash brown, it’s totally worth the upcharge.)
Mike & Patty’s gives that homey-feel that, as an out-of-state college student, I yearn for. Everytime I make the 20-minute walk from my dorm to the hole-in-the-wall spot, I think of my Dad and the amazing days we spent in the city I now have the honor to call home. Mike & Patty’s have become a cozy staple in my life.
