My favorite neighbors in Somerville.

It’s a challenge for me to get up in the morning. Except for the days I decide to trek to Somerville’s breakfast gem, The Neighborhood in Union Square. If it’s not a weekday, there is certainly a wait for a table. But it is, as it is so alliteratively put, well worth the wait.

Patio seating beneath a ceiling of clustering grapevines creates a charming aura. Perky pastels give the place warmth and make waking up not so horrific. The coffee helps too. Sadly, the oncoming winter may put a damper on my reason to get out of bed early. Rumor has it the patio is closed during the cold season, as patios are wont to do. But the food will still be available.

Technically, The Neighborhood serves Portuguese-American cuisine, but the breakfast selections are pretty standard—bacon, omelettes, waffles, and such, but they are able to make every bit of it taste fantastic. A massive compilation of breakfast compilations is listed for your choosing, including

 the handwritten specials of the day, which would make even the strictest dieter make an exception. The prices are great, the portions are massive, and there are even extra goodies with each order. Coffee, bread, and the tiniest glass of orange juice imaginable are all included as well as a choice between a small portion of fresh fruit and Cream of Wheat. And it is highly recommended to choose the latter.  My adorable cousin may look all smiles now, but in an hour the food before us will have been demolished and we will be left motionless from food coma.  Mind you what you see is just the bulk of the order.  The rest wouldn’t fit into the picture.

My only qualm with the place would be the overall service, which is not to say that the staff does a poor job. Just sometime things can get a little mixed up and items are sometimes forgotten. A friendly reminder sets things straight and no harm done. The food seems to take forever. But I’m probably just super hungry. Regardless, The Neighborhood has never failed me. It is the place to gorge and smile with full-mouths with friends. And that’s all I ever want in the morning.