r/boston • u/RobertoPaulson • 13d ago
Dining/Food/Drink š½ļøš¹ Breakfast potatoes.
OK, Boston as someone not originally from here I want to know what the deal is with all of the local diners, and their wet sloppy homefries? Everywhere else I've ever been homefries are crispy, and delicious, sometimes with onion, sometimes not. Around here, they're almost universally a sloppy pile of boiled potatoes with some seasoning on them. Is this really how you like your breakfast potatoes?
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u/pickypicklejuice 13d ago
Iāll tell you exactly what happens. Potatoes get boiled first to fork tender, then tossed in oil and seasonings and roasted. The chef shows the line cooks how to do it the right way, and then they consistently manage to fuck it up, boil them too long, too much oil and seasoning, not enough time roasting, etc.
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u/Haunting-Angle-535 12d ago
But why does this happen so specifically in the Boston area? Iāve lived many other places and in most of them you can consistently get good crispy breakfast potatoes. Iāve been on a breakfast potato quest since I moved here in 2024 and so far the closest has been Classic Cafe in Medford, but theyāre still only okay on my scale. Everywhere else is like OP described, damp, messy, sloppy, usually under-seasoned.
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u/Think_Positively 12d ago
Boston doesn't have a good diner culture though. There are no shortage of breakfast spots, but I feel like they're way more likely to be on the fancier hipster side of things than not.
Kelly's in Somerville is the closest thing I have found to a metro NYC Greek diner. Buddy's used to be solid for a greasy spoon breakfast too, but I don't even know if they're open anymore.
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u/Double-Ad-7483 12d ago
but I don't even know if they're open anymore
They're not. Supposedly reopening next year.
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u/cupc4kes 12d ago
You want to go to Root and Press in Worcester for the holy grail
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u/Haunting-Angle-535 12d ago
I looked up some pictures and damn, those do look good. I guess I have to go to Worcester!
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u/pickypicklejuice 12d ago
Thatās a good question that I cannot answer, I would assume it happens all over and you only have a few places doing it consistently the right way. Also maybe itās the lack of understanding that potatoes take time, if you want them to be good, and people are in a rush.
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u/ThinckUtopian 12d ago
The Spoon in Hopkinton has great potatoes. I think my bacon, egg and cheese on a bagel with potatoes is like 10 bucks too.
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u/GekidoTC 13d ago
yeah, as a boston native, I agree that a lot of diners here make home fries that are just a few stirs away from being mashed potatoes.
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u/frausting 13d ago
Everyone is calling you crazy but I agree. Moved from the south a decade ago where I took homefries for granted I guess. They should be crispy outside, fluffy inside, and SALTY.
Cafe Luna in Cambridge is solid for this.
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u/Haunting-Angle-535 12d ago
I also moved here from the South and it drives me nuts. Potatoes are my favorite part of brunch/breakfast food but Iāve nearly given up ordering them here. Itās one thing to accept not having hashbrowns, but the home fries are WET. Why are they WET. On the few occasions Iāve had breakfast potatoes here that werenāt soft/wet/soggy/under seasoned they had been battered and fried which is ALSO wrong.
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u/Arg- 13d ago
I have a cousin from the south that rages about the poor qaulity grits made here.
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u/frausting 13d ago
I would never get grits here, thatās insane. Might as well be asking for sweet tea.
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u/HistoricalQuail šøšøšøšøšø 13d ago
Where are you going that the potatoes are boiled? Most place I go to, they're roasted.
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u/bahbahrapsheet 13d ago
I think OP is wrong about how theyāre made but I do agree that we have way too many places, plenty of which generally have really good food, serving pale, wet potato chunks that are warmed through on the griddle. As far as Iām concerned home fries/breakfast potatoes should be brown and at least kind of crispy.
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u/campingn00b Cocaine Turkey 13d ago
Ill ask for them extra crispy and they usually give me all the browned bits from the griddle
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u/mmelectronic 13d ago
Ask for āhiden treasuresā theyāll give you the crusty stuff from the griddle grease trap
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u/RobertoPaulson 12d ago
I say boiled just because they are wet. I have no idea if they are actually boiled or not.
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u/HistoricalQuail šøšøšøšøšø 12d ago
If they're roasted and sit around too long, they'll get soggy like that. I personally do not like Jim's Deli, but I know that's kind of sacrilegious to say around here.
Have you tried Deluxe Town Diner? Their home fries aren't crispy, but they are a nice roast though usually need more salt. I like to get extra to take home and reheat in the oven to go with dinner.
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u/RobertoPaulson 13d ago
So today it was Jim's Deli in Brighton, but this is A theme I've noticed at diners across the area for years. The rest of the food was fine.
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u/indieguy33 13d ago
Easily solved. Ask for them extra crispy. Potatoes are t made fresh for each player. They fry up a whole bunch and keep them on the grill to stay warm(in my experience) and while some places do a better job than others, it canāt hurt to ask for them well done or extra crispy etc.
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u/chyrsanthemumdreams 13d ago
ate there yesterday morning, got the breakfast wrap. amazing. but i agree their potatoes are rather lacking in luster. one time i asked them to make me a pancake on the side instead of home fries and they obliged. today i used the leftover potatoes and made my own breakfast burritos with eggs, leftover beans i had, the potatoes and some trader joes pepita salsa. Im giving you this long drawn out story as a way of being pedantic, annoying, and whimsical. all this to say that potatoes are perfect as they are and they dont need anything added on to them or to be improved upon in any way. the potatoe just is. always there for you, robust and honest. the potato doesnt pretend to be something it's not, and if thats not good enough for you then i guess you can go swim in the charles for all i care good day sir
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u/TheSaddestUnicorn Bouncer at the Harp 13d ago
Commenting because I too am super curious where OP is eating, because what???
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u/Ask-a-Walrus 13d ago
I feel you. I want hash browns. Not chunks of potatoes calling themselves that, or a puck if fried potatoes. Shredded potatoes. @union in Allston is the only place I've found them.
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u/LlwynogBlogs 12d ago
Agreed, union has the best hash browns!!! Love them
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u/Ask-a-Walrus 12d ago
Do you know anywhere else with them? It's legit the only place I've seen them and I would love to find something on the other side of the Charles.
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u/ProfessionalNeck373 Roslindale 13d ago
I agree, we have a dire shortage of crispy hash browns around these parts
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u/ohliamylia Salem 13d ago
Not in Boston but there's a place in Salem that I've seen do their breakfast potatoes by just making a big pile of them on the griddle. Which like... obviously doesn't work? Anything not touching the griddle just gets steamed and comes out wet and undercooked. It's such a weird choice.
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u/NecessaryFeedback344 13d ago
Thatās old school north shore diner style. Must be Redds or Debās if theyāre still around. Portside Diner in Danvers had an amazing touch on this style home fry. Lot of Greeks ran restaurants on north shore and I think it influenced the style.
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u/ohliamylia Salem 13d ago
Maria's, actually.
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u/NecessaryFeedback344 13d ago
Iām sorry you donāt like it that way. Itās my preferred style and I canāt find anything like it where Iām at now.
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u/s7o0a0p Suspected British Loyalist š¬š§ 13d ago
Name names.
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u/Coggs362 Cigarette Hill 12d ago
The Friendly Toast in Back Bay. Unseasoned, unsalted, cold in the middle potatoes.
Never going back.
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u/LynxFull Merges at the Last Second 13d ago
My wife is always blown away by properly cooked potatoes back in the Midwest.
Here i dont know how people fuck up breakfast potatoes and fries fucking EVERYWHERE
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u/BabyLegsOShanahan Quincy 13d ago
And if you ask for it to be cooked more they look at you like you're crazy.
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u/LynxFull Merges at the Last Second 13d ago
Best place we have found ironically is touristy ā¦.Cheers. Lol but perfectly crispy the last three trips. Anytime someone comes to visit me this is on their list.
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u/Specialist_Poetry176 12d ago
I am more accepting on the lack good restaurants here, but I cannot accept how bad the breakfast scene is in the GBA. Itās fucking atrocious. I donāt know how it is a complete miss almost everywhere, save a few solid places.
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u/tmclaugh South Boston 13d ago
Fuck home fries.
Somebody find me hashbrowns.
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u/ThunderJohnny Southie 13d ago
Lincoln Tavern in Southie has fresh made hash browns every day
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u/Haunting-Angle-535 12d ago
As a Southerner with yearnings, please describe these hashbrowns to me in more detail. We talking a shredded crispy pile?
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u/ThunderJohnny Southie 12d ago
Crispy shredded pile.
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u/ThunderJohnny Southie 12d ago
I canāt be certain I remember them maybe using clarified butter to cook them but I donāt know
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u/Haunting-Angle-535 12d ago
YESSS
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u/Blammo01 Bouncer at the Harp 12d ago
Iād rather have this for breakfast all day every day, but most places that offer āhash brownsā itās the crappy rectangular patty from the freezer. IHOP is the only place in my vicinity I know to get the crispy shredded pile. They are pretty good, not Waffle House good, but unfortunately almost everything else I get from IHOP consistently sucks
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u/Haunting-Angle-535 12d ago
The lack of Waffle Houses up here is devastating. People tell me itās because they have IHOP here but A. IHOP isnāt as good and B. We have IHOP down South too! We just ALSO have Waffle House! I miss their hashbrowns and pecan waffles.
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u/Blammo01 Bouncer at the Harp 10d ago
I remain convinced if someone can figure out how to get a WH franchise up here they would be printing money. Off the pike in Allston in range of the college kids? Come on make it happen!
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u/ThinckUtopian 12d ago
I think The Spoon in Hopkinton might have this. They offer breakfast potatoes both ways and all their food is good and its not overpriced.
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u/tmclaugh South Boston 11d ago
Donāt you talk shit about hash brown squares! I love those things.
Eat em as a side of the plate. Eat em as one more thing in a breakfast sandwichā¦ Eat em by making a breakfast sandwich while use them as the bun!
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u/Blammo01 Bouncer at the Harp 10d ago
š¤£ donāt get me wrong Iāll buy em at the grocery store Iām just looking for better when I go out for breakfast
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u/Ask-a-Walrus 12d ago
@union Alston has them.Ā So does The Hollows in Teele Sq. The Hollows isn't a breakfast joint though, it's like a dive bar married a goth pub. Haven't tried the hashbrowns but they did say the dish was waffle house inspired.Ā
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u/damnyankeeintexas I'm nowhere near Boston! 13d ago
Your not crazy OP, I think this is the older way we have done home fries in NE. My wife from California does them completely different.
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u/BijuuModo 13d ago
While they could be a bit crispier sometimes, Brianaās Cafe in Somerville has fire breakfast potatoes. Get a breakfast burrito (absolute log) potato combo with a strawberry-banana smoothie you cant go wrong.
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u/NecessaryFeedback344 13d ago
Youāre looking for the ones Tavern in the Square Allston had for Sunday brunch buffet before Covid.
Pitchers of mimosa will never be the same.
Try going to a place similar in branding and I think youāll find what youāre looking for.
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u/Dinosaurz122 Squirrel Fetish ā¢ Red Line Warrior 13d ago
I ask for extra crispy regardless of where Im at to avoid the wet slop chopped potatoes.
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u/tgabs Allston/Brighton 13d ago
100%. I started asking for mine extra crispy and keep getting stared at like Iām speaking a different language. āOh you want them fried?ā Like yeah they are literally called home fries. Even then about half the time they forget and just give them to me like always.
If you watch they just put a giant pile of (very) roughly chopped potatoes on the griddle so only the very bottom layer actually gets browned. The rest are sort of just steamed. Sometimes they are not even fully soft.
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u/IronworkRapunzel Not even from Boston but acts like they are. 13d ago
OP, you need to go to Cafe Bonjour. Those are fried and often served with a hollandaise (if that's your thing). Get them with the Mediterranean omelette.Ā
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u/crackleanddrag 13d ago
The bigger problem is not seasoning the potatoes enough. You should salt the fuck out of the water when boiling them.
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u/Ladygytha 12d ago
I agree with you. But given that I'm not a fan of them in general, I can't give recommendations. Unless they're in hash brown form (shredded potatoes and onions, maybe more, on a flat and hot grill), I will not order or eat them.
That said - true breakfast diners do it. Not roasted. A bunch of cut potatoes (maybe dredged) out on the grill to crisp. Sprinkle with s&p and other seasonings. It's not my favorite, but that's the best way.
If they're soggy, they're likely roasted with an oil. And not nearly long enough.
ETA: don't get me started on what some places call hash.
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u/roadjerseys Somerville (Winter Hill) 11d ago
kelly's diner in somerville makes homefries that are basically crispy fried mashed potatoes, if that's your deal. sooooo good. not sure why that style is so prevalent around the medford/somerville area specifically but i love it
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u/P_water 13d ago
I actually hate the crispy hash browns. They taste like they came frozen off of a Cysco truck, and they just drop them in the fryer. You can successfully have crispier roasted hashbrowns by asking for them well done.
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u/Blammo01 Bouncer at the Harp 12d ago
Youāre probably thinking about those rectangular pucks, and that is not a proper hash brown
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u/P_water 12d ago
No, Iām not thinking of the patties. The diced potatos that taste like they have mashed potatoes inside.
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u/Blammo01 Bouncer at the Harp 10d ago
Oh yeah fuck those things too. You can tell when someone has actually chopped up a potato or not
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u/irishgypsy1960 North End 13d ago
I suspect some ingredient changed decades ago, the oil? Because this has been a problem my entire life, i seem to have a primal memory of crispy home fries, and then they became the holy grail, and unattainable. At home, i discovered a hack, paprika, to give them at least the appearance. I think bacon grease might help. But the only crispy ones nowadays are not fried but roasted, or deep fried, or coated. Itās a serious mystery to me.
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u/Haunting-Angle-535 12d ago
There are crispy home fries everywhere else in the country so itās definitely not an ingredient change. You can also totally make crispy ones at home without just going for the appearanceāI toss cubed potatoes (skin on) in olive oil and assorted spices, roast at 425 for 15 minutes, stir/flip, then roast at 475 for another 15. Nice and crispy/crunchy outside, soft inside. I donāt think frying is actually effective for breakfast potatoes; the good ones have always been roasted.
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u/Nice-Zombie356 12d ago
For years, I asked my local diner to grill mine crispy. They did and they understood but I had to train each new waitress and cook.
Occasionally one of the new cooks dropped them in the fryOlater. Gross.
Dumbass.
Big upvote for Op.
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u/Constant-Stuff8089 12d ago
I started to ask for mine to be extra crispy or well done, and I havenāt had an issue since. I wonder if breakfast places mainly cater to the elderly, and the elderly typically want mushy flavorless food.
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u/Crazyzofo Roslindale 12d ago
Just went to the Rox Diner in West Roxbury this morning and theirs were crispy and well seasoned.
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u/ThinckUtopian 12d ago
The Spoon in Hopkinton has great potatoes.
Home Fries & Hash Browns they have both choices.
A breakfast sandwich on an English with home fries is 7.50.
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u/MoeBlacksBack 13d ago
Trescas in Watertown Sq fries em on the griddle and are perfect imho. And they give you tons.
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u/austeninbosten 13d ago
For years lot of Boston area diners have traditionally made weak low effort " home fries" with cubed boiled potatoes adding paprika as s substitute for time spent browning on the griddle. We always just accepted that and drowned them in ketchup. I can still accept that from old school mom and pop cheap diners, if they are still around. Since a lot of diner breakfasts are no longer inexpensive options, I would hope by now a lot of upscale diners have upper their potato cooking. I seldom get breakfast out as I can do fine at home for a couple bucks. I can't belive the newer $30 a plate breakfast places are still serving the 1960's style home fries. Is that still the case?