My quest for a new breakfast spot has lead me to Harner's. I've driven past it countless times, but for reasons unknown never stopped inside. I recently solved that problem, and found my new favorite breakfast spot in the process. There's two distinct sides of Harner's, so I'll break them out individually:
The Bakery!
Harner's bakery is ever bit of what you'd expect out of a very classic suburban bakery. They've got decorated cookies of all kinds, cupcakes, a variety of donuts, pies, full-sized cakes, danishes, massive cinnamon rolls, and tons of other pastries. It sounds like they'll make you just about anything you want too as long as you call ahead. Prices are CHEAP, donuts are under a buck, and most of their other pastries are in line with that pricing, plus or minus a few cents depending on what you're getting.
Better yet, if you go there after 6:00 PM on Monday through Saturday, or after 2:00 PM on Sunday, donuts, rolls, and other fried stuff is half priced. This is a dangerous time to arrive, as it makes it *that much easier* to get even more than you realistically need. Why stop at a half dozen donuts when you can get a whole dozen for the same price???
The Restaurant!
The menu here, similarly, is again what you'd expect out of a classic suburban diner. All your breakfast staples are on there, there's a bunch of sandwiches if you're going to lunch, and for dinner they've got things like prime rib and other stuff you'd normally see a diner-y restaurant that has prime rib to also serving. Breakfast is great, but what I really love about Harner's is how fair they are about all their pricing.
I eat like a weirdo, so when I go out for breakfast I skip all the carbs. Normally, this results in a confused looks from your server as to why you wouldn't want a mountain of potatoes and bread. They'll typically explain that there aren't any substitutions, and if you don't want them they can just not put them on the plate, but you still pay for them. At Harner's, they're totally willing to do the sensible thing of letting you substitute your carbs for meats. So, I can get a huge omelette and a side of sausage patties for the same price as I would if I got toast and hash browns instead. Similarly, if you're getting takeout there, they knock two bucks off the price of stuff since you're not getting any of the soup/salad/bread basket stuff.
It's one of those things where at the end of the day I'm just used to paying for bread and potatoes I don't eat so it's not a big deal if places do that... But, when you go to a restaurant that is so accommodating and doesn't nickel and dime you, that just makes me want to give them even more of my business.
Oh, and if you ARE in to breads for breakfast, things like their biscuits and gravy are off the chain as they (obviously) make all their baked products in house.
...So yeah, both the bakery and the restaurant are amazing, and you should be going there if you aren't already. Low, fair pricing, super friendly staff, great food, ample parking, huge clean bathrooms, and they even do seasonal stuff like pig roasts... I'm really not sure what else you could ask for. read more