Best Omelet in Murphy, NC

(This is part of the What is the best in Murphy? discussion.)

Normally, I don't get out early in the morning. I tend to work from around 3:00 am until noon and that makes going out for breakfast inconvenient.

But, on the other hand, I love omelets. I like different kinds, but tend to prefer relatively simple ham, cheese, and onion omelets. My other favorite is a western omelet.

For the last couple of months, I've had a real craving for a good omelet, so I've visited four restaurants, so far.

Here's what I've learned.

Breakfast doesn't have to be in the morning and I like places that serve breakfast 24 hours a day. In Murphy, as far as I know, that means the Waffle House and the Waffle King.

The Waffle House is relatively new in town and I have eaten a couple of omelets there in the last few months. Both times I enjoyed them, but they were not the best in town. Don't get me wrong, they were good and I was satisfied, but not the best.

The Waffle King has been around longer and I've eaten omelets there many times over the years. Right now, it's my pick for Best Omelet served 24 hours a day in Murphy, NC, and was my pick for best omelet until yesterday.

I was in there a few days ago in the late afternoon and was greeted by a friendly cook and waitress. I talked briefly with the cook and ordered a western omelet. I was pleased with it. I like nice fluffy omelets where the ingredients are done and the egg isn't overcooked. This one was excellent. The friendly waitress kept my coffee topped up and warm, and that's very important to me, since I live on coffee!

An empty coffee cup won't ruin my enjoyment of a great omelet, but it does detract from it.

So, in my opinion, if you want an omelet any time of the day or night, then my first choice would be the Waffle King.

What about omelets that are served only during traditional breakfast hours?

I've tried a couple of restaurants in the last month or so and was very pleased with both of them.

Last month, Dena and I met Carol Chapman and her husband Greg for breakfast at the Blue Mountain Coffee and Grill in the Peachtree community. (I think that's the correct name of the restaurant.)

In addition to lively conversation, I enjoyed a very good omelet with ham, cheese, and mushrooms. I also enjoyed the home fries that came with it and liked them a bit more than the hash browns that most other restaurants serve. Again, we had a friendly and attentive waitress who kept the coffee coming regularly, even though she was serving a growing crowd of people. It was an excellent omelet and the other three people at our table enjoyed their meals, too.

Yesterday, I was out all day visiting clients, talking to friends, and promoting Murphy Gold.

I started the day with breakfast at the Hometown Diner and I'm happy that I stopped in there. This was the first time that I've eaten there since the new owners opened this new business a few months ago.

I want to congratulate Vickie Dockery and Paul Crisp, the owners, for having the best omelet I've eaten in Murphy, NC. (You should also see their collection of old photos of Murphy that adorn the walls.)

The reason I went there yesterday was to enjoy the breakfast buffet.

I love a good buffet, but don't get as much value from them as I used to. In the past, I used to eat a lot more than I do now, and I always felt it was a contest between me and the restaurant. These days, I eat a lot less and I think I enjoy it more. I'm also about 100 pounds lighter.

So, I wasn't looking for the most food for the lowest price. I was looking for a nice quiet, warm place to enjoy my breakfast and I found it at the Hometown Diner.

I had stopped in briefly a few days ago to ask what was on their menu and was told then that I could get the buffet and they'd be happy to cook an omelet for me if I wanted.

I tested that yesterday and ordered the buffet and a ham, cheese, and onion omelet. This was included in the price of the buffet!

I enjoyed everything I sampled from the buffet and was waiting for biscuits to be served. Eventually, I asked the waitress and she pointed me to the warming tray to the right of the buffet. They had been there all along, and were moist and warm. I tried one with butter and jelly and the other with gravy and both were great.

I like hash browns, not as much as home fries, and these were excellent. They were done, but not overcooked. It's easy to cook hash browns too long until they're hard and cruchy, but Paul and Vickie cooked theirs just right. They were done and still soft.

The real treat, however, was the omelet. The ham was cooked right, the onions were sliced thin and cooked just right. The eggs were fluffy and perfect - just the way I like them.

They also had scrambled eggs on the buffet, but I didn't sample them.

The waitress was friendly and kept my coffee cup full while I was there. Since I was alone, I was reading and eating and stayed quite awhile.

One of these days I'm going to have to go back and try their lunch.

So, after eating at four restaurants, my choice for the best omelet in Murphy, NC is the Hometown Diner at 71 Tennessee Street.

What do you think?

All the best,

JD