Signs of deliciousness: Tangie’s Cafe offers winning breakfast options
A spread including, from top left clockwise, the Garbage Omelet with toast and hash browns, a pancake and a bacon bagel is pictured Tuesday, June 20, 2017 at Tangie's Cafe in American Fork. ISAAC HALE, Daily Herald
A bacon bagel is pictured Tuesday, June 20, 2017 at Tangie's Cafe in American Fork. ISAAC HALE, Daily Herald
A pancake is pictured Tuesday, June 20, 2017 at Tangie's Cafe in American Fork. ISAAC HALE, Daily Herald
The Garbage Omelet with toast and hash browns is pictured Tuesday, June 20, 2017 at Tangie's Cafe in American Fork. ISAAC HALE, Daily Herald
A pancake is pictured Tuesday, June 20, 2017 at Tangie's Cafe in American Fork. ISAAC HALE, Daily Herald
A spread including, from top left clockwise, the Garbage Omelet with toast and hash browns, a pancake and a bacon bagel is pictured Tuesday, June 20, 2017 at Tangie's Cafe in American Fork. ISAAC HALE, Daily Herald
A bacon bagel is pictured Tuesday, June 20, 2017 at Tangie's Cafe in American Fork. ISAAC HALE, Daily Herald
Walking into the folksy, welcoming setting of Tangie’s Cafe, I, ever the oblivious, smooth-handed city boy, struggled to understand what one of the posted signs said. It had some words, and then a picture of an animal below it. I decided to ask the server to help me decode it.
” ‘Please seat your … ‘ Bunny? Jackrabbit?” I asked.
Another server, overhearing my question, solved the mystery by letting me know the animal was a donkey — and I immediately became embarrassed for not getting the joke on my own.
The walls are lined with similarly charming and humorous signs. For example, “If you are smokin’ you’d better be on FIRE!” and “If ya done it, it ain’t braggin’.” Another sign simply reads, “Life begins with coffee.”
I mention the signs because the decor of Tangie’s sums up a lot of the feel of eating there: The cowboy feel makes the whole experience more enjoyable, and promises a menu of hearty deliciousness.
The menu didn’t disappoint.
We came at breakfast time (and considering the place opens at 5 a.m. and closes at 5:30 p.m., it’s almost always breakfast time at Tangie’s — and anyway, breakfast is served all day). We didn’t try the “dinner” or sandwich dishes — but we have plenty to recommend from the breakfast menu alone.
My favorite item was the breakfast bagel, which can come with ham, bacon or sausage, along with eggs and cheese. I chose ham, and biting into it was like biting into the feeling you get in the morning after a great night’s sleep.
Overall, Tangie’s does eggs well: The omelets could have had more flavors by putting in some vegetables, but the eggs were cooked perfectly, not only in the omelet and sunny-side-up on the breakfast bagel, but also the side of scrambled eggs that came with the French toast. No matter the style, the eggs were cooked well, and not overdone.
The French toast was simple and delicious, and came with slices of bacon the size of the forearms of many pre-teens I know. If there’s anything that can make a strip of bacon better, it’s definitely largeness.
Another highlight was the pancake, which was about what you’d expect a good pancake to be, until you put on the special topping, which made it heavenly. That topping is blackberry syrup. It also comes with maple syrup, which is normally my favorite, but the only thing I could do faced with these options was to alternate each bite.
The breakfast menu also comes with sweet rolls that aren’t made onsite but do come from a local source, the Lehi Bakery.
I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it a million more times: If great breakfast food is on the table, nothing else should even be an option. (And once it’s on the table, it won’t stay on it for long.)
So recommending Tangie’s is easy. A friendly place in the heart of downtown American Fork is an easy thing to say yes to, especially in the morning.
TANGIE’S CAFE
Where: 2 E. Main St., American Fork
Prices: $0.50-$8.79
Hours: Monday through Saturday 5 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., Sunday 6 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.
Info: (801) 756-4955