The Washington State Cafe Known For Its 12-Egg Breakfast Omelets

We all have our favorite breakfast cafes. Some tout homemade buttermilk biscuits and gravy, breakfast burritos, or chicken-and-waffles, while others go high end with smoked salmon soufflés or international breakfast pastries. But when an entire metropolitan city is devoted to the same breakfast spot, there's definitely something going on there. That city is Seattle, and the spot is Beth's Cafe, home to the famous 12-egg breakfast omelets.

As a big fan of Sunday breakfast with zero cooking at home, I was quick to discover Beth's after moving to the Emerald City many years ago. Along with countless others in the Greater Seattle metro area, home to about 3.5 million people, that little nondescript blue building instantly became part of my personal panoply of Seattle's go-to cafes. And yes, I've dived into its notorious full-carton egg dish, albeit with plenty of help scraping the bottom of that enormous flying-saucer metal platter. Some brave souls take the challenge of eating the entire omelet alone, as did the two Adams on Travel Channel's "Man v. Food" show. 

Neither Adam succeeded, and that's fine with the crew at Beth's, who also welcome a less grandiose approach to dining, instead encouraging guests to relax and enjoy their meals. If you do, however, take the challenge, you end up on the Beth's Wall of Fame along with others who've laid down that 12-egg wonder in mere minutes.

Beth's Cafe in Seattle is definitely an uncontested pilgrimage spot for late-night tuck-ins of down-home cooking with a metro twist. It opened in 1954 as a gambling den of sorts, eventually becoming more famous for its "greasy spoon" fare than its dicey betting odds. It's drawn national fame as part of the Food Network's "Top 5 Big Breakfasts," and gained even more street cred for local honors such as being voted Seattle Magazine's "Best Place to Cure a Hangover." 

It helps that the cafe stays open until 4 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, drawing the so-called Seattle "drunk diners" as well as night owls, late-night musicians, truck drivers, and other glorious conglomerates of hungry city slickers. The humble structure perches nonchalantly on Seattle's super-busy Aurora Avenue North, but inside, a different story emerges. The deep history and strong community ties are palpable at every turn, reflected in a decades-long collection of hand-drawn art by patrons. It adorns the walls, ceilings, panels, and counters, woven into the city's fabric.

As for the food, it's good to know that you can order any of Beth's famous omelets with only six eggs instead of 12. There's also plenty of other food, including breakfast classics such as country fried steak, eggs Benedict, waffles and pancakes, steak and eggs, corned beef hash, and lots more. Diners can find some relatively new vegan options, plus lunch and dessert menus — but no booze.