Billy Goat Breakfast - Don't Butt In!!

Living and working in Chicago definitely has its perks.  We have a beautiful lakefront, great sports teams, world-class museums, classy old theaters and opera houses, Wrigley Field, Michigan Ave. and lower Michigan Ave.

Lower Michigan Avenue is mostly comprised of concrete supports, truck delivery docks, parking garage entrances and roll away dumpster ports. But there is a hidden gem that most every Chicagoan and many tourists worldwide know about. I'm talking about the famous Billy Goat Tavern and Grill. The Billy Goat Tavern is not much to look at - it's neon cavern, dark and dank and emits a steamy, rancid greasy plume almost 24/7.

Billy Goat Tavern is known mostly for their burgers. Most popular is the double cheese burger - two thin patties of beef, shrunk well on a hot griddle with onions and a couple squares of American cheese slapped on by one of the friendly Greek fry-cooks, just before adeptly tucking between a kaiser-style bun. Salt, pepper, mustard, ketchup, raw onions, pickles and relish are all on you to determine just the desired ratio for your taste. What many people, both tourists and city denizens alike, have missed out on is the amazing breakfast sandwiches that the Billy Goat has to offer. And the 50 cent coffee is unbeatable!

Think for a moment... it's Friday morning, the city is just coming to life, empty beer bottles and other remnants of the previous late-night's revelry are still evident near the underground, sparsely lit entrance. Think about taking a half an hour just before going to work and having a ham, egg and cheese breakfast sandwiched between the kaiser roll bun. Or bacon, sausage...even salami, bologna or any variation of these. Imagine for a moment raw onions and pickles on the side as a garnish. All this for $5 at 8:00 am in the morning! And imagine sharing this experience with the same circle of very good and trusted friends.

This wouldn't be something you would (or could) do every day, or even every week for that matter. But say you had a standing appointment once a month, let's say the 3rd Friday of each month as a scheduled ritual. Now that's something you could never put a price on. This is something to look forward to... something to savor, this special time with friends, greasy sandwich, coffee and conversation. This is Billy Goat Breakfast (BGB).