Bryant’s Breakfast

As a Memphis native I can tell you that you don’t want to eat here if you’re looking for a cozy atmospheric breakfast or relaxed customer service. But if you want affordable yet tasty classic breakfast food and awesome biscuits, you’ve come to the right place.

Great breakfast… just like Granny used to make. Plenty of biscuits, gravy, eggs, fried bolgna, you name it. It’s all lip smackin’ good!

While visiting Memphis we hit this place up before we left and I was IMPRESSED! When we pulled up and saw cars from over 15 different states that was a good indicator that it was going to be good. The place is not very big inside, and there is a long wait to get order, but the food is sooooooo worth it! No lie. In all my travels this place was absolutely on point with everything.
The coffee was really good and the pancakes were amazing. If you go to Memphis definitely check this place out.

This was a second choice of mine this morning but I’m glad I came. The food is freshly prepared and cooked to order. The pancakes we’re the main highlight for me. This is definitely a come back place for me.

It was alright… Country ham was cooked well done. Seems a bit pricey, but I did end up with a leftover ham biscuit sandwich for later. I was amazed of how busy they were at 6am on Friday the 13^th. Community tables are a tight fit.

I use to come here as a kid. My Memaw lived right down the street and it was a must every time we came back into town. This time I brought my husband and daughter back and Bryant’s did not disappoint! Everything we had was excellent. The chocolate chip pancakes were perfectly fluffy with a nice little griddle on top. My husband got the classic Memphis breakfast and added a side of sausage. We made a little sausage biscuits and gravy. It all tasted just how I remember and an added plus was the inside seemed to be updated and was nice and clean. This is a Memphis must!

This place is unbelievable. Best ham and biscuit that I have ever had. Puts mother’s in New Orleans to shame. Nothing fancy about this place but if ever in Memphis, it would be a sin not to go here for breakfast. They only take cash and it’s always crowded. Very much a blue collar type of place and that crowd certainly knows how to pick a great breakfast place. Should be on guys show.

A bit disappointed on my last visit. I usually enjoy Bryant’s for take out but on this visit I went very early on a Sunday morning to avoid the long lines and dined in. I ordered the Breakfast Special with sausage and added one egg. The biscuits, their specialty, were quite dry and the sausage was overcooked. The grits and gravy were very bland. Hashbrowns aren’t a very good option here as they use a frozen patty similar to McDonald’s.Next time I’ll drive a little bit farther down Summer Ave. to the Pancake Shop for a real southern breakfast.

I’ll never be back.
Before I go any further — so everyone can understand that this review is credible and honest — I will concede that the food is good. And it’s cheap. (besides the gravy, which lacks flavor in general).
But you can absolutely spend your money on very good food elsewhere in Memphis (it won’t be hard to find in this town) on an owner that actually deserves it. I don’t care if it’s cheap if that’s what the service was truly worth.
Bryant’s Breakfast served up the worst customer service I’ve truly ever experienced in any restaurant. Ever. Extremely rude and inconsiderate man running this operation, and everyone else in my hour-​long line was grumbling about it as well. This guy made it clear he felt no concern for his customers’ time and comfort as he refused to be efficient about his business by taking his sweet time chatting it up with his help while people stood in front of him waiting for him to kindly turn his head and take their order.
The woman in front of me left she was so furious. Watching him take advantage of this ridiculous «best breakfast in Memphis» (give me a break) reputation was so frustrating. I genuinely have no problem waiting an hour for food and service that is as excellent as advertised. This was NOT IT.
What I’m personally furious about is the fact I tipped this guy (told him to keep the extra cash — just wait, you’ll see how this is relevant in a second) and then when we (finally) received our order I asked for a side of gravy, to which I was told in an EXTREMELY passive aggressive tone «that’ll be 80 cents, and a dollar for the tea you took». I quite literally had put a SPLASH of tea into my water cup because the water tastes terrible.
II’m pretty sure a lack of a couple of quarters isn’t going to cause you to go under but ok.
The food is okay. Certainly not worth the wait caused solely by this man’s inconsideration of people coming in.
Unnecessary attitude. And btw, for being so «renowned» I’ve lived in this city for years and had never heard of this place until last week when I decided to try it out.

This place is good but crowed! I hate that it’s so freaking crowed but the food was awesome so it was worth the wait. The wait was at least 15 minutes or more. My guests and I stood in line seems like forever. The service was good but there were a lot of excuse me, excuse due to the crowd. If anyone attempts to done here please get here at 7 am no later unless you are up to waiting. The food was what I expected really good. I will go back again in the future.

Finally got to try Bryant’s Breakfast and i’ve gotta say its probably one of the best country style breakfast I’ve had in awhile. Located on the corner of N. Graham and Summer Ave nests the ever so popular breakfast/​brunch/​diner joint.
I didn’t know what to order so I got the Sampler which consisted of 3 eggs, bacon, sausage, country ham, pork tenderloin, potato pattie, biscuits, grits and gravy. Everything was delicious and I found the homemade potato patties to be the tastiest of them all. There were 3 biscuits but I could only down 2 of them yummy flakey things with the gravy.
This place is super popular as I went on a Sunday morning around 11am. The lines a bit long but moves very quickly and you can seat yourself right after you order and they’ll bring you your food. Very friendly staff. I enjoyed it and ill be back

Great home poked breakfast & quick too! I decided to go here after SEVERAL recommendations from locals. It’s a little odd at first, you wait in line in the middle of the restaurant to order. The line moves quick, so you won’t feel awkward for long. You place your order & then wait for a table to open up. We only had to wait a minute or so luckily.
I ordered the veggie omelet, which comes with 3 (!!!) biscuits, grits, & gravy. My boyfriend had the pancake breakfast & upgraded to blueberry pancakes. His breakfast came with two eggs & a side of meat. We had more than enough food for the two of us. My omelet was a little soupy, but still tasty.
It was a unique dining experience, even though it was packed, we still ordered & had our food within 20 minutes, maybe less. We’ll now be one of the locals sending people here!

I love their chicken biscuits. Best I ever put in my mouth!!!
We didnt seem to had to wait to long and the lines were moving along. The people that run the place are sweet and friendly. I haven’t tried everything but I entend to come back.

Please just go! Stop complaining about the line and the fact that they only take cash. THIS IS THE BEST BREAKFAST IN THE CITY. The biscuits are amazingly light but big and hardy – they hold up to any topping you choose. The pancakes are perfectly cooked, the right density and simply delicious. The line moves really fast and the service is friendly and welcoming. The lunch is great as well.

I found Bryant’s a straight-​forward, traditional breakfast spot – the type of thing hipsters keep trying overcomplicate. It was packed, but the line moved quickly, and diners didn’t really linger past the duration of the meal. Again, it’s a breakfast spot – not a «brunch» spot. (Don’t get me wrong – there’s a time and a place for brunch!)
I ordered a breakfast biscuit with a country-​fried steak patty, egg, and cheddar, with a single blueberry pancake on the side. Man, oh, man. The biscuit was fluffy inside and perfectly crunchy on the outside – tender, but sturdy enough to hold up to the breakfasty contents. For the pancake, I didn’t even use syrup, as I wanted to savor the buttery, crispy edges and the blueberry flavor.
Perfect.

I’ve heard from numerous people to check this breakfast spot out if I were ever in the area. Today was that day and I am thoroughly pleased with my finding! It’s a small building and it gets packed quick. The lines loved pretty quickly though, but it would be confusing for any first timers especially with two different doors to walk into that one line.
I didn’t know what to get so I figured the sampler wouldn’t fail me. It was only $ 10 for such a great amount of food! My eggs, bacon, sausage, potato cake/​other various meats were perfect! I never cared for grits but you can’t substitute for anything really, except gravy.
Pretty delicious And now I know why it’s very busy (:

Besides brother junipers this has to be my favorite place in Memphis for breakfast. First
they have the most amazing homemade rolls. I always get the Everything Omelet, but the veggie one is also really good! Beside the Omelet their pancake are also really good, think my favorite is the one with Nutella. Get there early as the line get a bit long. They now open on Sunday but still cash only.

My wife and I have eaten at Bryant’s several times — frankly, I don’t know why I haven’t eaten there more (they’ve been around since 1968) — but today’s Breakfast Sampler was quite good. Sure, I did have and enjoyed my biscuits and gravy, and eggs, and grits.
Today, though, I had the Country Fried Steak (hadn’t had it before) — I’ve enjoyed their sausage many times. My Country Fried Steak today was very «deliciously crunchy», very tender, and just the right «hot-​ness». The whole breakfast was just flat out good, that’s all. In fact, I had to take one of the three biscuits home — to save for later. DId I mention the coffee? It was good too — managed to get a fresh pot.
You’ve seen it for years, driven by for years and said, «I’m gonna go there for breakfast soon» — well DO it! And start enjoying some great food!

Having been truly blown away by another Memphis staple in the form of Earnestine & Hazel’s, I was good and ready the next morning for what was described to me as by far the best breakfast in town. Long story short? I think I was disappointed because I didn’t have any real ties to the city of Memphis or Bryant’s as a whole, and what had to be strictly an objective review based on the food lead to a bit of disappointment.
Star 1: How were the service and atmosphere?
One thing I did absolutely love about Bryant’s Breakfast was that in many it’s the product of it’s community, which is a rarity these days with the ever growing grasp of various chains and fast casual spots. Bryant’s Breakfast is every bit as Memphis as the city itself, and the line of locals out the door should be more than enough to tell you that. As most reviews touch on, people have grown up on Bryant’s as if it were Sunday church itself, and while jam packed with sparse seating and a line that will have you waiting likely 30 or more minutes on a weekend morning, you’ll enjoy the wait. Star Granted.
Star 2: How were the portions relative to the cost?
While locals tell me that prices have gone up especially over the past year or so, my massive sample (known as «The Sampler», was $ 10.00, and was the most expensive thing on the menu. Five meats, three biscuits and three eggs for $ 10? Value if ever it existed. Star Granted.
Stars 3 and 4: How was the food?
Unfortunately, «you get what you pay for» came to mind a bit when I finally dug into my sampler platter. The highlight of this dish was without question the biscuits, which were excellent, but the eggs and all of the meats were weak. The pork tenderloin? tough and dry. The country and city hams? salty to the point of not being edible. The bacon and sausage? both overcooked to the point of lacking flavor. The potato patty was another highlight, but I’m struggling to believe that this was housemade. While my friend’s biscuit sandwiches were a bit better, I can’t help but feel that my dish was less than even a sum of its parts, and I walked away full but disappointed. No Stars Granted.
Star 5: Would you eat here every day if you could?
I loved the local flair and sense of community at Bryant’s Breakfast, but for me it’s the quality of the food that mattered as much as the atmosphere, and it’s there at Bryant’s fell well short. Sure, there’s value, and a visit to Bryant’s is an experience above all else, but the food was lacking, and I’ve very often experienced better. No Star Granted.

Wish I could eat here everyday! I miss it and miss a good southern breakfast. I love their Steak Biscuits which you can rarely find anywhere these days, sadly. Their food is always consistently good, fast and unlike anywhere else. It was so good to get to stop in here again while I was in town visiting.
Remember!
Cash Only & Lines out the Door
so be prepared!
Their bacon pancakes were so light and fluffy as well. Also a great place for Lunch, good southern cooking although I prefer the breakfast. If you haven’t tried this place out, please don’t wait! It’s a Memphis tradition.
Also don’t be fooled by the part of town it’s in or the small size of it. Get it to go if nothing else, it’ll blow you away!