Sky Blue Cafe

In Nashville’s historic Edgefield neighborhood, Sky Blue Cafe sits on a quaint corner next to a fabulous clothing shop that provides ample entertainment while you wait for a table (read: sequins, sky-high platforms, spikes). And there will usually be a wait. Although the restaurant has the feel of a small-town cafe, it lives up to a big reputation — for delicious, hearty breakfast.

The staff is apologetic for the wait, and very welcoming, eager to tell you their favorites dishes. These include the Armadillo, billed as “our armored grilled cheese.” It is a sandwich that arrives with a cheesy crust glistening with freshly toasted cheddar wrapped all around it. Inside the folds of the perfectly crunchy crust is a focaccia-style bread slathered with pesto, then sautéed peppers, portabella mushrooms, sour cream, and of course, a touch more cheese — here, it’s Parmesan. The whole thing is greasy in the best way, and while I’m not much of a vegetarian, I didn’t even miss meat. It’s also huge. If you don’t eat it all, you’ll want to take it home for later (you know, in 20 minutes).

Next: banana- and Nutella-stuffed French toast pancakes. Take a moment to think about that. Slices of banana and gobs of Nutella stuffed into French toast wrapped in thick, golden pancakes. It’s not so revolutionary in taste, but the grouping of such gloriously wanton ingredients is breakfast nirvana.

We also got Em’s Bowl, which features soft, almost-gooey biscuits topped with home fries, two scrambled eggs, sausage gravy, and Colby jack cheese. We asked if we should add the jalapeños and sour cream, and when our waiter didn’t hesitate, neither did we. If you happened to imbibe a bit too much the night before, this is the perfect hangover food. Each layer is tasty on its own — but when combined into one “perfect” bite with each ingredient, it really hits the spot. There’s also a great selection of Nashville’s Añejo hot sauces, which adds one more element of goodness.

Finally, we got the A.T.B. omelette stuffed with fresh avocado and tomato, crispy bacon and Colby jack cheese. It proves that Sky Blue can do the simple stuff well, too.