A good, diverse breakfast buffet is one of the few meals that can please any taste bud, from the fussiest eater to the greedy lover of food in all its forms. If you can’t find something you want to eat at a hotel breakfast, then the fault probably lies with you.
But while an abundant breakfast buffet is a thing of beauty, the ideal scenario is a combination of DIY stations and an à la carte menu. And that’s the case at Conrad Dublin. At the buffet, symmetrical displays of mini chia pudding pots are lined up over fanned slices of cantaloupe, pineapple and watermelon. Hefty slices of soda bread sit next to a tower of homemade scones, with blueberry muffins and mini croissants on the side. There’s even a giant slab of honeycomb, so you can spool off some raw honey for your toast.
Get it right, and your first attempt at the breakfast buffet should always look like it’s been plated by Jackson Pollock. But the hot food is best left to the professionals. The pancakes are Instagram-ready, deliciously springy and sitting in a pool of creme anglaise, with a sprinkling of edible flowers on top. With an extra plate of crispy bacon to the side, you couldn’t ask for more. Well, unless you have a few Danish pastries for afters, that is.
A moment, too, for the breakfast beverages. I’m always looking for at least three options in front of me – freshly squeezed orange juice, some form of smoothie and a coffee, preferably pressed in a cafetiere.
One of the joys of a hotel breakfast is the fact that you can enjoy a languid meal without rushing. You’re not eating a bowl of cereal while absentmindedly watching the news or thinking about the washing-up. You’re starting the day with a treat, tucking into a veritable feast while plotting the adventures of the day ahead – where you’re going to go, what you’re going to see, and, if you’re anything like me, what you’re going to have for dinner. Because if you’re doing a hotel breakfast right, you will most likely be too full to eat lunch.
You’re also getting a little peek into local life, long before you’ve even put your coat on. A good hotel breakfast is a showcase of the best local produce.
And don’t get me started on another one of life’s great pleasures: the room service breakfast. You may miss out on the joy of browsing the buffet, but you get to tick off your choices on the menu the night before, hang it on the doorknob, then wait for the following morning when you can eat waffles in bed while watching TV. If you ask me, any day that starts off like that is a good one.
Try as you might, a hotel breakfast is an experience that simply can’t be replicated anywhere else. Order three breakfast dishes at a cafe, and you’re a glutton. Bring 10 different kinds of cereal to your self-catering rental, and you’re eccentric. But when you’re in a hotel, anything goes. And that’s all part of the fun.
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