Wake up hangry? Try one of these new Delaware breakfast spots

There is no shortage of restaurants in Delaware geared toward breakfast.

But, especially this year, the morning chow line choices have stacked up like pancakes on all-you-can eat day.

Here are some places to find the first meal of the day:

Sandy Pony Donuts

115 Garfield Parkway, Unit 2, Bethany Beach, 301-775-2005; sandyponydonut.com

The former Sandy Pony Donuts food truck, owned by Brea and Ben Wang, has morphed into a brick-and-mortar location that opened in May at 115 Garfield Parkway in downtown Bethany Beach.

The Wangs stopped operating the Sandy Pony food truck in South Bethany Beach and their Wang's World food truck at the end of last summer.

But their new, snug Bethany store features 24 varieties of glazes and toppings for cake doughnuts that are made-to-order, served hot and mostly taken to-go. (There are some picnic tables out front.)

Specialty doughnut flavors include surfer dude, yabba dadda doo-nut, cookies 'n' cream, jingle shells, chocolate-covered pretzel, blue moon, pony party, cow trail, banana cream, thin mint, sand dune and big pearl.

We especially liked the "Ms. Sandy," a honey-glazed doughnut topped with cinnamon sugar, and the "Charlie Brown," a peanut butter-glazed doughnut with mini chocolate chips. One doughnut is $1.65, six is $8 and a dozen is $14. 

Sandy Pony doesn't forget about our four-legged friends. They offer Doggy Donuts for $3 each. They're made by Sweet Paws Dog Bakery in Severna Park, Maryland.

Looking for something offbeat? Try the $4 Bana-Nutella Roll. It's bananas and Nutella in an Asian spring roll wrapper that's tempura-fried and then rolled in cinnamon sugar.

The shop also sells acai bowls, $8.50; deluxe funnel cakes, $9, and 16-ounce bubble tea, $4.25, with such flavors as green tea, coconut, taro and mango. 

Hours: 7 a.m. until 10 p.m. It's a seasonal operation from May to September, weather permitting.

First Watch

74 Geoffrey Drive, Stanton, 302-894-4030; firstwatch.com

First Watch was one of the first in a wave of new breakfast-brunch-lunch eateries opening in New Castle County.

The Florida-based chain eatery is planted in a complex off Churchmans Road in Stanton that includes Naf Naf Grill and Chipotle.

The restaurant's name is a nautical term referring to the early shift for a ship's crew. 

Restaurants offer traditional morning foods like omelets, frittatas, French toast and lemon ricotta pancakes. Some dishes change with the seasons.

Right now, you can get the summer crab omelet made with crab, house-roasted corn and red peppers, Jack cheese and scallions that's topped with hollandaise and Cholula sauces.

It comes with lemon-dressed organic mixed greens, whole grain artisan toast and all-natural preserves.

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For a cool down, try the Summer Brush, a drink made with watermelon, pineapple, Fuji apple, lemon, cane sugar and mint.

The coffee is Project Sunrise coffee from Huila, Colombia. When you order it, they bring an entire pot to the table. 

Hours: 7 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily.

Eggspectation 

507 Stanton-Christiana Road, Marvel Plaza, Stanton, 302-842-2515; eggspectation.com

This Canadian chain came to Delaware in late June compliments of High 5 Hospitality, the group behind all of Delaware's Buffalo Wild Wings, the Stone Balloon Ale House in Newark and Limestone BBQ & Bourbon.

It's in a shopping center that includes a Buffalo Wild Wings and it's next to the Border Cafe, also known as the "Eat" place.

A day menu is served from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m., and the evening menu comes into play from 4 to 9 p.m., but you can still get brunch for dinner.

Eggspectations are known for their wide varieties of eggs Benedict. We like the sound of the Avocado Toast Benedict, $13.99, which includes smashed avocado with grilled tomato on multigrain toast topped with two poached eggs, along with hollandaise and chimichurri sauce.

Other brekkie items include omelets, bagel sandwiches and egg-based dishes including the Eggs San Marzano, $12.99, or two eggs poached in San Marzano tomato sauce with fresh cherry tomatoes, basil, mozzarella and Parmesan cheese, topped with fresh baby arugula.

It's served with Lyonnaise-style potatoes and garlic crostini. 

They also serve pancakes, salads, burgers, pasta and dinner entrees such as lasagna and lobster macaroni and cheese.

Most breakfast options range from $10.99-18.99. Dinner prices are comparable. 

The drip coffee, $2.99, is custom-roasted with Arabic beans. The espresso is from Italy.

Hours: 7 a.m. to 9 p.m., daily.

Turning Point

Christiana Fashion Center, 3204 Fashion Center Boulevard, Newark, 302-738-4326; theturningpoint.biz/christiana

The New Jersey-based chain, founded in 1998, serves breakfast, brunch and lunch in dining rooms decorated with natural wood floors, bright traditional colors and real plants.  

Turning Point founders Pam and Kirk Ruoff said they don't open the restaurants in the evening because they want to go home to family. Their motto: “Work to live, don’t live to work.”

A porky start to the meal is the bacon lollipops, $6.95, or thick, brown sugar-smoked bacon wrapped around a golden apple wedge. We also like the "flight of pancakes," $10.25, which includes three different varieties of hotcakes.

A different take on an omelet is the Key West shrimp, $10.79, which is three eggs mixed with sautéed shellfish, avocado, bacon, tomato, cilantro and Monterey jack cheese. It's served with an English muffin and either breakfast potatoes or tossed greens.

A "Popeye skillet," $9.89, is an egg dish with baby spinach, sliced mushrooms, potatoes, melted jack cheese, a big plop of sour cream and an English muffin. 

The French press coffee, from Warrington, Pennsylvania-based Cowabunga Coffee Roasters, is ground per order and infused with purified water.

Prices for coffee range from $5.75 to $8.99. Turning Point offers over six varieties, including flavored coffees.

Hours: 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily. 

WiLDWiCH

405 N. King St., Wilmington, 302-654-0500; wildwich.com

UPDATE: WiLDWiCH closed its King Street location in August. 

Owner Mike Stanley started his popular WiLDWiCH food truck in 2014, and two years later he added a brick-and-mortar cafe at 800 Delaware Ave. in downtown Wilmington.

This year, Stanley added a new cafe on Wilmington's King Street when he took over the former Cocina Lolo Mexican eatery.

Breakfast sandwiches are a house specialty.

Looking for a regional breakfast of champions? Try the Dumpster Fire sandwich, or scrapple, American Cheese and spicy "dragon’s breath" spread with an egg on a grilled English muffin.

And if you wake up really hangry, there's the Double Trouble sandwich, a choice of two cheeses, two meats and two eggs on a grilled English muffin

Coffee comes in two sizes: 12- and 16-ounces.

Hours: 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Rise Up Coffee Roasters

 502 Rehoboth Ave, Rehoboth Beach, 302-567-2588; riseupcoffee.com

Rise Up Coffee, an independent small-batch coffee roaster and retailer for the past 14 years, has popped up next to the traffic circle as you drive into downtown Rehoboth. It takes over a former 7-Eleven location.

The business was founded in St. Michaels, Maryland, by owner Tim Cureton in a tricked-out coffee trailer.

It has a full breakfast, lunch and dinner, as well as a full bar. There's also outdoor seating and, a rarity in downtown Rehoboth, a parking lot.

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You order at the counter. House specialties include $9 made-to-order burritos such as the Sunrise which comes with organic eggs, potatoes, peppers, onion and cheese.

Bangers and smash, $9, is a fried organic egg with a sliced sausage link, peppers and onions on smashed potatoes.

A breakfast board, $20, is a good sharing option. It's served on a wooden board, almost like a morning charcuterie spread. One order includes fresh seasonal fruit, habanero candied bacon, sliced avocado, hard-boiled eggs, turkey tamale pie, local cheese, crusty bread with local honey and brown sugar-cinnamon butter.  

Rise Up serves only organic coffees that are generally considered a medium roast. At the front door, they offer a self-service coffee to-go station for $2.

Hours: 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily.

What else:

Breakfast Guru at 19 Wilmington Ave. in Rehoboth Beach is a family-owned breakfast restaurant, which opened in early May. It takes over the spot of a short-lived Italian eatery.

The Legend is a new American restaurant and bakery near the New Castle County Airport that had been the home of the former Arner's restaurant.

Metro Diner, a Florida-based chain, has opened several Delaware locations within the past two years including at 745 Middletown-Warwick Road in Middletown, 4601 Ogletown-Stanton Road in Newark, and 5600 Concord Pike near Talleyville. 

The Food Bank of Delaware's new facility at 222 Lake Drive in Glasgow,  launched the Discover Café. It serves a variety of breakfast sandwiches, coffee drinks, homemade baked goods. Everything is baked in house by chef/instructor Tiarra Thomas.

Faire Market & Cafe at 216 W. Ninth St. in downtown Wilmington is a new operation from Stitch House Brewery owners Dan Sheridan and Robert Snowberger. The market serves $7 breakfast sandwiches named for city neighborhoods.

The Forty Acres sandwich is pork roll, a fried egg and Cooper sharp cheese served on an everything bagel.

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The Cool Springs, $7, is a flour tortilla stuffed with scrambled eggs, pico de gallo, guacamole, cheddar cheese and jalapenos. 

What's coming:

Drip Express is a new business for Greg Vogeley, owner of Drip Cafe locations in Hockessin and Newark. Vogeley plans to renovate the Espresso Coffee Bar at 1201 N. Market St. in Wilmington. He said the new look likely will be unveiled in January. 

Newark Deli and Bagels, which operates its flagship operation at 36 E. Main St. in downtown Newark, will be moving into the space at the Wilmington Riverfront Market formerly occupied by Eeffoc's coffee. Owner Eduardo Cardenas says he is hoping to open this month.

Goober's is a coming-soon, old-school style diner from an owner of Buckley's Tavern. The two-story stainless steel diner, which will be built in Atlanta, will be located in a now-vacant lot behind the Dunkin' Donuts off Wilmington's Pennsylvania Avenue and North Lincoln Street. It could be open by the end of the year.

Contact Patricia Talorico at (302) 324-2861 or ptalorico@delawareonline.com and on Twitter @pattytalorico