IHOP; You Hop; He, She or It Hops

In honor of screaming chicken day--and the offer of a free Denny's Grand Slam until 2 p.m.--we skipped the potential clustercluck at Seattle's one Denny's and headed to IHOP #612, the venerable 24-hour establishment (950 E Madison) now, the sign informed us, under new management.

The SunBreak breakfast team--RvO and MvB--came equipped with a Seattle Times to flip through and a reasonable appetite to satisfy. We hadn't experienced the old management, but new management was running a tight ship, to our eyes. Tables were clean and fully stocked, and our waiter Victoria stuck to us like maple syrup on a waffle. Granted, only two other tables were seated.

"I'm disappointed with the feeble sports coverage in a major U.S. metro area," announced Roger, brandishing the Times, to which Victoria responded, "You and me both." Placated, Roger ordered a Two by Two by Two (eggs, pancakes, bacon/sausage). I got the Rooty Tooty Fresh 'n' Fruity (essentially the Two by, but with two bacon and two sausage, and fruit on the pancakes).

Both were under $10, but I should note that "all you can eat" pancake offerings start at $4.99.

The market had climbed back to the sunny side of 10,000. Our pot of coffee was bottomless. The eggs were over easy. The pancakes, fluffy. The whipped cream on top of the cinnamon apple compote towered Everest-like. It seemed unlikely that much of it was, by any stretch of the imagination, healthy. I only wished I had ordered a side of toast to mop up the eggs.