This Mexican bakery in the Heights is full of surprises. On Ema’s menu, you’ll see words like “blue corn” and maybe expect a tortilla, but gotcha, it’s a crumble on top of a sweet concha. Or maybe you’ll clock “horchata” and think drink, but find this cinnamon goodness whipped into a cream and then stuffed inside a donut. While breakfast here doesn’t start until 10am on weekdays, which is a bit of a bummer, ordering a coffee and pastries at the counter makes a delicious way to pass the time.

From the minds behind Reggae Hut, The Breakfast Klub often has a line of people out of the door and hugging the corner. Make good use of your time while you wait, and have your order ready because once inside, everything at the counter service Midtown spot moves at lightning speed. Make your choice from Southern-style classics like golden crispy catfish and grits, crackling fried chicken and waffles, and pillowy biscuits doused in hearty pork gravy.

For those who like breakfast with a side of cilantro chutney and a green juice, hit up Pondi Bake Lab above Pondicheri in Upper Kirby. The modern Indian counter-service spot not only has a bright color palette, but also colorful and surprising food like masala-spiked scrambled eggs, sauteed mushrooms with savory waffles, and a pastry case full of turmeric cakes and chili cookies. Join the other athleisure clad diners here for a post-yoga refuel, or just because.

Laredo Taqueria in Washington Heights always has a line wrapping around the building, no matter the time of day, but especially at breakfast. Flour tortillas are the standard here—ordering corn complicates things and also slows down the line. These tortillas lovingly cradle some of the best breakfast tacos in the city. Try them with bacon, chorizo, sausage, or spicy potatoes.

Baby Barnaby’s in Montrose not only serves the best and most crispy breakfast potatoes, but does so from a postage-sized dining room with maybe the best serving staff in town. We don’t know this for sure, but considering the servers are always the same (there are only three), always working, and always remembers the names and orders of every regular, we are convinced Baby Barnaby’s is not only a great breakfast restaurant, but also some kind of non-stop breakfast theater performance.

In a busy city full of busy folks, often very little time exists for sit-down breakfast. Villa Arcos can assist with this dilemma with quick counter service and legendary, pillowy-soft breakfast tacos. This East End Mexican taco spot off Navigation continues to pump out handmade, fluffy flour tortillas stuffed with refried beans, eggs, and thick, crispy slices of bacon. Call ahead if you’re truly in a rush, or grab a Topo and a patio table for focused tortilla enjoyment.

Refurbished historic buildings are rare in Houston, especially ones that serve some of the best fried chicken and waffles in town. But that’s precisely what the second location in The Heights’ renovated clock tower building offers. Dandelion Cafe's menu includes housemade sausage stuffed into extra large and extra spicy omelets, fried chicken on spiced butter waffles, and fresh baked goods like soft chocolate chip cookies and croissants.

You could order one of everything at Tel-Wink Grill in the Greater East End and the servers wouldn’t even bat an eye. These people are professional diner servers (each server even has their name posted on the wall near their section). They’ve seen some things. Want to take down a place of chicken fried steak and eggs, fried catfish and eggs, hash browns, and a short stack of pancakes on your own? It’s your life, and Tel-Wink respects that.

New York Deli is a long-time staple of the great Westbury-Bellaire-Sharpstown triangle, making the best bagels in town. The tiny ’80s linoleum dining room gets packed on weekends when everyone nearby shows up for a couple of dozen everything bagels to go and a plate of eggs and lox. Sit at the small diner counter if rolling up solo or split a plate of challah french toast and some cheese blintzes for brunch.

This Taiwanese breakfast spot in Chinatown serves rice rolls making them the ultimate breakfast on the go. If you have a sweet tooth, get the sweet rice roll with pork floss. And for the savory breakfast heads, there’s an egg pancake loaded with sausage that should be served in multiples (so get two, just to be safe). We can count on one hand the number of available tables in Tao Rice Roll. But if you can’t find a seat, the breakfast tastes just as delicious from inside your car.

Part Southern-style breakfast spot, part coffee shop, and part vinyl record store, this Museum District restaurant is the go-to for an (almost) daily vegan brunch. With everything from boudain sushi rolls to vegan breakfast sandwiches made out of donut buns, the menu feels a bit like that of a local diner. The options are almost overwhelming but ideal for a group of varying taste buds.

The tiny panaderia and breakfast cafe Imperial Bakery might not look open from the outside, but it serves some of the most simple and comforting breakfast in the East End. Most plates cost less than $10, come with handmade tortillas, and are served by someone who you may or may not imprint upon as a grandmother. Enjoy some huevos Mexicanos while taking in the latest gossip from folks popping in and out for coffee and empanadas de piña.

Cucharita serves Mexico City-style breakfast every day of the week. Spawned from the folks behind Cuchara, a Mexican restaurant a block away, because the owners just really like breakfast (same), Cucharita specializes in any manner of eggs, waffles, pan dulce, and lots and lots of coffee. Try the weekly rotating version of chilaquiles, a pile of huevos montuleños with peas and ham, or a waffle de maíz soaking in cajeta caramel. Then grab a concha and coffee to go.

Mexican cafe and bakery La Guadalupana serves up breakfast tacos, huevos rancheros, and fresh pan dulce from a well-worn strip center in the heart of Montrose. Known for hot cinnamon coffee and a signature drink called the vampiro—a rumored hangover cure combination of beet, orange, and carrot juice—La Guadalupana is busy with regulars, neighborhood locals, and at least one table of 20-somethings. Head here early mornings for a plate of something comforting, and then take a few empanadas to go.

House Of Pies serves quintessential diner-style breakfasts all day long. The Houston-based chain has been around since the ‘60s dishing out hot breakfasts at multiple locations around Houston. At the OG Galleria spot, you can expect the old-timey board listing all of the pies, and retro decor around the room. For breakfast, come to House of Pies for a glass of fresh orange juice, a hearty chicken fried steak with a mountain of gravy and eggs your way, and a blueberry muffin on the side.

Crepes are basically the French version of tacos, which means they can be sub-categorized as breakfast tacos. That’s just science. One of the best places to grab a French-breakfast-taco-crepe is Melange Creperie in The Heights where breakfast is served all day, everyday. Get the standard ham and cheese with fluffy scrambled eggs or a warm banana nutella crepe if you have a breakfast sweet tooth.

There are multiple locations of Avalon Diner, and the OG location serves the best kind of breakfast: one that’s available all day. The Montrose diner serves loads of chicken fried steak, fluffy pancakes, french toast, and grits as long as the doors are open. Grab a seat at the bar counter and snack on a treat from the gumball machine. Or, settle into a well-loved booth and get started on reading through the dense menu as a server makes their way to your table to read out the daily specials.