It's a tradition for me to meet with friends for breakfast on the first day of school. Our annual breakfast allows us all to meet after we have dropped our children off at school, catch up with each other, and for a few moms (myself included) wipe a few tears away with laughter.

This year, we chose one of my favorite breakfast places in Winter Haven - Southeast Eatery on Cypress Gardens Road. I am a HUGE fan of Manny's Original Chophouse in Haines City, and immediately fell in love with this place as well. I've heard Manny's relatives run the Southeast Eatery, but I see Manny working with the staff and kitchen frequently....which means you can be assured of Manny's promise for "Good Food, Good Value...And Nothing Less™"

Southeast Eatery has that local family feeling and it begins as soon as you walk in the door. It's a small, cozy place and the entire staff greets you when you arrive. Once you sit at your table, your server is right there to welcome you and take your drink request while you look over the menu. The menu is very versatile and there's something for everyone from Breakfast dishes to huge hamburgers, sandwiches, platters and Greek specialties. Their plate are HUGE and worth every penny! The average price is between $5-$7 with a special kid's menu for $4.99 that comes with a free scoop of ice cream.

I had my usual while celebrating the first day of school with my BFF. It was her first time there, so I suggested my favorite the Chicken Fried Steak breakfast platter. It comes with a large piece of steak - I'm talking real beef here - with tasty sausage gravy, 2 eggs, sliced home fries (or grits) and your choice of toast, English muffin or their very own homemade buttermilk biscuits. Do yourself a favor and pick the biscuits - they are extremely large, fresh, soft, and beyond the best I've ever had. The plate is soooo huge, I end up having to take half of it home every time, but it makes for a great lunch or breakfast the next day.

Their Big Breakfast should be named, Enormously Huge Breakfast and at $6.99 it could easily feed 2 people. It comes with 3 extra large eggs, 2 very large sausage links, 2 bacon strips, a thick slice of ham, home fries (or grits) + a buttermilk biscuit with sausage gravy.....see what I'm saying....it's enormous!!!

The 1/2 pound burgers come with all the fixins and fries, cost anywhere between $3.39 - $5.59 and worth every penny. The rolls are fresh, and the burgers come out cooked to perfection. The krinkle cut fries are always hot and cooked just to the point of being perfectly crisp.

Looking for a few Greek dishes??? Look no further, their Greek Salad is the best. I haven't found many places that make a traditional Greek salad with beets, and potato salad along with fresh garden veggies. The salad comes piled high with a nice thick slice of feta cheese, greek olives, lettuce, tomatoes, fresh garden veggies, pepperochini peppers, and a scoop of potato salad on the bottom. It's like finding a hidden treasure in a bountiful garden. It also comes with their special greek dressing. They also offer Gyro and Slouvaki platters, and homemade rice pudding and baklava.

Southeast Eatery is located at 3378 Cypress Gardens Road, Winter Haven, FL 33884. It is only open from 6am until 3pm daily.

If you plan on visiting Southeast Eatery make sure you get there early, especially on the weekends. Sunday's are very busy after church services, and during season. Make sure you check out their specials when you walk in, they always offer a meal that is not on the menu. Their menu is available for to-go orders as well.

Let me know if you have been to Southeast Eatery and what your thoughts are.