Most important meal of the day: A breakfast tour of Waterloo region with Andrew Coppolino

Whether it's coffee and a pastry, a "full English" with bacon and eggs, or biscuits with sausage gravy, breakfast is the meal that starts the day. 

Conventional North American breakfast joints are legion, but there is a wide world of options out there. Here's a brief breakfast tour touching down in a few select countries, though not all venues listed are currently serving breakfast.

First is a rustic breakfast from El Salvador. Andres Guerrero co-owns Pupuseria Latinos, a small but popular downtown Kitchener food destination.

"The traditional breakfast we call campero, like a farmer's breakfast. It comes with rice and beans, fried plantain, sour cream and eggs with a little bit of green tomato sauce," says Guerrero.

The breakfast's fried plantain will be unique to many diners (and it's absolutely delicious). The rice and beans is called casamiento — "marriage" in Spanish, says Guerrero, refers to the intermingling of rice and beans representing two individuals who become one when mixed together. It's similar to Caribbean rice and beans dishes. 

Next, head 3,000 kilometres southeast and grab a doubles for breakfast: that's a common start to the day in Trinidad and Tobago and the Caribbean too. In Waterloo Region, there are several places to find doubles, including Big Jerk Smokehouse and Madhu's Roti and Doubles.

Arielle Niels, executive chef of Compass Group Canada, says doubles are, hands down, "the breakfast of champions in Trinidad," but other popular breakfast dishes include roti, and sautéed or roasted vegetables of Indian origin.

"Breakfast foods of African origin are dishes such as fry bake, also known as floats in other Caribbean islands or coconut bake, a type of bread that's not loaf-shaped but made with shredded coconut, butter, flour and baking powder. It's eaten with salt fish buljol or mixed with vegetables such as fried okra, sautéed smoked herring, aloo (potato) and eggplant. We even sauté sliced hot dogs with onions, peppers and tomatoes. It's called sausage for us," said Kitchener-based Niels.

Heading north to Spain, a typical Spanish breakfast is "tostada con tomate," according to Vanessa Stankiewicz of La Lola Catering in Preston, Cambridge. It's toasted baguette with olive oil, grated fresh tomato spread and salt.

"Some people take a peeled clove of garlic and rub it on the toasted baguette before putting on the extra-virgin olive oil and tomato. Some also add Serrano ham," says Stankiewicz.

In the Middle East, shakshuka is a favourite breakfast in several countries. It's available at Naranj Blossom in the Kitchener Market: eggs are poached in a melange of tomato, peppers, onions and harissa.

While Shawerma Plus is not currently serving breakfast, Jawad Ghabra recommends a Syrian breakfast of ful medames, which is a stew of fava beans, tomato and spices.

"There is also labneh (a strained yogurt), olive oil, fried eggs, za'atar spice and jibneh mshallaleh, a type of Syrian string cheese. And of course, hummus with bread, ghee and yogurt. These ingredients are available at Middle Eastern grocery stores," he says.

Heading to the Philippines, breakfast might be tapsilog, says Paul Masbad of Nuestro 88 Restaurant, which specializes in blending Filipino and Central American dishes.

"Tapsilog is thin slices of cured beef, garlic-fried rice and egg," says Masbad. "The beef can be substituted with sausage or dried fish, and it's usually served with pickled papaya slaw."

Natto is a fermented soybean preparation that is part of a Japanese breakfast. While it might be an acquired taste for westerners, the dish is part of what a large, well-rounded Japanese breakfast, according to Miki Ferrall of Crafty Ramen, which has locations in Kitchener and Guelph.

"You should expect a bowl of steamed rice, miso soup, pickles, some protein such as grilled fish, fried eggs with Japanese-style bacon or sausages, salad or boiled vegetables like spinach, broccoli or cauliflower. And maybe natto," Ferrall says.

"Breakfast is a very important meal," she says. "It gets the blood going to your brain and gives you strength to start your day efficiently."   

While you may recognize the popular Vietnamese banh mi sandwich – meats, vegetables and spicy mayo stacked in a crunchy baguette — there is a breakfast version called banh mi op la.

"That's most recognizable," says Thompson Tran of Wooden Boat Food Company, of the French-influenced dish.

"It's a baguette with sunnyside-up eggs and soy sauce and often times just fresh cracked black pepper and a little lime juice," he says. "And if you're feeling up to it, grilled beef or pork on the side. It's absolutely delicious. I grew up eating it every morning."

Tran also says, if you love a big bowl of Vietnamese pho noodles for dinner on a cold, snowy winter's evening, then you're doing noodles in at the wrong time of day.

"Pho, hu tien, bun bo hue are breakfast dishes, not lunch and dinner, although we do eat them at all hours. Rice and noodle dishes that are thought of as dinner here are eaten all day long," Thompson says.