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A cook at Merry Ann's Dinner on Neil St. makes a pancake breakfast for customers. (Sam Mullineaux, Buzz photographer)
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Le Peep 2209 S. Neil St., C. 352-7599
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Merry Ann's Diner »Address: 1510 S. Neil St. Champaign, IL 61820
Phone: (217) 352-5399
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Merry Ann's Diner on Main »
Address: 1 E. Main St. Champaign, IL 61820
Phone: (217) 531-1160
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In the midst of waking up, hitting the snooze button several times before finally rolling out of bed and rushing out the door for a class that starts in three minutes, few students find time to make a decent breakfast meal — something more than a piece of gum and a juice box. To satisfy their cravings for real breakfast food, students head to Merry Ann’s Diner. Merry Ann’s has a wide selection of breakfast foods that appeal to both the taste buds and checkbook.
“A lot of people don’t know that you can get pancakes instead of toast,” said Zach Schmidt, a sophomore in ACES. “That makes it a very good deal.”
Victor Munoz, the manager of the Neil Street location, said the most popular breakfast item is The Stack #5, made of eggs, hash browns, biscuits, sausage and cheese, stacked up and smothered in gravy. “It’s probably not very healthy,” Munoz said, chuckling, “But it’s really good.”
Munoz, who has been working for Merry Ann’s for nine years, said the food is not the only thing that has people coming back. “They like the atmosphere,” he said. “We know a lot of our customers by first name.”
And many students do return. “It’s become a tradition to go to Merry Ann’s after a night of drinking and partying,” said Kyle Atteberry, a senior in ACES. “They give you a lot of coffee, so that makes it easier to stay awake.”
The food selection has students breaking traditions as well. “I never liked biscuits and gravy,” said Colleen Maher, a freshman in LAS, “But when we went to Merry Ann’s, I ended up trying my friend’s and it was really good.”
Whether it’s honoring tradition or trying new things, Merry Ann’s has truly become a breakfast favorite among students.
James (James Hamilton) said on Feb. 28, 2008 at 5:37 pm:
This might be considered blasphemy, but I secretly think the best breakfast food comes from McDonalds. I wouldn't eat from their lunch/dinner menu, but their breakfast is still my favorite.