Remember the department stores of childhood -- not part of a chain, but the independent glamorous sparkling carries-everything-you-need store, owned by a local resident who lives in a mansion on the hill? Like
Marshall Field's Department Store on State Street in Chicago, once housed in the magnificent 12-story store built in 1902 for Field's merchandising business started in 1846. And
Carson, Pirie Scott and Company, also on State Street in Chicago's Loop, with it's dazzling Tiffany dome delighting shoppers for more than one hundred years. Two favourite haunts of mine as a teenage shopper. I also remember delighting in the
Lynden Department Store on Front Street in Lynden, Washington. It opened in 1897 and sadly was liquidated in 1979.
A few grand department stores still exist, or did the last time I visited...
Selfridge's on Oxford Street in London,
Haddon & Sly on Fife Street in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe and the iconic
Myer flagship store on Bourke Street in Melbourne, Australia. They continue to offer the all-inclusive shopping experience without being a mall. And there is always a restaurant upstairs.
My mother's special treat was taking me and often an out-of-town visitor to lunch at the Marshall Field's store restaurant, a "garden" restaurant as I recall. This week we found it's double...the Cafe at TJ Hughes Department Store in Eastbourne, Sussex.
Okay, not quite the Garden Room double, no waiters in starched shirts nor silver and china, but the echoes of days gone by and a cheery nostalgic experience.
We get a late start, so it matters not that the cafe opens at 9:00, for that is the time of our arrival. The breakfast buffet does nothing for our appetites, but the the sunlight streaming through the tall Victorian windows, leaded windows overhead and domed skylight warms our souls. And the friendly staff welcome us with smiles and conversation, even posing for a photo. The large potted palm plants, hardwood floors and rattan chairs create a pleasant atmosphere. We sit beside the corner windows which open to let in the morning warmth and provide a view of an ancient church tower and the sea at the end of the street.
We return midday and the place has filled with grey-haired locals enjoying tea cakes and fresh fruit scones. "Good morning ladies, tea cakes today?" is the refrain from the counter attendant, arms blue with tattoo designs, as he greets the regulars. A gigantic fresh fruit scone, hot from the oven, with clotted cream and jam (yes, they are in packets) costs only £2.50. A must if you are visiting Eastbourne!
And while you're there, enjoy the pier and the seaside promenade. On a summer evening there's entertainment at the bandstand. We caught wafts of Big Band music as we passed.
Eastbourne is not on a main road to London. Consequently it has taken us five years to get there. But it is a well-kept secret of the south coast of England which we plan to enjoy again. For it surely provided us with a memorable Breakfast in Britain!
PS The good news is we had a wonderful experience at T J Hughes; the bad news is I've just found out, after writing this nostalgic reflection, that it is one of a chain of discount stores started in 1925. As Wikipedia explains:
"T J Hughes is a British discount department store brand which first emerged in Liverpool in 1925 and had become a national chain with 57 shops by 2011. The business now consists of 12 shops around the country, following liquidation and rescue in 2011."
Sometimes our reality differs from the facts!
Breakfast in Britain goes to California! The old Rendezvous Cafe re-born as Fiero Cafe sits on El Camino Real in the heart of San Mateo. Clean, quiet and free wifi. Upscale and up-price, but great location for an easy walk from the rellies.
Food options (and prices) are shi-shi -- no eggs and toast in this world. Rather we order crescents with scrambled eggs and bacon. I request that each item be laid side by side rather than built into a sandwich. Tasty. Happy son-in law enjoys a hearty omelette. 
