For more than 50 years, this pint-size kitchen in West Beirut has been serving an irresistible version of fatteh, made with layers of toasted pita, chickpeas, yogurt, and pine nuts. 961-1/312-145. $
Courtesy George Haddad
Tasty Congee & Noodle Wontun Shop, Hong Kong —
Wake up with a bowl of rice porridge at this Happy Valley institution -- and pair it with an order of fabulously crisp youtiao (Chinese crullers). tasty.com.hk. $
Courtesy www.luxessed.com
Mangerie, Istanbul —
It's the best breakfast on the Bosporus: a lavish spread of eggs, sheep's-milk cheeses, olives, cucumbers, tomatoes, warm sourdough bread, local honey, and chai, on a rooftop terrace with postcard-worthy views. mangeriebebek.com. $$
Courtesy of Mangerie
Ottolenghi, London —
Follow Islington's beau monde to this high-end Middle Eastern bakery and café, where the tantalizing bread platter (toasted tableside) is a full meal in itself. ottolenghi.co.uk. $$
Courtesy of Ottolenghi
Big Bad Breakfast, Oxford, Mississippi —
Southern chef John Currence's motto? "Lard have mercy!" Flour biscuits slathered with sausage gravy and the burrito filled with house-made chorizo will have you praying for more. bigbadbreakfast.com. $
Caroline Allison
Huckleberry, Santa Monica, California —
The perpetually crowded joint is famous for its maple-bacon biscuits, Valrhona chocolate-dipped doughnuts, and egg sandwiches stuffed with bacon, cave-aged Gruyère, and tangy aioli. huckleberrycafe.com. $$
Emily Hart Roth/Courtesy of Huckleberry
Sushi Dai, Tokyo —
Join vendors and tuna auctioneers from the neighboring Tsukiji Fish Market queuing up at dawn for a post-shift sushi breakfast at this 13-seat spot. You won't find fresher toro in all of Tokyo. 81-3/3547-6797. $$$
Tom Lin
Morning Call, New Orleans —
The airy beignets (made from a 143-year-old recipe) and café au lait at this 24-hour, wood-paneled Metairie haunt leave the better-known Café du Monde in their sugar dust. morningcallcoffeestand.com. $
Christine Tsai
Bar Coluzzi, Sydney —
Founded by Roman immigrant and former boxing champion Luigi Coluzzi, the curbside café has been Darlinghurst's de facto community center since 1957. Order a flat white (the espresso is as powerful as Luigi's uppercut), claim one of the foot-high sidewalk stools, and watch the entire neighborhood pass by. $
Travelscape Images / Alamy
Café Central, Vienna —
Though it's welcomed plenty of tourists over its 137 years -- not to mention habitués like Freud, Lenin, and Trotsky -- the utterly grand café inside the majestic Palais Ferstel is known among pastry-obsessed Wieners for serving the best, flakiest strudel in town. $$. See more of the world's best breakfasts
