To me, the simplest meals are often the best. And, for a breakfast lover like me, an egg sandwich made with a perfectly fried egg with a gooey center is the ideal meal. If you too are a fan, then Fried Egg I’m in Love in Portland will knock your socks off.
This popular breakfast joint was started by Jace Krause together with longtime friend and bandmate Ryan Lynch in 2012. Back then, it was just a food cart that quickly gained a reputation for its delicious breakfast sandwiches. I distinctly remember driving past the bright yellow cart, loving the reference to the Cure song, “Friday I’m in Love” and I just had to try it. In fact, all of the menu items have punny names that reference music like the “Yolko Ono,” “Sriracha Mix-A-Lot,” or “Free-Range Against The Machine.”
After about five years, the business started growing. In 2017, Krause opened a second cart in Pioneer Courthouse Square, and in 2019 the cart on Hawthorne closed and became a brick and mortar location just down the road on Hawthorne Blvd. The very next year, Krause opened another cart at the hip Prost Marketplace, and just this year opened his biggest and best location yet—a restaurant on Mississippi Ave. that has a full bar and two heated patios.
They’ve kept the menu simple at Fried Egg I’m in Love, and this is part of their sustained success. Their most popular breakfast sandwich is the “Yolko Ono” made with a fried egg, house sausage patty, and pesto, but there are plenty of other choices like the “Egg Zeppelin” that comes with two eggs, two sausage patties, two slices of cheddar, and their famous “holy aioli,” or the “Huevo Mutilation” (a nod to one of my favorite bands, the Pixies) that has a fried egg, smashed pork sausage patty, caramelized onions, cheddar and holy aioli.
There are also a couple burrito options like the “‘Rito Suave,” a grilled burrito made with two scrambled eggs, your choice of sausage, bacon, veggie or turkey sausage, cheese, avocado, holy aioli, and pico de gallo. Or the “Vegan ‘Rito” made with house vegan sausage, black beans, avocado, pickled red onion, vegan queso, and fresh pico de gallo. On the side, there’s the “Hash Bite,” a hash brown (ala McDonald’s style but 1000% better) that’s crisp on the outside, soft on the inside and comes with a delicious dipping sauce.
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The sandwiches come on sourdough bread made by Portland French Bakery, that’s toasted just right to give you a little crunch but isn’t so hard that the contents shoot out the back when you take a bite. You can also request gluten free bread for $2, and substitutions for vegan or turkey sausage are free. All their eggs also come sprinkled with their secret “Magic Egg Dust.”
The restaurant serves great coffee that’s a special blend made just for them by local See See Motor Coffee Co. And, at the Mississippi and Hawthorne locations, you can get booze! Try the Grapefruit Sage Mimosa or Bloody Mary to start your day off right.
Fried Egg I’m in Love is extremely popular, so don’t come if you’re in a hurry. Good things take time and there’s often a wait for a table and food. Also, they don’t take reservations and both restaurants are first come first serve. The good thing is both locations are in awesome parts of town, so if you’re looking at a long wait, you can always take a stroll up and down Mississippi or Hawthorne to pass the time. Parking can be tricky since it’s street only, so allot time to find a space.
Hours for both restaurants:
- Monday - Thursday: 8:00am - 2:00pm
- Friday - Sunday: 8:00am - 3:00pm
Food cart hours:
- Every day: 8:00am - 2:00pm
Addresses and phone:
- 3330 N Mississippi Ave. Portland - 503-869-5915
- 3549 SE Hawthorne Blvd. Portland - 503-610-EGGS
- Pioneer Courthouse Square food cart: 780 SW Broadway, Portland
