Soup Kitchen 2009

It seemed like a good idea. Free breakfast for everyone in America. Just stop by Denny's between 6am and 2pm. Immediately I texted two friends that I usually have breakfast with. My schedule was fairly open on Tuesday and the promise of the Grand Slam breakfast sounded appetising, even though I hadn't been to a Denny's in at least seven years. I thought I'd stop by around 10am, but as soon as I hung up the phone with my friend on Tuesday morning I started to worry. East Lake Street. Free breakfast. Would there be lines? And why are we both driving separately?

Turns out we didn't really have to worry about parking. When people expect free, they expect free, and there were plenty of parking meters available in directly in front of Denny's. The line was another story and I couldn't help but have flashbacks to seeing Obama in February of last year and waiting in line for hours in the freezing cold. But that was to see the future president. This was for the Glam Slam breakfast.

I'd guess that there were about 50 people waiting. If temps hadn't been in the single-digits and we had dressed more appropriately I think we would have stuck it out. As it was I couldn't really imagine that once we were done shivering in the cold we'd be greeted with the relaxing breakfast we had begun to crave. One with eggs and pancakes, yes, but also with high doses of wi-fi and time killing. In the end we went to one of our normal breakfast haunts. And looking around, I'd have to guess we weren't the only ones to arrive via Denny's.

The news media is reporting positive things about Denny's free breakfast. Apparently they served over 2 million people yesterday and averaged 130 Glam Slams an hour. But will people think of Denny's next time they're hungry for breakfast and come back to pay full price for it? Or is just a sad reflection of the desperate times we live in?