At a first blush, as you pass through the screen door, Shirley’s Diner seems like your average non descript breakfast and lunch joint. But there’s a lot more to this place than meets the eye.

On a recent visit I was very hungry – and for those who know me – I was in a “meat mood”. So it was a natural that I settled for the “Meat Lover’s” omelet. My buddy, Dr. Ed, was in the mood for hash and poached eggs.

The word “torpedo” comes to mind when I try to describe the size of my sausage, bacon, ham and Swiss cheese stuffed omelet. I ordered it with a side of wheat toast.

Dr. Ed’s order arrived with perfectly poached eggs – and so-so hash, but with what turned out to be one of two of Shirley’s “food jewels”.

The good Dr. Ed ordered his eggs with what turned out to be home made white bread – which arrived toasted, just right. What we are talking about here is no measly thin sliced excuse for bread, but a big thick cut slice -- which when toasted and slathered with just a dab or two of butter -- then dunked into the runny center of the poached eggs -- becomes breakfast heaven Cue the angels singing!

My omelet -- which contained the meat from a small pig -- was both filling and delicious.With the kids at home, we decided to bring back a treat of a dozen homemade donuts: plain, chocolate and the house specialty – chocolate drizzled with peanut butter. We also grabbed a loaf of the white bread to go. The kids went wild for the donuts. A tad heavy for my tastes, they hit the spot for the teens in our house, washed down with a nice, frosty cold glass of milk.

Does summertime lakeside living get any better? Yes – and we found that out when we had that loaf of white bread sliced up to make sandwiches with some cold cuts for lunch…not a crumb left, I kid you not. Shirley’s has a decent menu of typical diner breakfasts, daily specials and what appears to be a solid lunch menu. Definitely worth checking out.