Life in the Ville by Jimmy Del Ponte

To quote The Tool’s 1978 single Spark ’Em Up, “When we party, we party hearty, and when we boogie, we boogie woogie.” And when we’re hungry, watch out!

Somerville was always a big party city, especially over the past few decades. Lots of bars, clubs and posts kept us very busy on the weekends. We put on our best clothes and hit the night spots. We drank, inhaled second hand smoke, and partied the night away.

After a few hours of loud music, cocktails and free styling on the dance floor, we heard that familiar sound … last call! Then we would hear, “Drink ’em up! Let’s go! Let’s go, Let’s go! Hotel, Motel time! You can’t sleep here!”

The Buds, Millers, Bacardi’s, and Sloe Gin Fizzes along with The Hustle, The Electric Slide and The Bump, made us very hungry. Ravenously hungry. Thankfully, most groups of bar hoppers had their designated drivers when It was time to hit the late night/early morning breakfast joints.

We took our smoke saturated, somewhat inebriated bodies on a serious quest for food. We became zombies. “We need coffee, we need eggs! Sausage! Home fries!”

Three places automatically come to mind. The Trifecta of late night noshing. The Bermuda Triangle of early morning munchies. They were Howard Johnsons’ in Wellington Circle, The Golden Egg on Mystic Ave and Kay and Chips in Davis Square. They were the breakfast Meccas.

If you were there, you are smiling right now because you remember the craziness of those early morning escapades. Eggs go with just about everything but mix them with half soused rowdies and you have a true life reality show.

The cast of characters included the waitresses and staff, but featured the loud, boorish, half in the bag buffoons and their friends. He, she or they usually used offensive, vulgar language and ended up picking fights. Then for act two, the cops showed up and escorted the unruly patrons away.

Breakfast and a show! If you spent the evening at The Surrey Room or any of the other Davis Square night spots, you just had a small distance to go to reach the delicious doors of Kay and Chips. It was known as being “within stumbling distance.” Kay and Chips, formerly at the corner of Highland and Cutter, was my favorite. My DD. My designated diner.

They squeezed a lot of inebriated late night action into a small space, and we loved it!

I saw my first flying metal napkin dispenser at The Golden Egg.

No matter where you went, Kay and Chips, HoJos’ or The Egg, you were sure to find people you knew. Some were notorious. You’d usually find drama too. I was always amazed how fast the staff could clean up broken glass, spilled syrup, and stained tablecloths. There always seemed to be a couple of tables of people that were drunker and louder than the rest. The Perfect Storm of a night of drinking, followed by serious hunger pangs fueled true life situation comedy. I’m glad that I experienced memorable breakfasts at all three of the aforementioned spots. Howard Johnsons in Medford was right across from The MDC Police Station, so when an altercation occurred the MDC showed up PDQ.

Today, there are around 30 or so restaurants in Davis Square and vicinity but none are packed at three in the morning like those breakfast spots of old.

The crazy weekend food fests seem to have been replaced with calmer brunches and conventional breakfasts. Our memorable late night/early morning romps were replaced by raising kids and giving our livers a well-deserved break.

And. just for the record, man buns are out and cinnamon buns are in.