Before you fall in love with Meander's Kitchen, a quirky West Seattle diner with a devoted following, you need to embrace a paradox: Meander's cares deeply, and it couldn't care less.

Owner/chef Miranda Krone runs a comfort-food operation that is best experienced on its own terms. Krone and her co-conspirators will fill your belly with deliciousness, and give you time and space to relax and enjoy it. In return, you need to cool your heels.

There are no too-eager servers here looking to turn over tables. No fancy furniture. Not even a sign: They're still using the old one from Jade West, a Chinese restaurant which previously occupied the space.

What you will find is hearty food, good humor and a palpable sense that Krone is doing what she wants, in the way she wants. In these dark times, that's worth celebrating over breakfast.

The menu: Traditional and inspired breakfast offerings, ranging from eggs with choice of potatoes and meat (or veggie sausage), and toast or biscuit ($8.50) to Afton's Hot Mess ($8.50), a medley of andouille sausage, black beans, onion, broccoli and spinach with eggs, chipotle sour cream, salsa and avocado served over cheese grits. The aptly named Decadence ($9.25 and available Friday, Saturday and Sunday) is basically eggs Benedict served on vanilla bourbon-battered challah French toast. Other fabulous offerings range in price from $7.50 to $8.75. Krone also cooks to order and can make many of the dishes vegan.

What to write home about: The French toast ($8), and the biscuits with sausage gravy ($7). Rich, complex and perfectly peppered, the gravy is wrong in all the right ways.

What to skip: The lines on weekends, especially if you're really hungry or dining with young kids.

The setting: A cross between greasy-spoon and your funky friend's kitchen. An L-shaped counter with eight stools provides a front-row view of the cooking action. Table seating for 24 in groups of two or four.

Summing up: Breakfast for three — corned beef hash ($8.50) smothered in gravy ($2), sweet-potato latkes with caramelized onion and apple compote ($8), Chloe's scramble with three eggs, spinach, ham and cheddar ($8.25), and coffee — came to $39.67 with tax and tip. Note: Meander's is cash only.

Susan Kelleher: 206-464-2508 or skelleher@seattletimes.com