With an excellent recommendation from one of our readers, Shirley St. Germaine, of Bonfield, I headed west to the hamlet of Essex. Shirley discovered a relatively new restaurant and encouraged me to try it.

She was correct — it was worth the drive to have breakfast at 1885 Fare Farm To Table.

The owners Araceli and Nathan Sharper, converted the former Ray’s Ranch House into a comfortable, homey restaurant that serves dynamite food. The food is fresh, as most of what is served comes directly from their nearby farm, including fresh beef, pork, chicken eggs and produce.

According to Araceli, the chickens were having a great month. Araceli and Nathan have put so much work into the building and the menu.

“The daily change in our menu is due to product availability, meaning that once an item is sold out, it may not be available again until it is recreated from scratch,” according to their website.

They even produce fresh honey.

The restaurant has a western theme, with oversized chairs and western memorabilia. Another dining area soon will be ready for larger groups, parties and future entertainment. Large chalkboards are filled with menus, specials and one just for specialty coffee and other beverages.

The breakfast menu consists of sandwiches, including egg, meat and cheese, served on a grilled Milano brioche bagel. The Barnyard Beast is a hearty sandwich with grilled brioche bagel and fried eggs, topped with American cheese, hashbrowns and breakfast gravy.

Dave ordered the Back Pasture skillet with hash brown, farm-fresh eggs, grilled onions, peppers and tomato with rye toast. The hashbrowns were perfectly cut, and the seasoning was excellent and cooked perfectly.

I began with one of the Bloody Marys loaded with pepperoni, olives and celery — and what a great breakfast drink. I opted for the breakfast bowl, and even though it wasn’t available that day, the chef made it for me.

It was a Milano bread bowl with homemade sausage gravy, scrambled eggs, more sausage gravy and topped with cheese. It was fantastic and huge.

The sausage gravy was delicious. Dan Hendrickson, a connoisseur of biscuits and gravy, must drive to Essex for the experience.

Although I enjoyed the breakfast bowl, the pancakes coming out of the kitchen looked so tempting. They were actually the size of the plate.

Fruit compote and nut pancakes with fresh fruit and praline pecans dusted with sweet sugar homemade whipped cream looked delicious. The French toast is made with Milano Texas brioche bread dipped in sweet egg batter and comes both sweet or with fruit compote.

One item included with my breakfast was homemade honey butter made with fresh honey from the farm. If only they sold honey butter, I would have bought some.

Breakfast is sold all day, and the lunch menu is appealing with burgers, BLTs and salads.

We tried their caramel vanilla iced coffee, and it was terrific. Another drink is the affogato, a scoop of vanilla gelato with a shot of hot espresso coffee poured over.

They have every flavor available for iced or hot beverages. Try one of these fabulous drinks with one of their homemade baked goods.

Araceli told me they are very close to serving pizza. The pizza ovens were recently installed and ready to go. I can’t wait.

Hours are 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday; closed on Monday.

The restaurant, 1885 Fare Farm to Table, is located at 208 W. Main Street, Essex. Call 815-365-5033, and check out their website at <a href="http://bit.ly/3R1W691" target="_blank">bit.ly/3R1W691</a> or their Facebook page for more information.

I highly recommend Fare Farm for the food and especially the hospitality. I don’t think I’ve seen an egg yolk that large on a breakfast plate.

The owners were so welcoming, and the staff was friendly and attentive. Hop in the car and drive to Essex for fresh farm-to-table food.

Thanks to Shirley St. Germaine for the recommendation. I certainly enjoyed my visit and will be going back again very soon.