In Search of The Giant Breakfast Stottie

Four years ago on a search for the obscure we happened upon an establishment called The Last Cafe in England.  And it was just that, being a short distance from the official boundary with Scotland.   A small establishment, it seemed to cater largely to passing groups of motorcyclists and rally car enthusiasts.  

We were just looking for a cup of tea but one member of our party was intrigued by a menu item called "Breakfast Stottie".

One of the British members of our party informed us that it was a traditional dish in Newcastle, environs of same, and up into Scotland.  A Stottie is a very large, loaf like dinner roll.  You can fill it with all manner of foodstuffs.  The contents of an entire Full English Breakfast filled it quite full indeed....

An adventurous Dutch member of our party could not pass up the challenge.....

As best I can calculate this was about 1600 calories of food.  But it was consumed to the last crumb, to the dismay of the house dog who was hungrily watching.  One suspects most guests don't finish theirs.  I know the husky soldier two tables over tried and fell short.

Stotties are called that based on an Old English word Stott meaning to bounce or jump.  Supposedly bakers determined the proper consistency of the loaf by dropping it on the floor.  If it was sufficiently rubbery to rebound a bit, well, you had a proper stottie.

Here's the proprietor of the establishment four years ago.  In conversation on our way out he mentioned that this was the standard Breakfast Stottie.  On request he could make it in a larger version.  He does not look the sort to kid about such matters.

Last May we had occasion to stop in again.  The place seemed to be under new management and we were told that it had been a while since the Breakfast Stottie had been on the bill of fare.  And alas, even in England there has been a trend in recent years towards healthier, better quality food.  My contacts in the Newcastle area were unable to find a single eatery still serving the Breakfast Stottie in its proper form.

Oh, something similar with about half the ingredients and caloric wallop can still be purchased.  Shamefully and misleadingly this is called The Ultimate Breakfast Sandwich.

But the true Giant Breakfast Stottie is either extinct, or at a minimum has become a sort of culinary Bigfoot, still existing...perhaps...in some vague area out beyond The Last Cafe.