Hi there! Jackie here. The canine voice behind the duo that is the Eat, Drink, Be Hairy blog. I write this blog along with my Humom (Human Mom), Joelle.

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Bitches love to eat outdoors; particularly on an unseasonably warm Sunday in late-October.

So how could I possibly resist when Humom suggested breakfast at the Bean Tree Café (219 S Main St, Waterloo, IL 62298 | (618) 939–5330). Open since 2012, Bean Tree is a local favorite, serving breakfast and lunch daily until 2:30 PM.

There’s something for every human on the menu at the Bean Tree Café, from traditional breakfast items to more exotic breakfast items, such as Blueberry Lemon Pancakes and Hawaiian French Toast.

On the lunch side, select from favorites such as a Havarti Dill sandwich, a Portabella Burger, a Reuben Sandwich or a Bean Tree Grilled Cheese with three cheese, tomatoes, mushrooms and pesto.  For salad lovers, there is one for every taste.

Not one to step out of her comfort zone by (gasp!) trying something new, Humom ordered her breakfast favorite.  The Skillet is a comforting mound of scrambled eggs and bacon atop peppered milk gravy, crowned by shredded cheddar cheese, all straddling two pillowy biscuits. Humom devours most of The Skillet, with occasional pinches of eggs and bacon funneled my way.

The City of Waterloo does not have an ordinance prohibiting dogs on public property, unless where indicated, such as the public school athletic fields.  But it is those visits on which I am privileged to accompany my human in this growing Illinois town that aid in the acceptance of dogs like me in more public places.

“I thoroughly enjoy well-behaved animals in public places,” said Lynne Mitchell, a researcher at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, who holds a degree in animal science.

Mitchell lives on a farm near Waterloo and said she has witnessed a goat in a cart at the local farm store in town, as well as a donkey in church on Sunday.

As I laid on the toasty sidewalk on an Indian Summer day, I was reminded by passersby that I am a “good girl”.  Humom says that is why I have my own blog.

~Jackie Brown