Skylight Diner, 402 West 34th St, New York, USA

It's been four months since I last found myself in New York City. The last time was because the hotel I was staying in stole my passport. I was in Pittsburgh, but had to travel to New York to get hold of an emergency passport in order to fly home. This time I was in New York for a better reason: I was on holiday.

Inside the Skylight Diner in New York...

There was (and is) plenty to do and see: the Empire State Building, the Statue of Liberty, Central Park, Macy's, the 9/11 memorial and, of course, a traditional American diner.

I was staying in the NewYorker Hotel on 34th Street, a great place, it has to be said, and an even greater concierge who knew just the place to visit for breakfast.

The Skylight Diner was just across the road and I couldn't wait to have a big breakfast. And by 'big' I only really needed a bowl of porridge and fresh fruit, just like what I eat at home. Here in the USA, they call porridge oatmeal and I ordered a huge bowl of it along with strawberries, blueberries and sliced banana (see photo below). That and a cup of Lipton's English Breakfast tea (decaff) was very English, but it was all I wanted. I could have eaten much more; there was, for example, a whole section devoted to omelettes hovering around the $9 to $12 mark. How about an avocado omelette ($10.95) or an egg white low cholesterol omelette ($12.45) and containing peppers, onions, mushrooms, tomato and basil. There's a classic Denver omelette containing ham, peppers and onions ($10.95) or an Anthony Quinn omelette with tomato and feta cheese ($12.45).

Oatmeal with fresh fruit - wonderful!

There's pancakes and French toast (I love French toast) and there's steak too, like an NY boneless strip steak and two eggs ($19.95). There are breads and pastries, egg white breakfast wraps, variations on an egg sandwich, yoghurts, cereals, tea, coffee, soda, it's all here at the Skylight and it's retro, just like I'd expected it to be and I would have gone back for more, but it all adds up and there's a Pret on 8th Avenue that sells oatmeal, a large cup of English Breakfast tea, and an almond croissant for far less than I paid for breakfast at the Skylight, but that's not what it's about. Yes, you can pay less for your breakfast at a Pret, but the Skylight is the real deal and that's all that matters.