An interesting and somewhat troubling query was recently brought up in the comments section of our last post. Former Guest Committee Member Stacie writes:

Wait a minute. He can have two identities and still be a potential committee member? And I just got fired?!? What's that about? I had breakfast for dinner, missy. AND I"M PROUD OF IT.


This is an unusual form for a query, to be sure, but the question nonetheless comes through loud and clear: Is Breakfast For Dinner truly Breakfast? Or is it rather some sort of inauthentic poser, attempting to ride in on the coattails of Breakfast's good name? (For related examples, please see Jane Austen Sequels and Ben Affleck.) Let's ask the Committee...


Chanelle: I think the answer to this query is helpfully embedded within the query itself: Former Committee Member Stacie hits the nail on the head when she writes "I had breakfast for dinner"(emphasis added). For, as we all know, the blank-for-blank formula suggests that the real meal in question is whatever fills in the second blank. Another, perhaps more accurate iteration* of this would be that Former Committee Member Stacie has enjoyed a breakfast-themed dinner, which, while whimsical and delicious, is still Not Breakfast. Whether or not this counts as dinner is a question best directed to the What Is Dinner Committee. Indeed, I fear that what Former Committee Member Stacie has eaten may not have been a proper meal at all.

Finally, this might be a good moment to clarify the central project of the What Is Breakfast Committee by stating that the driving question behind the work we do here is "what counts as Breakfast for Breakfast." This is no unimportant question and we want to assure you all that we at the Committee (all members in good standing, that is) approach it with due attention to its complexity, significance, and relevance to everyday life.


Jessy: OH SNAP. My co-chair makes a lot of excellent points here. Breakfast For Dinner really can't be Legit Breakfast, because, if you're in a good place in your life, by dinnertime you've had at least two meals, or possibly four-out-of-five smaller meals. The first of these meals should typically be Breakfast... But if you're not sure if it is, well, you know who to turn to.

I will however have to disagree with my co-chair when she goes so far as to insinuate that what Former Committee Member Stacie has eaten "may not have been a proper meal at all." Who are we to say What Is Dinner? I for one am glad to see that dinner is embracing some Breakfasty qualities, which can only lead to it becoming a more delightful and veracious meal in the future.

(In the interest of full disclosure, I must remind our faithful readers that I am not anymore a member of the What Is Dinner Committee than Chanelle is. And also that I was a willing gustatory participator in the breakfast-for-dinner incident that was referenced by Former Committee Member Stacie. Its deliciousness may have clouded my judgment.)

But as regards our Committee's true area of expertise:


Breakfast For Dinner Is Not Breakfast.
It may or may not be Dinner.


*I think she means "a better way to say this." But I'm really just making an educated guess based on the context.