countrydiner
You can spend all your time and money trying to build a time machine, or you can take the short(ish) drive to the sleepy hamlet of Alva (just east of Fort Myers) and have breakfast at Alva Country Diner. It's 1960 all over again again when you pull into the roadside attraction and find yourself waiting to be seated. Alva's population in 2010 was a whopping 2,596 people, and they seem to show up en masse for breakfast. So a wait is to be expected. But they come for the right reasons: large portions, great prices, friendly staff and great tasting grub. They don't have a website and their Facebook page hasn't seen a post in nine months, but that's likely because they're busy making the best French toast around and frying eggs to perfection. It's the perfect place to stop when you're looking to avoid franchise formulas and nouveau numbness. Alva Country Diner, 21200 Palm Beach Blvd., Alva, FL; 728-3366.