In the world of dining out, there are those of us who love going out for breakfast, and there are those poor, benighted sorts who think it's a waste of both time and calories.

I belong to the first category and have been fortunate over the past two decades to find dining companions who share my enthusiasm for the first meal of the day -- so much so that we have come to consider ourselves among the leading authorities on breakfasts, both in the Ocean State and beyond.

Believe me, there is a lot to know about breakfast places beyond the basics of where they are and what days they are open. For example, they have their own behind-the-scenes dramas just like the bigger restaurants do. A cherished chef leaves to start his own place . . . The muffin man quits in pique . . . A longtime favorite spot suddenly burns to the ground. The guy who makes the best pancakes in the state ups and moves to New York to play in a band.

And so it goes.

Breakfast fanatics that we are, my current dining companion and I were thrilled last October to discover a fabulous new entry in the breakfast field.

Indeed, Three Rivers in Warren is such a stellar find that I've told only my closest friends about it. Despite this, its fame has grown to the extent that -- not even open a full year -- it fills its tables from Wednesdays through Sundays, for just breakfast and lunch, and has recently had to add a welcoming outdoor table of free coffee and water to make the wait more bearable for those who must. (The best way to avoid this fate is to arrive early: breakfast starts at 7.)

In fact, the wait is not so bad. There are tables with umbrellas set on a crushed clamshell side yard. It's usually breezy, and just look at the view! You might think you were on Cape Cod or Nantucket. But here you are in Warren, of all places, looking across the confluence of the Warren, Palmer and Barrington rivers toward Barrington.

Three Rivers has a dock, too, and it's well-used by both pleasure-boaters and kayakers, who tie up among the bobbing ducks and swans and then wander up the clamshell path for breakfast.

"People from Barrington and Bristol are my most loyal customers," says owner Nancy O'Connell, who took a long shot opening the place when nearly everyone told her she would never make a go of a breakfast spot along the river in Warren. "People would say to me, 'Honey, don't do this. You're never going to make it here. No one's going to come.' "

Now, of course, you have to wonder how anyone in their right mind could have doubted O'Connell's vision.

Three Rivers is right on the water, the dining room and patio lovely, and the food both simple and simply fabulous. The chefs (Eli Dunn and Billy Rivelli) are boyishly charming, hard at work at the open grill while chatting with counter customers. The waitresses are friendly and quick, remembering each time where we like to sit and the long list of items that are off my companion's newly heart-healthy diet.

What my companion now says a firm "No" to in terms of cholesterol, I consume for both of us. Bacon? Bring it on. I love the smell of bacon frying in the morning. At Three Rivers, this breakfast staple is done just as I like it: crispy, not greasy or burned. And no pale pockets of fat.

It sounds simple, but for me good bacon can make or break a breakfast, and surprisingly few places get it right.

Eggs? Love them. He takes just the whites, but I'm for yolks and all. A signature and a favorite egg dish either way places folded scrambled eggs and a melted layer of Cheddar (held for him) atop a hearty fritter of black beans and sweet corn kernels. Dunn -- whose creation this dish is -- tops his fritter with sliced fresh avocado and serves it with a dollop of sour cream and some salsa on top of the egg and cheese. With home-made home fries, and toasted bakery bread with strawberry rhubarb jam, it's $9.95.

Warren and Bristol are Portuguese territory, and Three Rivers honors its East Bay roots with creme-fraiche-filled French toast made with Portuguese sweet bread and served with fresh berries, for $7.95. Side dishes on the menu include Portuguese bolos (sweeter than English muffins) and classic chourico sausage and peppers -- definitely not for the cholesterol-challenged.

A hearty oatmeal, topped with fresh berries, is an alternate for those who are being careful of their tickers. Chef Eli makes an oatmeal that is not as dense as Irish or as bland as Quaker. The secret, he says, is cooking the oats in milk -- any kind of milk you like, from full fat to skim or even soy, for those who can handle that idea. Golden raisins are cooked in, and brown sugar sprinkled on top, if desired. With fresh fruit -- berries, bananas -- on top, it's $5.95.

Dunn comes by his culinary skills naturally. He is the son of longtime Seekonk restaurateur Phoebe Dunn, and mom still makes the fruit pies that are a fine way to top off lunch at Three Rivers -- or even to have with breakfast: strawberry rhubarb, apple, a bubbly blueberry cobbler.

It was Chef Eli, says O'Connell, who put his finger on just what kind of breakfast place Three Rivers wanted to be: "When we sat down last year to figure it out, he said, 'Bridging the gap between diner and gourmet.' And that's exactly it. We don't try to do everything here, but what we do, we want to be fresh, made to order, and real."

Among other things, that means using freshly grilled oatmeal bread (delivered daily from Bristol Bakery) as the foundation for a terrific roasted turkey sandwich that's made with real carved turkey (not the deli stuff) and served with a smear of cranberry-sweet-onion jam, homemade apple-sausage stuffing and melted Cheddar. At $8.95, it is the ultimate in roast turkey sandwiches, the standard by which all others must henceforth be measured.

For that achievement alone, O'Connell should take a bow: "When we were all working on the menu -- I'm embarrassed to say how close were were to opening at that point -- I said, if nothing else, I want us to have a REAL turkey sandwich."

Well, she has done that -- and much more -- at Three Rivers.

kimbrie@projo.com / (401) 277-7630

Three Rivers, 267 Water St., Warren. (401) 289-2067. Casual. Handicapped accessible. High chairs. No reservations. MC, V. Parking in lot. Breakfast Wednesday-Sunday 7 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. and to 2 p.m. on Sundays. Lunch Wednesday-Saturday 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Entrees $5.95 to $11.95. Beer and wine -- and mimosas -- available.

BILL OF FARE

Breakfast for two at Three Rivers might look something like this:

Black bean fritter with scambled eggs .... $9.95

Oatmeal with fresh fruit ................. $5.95

2 coffees ................................ $3.90

2 fresh-squeezed orange juices ........... $3.90

Total ................................... $23.70

Tax ...................................... $1.77

Tip ...................................... $5.00

Total ................................... $30.47