Ron Del Signore, partner of Il Bellagio restaurant in CityPlace, displays three items from his restaurant's new breakfast menu (from left): Eggs in Purgatory (poached eggs prepared with a fresh tomato sauce, onions and peas); crepes filled with mascarpone cream, infused with blueberries, topped with whipped cream and blueberries; and Nana's Breakfast, consisting of Italian bread with the center torn out, filled with eggs and sautéed with roasted peppers. Damon Higgins/The Post

CityPlace has always been a prime destination for lunch and dinner. But until recently, if you visited the downtown West Palm Beach shopping and dining spot during the morning hours, the most you could rustle up was coffee and a sweet roll from Panera Bread or Starbucks.

Now, that’s starting to change: In the past week, the popular Italian restaurant Il Bellagio (600 S. Rosemary Ave., 561-659-6160,
ilbellagiocityplace.com) has introduced a full breakfast menu, including pancakes, eggs and something called a Nana’s Breakfast
platter.

“The venue that we have is so conducive to sitting outside and having a nice breakfast,” says Il Bellagio partner Ron Del Signore, noting the restaurant’s location right by the CityPlace fountain. (Of course, you can also dine inside in air-conditioned comfort.)
In planning the breakfast menu, Del Signore knew he had to have the classics. That means offerings like two eggs prepared to order ($4.95) and platters of pancakes, French toast or waffles ($5.95).

But Del Signore also wanted to introduce items “with an Italian flair.” That’s taken the form of offerings like the Nana’s Breakfast (Italian toast with an egg cooked in the center, served with roasted peppers and potatoes, $6.95) and ricotta pancakes (traditional pancakes with the Italian cheese whipped into the batter, $6.95). You can also request a side dish of polenta cakes ($2.95).

The biggest hit on the weekends, however, may prove to be the Eggs in Purgatory platter — poached eggs in fresh tomato sauce with onions and peas ($7.95). It’s a runny, gooey mess of a dish that has an appeal all its own. “I don’t want to tell people it’s a good hangover remedy, but it is,” confesses Del Signore.

But don’t just look for partygoers looking to sober up at Il Bellagio in the a.m.. Del Signore thinks his biggest piece of breakfast business may come from the downtown office crowd, which has long lacked a decent “power breakfast” spot. In that regard, the restaurant is making available its party room space for folks looking to hold larger morning meetings.

Openings …

Billing itself as “Your Neighborhood Kitchen,” The Roasted Rooster Café has set up shop in West Palm Beach (369 Puritan Road, 561-547-4447). The lunch-only restaurant specializes in sandwiches with a Southern twist: Think a pot roast sub or pulled pork sub ($8.25). There are several other more standard sandwich choices, plus soups and salads.

Looking for pizza with an artisanal touch? That’s what the new Pizzeria Oceano in Lantana (201 E. Ocean Ave., 561-429-5550) is promising. Proprietors Dak and Martha Kerprich say they “will be utilizing and promoting local produce from Palm Beach County farmers along with South Florida fish and seafood.”

… and closings

Call it a sign of the times. In recent weeks, several Palm Beach County restaurants have closed. Among the ones we’ve heard about: Cottonwood Restaurant & Café in Boca Raton, Michael’s the Wine Bar in Wellington and Nunzio’s Italian Restaurant & Grille in Palm Springs.