Continental breakfast

A continental breakfast is a term in widespread usage in North America, referring to a light breakfast of some form of baked and leavened bread and a hot beverage, usually tea or coffee. The most widely known form of continental breakfast is probably coffee and croissant.

The term is derived from continental, a turn of the (20th) century description for anything believed to originate from continental Europe (that is, excluding the British Isles) and in particular, cuisine.