Breakfast/Brunch – Page 33

Breakfasts of Champions – Oahu Edition: Like Like Drive Inn, Leeward Drive-Inn, and another interesting addition

January 30, 2012 mmm-yoso Breakfast/Brunch, Diner, Honolulu, Oahu, Travel

I developed a bad habit during my trips back home. I found myself taking photos of my breakfasts with my phone and sending them to my friends. And for some reason, I've kept on doing this even after returning to San Diego. Recently, JohnL suggested that I do posts on these, which I thought was a great idea, so here goes….we'll start with Oahu.

**** Sadly, Like Like Drive Inn closed in 2020.

I found myself getting up pretty early, say at 5am or so in the morning during our stays on Oahu. Not wanting to wake anyone up, I'd often take a drive, sometimes with an objective in mind, or perhaps just to fill up gas. On the morning I hit up Nam Fong, the roads were clear with no traffic, so I headed all the way up to a place that's near and dear to my heart….. Like Like Drive In. Talk to any "townie" of my generation and you'll come with a list of places like Tin Tin Chop Suey and Like Like Drive In. Actually, this location of Like Like is not the original from 1953.

Back in the 90's the folks running Like Like swapped the restaurant over from the portion of the building to the right.

Walking in the place at 430 am on Thanksgiving was quite interesting. As I entered, the last of post drinking crowd was leaving and all the old-timers, newspapers tucked under their arm were entering. Still, this being a family holiday, the place was empty. The look and feel, down to the booths really stirs memories…….

I'm not much of a coffee drinker these days….but here, I just needed that cup o' joe……the table just needs a cup of coffee on it.

I really didn't order a locomoco per se, but looking over the menu I just happened to order two easy over eggs with rice and a hamburger patty. The woman serving me said, "you need gravy with that, right?' Not do you want some gravy, you "need" some gravy. And you know what? She was right….I needed some gravy with this.

I usually don't care for burgers that have been pressed down on the flat-top, but this patty had developed a wonderful crust from a well aged griddle and had been seasoned to boot. The gravy was decently flavored and not glue-like and went well with the runny eggs and rice.

It was a nice way for me to start the day……just like old times. Though I'm not doing too much active work nowadays, so I pick my spots.

Not too many of the places I grew up eating are left….Kaimuki Inn, Kuhio Grill, Alakea Grill, Chunky's, Wisteria, Suehiro, King's, McCully Chop Suey (the first air-conditioned Chinese restaurant in Hawaii!), King Tsin, Ebisu, Aotani Fountain, all gone……. Not too many like Like Like left, I'm hoping they'll be around for just a bit longer.

Like Like Drive In
745 Keeaumoku St
Honolulu, HI 96814

Open 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

One morning, I went to gas up our rental and drove into Waipahu, which is just down the street from my In-Laws place in Ewa Beach. For some reason, Leeward Drive-Inn called to me.

Man, when was the last time I ate here? The sign said "since 1964" and I think I probably had the fried noodles, which is what they, well, at least in my day, were known for….probably circa 1984. The parking lot has seen it's share of cars, all the lines for the stalls have worn away, though in typical Hawaii style, everyone seems to park their cars as if those lines still existed.

Funny thing, there were a bunch of guys having breakfast before work sitting in back of a minivan parked in front of the dining room. The big guy, sitting on a ne of those handy-dandy folding stools looked me up and down and said, "eh, I thought you one katonk, but you get da' shuffle…." Translation; "Based on your pale and unhealthy complexion, I believed that you were a Japanese from the mainland. However, when I observed your gait, it became obvious that you were not." I guess I still walk like a local? I laughed and told him, "at least you didn't think I was a bobora!" Translation;"you are indeed quite observant. I am flattered the opinion that my country of origin was Japan never entered your mind." It was just an expat local bonding moment…..

The menu at LDI is pretty large and extensive……. but I made up my mind fairly quickly. Once my food was ready, I grabbed my plate and headed off to the flourescent orange tables. The dining area looked kind of beat and no one was eating in the area so I could grind in peace.

I got Portuguese Sausage, Eggs, and Fried Rice, which was a pretty good amount of food.

This was just passable, the fried rice was very "local style", that is, made with Calrose rice. There were bits of Portuguese Sausage and some funky tasting "faux Spam". The sausage wasn't browned enough for me and tasted a bit off. The eggs were fine….this ended up just being nutrition.

Leeward Drive Inn
94 209 Pupukahi St
Waipahu, HI 96797

Hours: Mon – Thurs 430am – 11pm
Fri – Sat 430am – 12midnight
Sunday 5am – 11pm
Cash Only

This last one is sort of a quiz…….folks who have been to Hawaii will probably know this one. A fairly decent plate of Rice, eggs, which was really hard, Portuguese Sausage, and Spam®.

Quite an artery clogging breakfast……brought to you by:

Yep, Mickey D's in Hawaii serves up Portuguese Sausage, Spam®, or even both, in what they call the "Deluxe Breakfast". Don't remember the last time I actually had food from a McDonald's, but I happened to be close to the Pearl City location early one morning…..

I realize this post has been kinda long….so thanks for hanging in there are reading.

Here's the sunrise as I pumped gas one morning.

Of course I listened to KCCN…..until they kept playing the same songs over and over……what happened to variety?

But a couple of tunes stuck with me…….

Sunrise Cafe-San Clemente

January 4, 2012 Cathy American/New American Restaurants, Breakfast/Brunch, Road Trip, San Clemente, What Cathy Eats!

Thanks for stopping by to look at mmm-yoso!!!, a blog about food. Cathy is blogging today, appearing organized. Kirk and ed (from Yuma) are busy with things.

The other Saturday, The Mister and I woke at a decent hour and then a leisurely drive North, to Pasadena, and on our way, took the El Camino Real exit from the I-5, in San Clemente, looking for some place open for breakfast. This caught our eye.

So we stopped, parked in back and were greeted by one person cleaning a table outside and another nice lady as soon as we walked in the door.

We were seated in the adjacent room, which was set for the soon to be crowd, with each table sporting jams, jellies, sugars, syrup, salt, pepper and a bowl of half and half containers, each with one green Irish Cream flavored coffee whitener container. (Coffee is $2 here, good and refilled constantly). Our waitress was very friendly and seemed to know everyone else eating here and made us feel at home.

The Mister ordered what he wanted- corned beef hash with over easy eggs, home fries and a biscuit with gravy ($7.75)

The biscuit was fresh made, home made and quite large. The gravy had sausage and some pepper in it (had to add more). The corned beef was pretty standard and good and those eggs were jiggly-over easy, cooked the proper way. The home fries were really nice and flavorful; probably fried in butter.

I ordered the veggie omelet($8.50). This menu item caught my eye, because in addition to avocado, spinach, tomatoes, broccoli, mushrooms,onions and cheese, the menu listed cauliflower as an ingredient.

It was a three egg omelet and I asked for tomatoes on the side (instead of potatoes) as well as rye toast. The omelet was very good, even with the mushrooms being canned. All the other ingredients were fresh and tasty and the omelet was really filling.

We really liked the food, homey feel and the super friendliness at Sunrise Cafe as well as being in San Clemente without the summer crowds. This may become a regular stop for us, in the off-season. I'll have to post where we eat when we visit this beach city in the summer…

Sunrise Cafe 701 N. El Camino Real San Clemente, CA 92672 (949) 498-6379 Open 7 a.m. M-F and 7:30 a.m. Sat-Sun, closes at 2:30 p.m. every day

The day after Thanksgiving. Breakfast at Sam Woo BBQ.

November 26, 2011 Cathy Breakfast/Brunch, Chinese Restaurants, What Cathy Eats!

This is mmm-yoso!!!, a blog about food. This short week and long weekend may be overrun with food and visiting with family, friends, Black Friday shopping (and perhaps preparation for a football Saturday) for you. It has been for the mmm-yoso gang. If you are checking the blog, here's a short post -with a glimpse of food- written by Cathy. [Kirk and ed(from Yuma) are recovering from Black Friday.]

Hi. I hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving Day. The Mister and I shared a meal with our neighbors. Here are some photos of some of the food.

The top photo only shows the fried turkey and the ham. The second photo shows the 24 pound turkey…There also were brussels sprouts, candied yams, mashed cauliflower, ten pounds of mashed potatoes, about as much macaroni and cheese, dinner rolls, stuffing, homemade cranberry sauces, a salad and a whole table of appetizers in addition to that partially filled table of desserts. There were few leftovers.

Needless to say, we did go home and experienced that 'food coma' which happens after spending a day cooking and consuming copious amounts of carbohydrates as well as the tryptophan from turkey. When we woke on Friday, neither of us wanted to cook and our list of "Black Friday" shopping deals was short -waiting in line to get into any store was not going to be necessary, so we went to Sam Woo BBQ for breakfast.

We always order the coffee (30¢). It is strong and served with sweetened condensed milk. (Hot tea is also 30¢ at breakfast; it is free with the other meals of the day)

It was a chilly morning and we decided to share a bowl of fish porridge ($3.25). (I did not even run across the hall to 99Ranch to buy a cruller donut bread to put into the soup- it would be a walk, it would be chilly and …I was saving on carbs). The porridge was excellent.

We also shared the #1 from the 33 item breakfast menu ($3.25). Stir fried rice noodles with vegetables (sprouts and onions) egg and lunchmeat (fake SPAM). This was also satisfying and was more than enough food to get us going.

I know you have all been busy and enjoying this unusual week of the year, preparing for the rest of the upcoming holidays while doing everything else. Thanks for stopping to visit mmm-yoso!!! in your spare time.

Sam Woo BBQ 7330 Clairmont Mesa Boulevard 92111 (inside the 99Ranch building)

Hail

Roasties-Breakfast in UTC

August 18, 2011 Cathy American/New American Restaurants, Breakfast/Brunch, What Cathy Eats!

Roasties has closed

You're here, mmm-yoso!!!, the food blog. Kirk usually blogs, ed(from Yuma) sometimes blogs and today, Cathy is blogging.

The other morning, after our walk, The Mister and I drove West in hopes of finding less sun. We were thinking of breakfast at Wired Bistro and as we walked toward it, were looked at the closed and new (to us) places in the Renaissance Center (just Southeast of UTC mall).

Wired is to the left in this photo (the faded red umbrellas cover the tables in front) and by the green awnings to the right-

we saw this blue awning with breakfast advertised. We looked at the menu in the window then decided to try the food here.

There is plenty of outdoor seating (this location used to be a pretty busy crowded breakfast and lunch place called Le Peep). We decided to eat inside; it was a weekday morning and not crowded. The menu had some interesting choices and I went went the two eggs any style and chose seared ahi as the protein ($7.95) this comes with a choice of toast and potato choices or fruit. (I have chosen fish as a breakfast protein for another breakfast you know).

Of course, the style of eggs I chose were poached (done nicely) and rye/pumpernickle toast was also a natural choice. I was being good and ordered fruit (since The Mister ordered the Roasties potatoes). The ahi was moist and flavorful without needing any additions. I guess the bonus piece was a just because or to make up weight, but the large piece was substantial. The toast was good when warm, with a nice rye flavor, but when it cooled it got to a weird light crispiness. Not complaining, just noticing. If the same bread is used as a choice for sandwiches, I'd ask it not be toasted. Oh, every piece of fruit (strawberries, cantaloupe, watermelon, grapes and melon) was wonderfully flavorful…all at their peak. {we asked for the Coffee Mate coffee lightener product instead of half and half for the morning coffee}

The Mister chose a make your own omelette/scramble ($6.95), opting for the omelette with chicken (the place is called Roasties, and there is rotisserie chicken on the menu), Feta and broccoli. It was the rotisserie'd chicken- there was some skin…great flavor. The Feta gave it all a nice saltiness and the broccoli was just steamed and a nice crunch. He also got the Roasties potatoes- roasted with herbs(there was Rosemary and definitely pepper in the mix) and squaw wheat toast, which suffered the same after-toasting cool down crispiness…however had a definite molasses flavor in the bread. It's a good bread which for some reason did not hold up to toasting…

A nice find. Roasties is open from 7-4, has rotissiere chicken, sandwiches, salads and smoothies and is advertised on its menu as a Locally Owned Family Restaurant. The owner is part of a California Restaurant Family and lives in La Jolla. There is online ordering and a cash register next to the serve yourself beverage area for pick ups.

Roasties 8915 University Center Drive 92122 (858) 412-0785 Website

Brunch at Kitchen 4140

August 15, 2011 mmm-yoso Breakfast/Brunch

**** Kitchen 4140 has closed

Last fall, I noticed a somewhat unusual site on the strip of Morena Boulevard just North of Balboa, amongst the various shops a place that seemed to be named Chef Kurt Kitchen was opening up.

I was curious and dropped in soon after they opened, and found out that the official name of the place is Kitchen 4140 Bistro and was the headquarters of Concept Catering. The restaurant was all organic and a look at the menu had me interested. This part of Morena was in dire need of a nice dining choice. Sadly, at that time the place was only open for weekday breakfast and lunch. The Missus and I did manage a visit during a monday holiday day….and were underwhelmed. The Kobe Beef Burger ordered medium was tough and overcooked. It was also on the greasy side, and really looked like the preformed "Wagyu" burgers one can buy at Seisel's…….

The Missus had the special, the lamb chops, also ordered medium…. also overcooked, and bland.

The fries were also greasy…..

The vegetables however, were perfect and the prices really weren't too bad. The young lady working here was so nice and cheerful…..so I stowed my photos and we placed Kitchen 4140 on our "try again" list. Easier said than done as we just couldn't find time to revisit. Until I found out that the place served brunch on Sunday from 9 til 2. The menu for Sunday brunch combines both breakfast and lunch menus giving one a a nice variety from which to choose.

I had the poached eggs with the sage-truffle buerre blanc, applewood smoked bacon, and breakfast potatoes ($11):

The eggs were perfect, the beurre blanc was light and mild. The bacon was tasty without being too salty or over-powering. It could have been a bit more crisp. Sopping up the drippy egg had me wishing for more of the wonderful toast. The potatoes were unremarkable and had me wishing for the fries on the Missus plate.

Speaking of the Missus, She picked a real winner, the Smoked Salmon Sandwich ($14):

This was a very nice dish; the avocado creme fraiche along with the capers added a nice rich-tangy edge to the sandwich, the heirloom tomatoes on the sandwich were very tasty. The arugula added a nice light bitterness. The salmon itself was very moist, perhaps a bit light with regards to a smoke flavor, the then I'm used to very aggressive smoked flavors.

These fries were totally different from what I've experienced on our previous visit. I couldn't get enough…..nice potato flavor!

We really enjoyed our meal….and the Missus is craving that salmon as I'm typing this post. So I guess we'll be revisiting on another Sunday in the near future.

Kitchen 4140
4140 Morena Blvd
San Diego, CA 92117

Breakfast at the Stadium Club

August 5, 2011 mmm-yoso Breakfast/Brunch

A couple of weeks ago I had to drop my car off for servicing in the Mission Gorge area. Usually, I'll take the shuttle to work or home after getting squared away. For some reason, I decided to wait for my car….. one problem, though, there didn't seem much to do at 7am on a Saturday morning. Most everyone headed off to Starbuck's or to walk the aisles at Home Depot. I decided to wander around a bit and look for some breakfast. Now all of the Taco Shops seemed to be open, but for some reason a divey looking place on the corner of Fairmount and Twain. I was surprised that the parking lot was full……

Now I wasn't quite sure about the place…….especially since the sign says they open at 6am! Geeez, this was obviously a bar…..but open at 6am! I mean we have the Silver Spigot and Champs(I have an interesting story about my one visit there) in our neighborhood, but at least they don't open until the more genteel hour of (ahem, ahem) 8 am…..

But the faded sign did say, or I believed said "Breakfast Sat & Sun 7am". And the place did seem, well, oddly charming….

And what the heck, who knows, maybe I'd want to get in a game of "Bumper Poo"!

So what the heck….. I walked into the somewhat musty smelling, dimly lit, "Bar and Grill" (definite emphasis on bar here). Man, the place was pretty busy, most everyone was closer to fifty (or at least looked that way) than twenty, so I should right at home. Everyone seemed either to be getting an "early start" or having a liquid breakfast…..

On the promising side, there was a woman grating potatoes for hash browns at the smallish kitchen area to the right of the bar. She was very friendly, I believe her name was Linda. Of course after asking my name, I had to put up with Star Trek jokes for the rest of my meal, but other than that I was left alone to have my $5 breakfast in peace………

Five bucks got you toast, two eggs, hashbrowns, and bacon…….. you really can't complain about that, can you? I've had much worse……

The atmosphere is perhaps not as colorful as Lucky's, but as everyone else seemed like regulars, I had a real "fly on the wall" experience…….and folks were telling some pretty colorful stories. There were two older men, both in walkers who would slowly make their way out the side door every couple of minutes to get their tobacco fix. The whole experience was strangely relaxing in a way for me…….I'm not sure why. And for the price of a latte, I got breakfast. I may never go back, and it's not everyone's cup of tea…. but on this early Saturday morning it just seemed right…..plus you sure won't hear what I heard in Starbucks!!!!

Stadium Club
6065 Fairmount Ave
San Diego, CA 92120

Open Daily at 6am
Breakfast Saturday and Sundays 7am – 12noon

Breakfast at Bay Park Fish Company

July 23, 2011 mmm-yoso Breakfast/Brunch

*** As noted in the comments below Bay Park Fish is no longer serving breakfast.

Recently, when dropping by to pick up some ham hocks at Seisel's I happened to notice a sign in front of Bay Park Fish Company that mentioned breakfast was now being served from 7am to 11 on weekends. A couple of weeks later; the Missus actually got up early enough for us to drive down the hill to have breakfast there. The menu has the standard breakfast fare…the two eggs, meat, potatoes, and toast, but this is Bay Park Fish, right?

The Missus decided to go all out and ordered the Lobster Omelet, at $16, it was the most expensive item on the menu. Seeing that they put cheddar in it….the Missus believes in a light hand when cheesing up shellfish, She ordered it easy on the cheese.

It comes with toast….the Missus ordered wheat, but they gave Her white, and some breakfast potatoes that were on the dry side…. good thing the Missus likes them that way.

There was a decent, but not large amount of what looked like lobster claw meat in the omelet.

The flavor was fine, though what little cheddar they put in there still overpowered the mild lobster flavor. The eggs were nice and fluffy. Personally, not worth $16 in my book.

On the other hand, I thought my smoked fish bagel was worth the six bucks…….

The Missus enjoys the smoked fish from Bay Park, so I shorted myself and saved a couple of slices of the fish for Her. The capers and onions go together well adding some acid, cutting the smokiness of the fish. I wish they'd use better bagels, which were too "bready" for me…….. still, if they'd added some thinly sliced tomatoes (and since I'm making requests perhaps some cucumber?), this would have been a (very) poor man's version of a wonderful smoked sturgeon bagel I had in Boston.

I'm sure if we go to Bay Park Fish for breakfast again; this is what the Missus will order…… And it's good to know that there are some breakfast options in our neck of the woods.

Bay Park Fish Company
4121 Ashton St
San Diego, CA 92110

Breakfast served from 7-11am Saturdays and Sundays only.

Troy’s Greek Restaurant-breakfast

June 30, 2011 Cathy Breakfast/Brunch, Greek Food, What Cathy Eats!

mmm-yoso!!! is a foodblog wherein Kirk writes most of the postings here, but he can't write today because he is busy. ed(from Yuma) also writes quite a bit, but he isn't writing today, because he is lazy. Cathy writes a good part of the posts here and apparently has some free time today.

Hi. A few months ago, when I was going to Kaiser Hospital, I saw a guy spinning an arrow sign on Mission Gorge Road at Zion at the far corner of the mall. It's the same mall as Carl's Jr., Ra Ka De Ka, San Diego Brewing Company, Saigon Star, the newest Gaglione Bros location, Starbucks, Rubios and Einstein Bagels. The sign was advertising breakfast at Troys Greek Restaurant (which is not to be confused with Troy's Family Restaurant, which is in the Clairmont Square).

While The Mister and I have enjoyed several lunches and dinners at Troy's, breakfast wasn't one of those meals.

The restaurant looks 'dressed up' for breakfast, with a fresh flower on each table.

The menus are under the glass covering the table cloths. One thing I noticed was the price point. None of the breakfast choices is over $6.95.

Greek gyros and eggs ($6.95). Eggs were poached perfectly. There was a good amount of gyros. The accompanying warm pita bread, tomatoes and Feta cheese made this a nice breakfast, or early lunch.

I do realize that Kirk will be posting about his vacation in Greece and that breakfasts there are nothing like this. In fact, after having a 'sneak peek' about the Greek part of His and His Missus' vacation, I may never bother with this common restaurant gyros again. However, I do want to stress that this meal at Troy's Greek was very good, very fresh food.
The Village Omelette ($6.45). I was curious as to the description of the omelette including sausage. It was sausage links that were chopped and added along with Feta cheese, tomatoes and onions into the nicely cooked eggs. This was accompanied by home fries and a side of warm pita bread. I never have considered adding chopped sausage links in with my omelettes at home, but now I will. The sausage with Feta, onions and tomatoes was a nice blend of flavors.

Coffee was $1.95 and fresh, kept constantly refilled.

If you have occasion to be in the neighborhood, breakfast is served Monday through Saturday and there is a buffet brunch here on Sunday. Being able to get a sit down breakfast here is a nice addition to the neighborhood.

Troy's Greek Restaurant 10450 Friars Road, Suite T San Diego 92120 Website

Perry’s Cafe- The one in El Cajon

May 17, 2011 Cathy American/New American Restaurants, Breakfast/Brunch, Diner, What Cathy Eats!

Hi. This is mmm-yoso!!!. Kirk is adjusting from his vacation in Turkey and Greece watching his work load increase, ed (from Yuma) is in Yuma, adjusting to increasing heat levels and waiting for his workload to decrease and Cathy is in San Diego's East County, steadily blogging about food.

Hi. When Kirk and His Missus left on vacation, I posted on the East County location of Panda Country restaurant. Kirk has blogged about "his" Perry's central county location. There may be theme starting. There is an East County location of Perry's Cafe.

Located at the intersection of Magnolia at Madison, near downtown El Cajon (about three blocks North from the courthouse, if you have ever had Jury Duty), this Perry's is under the same ownership as the Pacific Highway location. It can get very crowded here, especially on weekends, with lines extending into the parking lot.

There is some seating under the awning by the door.

Always, a White Board with daily specials is on display. This Perry's serves breakfast and lunch and is open from 6 a.m. until 2 p.m., same as the Pacific Highway location.

The interior is typical naugahyde coffee shop, as are the tabletop condiments.

A salad which accompanied a White Board Special #2 one day. Chilled iceberg lettuce and a standard Thousand Island dressing.

Grilled cod, served with the vegetable of the day, corn and cottage cheese instead of fries. $6.95
The pale colored fish plate was very fresh with the lightly grilled cod being a standout. The corn was typical frozen and crispy as well as sweet tasting and the cottage cheese was full fat, not that weird low fat kind.
I ordered 2 egg breakfast with Italian sausage ($7.25). Of course, I chose poached eggs and rye toast.
I also asked for a side of gravy to go with my hash browns. Since it was a breakfast, I got the peppery sausage breakfast gravy.
I enjoy seeing the classic shorthand on order tickets.

On another visit, the soup of the day was lentil and it was an excellent soup. Thick with beef, celery, carrot and lentils.
The soup was part of the Turkey salad lunch ($7.50). Yes, the old fashioned turkey salad; no dried fruits, no nuts, just leftover turkey, shredded and not in chunks mixed with mayonnaise. A generous scoop placed on top of mixed lettuces and shredded cabbage, tomatoes, avocado, olives, pickles and hard boiled egg halves. A dressing (your choice of standard salad dressings) is served on the side.
My standby favorite here. Hot turkey sandwich ($7.50). Just turkey breast slices on top of white bread with mashed potatoes and gravy over all. Comfort.

So. A 'chain' of Diners in San Diego county. The county is 4200 square miles and there is someplace everywhere to find a good meal.

Perry's Cafe 475 North Magnolia El Cajon 92020 (619)440-5724

Gillespie Field Cafe- Breakfast and Lunch at the Airport in East County

May 2, 2011 Cathy Airport/Airline/Cruise/Rail Food, American/New American Restaurants, Breakfast/Brunch, Burgers, What Cathy Eats!

mmm-yoso!!! is a blog about food. Everybody has to eat. Kirk and His Missus are eating, safely, in another part of the world. ed(from Yuma) is eating mostly in Yuma. Cathy is writing about where she has eaten.

Some people have asked me how I 'find' the restaurants where I eat. Basically, it is drive and stop, looking for where somebody who lives or works nearby would chose for a convenient meal.

The County of San Diego is about 4200 square miles and is home to eight airports in addition to the three airports in San Diego City limits: Lindbergh Field, Brown Field and Montgomery Field.

In El Cajon, Gillespie Field is conveniently located between Highway 67 and a Trolley station. (it's the Northernmost station which has both green and orange lines). It is the oldest and largest of the eight county airports, and the land includes many airport related businesses (flight schools, aircraft storage, repair and maintenance shops, avionics and instrument shops) as well as two Business Parks. About 2000 people are employed nearby. People need to eat.

In the far corner of the automobile parking lot, conveniently located next to the airfield, where private plane owners can also park and walk …

right next to the Control Tower is the Gillespie Field Cafe. It serves breakfast and lunch on weekdays (and is applying for a liquor license and is open from 4 p.m. until about 9 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday.)

It is open at 6:30 a.m., Monday thru Friday and 7 a.m. on Saturday and Sunday. The Cafe closes about 2 p.m. on weekdays. On March 1, 2011, Roxanne and Peter, took over the running of the cafe. Roxanne is the waitress, Peter is the chef. There are both an indoor and an outdoor eating area, with an unobstructed view of the airfield. They serve good, diner food. Not gimicky pseudo-diner food. This is the real thing.

I was fascinated by the description of '4-5 eggs' being used to make an omelet (in addition to the 'comes with two' part of the menu).

A "Build Your Own" Omelet ($9.75) made with 4-5 eggs, bacon,sausage, mushrooms and avocado. Fresh mushrooms, crispy bacon, really good breakfast sausage. Sides of cottage cheese
and a biscuit with gravy. Good biscuit- fluffy and soft, but almost underdone. I didn't mind not having a crispy crust, because I was mostly using the biscuit as a device to eat the gravy. Great gravy- smooth, with sausage bits and a nice, pleasant combination of Peter's special seasoning including black pepper.
Then there was Breakfast Combo #2 ($7.75) (not the weekday specials; the Breakfast menu is four pages, including waffles ). Six wedges ( 3 slices) of French toast, 2 eggs and two bacon. Properly cooked French Toast made with a thicker white bread. Crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. Not quite creamy soft as an egg bread would be, but very good and egg soaked and cooked through. I did not need the syrup. The bacon was crispy and not thin but also not really thick. It had a good flavor and just enough saltiness.

Perfect poached eggs. Fresh eggs. Creamy eggs. My kind of breakfast.

Of course, Farmer John's coffee ($1.95)…always fresh and hot pot, since everyone here seems to order it.

One weekday, The Mister was home and we came here for lunch.

We had to have a side order of onion rings which are lightly battered and perfectly fried to go with our lunch selections, in this case, hamburger based.

All the burgers are 1/3 pound coarse ground beef, hand formed. The menu says Angus beef. The Patty Melt ($8.29), cooked medium (we were not asked the level of doneness) and topped with a lot of sliced fresh grilled, unburned onions and Swiss cheese, on a very good rye bread, which was not greasy, but lightly grilled. There were almost too many onions, even for me…but I managed. The side of potato salad I chose was good, made with skin on red potatoes, finely chopped carrots and celery. I think it was made with a 'Light" mayonnaise, which I don't crave.
The Mister ordered a chili burger on this visit ($9.29) The same 1/3 pound burger, topped with Cheddar and the Cafe Chili on a toasted sesame seeded bun. The chili, made with beans, is really good and I will order it as a meal on another cold day. The cole slaw was fresh and crispy and lightly dressed with a vinegary mayo mix. I added salt and pepper to it.

Even if you are seated indoors, there is a view of the airfield and runway.

Not fancy, not a large place. Good food and lots of "regulars" who eat here. A true diner.

Gillespie Field Cafe 2015 N. Marshall (at Bradley) El Cajon, 92020 (619) 448-0415