Madres Brunch Long Beach—the first local location of the Insta-centric breakfast and brunch destination with five locations across SoCal—has officially opened. It has taken over the former LB Taco Co. space in the East Village, which closed earlier this year.
And it brings with it its array of artificial color bombs, mimosa flights, pistachio and hazel waffles, pancake tacos, and everything you either love or hate about Instagrammable food into the tangible.
Hype-food for the ‘Gram: Madres Brunch is all about excess
It is a bit serendipitous (or darkly ironic) that a business with a home in Placentia like Madres Brunch replaces a business in Long Beach that was once had a home in Placentia. (Long Beach Taco Company owner Armando Velazquez owned the now-shuttered Salt & Ash in Placentia when he opened the taco joint in 2019. Madres Brunch opened their Placentia location earlier this year.)
But one thing is for sure: Madres Brunch has built a name for itself on hype-food. Bright green pistachio waffles. Birria deviled eggs. Halves of avocado stuffed with meat. Mimosa flights that could easily color a rainbow.
This isn’t to say there isn’t some genuine heart behind the hype. Madres Brunch’s signature is “The Journey.” A play on the much-loved strawberry shortcake frozen dessert popsicle, this notable ode relates directly to co-owner Mel Zepeda. Becoming a dad at age 15, he couldn’t afford to buy strawberry shortcake ice cream from the local paletero for his son, one of the most popular desserts amongst kids. Hence: “The Journey.”
The larger reason Madres Brunch needs to succeed, unlike its predecessor
The Long Beach Taco Company didn’t succeed for one very specific reason. And it’s the very same reason 4 Shore failed in Naples: The first red flag of a business is always its chosen emotional distance from its community. This can come in many forms: Not reading the room when it comes to the food being offered. Not reading the neighborhood when it comes to the aura you exude. Not caring to read about the context and history of the space you occupy.
Madres Brunch is a warm, warm welcome. And that is because Downtown—especially the East Village—needs all the love it can get. While business owners and employees fend off what seems to be a continual barrage of break-ins and mentally unwell people, the blunt fact is that DTLB is filled with businesses who rightfully deserve our love in return for their investment. These are hard workers, rarely—if ever—relishing in some kind of audacious financial success. They work day-to-day to have the pride of owning a business or working for a small business owner.
So with that, all we ask is that Madres Brunch connects with the community.
Madres Brunch is located at 442 E. 1st St. in Downtown Long Beach.
And now, some more images of the hype-food from this brunch space
