Long Beach is a breakfast city. A brunch city. And definitely a day-drinking city. (One of my first professional meetings with my executive director some 15 years ago led to the dubbing of the “Long Beach two-beer lunch,” where he noticed during a lunch meeting that nearly everyone around him, whether in suits or shorts, had a beer if not two for lunch. Ah, the good ol’ days.)
Given that, we take our brunch and breakfast rather seriously. And I will say this: Writing this list made me proud as someone who has called Long Beach their home for nearly 20 years. That isn’t some deep point I am trying to make nor a slight toward the years of past. It is the simple fact that, as a writer, adding businesses to a list to uplift them has never felt easier, if not outright enjoyable.
Here are the places to get down on that morning chow in Long Beach. From those with genuinely great grub to those with views to those with vibes—we have you covered.
The Attic on Broadway
3221 E. Broadway
What kind of Long Beach brunch? The one tinged with Southern drip and the city’s best Bloody Mary menu.
While there is no question that Chef Cameron Slaugh’s (continually evolving) dinner menu at The Attic is one of the best in the city (as well as its cocktail program), there is a reason why their brunch is perpetually packed. And it goes beyond the stellar Bloody Mary menu that helped define the space in its early days. And it goes beyond having one of the best patios in the city. There is just about everything for everyone, whether you’re a Greens Girl gossiper or a hardcore Benedict Boy bruncher. (It must also be said: The Attic is home to the city’s best eggs Benedict).
A plate I continually dismissed was the aptly named “Breakfast Rice in a Stone Bowl” dish. And, much to my taste’s regret but stomach’s happiness, I have fallen upon this gem late. Layers of rice, andouille sausage, cilantro, and sweet soy are topped with sunny-side up eggs before being mixed tableside. My suggestion? Let it sit for a second—assured, it won’t get cold—to let the rice crisp up on the stone’s surface. You’ll be a happy deviator from the norms of the American breakfast.
And while The Attic has unquestionably evolved, particularly since the arrival of Chef Cam, there is one little wonderful detail of its past it refuses to let go of. And we are all the better for it: their Bloody Mary menu. Beautifully crafted, wonderfully diverse, dangerously down-able.
Look for the full feature in the coming days.
Ammatoli
285 E. 3rd St.
What kind of Long Beach brunch? The perfectly Levantine-meets-SoCal one.
There was an odd comment in my food group that proclaimed Ammatoli’s brunch “wasn’t really brunch.” And I presume this means that there aren’t slabs of bacon or omelettes involved. But this is very much a brunch, one swimming in Levantine bravada with hints toward the Mexican influence that permeates SoCal kitchens.
An Ammatoli brunch easily solidifies why it is one of the city’s most acclaimed restaurants. From accolades by the James Beard Foundation to a persistent presence on Los Angeles Times food critic Bill Addison’s 101 Best Restaurants list, Chef Dima Habibeh’s space is now synonymous with representing the best of Long Beach food. And while plates of Palestinian musakhan… Or mansaf and malfouf specials on the weekends have come to define the Levantine restaurant—along with their impeccable sweets from Chef Masah Habibeh, Dima’s daughter—their brunch is definitively distinct, if not wildly and wonderfully different from the onslaught of brunch-gone-decadent offerings common to Long Beach.
Surely, you can score a silver basin of fattet hummus. Garbanzo beans and toasted pita chips are melded with yogurt, tahini, and hummus. Yes, there are bowls of hummus. Some lined with beef shawarma. Others topped with shatta, ground green chiles.There’s her (rightfully) famed shakshouka. A breakfast staple throughout the Levant, tomatoes meet harissa and eggs with charred Serrano chiles. Or her perfected foul. Pale fava beans, cooked and re-cooked for hours, mashed with garlic, lemon juice, tahini, and a heavy pour of olive oil.
But for the pure fun? Go for her wittily named Hola Shawarma or her Levantine chilaquiles.
For the full feature on Ammatoli’s brunch, click here.
Noble Rotisserie
6460 Pacific Coast Hwy. #125
What kind of Long Beach brunch? One that happily deviates from the unhealthy toward the outright wholesome.
Noble Rotisserie—the Long Beach restaurant who actually owns its moniker given its noble mission—has had its hand in nearly every part of the community. One of the few spaces at the 2nd & PCH retail complex that lacks a corporate feel, owners Sidney and Steve Price have hosted fundraisers. They’ve catered school and local functions. They have participated in food events like Long Beach Food Scene Week.
So it continually amazes me whenever I come in on a weekend and—unlike staples like Coffee Cup and Breakfast Bar or, worse, middling chains like Breakfast Republic—they are fairly uncrowded. With wonderfully awesome alcoholic offerings—their frozen Aperol spritz slushy is honestly the thing of dreams—and stellar food offerings—their famed chicken’n’waffle, fried rice with sunny side-up eggs, breakfast burritos, sammies… I will remain perplexed until I see a continual wait on the weekends.
For Brian Addison’s latest feature on Noble Rotisserie, click here.
Nonna Mercato
3722 Atlantic Ave.
What kind of Long Beach brunch? The perfectly European one.
I’ve long said that Nonna Mercato is the space is where the practical meets culinary romanticism. It’s the brainchild of Chef Cameron Slaugh and Steve Massis, the team behind the delectable turnaround of The Attic, who had long dreamed of opening a bakery after Slaugh’s bread-making gymnastics was overwhelming the kitchen in the Attic. And the longtime dream of what Nonna could be—that it could create an Italian-with-a-hint-of-French space that mimics the off-the-street charm of the countries’ stellar sidewalk dining scene—has become very tangible. It took on dinners this past summer, a celebration of pasta during the holidays, and, of course, brunch.
Diving into his Italian heritage—Nonna, after all, was supposed to be named after his own Italian grandmother, Diana Ginelli—Slaugh has created a menu that, indeed, does depend a lot on the food of Italy but also harkens to the French and Californian bistros that depend on fresh, seasonal fare. Croissant croque madames meet passionfruit kouign ammans, and, let’s be honest, plates of pasta are always excusable for breakfast.
For Brian Addison’s latest feature on Nonna Mercato, click here.
Liv’s with Our Spot Coffee
5327 E. 2nd St.
What kind of Long Beach brunch? The one offering the city’s best coffee drinks.
I’ve long been calling Chris and Ali McColl’s coffee popup, Our Spot, the most innovative caffeine project in Long Beach. And I do for good reason. The way in which we approach our mornings has vastly altered post-pandemic. Sure, there are many who still have the traditional scramble of needing to physically be somewhere at the wee hours of the morning—and therefore depend on speed. But the expansion of the remote working world is a definitive reality that allows people to experience things more slowly.
“We appreciate having the spectrum of morning experiences,” Chris said. “We understand both people who have the luxury of determining their own hours and those who have more lax professional time dedication. But even in Venice, we saw those who didn’t have that option would work their ass off in order to make the experience at our shop.”
The experience? Not rushed. And now paired with stellar pastries from The Pastry Club—do not skip on the kimchi-cheddar biscuit—and breakfast burritos from Chef Rob White of Liv’s, the Our Spot experience is at a level like no other before.
For Brian Addison’s full feature on Our Spot’s residency at Liv’s, click here.
Olive & Rose
255 Atlantic Ave.
What kind of Long Beach brunch? The one from a chef who gave Long Beach its first Michelin star.
So, it’s technically lunch. But there is no question that Olive & Rose’s newly minted lunch menu experienced on the weekend is a vibe.
For the entirety of its inaugural outing, Olive & Rose was relegated to night hours with a (stellar) dinner-only service. That, in turn, left much to the imagination as what the space would encompass in during the day. After all, the entirety of its west-facing wall can open to the attached hotel’s pool and inner plaza. It opened mid-autumn and then rolled into the winter months, further making one wonder what a gorgeous spring day would be like.
Now, with the warmer months ahead and a newly minted lunch menu that feels SoCal in every best way possible, the experience of Olive & Rose is a distinctly new one. Comfortable, soft breezes run through the entirety of the space. Hotel patrons sit poolside. Restaurant patrons flank the space’s outdoor seating as well as its interior seats. It offers the perfect setting for a Chef Philip menu that is bright, light where it should be, and perfectly heavier where it needs to be. Using greens and herbs from his Heritage farm above 7th Street on Gladys Avenue—a gem of an urban food space if there ever was one.
For Brian Addison’s full feature on Olive & Rose’s, click here.
Bar Becky
3860 Worsham Ave.
What kind of Long Beach brunch? The chef-driven, counter-served kind solely on the weekends—but without the pretense.
Bar Becky in East Long Beach—the debut restaurant of Hell’s Kitchen alumni Chef Johnathan Benvenuti—is one of the city’s best new restaurants. And the fact that Chef Johnathan can mix high execution levels with a near-total lack of gravity is what makes his food so wonderfully charming. Now with Sous Chef Kathleen Lu, Bar Becky’s offerings have never been more consistent, clear in concept, or heartwarming.
Their brunch is no exception: $35 for two courses—a single chocie from each of the section plus Mama Becky’s biscuits for the table—can be experienced at a table, of course. But the real winner is to sit at the bar to experience chicken fried steak, tiramisu doughnuts, deviled eggs with caviar, banana caramel French toast, duck confit atop blue corn waffle, eggs in purgatory…
“Chef Kathleen leads the menu and service,” Chef Johnathan said. “We don’t wear our chef coats, the music is fun and light. The chefs walk around and interact—it’s just a genuinely fun experience. House-made Bloody Mary’s made with my fermented hot sauce. Full bar, fun seasonal cocktails, and an ever-changing list of bubbles… Long Beach is known for brunch and we knew almost immediately that we had to join the party. Lunch didn’t launch the way we intended, and thus, our brunch was born.”
Amen, chef.
For Brian Addison’s latest feature on Bar Becky, click here.
Marlena
5854 E. Naples Plaza
What kind of Long Beach brunch? One from the man who was once Chef Evan Funke’s right-hand man in the kitchen.
Marlena—from restaurateur Robert Smith, Chef Michael Ryan, and cocktail connoisseur David Castillo—has quickly garnered a loyal legion of patrons. And rightfully so: Its blistered pizzas, handmade pastas, and Josper Grill-ed proteins are among some of the best in the city, with its service and cocktails sitting right on par. With their fairly new brunch menu, that alignment with quality and, dare I say, pure yumminess continues.
Chef Michael is no stranger to brunch: He was the man who turned Claire’s at the Museum around post-pandemic. Now, Marlena is happily doused in eggs benedict pizzas, baked eggs, buffalo burrata-slathered toast, and a space that is practically entirely outdoors.
And with Chef Michael’s Angeleno history—he worked with Chef Evan Funke as his right-hand man at Felix—there are random specials that popup, like a masterful take on carpaccio: Creating a perfectly pickled giardiniera, frying sage and basil leaves, and slicing some gorgeous heirloom cherry tomatoes, this carpaccio is one of the best in the city. Bright, heavily’n’happily acidic, it needs nothing more than a fork.
For Brian Addison’s full profile on Marlena’s brunch, click here.
Selva
4137 E. Anaheim St.
What kind of Long Beach brunch? The hybrid one served until 9PM on Sundays.
Chef Carlos Jurado has had one helluva introduction to having his own restaurant in Long Beach. Since taking on the helm of Selva, which replaced the rightfully hyped, last Long Beach space for Chef Arthur Gonzales, he has watched his space be recognized by the Los Angeles Times as one of the 101 best restaurants. He watched his second concept, the underrated, NOLA-centric Bar Envie, come as quickly as it went to be replaced by the Long Beach Beer Lab. He almost watched the owner of Selva sell off the space shortly after finding out Bar Envie would be no more. And he watched his space fall off the very Los Angeles Times list that he uniquely found himself on.
I don’t bring up these things to downsize. Or throw salt on the wound. Or “for hindsight’s sake.” I bring it up because Chef Carlos has had much to both celebrate and lament. And through some true highs and lows, he chose to celebrate.
2024 and 2025 have proven that he has never been more determined to simultaneously claim and redefine his space in the Long Beach food scene. Test kitchen dinners. A commitment to being involved in the cocktail program as much as he is his kitchen. And—you’ll hear this a lot from me when writing about the chefs I love—a sense of fun.
And his brunch—a witty hybrid menu mixing classic Selva with brunch-centric offerings—is an example of that. Running all day Sunday until 9PM, it is a brunch menu that, well, redefines brunch. Yucca chorreadas join avocado toast with beans and fried plantains while eggs benedict get the Colombian treatment via aji amarillo hollandaise and one of the city’s best hot dogs is offered all day.
The Breakfast Bar
4716 E. 2nd St.
What kind of Long Beach breakfast? The happily hungover one.
The Breakfast Bar isn’t just a breakfat/brunch staple but a Long Beach staple. It has long been known that the owners of The Breakfast Bar—Pamela and Joshua Beadel—have been deeply involved in the community: Whether it is giving back to the industry that raised with food industry nights at their spaces… Donating to community events and charities… Taking over BLACK Bar to return it to its gay roots… Or even creating their own nonprofit…
They’re here for the community. Plus, their offerings are distinctly them: The hangover-friendly fare was inspired by family recipes and customer input. Uncle Marcee’s egg casserole—a recipe handed down through three generations in Joshua’s family—is cheesy, creamy, baked to order, and topped with pico de gallo and sriracha crema. The casserole is a favorite among regulars and can also be topped with bacon, jalapeno, and spiced ground pork.
Instead of country potatoes or hashbrowns, the Breakfast Bar serves hearty, deep-fried pucks of potatoes and cheese that were inspired by a holiday morning dish Joshua’s mom created. The result is a golden brown disc of starch and cream that’ll easily make one forget about basic country potatoes. The couple’s friends Neeya Love and Antwon Lee helped with the restaurant’s chicken and waffles recipe which is named in their honor: Love-Lee chicken and waffle sticks.
For Brian Addison’s latest feature on The Breakfast Bar, click here.
El Barrio Cantina
1731 E. 4th St.
What kind of Long Beach brunch? The Mexican one with drag.
The evolution of El Barrio Cantina, Chef Ulises Pineda-Alfaro’s modern Mexican joint that took over the former Ashley’s space nearly four years ago, isn’t necessarily that Chef Uli’s scope or style has changed. He has proudly planted himself in that all-too-old-school camp that food should speak for itself, melding the reflections of his Mexican heritage, American upbringing, and mother’s influence into an amalgamation shine perfectly bright on their own.
But as of lately, he is having more fun. And you can tell.
His “recession menu” is easily one of the city’s best happy hours, where you’ll find $5 aguachile tostadas, massive chimichangas, and plenty of his (mother’s) famed tacos de papas. His brunch menu? No exception. His fusion of Angeleno and Mexican culture—loaded hashbrowns with chorizo and spicy mayo or spicy piloncillo syrup to drizzle over your fried chicken—is one that is done unparalleled in Long Beach.
For Brian Addison’s latest feature on El Barrio, click here.
Coffee Cup Cafe
5258 E. 4th St.
What kind of Long Beach breakfast? The classic Californian one.
The Coffee Cup has long been one of our city’s staple, with offerings like their rightfully lauded enchilada eggs—ask for divorciado-style saucing—stuffed French toast, and massive breakfast burritos. It’s about as classic and Californian as you can get for a breakfast joint.
Is there a singularly defining dish? That would be their spicy chicken chile verde omelette. The mood of the masterful breakfast slayers in the kitchen is what determines the heat of chile verde itself: sometimes it packs a severe punch while other days it seems a bit more under control. Either way, the slather of bright green atop folded egg and melted cheese creates an addicting combo. Pro tip? Ask for the potatoes well-done and a side of sour cream; they act as break-givers to your tongue should the sauce be too spicy for your taste.
Ask for the potatoes well-done and you have yourself a damn near perfect breakfast.
Good Time
1322 Coronada Ave.
What kind of Long Beach breakfast? The queer-centric one with the hamburger popup.
There’s no doubt that grill master and overall solid human Jairo Bogarín of Hamburgers Nice—the Long Beach-based popup that is honestly the real steward of the smash burger since they started serving at Commodity (now Good Time) nearly five years ago—serves one of the best burgers. But let us not forget his origins: breakfast. It’s always been breakfast. Long before the smash and the breakfast burgers were trends, Bogarín was combining the two for what made Hamburgers Nice a locally famous joint with his take on breakfast burgers.
But since his residency at Good Time (which is a severely underrated coffee joint), he has created new things—like the savory bomb that is his breakfast croissant.
And when Jairo is not there, Good Time offers a continual selection of stellar breakfast burritos, sandwiches, and pastries.
Ellie’s
204 Orange Ave.
What kind of Long Beach brunch? The one that melds pasta with breakfast.
Chef Jason Witzl read our minds before we even realized it when he created the magic that is his breakfast pasta over five years ago at Ellie’s. The simultaneous shamelessness and wonder paired with the fact that you’ve wanted it before but wouldn’t admit it. (And yes, this even after countless morning consumptions of cold spaghetti.)
The plate is what I consider to have launched Ellie’s brunch offerings and has been a staple for years now at the Alamitos Beach haunt.
Of course, it remains—but as with Ellie’s and Chef Jason’s work across the board, brunch has evolved. And, after a somewhat wee bit of gravity, he has returned with full-on fun. While some food writers chided him for referring to himself as a “condiment whore”, I say the more whore-y Chef Jason is in terms of food, the happier we are as patrons and consumers. (Two things that need to be noted if you are one to not click on links: That review was stellar, saying Ellie’s held “no bad orders”—few arguments there, Colonel Gustavo—and, honestly, you’re not SoCal if you’re not a condiment whore. Ranch, salsita, prohok, chimmi, aioli, soy, calamansi, chili crisp… So, is it really that “unfortunate” of a moniker? Are we that trite and pearl-clutch-y with such colloquialisms?)
Chef Jason is rediscovering why Ellie’s clicked so well when it—and I mean this sincerely—entirely altered our food scene. His brunch is no exception.
For Brian Addison’s latest feature on Ellie’s, click here.
SALA Coffee & Wine
4085 Atlantic Ave.
What kind of Long Beach brunch? The one with the city’s best breakfast burrito.
Led by partners Brandee Raygoza and Derrick Montiel, SALA is an underrated gem of a space if there ever was one: Stellar coffee meets a wine bar meets a minimal kitchen that serves an equally minimal menu for the morning: a breakfast sandwich, breakfast burrito, chilaquiles, and a chilaquiles burrito.
While the breakfast sandwich is something not to be skipped—a perfect model for The Breakfast Sandwich, with bacon and a full on McDonald’s-style hashbrown accompanying a yolky egg, cheese, and brioche—it is the chilaquiles burrito that is something rather special.
Layers of tortilla chips slathered in salsa verde line with bacon and beans to create an ode to the mighty carb-on-carb masterpiece that is the torta de chilaquiles of Mexico City. The result? A savory, hint-of-heat, textures-abound burrito that is as delectable as it is surprising.
The Potholder
3700 E. Broadway | 301 W. Broadway | 2246 N. Lakewood Blvd.
What kind of Long Beach breakfast? The one that’s been around for 50 years.
For me, The Potholder isn’t just breakfast; it’s Long Beach history alive. There are arguments over when the Potholder on Broadway in Belmont Heights—the oldest of the three Long Beach locations and a fourth in Los Alamitos—actually opened but it can be no later that 1973.
“That’s the earliest photo we have,” said owner Michael Pergolini. “So histories become mixed but 1973 in the earliest.”
The second Potholder—dubbed Potholder Too—opened in Seal Beach but eventually closed, which is why the original location has a giant red “Potholder Too” that was salvaged from the Seal Beach location (and also remains the reason behind the moniker of the DTLB location). Also, despite the popularity of the other two Long Beach locations—one in DTLB and another by the traffic circle—there is a particular fondness for the Belmont Heights location. Of course, what most patrons notice at his location are the proud displays of photos from years past, all sharing one particular characteristic: Someone in the photo is holding a sign that says, “Eat at The Potholder.”
From London to the Grand Canyon, the photos cover the walls and act as windows into The Potholder’s history—something that had been an essential cog in restaurant’s spirit but has since lost momentum in the dawning of the digital age.”Long before we had phones that could do everything, the owners of The Potholder would buy ads in the paper,” Pergolini said. “The ad was always one of these pictures and if someone’s photo was chosen, they would actually reimburse that person for the use of the photo.”
For Brian Addison’s feature on The Potholder, click here.
Lola’s Mexican Cuisine
2306 E. 4th St.
What kind of Long Beach brunch? The one that’s been serving 4th Street for nearly 20 years.
If there is anything to say, Lola’s perpetually evolves—even as it turned 17 this year on 4th Street. And in terms of Mexican cuisine, that is a rarity to see. Most crowds seek not newness but the traditional and familiar when it comes to Mexican food in Long Beach. And, particularly across the past year, you may have noticed their new chips and tortillas: Much more earthy, nicely thicker, these are just one aspect of what will become a slow re-introduction of Lola’s to the community in a new dress.
I love the frankness of co-owner Brenda Rivera: “I know people have given us shit for using Guerrero.” And they tried making their own, playing around with white, yellow, and blue corn tortillas. The issue? They simply couldn’t provide the volume they needed—so they went another route of fresh. They bring in, each and every day, handmade tortillas from La Fortaleza in Boyle Heights.
This sense of evolution includes, of course, their lunch and dinner menus but particularly their brunch menu. A llove of melding the idea of American brunch with Mexican ideals, Lola’s continues to try to be better for everyone—not just themselves. And that deserves uplift.
For Brian Addison’s feature on brunch at Lola’s, click here.
Claire’s at the Museum
2300 E. Ocean Blvd. (inside the Long Beach Museum of Art)
What kind of Long Beach brunch? The checklist one: View, booze, food? Check, check, check.
It has always offered one of Long Beach’s best views and most distinct dining experiences—situated in the center of Long Beach Museum of Art’s open-air courtyard among fountains and sculptures, with views of Junipero Beach below as it sits perched on the bluff—but for many years, the food coming out of its kitchen failed to reflect its romanticism.
But shortly before the pandemic, looking at the potential of a truly chef-driven menu, Claire’s opted to eschew the beyond basic breakfast and lunch items in favor of elevated, straight-forward California bistro food that doesn’t necessarily challenge any trend—there’s no need for that, in all frankness—but aims solely for quality. This was all thanks to Chef Michael Ryan, who now heads the incredible Marlena, which is also on this list.
Take its stellar breakfast sandwich: Served on a buttery, flaky, house-made biscuit, it is layered with one of the thickest slices of bacon this side of Shady Grove Foods’s version, a gorgeously deep-orange-yolk sunny side-up egg, cheddar, and arugula. My approach to eating it? Save the top of the biscuit, eat the bottom with a knife and fork, ask for a side of their house-made marmalade, and use the top as a sweet treat after. Also, pro tip: Order the potatoes well done, ask for Tapatío, stir that into the ketchup, and enjoy the crispy tater dips.
Let’s Yolk About It
4722 E. 2nd St.
What kind of Long Beach brunch? The less corporate-y one in the Shore.
Belmont Shore’s Let’s Yolk About It is everything Breakfast Republic—the massive San Diego chain that opened down the street in the Shore—is not. More culinary-focused. Less corporate-y. More community. Less middling. And that is because owner Rebecca Hinderer and Chef Hugo Sanchez are connected to the community.
Chef Hugo—who has been featured on competition shows including “Cutthroat Kitchen” and “The Next Food Network Star”—also a share in MeeMa’s, which is on this very list. And Rebecca fought through the pandemic, a legal battle with its original name, and bringing the Shore back to being a proper brunch space.
Rightfully packed on the weekends, this gem is one that rarely fails.
The Ordinarie
210 The Promenade N.
What kind of Long Beach brunch? The boozy, purely Americana one.
The Ordinarie has long been one of the staples of The Promenade in Downtown Long Beach—and its brunhc menu (set to update soon) reflects that dedication to high quality and great aura. But even more, the space’s adherence to exploring what American food and hospitality mean make it a space that is far more than a restaurant.
And it is about time that Long Beach treats it for what it is: An inherently American pub. It can be through the space’s tireless examination of the role of cocktails in American history. Or how fast food can be elevated and even reimagined for a late night menu…
Either way, The Ordinarie is a beautiful expression of what American hospitality can look like.
Zuzu’s Petals
801 E. 3rd St.
What kind of Long Beach brunch? The one that’s an ode to a Hollywood classic.
“It’s a Wonderful Life,” the Hollywood if-wishes-were-granted classic, revolves around one specific moment. After wishing he were dead after dedicating his life to helping those in need, character George Bailey realizes he has been brought back to life to save his town through kindness once more when he realizes his daughter Zuzu’s rose petals remain in his pocket. It is the metaphor that kindness reigns supreme.
For owner Evan Papadakis, this is the precise sentiment he wants to embody. And the sentiment has proven real: Zuzu’s has quickly drawn crowds, much love in my food group. With Chef Jessie Franco—the former owner of The Cove in Palos Verdes—it is rather wild I haven’t written a profile on the space.
Look for the full feature in the coming weeks.
Union at Compound
1395 Coronado Ave.
What kind of Long Beach brunch? The one attached to an art gallery.
Chef Eugene Santiago—the founder of the Southeast Asian fusion pop-up Baryo and the head honcho at Union at Compound—has taken on every aspect of the dining spectrum outside of a dedicated breakfast service: brunch, lunch, dinner. And with it, has marked a new step in evoluton for Union at Compound (and the space in its entirety), reflecting a really beautiful thing: Chef Eugene is one of the kindest, brightest spirits in our food scene. His food is whimsical, nostalgic, and lacks pretense exactly when it needs to.
With stellar cocktails, warming dishes like his rightfully loved kaya toast, Union is as unique as it is solid.
For Brian Addison’s latest feature on Union at Compound, click here.
MeeMa’s
4276 Atlantic Ave.
What kind of Long Beach brunch? The other Bixby Knolls spot.
There’s something immensely appealing about MeeMa’s. It goes beyond the faded doormat that warns folks that “grandchildren are spoiled here.” Or the wonderfully kitschy decor other publications have mocked as grandmacore when, indeed, anything where Grandma and Core meet is great.
I admit: I know very little about the work behind the establishment because I honestly discovered them when they were listed on Yelp!’s best brunch places in the nation back in 2021. And while I don’t remotely support Yelp!—one of the worst decisions we ever made is allowing people to unilaterally publish to an audience without any work to build the trust or support of said audience and give restaurants one-star reviews for bad parking—what I do know is that MeeMa is happily good.
The chilaquiles? Yup, gimme more.
Alder & Sage
366 Cherry Ave.
What kind of Long Beach brunch? The Retro Row one that comes from a coffeehouse legend.
Alder & Sage—the concept from Kerstin Kansteiner, former owner of Portfolio Coffee and Berlin Bistro—officially opened two years and has since garnered buzz for well-deserving reason: From whiskey lattes to cold brews, it is clear that coffee side of the business is already worthy of praise.
But the largest part of the endeavor—the massive kitchen which can be viewed through glass panels in the space’s apt dining area—is one that often gets undercooked, even as the space had attempted to find its footing between a morning wake-up space and a dinner lounge in its beginnings. (The latter dinner service was eventually cut.)
Since then, it focuses on the AM hours—and we’re here for it. Elaborate toasts with burrata and a-nod-to-Ammatoli beet hummus are paired with eggs Benedict and genuinely good coffee concoctions.
Ubuntu
335 Nieto Ave. | 210 E. 3rd St.
What kind of Long Beach brunch? The one overlooking a lagoon.
While Ubuntu might have opened a Downtown location, its Colorado Lagoon space remains its strongest. Intelligently perched in a neighborhood where there is nothing else offered, it has become a magnet for nearby families and at-home workers to grab basic fare with counter service you can expect to fight over on weekends.
Fuego at Hotel Maya
700 Queensway Dr.
What kind of Long Beach brunch? The one with the best view
If there is one thing to say about Hotel Maya, I’ve long considered it the Long Beacher’s hotel. It’s the hotel where people go for staycation or celebration. After all, it has historically hosted everything from official Pride pre-gamers back in the 2000s and early 2010s to 40 Under 40 award banquets to being a perfect, more contemporary alternative to the Queen Mary’s retro vibe.
Hotel Maya is now removed from its contract with Doubletree Hilton and returning to its roots as an independently Long Beach-owned and -operated hotel. And it has hired its first new chef in over a decade and revamped Fuego’s brunch menu. Executive Chef Luis Torres, who already has culinary experience in hotel hospitality, wants to keep it forward and simple.
With its independent ownership, they will be hitting 50 years of operation as a hotel this summer. And with that, give the hotel some major upgrades. They will slowly be renvoating every room—which follows a $20M renovation back in 2009 and another $6M renovation in 2014—as well as the interior of Fuego. But that is for another piece.
“Fuego already holds a special place in many hearts in Long Beach,” Chef Luis said. “And it is also an essential extension of our service for guests. Because of that, it deserved a bit of an update. Is it still Fuego? Yes. But is it also a bit more contemporary and elegant? Yes.”
Schooner or Later is also always good for brunch…plus it has a view.