Penguin Cafe
| Address: | 981 S Coast Hwy, Laguna Beach, CA 92651, USA |
| Phone: | +1 949-494-1353 |
| Site: | thepenguincafe.com |
| Rating: | 4.3 |
| Working: | 6:30AM–2:30PM 6:30AM–2:30PM 6:30AM–2:30PM 6:30AM–2:30PM 6:30AM–2:30PM 7AM–1:30PM 7AM–1:30PM |
Location
Photos 100
Reviews 14
A
A Private User
Penguins is a neat throwback, a welcome diversion from all the "chichi" OC/LA wannabe restaurants up and down PCH. Its a small place. . .four booths, two four-seater tables in the middle, two one-seater tables in the window and a counter that seats maybe 8. When I arrived around 8:15, there were five people inside counting me. . . but when I left around 9:15, all the booths and tables were full. . .definitely popular with the local crowd. The menu has a decent selection of omelettes, burgers and sandwiches. Free newspapers lying around to keep you occupied. . .two very friendly waitresses. . .kept the coffee cup full. I wasnt in an omelette mood so ordered a hamburger after the waitress told me the meat was delivered fresh every day. My 1/4 pound patty was lost, however, in the bun, lettuce, and tomato. Honestly, I could barely taste it. . .so Id order a double burger if you want to taste the meat or keep the extras to a very minimum. Also, the meat tasted like something had been mixed with it to "stretch" it. . .some kind of grain or something. . .didnt have that fresh, full meaty flavor. The home fried potatoes were average, a bit scorched on the outside and light on the inside. . .wouldnt order a hamburger or potates again, for sure. . .will try an omelette next time. But very reasonable prices. . .my burger/fries/coffee came out to be $9.01. Neat place to sit back and read the paper and sip coffee and people watch. . .food okay. . .but fine by me. . .a laidback, kickback place this early with smiling waitresses is more important to me. Ill come back and get breakfast next time. The plates I saw delivered looked good, and I saw no one complaining or sending anything back. . .but most of them were locals and repeat customers. Give it a try!
JA
Jason Chafin
Came here for the first time January 02, 17, which New Years Day (observed ). Pointing that out because Im willing to give them the benefit of the doubt about the New Year crowd. That said, the service was terrible. We were a party of 2, yet the party of 4 who arrived after us got their food order in before us. I tried making eye contact with our waitress several times and it seemed she looked right through me. She finally made her way to our table and took our order. We ordered coffee first, then our omelettes. We got a single cup of coffee. Not once in the hour we were there did someone offer to refill our cups. The food was tasty but not over the top delicious. Our waitress brought our bill toward the end and we had to wait another 20 minutes for her to pick up my card and ring us up. I had to flag her down in order for that to happen. Like I said, everyone has a bad day so Imwilling to give them somewhat of a benefit of the doubt. But from a customer service stand point, they failed this January 2nd.
AV
Avery Alix
Friendly, old-school greasy spoon with okay food and good prices. There are places that try to emulate an old greasy-spoon by getting old fixtures and art then putting together a homestyle menu. Then there are places like this, where they hung that faded art 40 years ago and just left it there. Trendy, expensive towns are full of the former, while podunk or dead-end mill towns are full of the latter. Oddly, the Penguin Cafe is the latter too. After sampling a bunch of dishes I can say the prices are the best around, the food is okay - likely top-notch in the 80s but standards have moved. The drip-only coffee is pretty good, the service friendlier than most greasy spoons, and the decor is as authentic as it is awful; like so "we dont give a damn" that its entertaining just to look at. For what my opinion is worth, the French Toast was the best of the dishes we had. Overall, we like it. The Penguin Cafe is an important bullwark against gentrification in this town. I hope it stays this way for decades.
PA
Patrick Fetzer
This is one of my favorite breakfast spots in town! The tables are small so be prepared, its one of the oldest spots in town and gets BUSY on the weekends with a line out the door by 9am (but they do have an outdoor sitting area to wait for your name to come up on the list). I love the Huevos Rancheros and my kids love the pancakes! Real joe there too....no fancy coffees, just grinds from a drip machine. No-nonsense place, just delicious home cooking-diner style!
A
A Private User
Best breakfast restaurant I have ever been to! I am vacationing in Laguna Beach and I came here two times this week. The food taste and quality is so excellent. The value was great, the service was there. Theres a lot of personality put into the menu. This review comes from a woman who manages her familys private dining club and restaurant. When I come back to Laguna I cant wait to come back and come here for coffee and breakfast!
CH
CharlieBrandi ColeParis
Great old school breakfast place. Retro feel with retro prices. The food is great but its hard to screw up breakfast. omelets are excellent. I look to go in for lunch and have the club sandwich, its excellent . Expect to wait for a table for breakfast on the weekends, but thats most popular breakfast spots on the week ends in Laguna Beach,
A
A Private User
as guests we went where we were told. karen and i lost our Penguin virginity a few months ago to ambience and spinach omletes. gawd was in the cream cheese! Unique. websters defines Penguin. being a virgin has its advantages. being a Penguin has myriad advantages. go. live. eat. Penguin. love, karen n steve denver, CO.
A
A Private User
Like going into a time warp for your grandmothers cooking! Its really delicious but very simple - unlike most places in Laguna. Lots of regulars. Expect to wait a few minutes on weekends. Try the banana pancakes (and for gosh sakes get the bananas IN the batter).
AN
Anne Bradley
The staff were all genuinely friendly and helpful. We brought our one year old in with a stroller. They made room for the stroller in the back patio and checked in several times with us throughout the meal to ensure we were enjoying our food.
GA
Gavin Andrus
Old school diner. Ive been going to this place for 35 years and it has stayed the exact same over the years. Nice in a city where everything is about whats bright, shiny and new. Go for the experience of what old school Laguna was like.
BA
Barbara Whiteman
Great breakfast, excellent service in a small friendly cafe. The menu offers a variety of choices and my reasonable request for a substitution was warmly welcomed. . . which you dont usually get in the chain restaurants.
WA
Wade Chrisler
Penguin now open Wednesday &Thursday nights for dinner Just had their grilled chicken sandwich with avocado and grilled mushrooms it came with big slice of tomato YUMMY HI EVERYBODY YUMMY
KU
Kurtis Malecha
I really, really like this place, and the food is the typical diner food (which I love). Its also nice to see a family-owned place. However, the service keeps getting worse and worse.
AN
Antonietta McFarland
Not a place to go, my hash browns was burned. And they still gave it to me to eat. This is not a place I would return to eat. I didnt see anyone else hash browns look the same.
