Brunch is a staple of American dining culture and a particularly popular phenomenon in San Diego. Whether you’re hunting for smashed avocado toast with bottomless mimosas or creative egg dishes, this curated list of spots around town will make choosing where to brunch an easy decision with tasty food, strong coffee, and maybe a few cocktails.
Read More10 Compelling Brunch Spots to Try This Weekend
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Piper
The coastal restaurant’s weekend brunch, featured Saturday and Sunday from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m., is a buffet-style format priced at $45 for adults and $30 for kids between five and 12 years old. In addition to a fried chicken and waffle bar, brunch-goers can choose from an appealing lineup of dishes that includes sweet and savory breakfast pastries, French toast, salads, crepes, and frittatas.
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Ponto Lago
Set to live music, this buffet brunch inspired by Baja is offered from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. every Sunday, with a rotating spread that could include concha French toast, chilaquiles, machaca, ceviche, wood-fired meats, and fresh churros. There are also margarita flights and build-your-own Bloody Marys.
Pandora's
Brunch is almost daily affair at this Leucadia cafe where chef Alex Carballo’s daytime menu includes egg-filled khachapuri, porchetta with an over-easy egg, lemon-poppy cakes, and crepes along with egg-topped pizzas like a pie inspired by a croque madame and a chorizo and potato pizza.
JRDN Restaurant
Served Saturdays and Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., brunch from executive chef Jerry Ranson and pastry chef Justin Sazon includes a morning bun served with chocolate chantilly cream and berry coulis, a short rib Benedict, and a falafel burger topped with tzatziki, grilled squash, arugula. Indulge in the house Bloody Mary, made with cilantro and jalapeno-infused vodka and garnished with a charcuterie stick.
Miss B's Coconut Club
Though this breezy Mission Beach bar serves brunch every day, a special edition scheduled for this Sunday, October 22 will celebrate Taylor Swift, football, and the couple of the moment. From 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., bop to Taylor Swift tracks while exchanging friendships with other Swifties over $24 bottomless mimosas while watching Travis Kelce’s Kansas City Chiefs take on the Chargers. Menu highlights include breakfast tacos, coconut rum French toast and a Cubano Benedict with pulled pork and jerk hollandaise.
True Food Kitchen
The restaurant inside the Fashion Valley Mall recently rolled out a fresh brunch menu, which brings back favorite dishes like wild-caught tuna lettuce wraps and introduces new dishes including Hawaiian fried rice and a tasting tower stacked with sweet and savory bites. There are new drinks too, from a hickory smoke-infused Old Fashioned to a Cinnamon Toastini that pays tribute to the popular breakfast cereal.
Techo Beso
This relative newcomer to San Diego’s rooftop dining landscape just rolled out a new weekend brunch that’s available on Saturdays and Sundays between noon and 5 p.m. While a DJ entertains, sip a brunch cocktail and revive yourself with a Hangover Burger topped with a fried egg, brioche French toast, or eggs Benedict served on tamale cakes with brisket, avocado, and chipotle hollandaise.
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The Smoking Gun SD
The Gaslamp restaurant and bar’s brunch, served until 1 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays, is an ode to the 80s, centered around a lineup of breakfast sandwiches named after legendary songs from the era. Built on homemade sourdough with two fried eggs, they include Don’t Stop Believin’ in Gouda with smoked Gouda cheese, caramelized onions, and Dijon mustard.
The Whiskey House
Already known for its unmatched collection of whiskeys, the bar does weekend brunch service from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, cooking up a vast menu that includes morning starters like pancakes and waffles as well as egg dishes such as steak and eggs, huevos rancheros, and breakfast enchiladas with several vegan options. Pair brunch with a refreshing cocktail like the
classic Bee’s Knees.
The Islander
Escape to Coronado for a slice of vintage surf culture, tiki drinks, and island-style eats at this weekend brunch offered Friday, Saturday, Sunday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Find pineapple fried rice and loco moco as well as fried chicken and churros with ube syrup served alongside mimosas sweetened with housemade POG, aka passionfruit, orange, guava juice.
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