Brunch in Orange County

While you’re plotting your list of things to do in Orange County, take a moment to start your day the right way with a SoCal spin on breakfast. These are our favorite places to get brunch in this vibrant region.

Corona del Mar

Corona del Mar means “crown of the sea,” and these destinations for Sunday brunch in Orange County certainly feel regal.

1. Rose Bakery Cafe

For over 25 years, Rose Bakery Café has been among the best brunch places in Orange County.

Every Sunday, locals flock to this cozy neighborhood mainstay. Some grab a coffee or smoothie to enjoy while walking on nearby Little Corona del Mar or Cameo Shores Beach. Others stay put, dining with friends inside the café or on the adjacent patio at umbrella-topped tables.

The eatery’s menu features a California-style breakfast burrito packed with eggs, bacon, spinach, cheese, avocado, and hash browns. Breakfast sandwiches, avocado toast, and eggs benedict share space with classic offerings, such as omelet platters and pancake stacks.

Pastries are also popular here. Macarons, old-fashioned donuts, and trendy cronuts are the perfect sweet end to the meal.

2. Farmhouse at Roger's Gardens

Experience a true farm-to-table brunch in OC at Farmhouse at Roger’s Gardens. Sustainability and local produce are the core focus of this eco-conscious establishment. Everything brought into Farmhouse comes from the restaurant’s close-knit network of trusted producers.

For Sunday brunch, we recommend French toast with apple, fig, and raisin compote. For something spicier, try the green chile pork and eggs with a side of Tehachapi Heritage Grain Project flour tortillas. Get family-sized portions for takeout, or eat-in-house with a bottle of bubbly or a Farmhouse signature Bloody Mary on the side.

3. Zinc Cafe

Zinc Café offers a dual shopping and dining experience. You can indulge in Sunday brunch and take some of Zinc’s freshly baked bread and prepped foods home. The concept is designed to be both communal and convenient.

Select a ready-made salad for a quick lunch off-site, or eat under the pergola on a beautiful and spacious patio adorned with ivy. The brunch menu is deftly balanced between sweet and savory options. Pastries like raspberry almond muffins and a rustic tart with seasonal fruit and marzipan lead the way.

Share a plate of beets and burrata, or tempt your palate with worldly cuisine. The full Middle Eastern breakfast and the Thai salad studded with brown rice, tofu, basil, and mint are equally tasty.

Newport Coast

Brunch in California is often a breezy and casual affair. This is especially true when you’re at Orange County restaurants that embrace the casual, coastal vibe found in and around Newport Beach.

4. The Beachcomber at Crystal Cove

The Beachcomber at Crystal Cove is among the top brunch places in Orange County. This is thanks in no small part to its retro cottage setting and breathtaking views of the Pacific Ocean. The menu showcases California cuisine at its finest. Here, you can enjoy fresh flavors and produce-driven dishes just steps from the glittering SoCal sand.

The Beachcomber beignets are popular, as are twists on classics, such as the crab cake Benedict and fruit-topped walnut-cranberry toast with almond butter. We also love the garlicky spinach and mushroom crêpe with smoked Gouda and Parmesan cheese.

From mid-June through Labor Day, you can rent a chair on the beach and dig into the café’s express menu. A zesty California chicken wrap somehow tastes better with the sound of the ocean as your brunch soundtrack.

5. Mustard Cafe

Mustard Café is a casual eatery, promising European sandwiches with California flair. The menu definitely delivers, with page after page of cold and hot sandwiches. Some are breakfast-themed, and others are stuffed with premium meats, such as chicken, roast beef, and cracked pepper turkey.

Crusty baguettes offer the perfect vessel for umami-rich BLTs or Black Forest ham melts. The venue also offers full breakfast dishes. You can create your omelet or order one of the chef’s indulgent creations. Standouts include an ooey-gooey bacon cheddar waffle and a nostalgic Captain Crunch French toast.

Soups, salads, pizzas, and paninis round out the menu, with a small section reserved for gourmet takes on the humble hot dog.

6. A Crystal Cove

For about 90 years, A Crystal Cove has tempted travelers driving down the Pacific Coast Highway to stop in for a bite to eat. It was originally a classic roadside diner that later transformed into a French restaurant. Today, it's a seasonally inspired, contemporary American eaterie run by the masterful Chef Elvis Morales.

The venue also has a Hollywood connection. American director and film producer Joseph McGinty Nichol, professionally known as McG, is one of A’s founding partners. McG says his favorite thing to order is the chicken pot pie.

The high-end menu is designed to thrill even the pickiest clientele. “For the table” offerings include caviar service, a charcuterie board, and spicy yellowfin tuna. Continue with a lobster cobb salad, short rib omelet, or duck confit sope. We give two thumbs up to the inventive cuisine offered here.

7. Zov's Bistro and Bakery

In 1987, Chef Zov Karamardian brought her unique take on upscale Middle Eastern cuisine to Newport Beach, and Zov’s Bistro and Bakery was born. What started as a small café has grown into a 14,000-sq. ft. multiuse facility. It has a private dining room, space for cooking classes, and an award-winning bakery.

Chef Zov’s culinary background is evident in dishes such as sesame-sprinkled eggplant fries and a mezze platter with hummus, lebni, tabouli, muhammara, and baba ghanoush.

We recommend the avocado toast with two sunny-side-up eggs and Moroccan spices. We also love the homemade veggie burger with tzatziki on a brioche bun. Zov’s mimosa flight is a can’t-miss treat for those who love a breakfast cocktail.

Traditional fresh-squeezed orange juice is just the beginning. Try your sparkly wine with a dash of Zov’s pomegranate, yuzu lavender, prickly pear, or peach and ginger.

8. OEB Breakfast Co.

While some restaurants add brunch to an already busy menu, OEB Breakfast Co. views the first meal of the day as the best opportunity to deliver food that feeds people’s souls.

The Classic Breakfast is a revelation. Two pasture-raised eggs, your choices of artisanal meats, and beef tallow-fried herb potatoes tick all the boxes. Browse a bevy of Benedicts, breakfast bowls, blue plate specials, and artfully arranged salads, such as Niçoise with marinated ahi tuna.

9. Billy’s at the Beach

It’s always time for a taste of the tropics at Billy’s at the Beach. Here, the Aloha spirit is in full effect, with Hawaiian-inspired cuisine that makes guests feel they’ve been transported to the islands.

This may be an Orange County brunch spot, but Billy’s is big on flavors you’re more likely to find a few thousand miles south. Fresh fish, avocado, tomato, jumbo prawns, grilled papaya, coconut, and sweet chili sauce dot a busy menu.

Turn brunch into a celebration with a pupu platter party, or go it alone with an Aloha Burger or a single serving of Kona Shrimp Tacos.

Anaheim

Visiting local attractions can use up a lot of energy. Fill your tank with brunch in one of OC’s hottest restaurants, right in the heart of Anaheim.

10. Reunion Kitchen + Drink

Imagine sitting down to brunch and scooping out your share of a family-style oven-baked French toast casserole. The butter brioche, crunchy pecans, and sticky maple syrup are a revelation, with just enough whipped butter to make breakfast feel like dessert.

That’s just the lead-off option at Reunion Kitchen + Drink in Anaheim Hills, where brunch is tailored for people who want to eat, drink, and be merry. It has more attention-worthy dishes, such as the California omelet, a riff on chicken and biscuits, and an entire section of Mexican specialties.

One of the venue's biggest draws is the cocktail menu. Before you go wine tasting in Orange County and enjoy some refined tipples, treat your playful side to a matcha martini, a hibiscus-tinged bellini sparkler, or a milk punch that tastes like a grown-up version of Fruit Loops cereal milk.

11. Brewberry Cafe

Located near must-see attractions, such as Disneyland Resort and the Anaheim Convention Center, the Brewberry Cafe is a convenient (and delicious) base for exploring Southern California.

The menu is huge and varied. Strawberry pancakes, chicken bacon waffles, and stuffed Nutella and banana French toast are some of the venue's sweet offerings. Breakfast sandwiches, luscious crêpes, sandwiches, and salads dominate the savory side.

The house barista is always busy executing lattes, hot chocolate, macchiatos, and cappuccinos. If you prefer to skip the caffeine, you can fuel up for the day with a vitamin-packed wild berry smoothie.

12. Norms

In 1949, Los Angeles was just beginning to get its silver-screen sparkle when Norm Roybark decided to open a small diner near the corner of Sunset and Vine. More than eight decades later, Norms in Anaheim is one of 22 Norms locations in Southern California.

It’s such an essential part of the culture that it’s been featured on Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee with Jerry Seinfeld. The venue also served as the primary breakfast spot for the legendary group Crosby, Stills & Nash when they were recording their debut album.

It's fitting that the brunch menu is also a mix of old and new. The El Benedicto is eggs Benedict with crisp sope instead of an English muffin, topped with salsa verde and pico de gallo.

Steak and eggs are present in multiple preparations, and the menu features salads galore. You can even DIY your hash browns with toppings such as bacon, cheddar cheese, green onions, diced tomato, fresh avocado, and fried jalapeño.

13. Poppy & Seed

Poppy & Seed has a garden, a perk that promises the freshest possible produce in every dish and cocktail on the eatery’s menu. That’s probably why this Anaheim brunch spot has a James Beard nomination and Michelin Guide Recommendation.

Chefs Michael and Kwini Reed whip up brunch selections that feel a little Southern and a whole lot satisfying. Selections include buttermilk biscuits with honey butter and house seasonal jam and brioche French toast with Nutella, coconut, hazelnut, and maple syrup.

For savory eats, check out the shrimp and grits with white cheddar and cotija cheese-topped chilaquiles. Pair your tarragon chicken sandwich or lox bagel with one of the venue's ingenious cocktails. The Hummingbird Spritz is a winner with Aperol, raspberry liquor, Cointreau, lime, and sparkling wine.

14. Haven Craft Kitchen+Bar

Local, organic produce, humanely raised meat and poultry, sustainable seafood, and highly allocated brews are at the heart of the menu at Haven Craft Kitchen+Bar.

Quality is the name of the game at this Orange County brunch oasis, and you can taste it in every glass of wine and every bite of chicken liver toast, heirloom tomato salad, and burrata with garlic-chili oil and pine nuts.

There’s a brilliant yin and yang of sweet and savory. Chorizo hash and duck confit chilaquiles make way for house-made donuts and Basque cheesecake with roasted strawberries. Try a local beet salad with cherry mostarda, beet agrodolce, hazelnuts, and a zippy lemon yogurt dressing.

Laguna Beach

It’s a short drive from Irvine or Costa Mesa to Laguna Beach and some of the best brunch spots in Orange County.

15. The Loft

Some restaurants use a shimmering chandelier or towering wine display as the centerpiece of their dining room.

At The Loft, the main attraction is a 6-foot-tall wood-burning rotisserie. Although, you may occasionally shift your attention from the rotisserie to the panoramic ocean views. Eat on the patio and soak up the sea air as you nibble on a Maine lobster omelet or eggplant shakshuka.

We order the Monte Cristo with jambon de Paris ham, mornay sauce, and blueberry balsamic mostarda. This powerful combination is rivaled only by a Wake Up Call cocktail, which features Tito’s vodka, coffee liqueur, cold brew, and Bailey’s foam.

16. Sapphire

Sapphire restaurant is Laguna’s home base for global comfort food, and with grub this good, it’s a major plus that brunch is on the menu every day of the week. That means you can drop by for a smoked salmon and fromage blanc omelet, a healthy farmer’s market vegetable scramble, or Kurobuta pork belly Benedict whenever the mood strikes.

If you visit early in the week, a plate of Meyer lemon crème fraîche waffles with warm bourbon maple syrup in the airy dining room or on the sizable patio may change your mind about Mondays altogether. Add in a Patio Pounder—a vodka cocktail with tangerine ice cubes, Meyer lemon, basil, and champagne—and relaxation is on the way.

17. Driftwood Kitchen

Driftwood Kitchen is a full-sensory experience. Oceanfront dining ensures there’s always a feast for the eyes, with the glimmering Pacific a stone’s throw from the restaurant’s backyard. The menu is just as tantalizing, with seafood as the primary inspiration and seasonal ingredients from across California sitting center stage.

Pancakes, French toast, eggs Benedict, and avocado toast are all present and accounted for. Grilled prawn and street corn chilaquiles with spicy ranchero sauce serve up plenty of heat, and a tasty vegan potato hash proves roasted mushrooms and brussel sprout leaves make for a memorable brunch.

A Foodie Paradise: The Dazzling Orange County Brunch Scene

Start your day at one of the best brunch places in the OC, and top it all off with one of our shows. The surreal, heart-pounding joy of our performances will stick with you, giving you something to talk about over coffee and croissants.

We'll weave a compelling story told through theatrical acrobatics and dance as we take you on an emotional journey. All you need to do is sit back and relax, and we'll take it from there.