Cafe Chloe

Cafe Chloe is probably my favorite breakfast place; and as someone who rarely eats breakfast, this is quite a feat. I was unable to sleep one morning in San Diego and went for a walk in the early morning hours (to me this means 10 am), and a few blocks from the Gaslamp district, Cafe Chloe sits on a quiet street with a small outdoor terrace. I loved the European ambiance, and when I ordered water, they served filtered water (one way of eliminating the proliferation of plastic bottles). Since I can no longer handle caffeine, I ordered tea and when it took a good 10 minutes for it to arrive, I wondered how much time it took to bring me hot water and a tea bag. But that is not what they do here. They STEEPED the tea for me and strained it BEFORE serving me what is probably the most flavorful Jasmine Tea I have ever tasted. Everything here is done with thought and sensibility; you will notice in the photo, they also serve pepper and salt in small dishes so you can control the amount with your fingers.

My three morning friends had the crêpe lorraine, made with eggs, bacon, gruyère in a crêpe ($9.50) and everyone finished their crepe remarking how delicious it was without needing any seasoning of any kind (and they would normally add something like KETCHUP).


I chose the poached eggs w/wild mushrooms & sage-truffle beurre blanc ($11) which was absolute perfection; I would wake up for breakfast to eat this! Even the side salad made with a nice citrus vinaigrette was wonderful. If they serve breakfast in heaven, this is what I want. Even the toasted slice of sourdough underneath was delicious, having soaked up the mushroom juices and the remnants of the poached egg yolk.

Cafe Chloe also serves tea (of course!), lunch and dinner, so no matter time you get here, just get here when you can; your taste buds will thank you.