Bridget Veltri
arts@mustangdaily.net
In need of a second honeymoon? Couples looking for love in the form of breakfast and lunch will no longer need to travel to Pismo Beach to indulge in the delights of Honeymoon Café.
The quaint café still resides in Pismo Beach but now has another location at 1074 Higuera St. in downtown San Luis Obispo.
Cal Poly alumnus Christi Rivera, owner of the original Honeymoon location and Russell Thomas owner of Two Cooks Catering, met at Cuesta college years ago, and since opening the San Luis Obispo location together are not only friends, but business partners.
“You can’t just partner up with just anyone for something like this,” Thomas said.
For lovers that have difficulty tearing themselves away from the sheets and the loungers that just got a late start, Honeymoon Café serves breakfast all day long.
The bright but soothing interior, painted in plum, olive green and yellow will enhance the mood of those who are raring to go at 7 a.m. while gently soothing those whose eyes are still sleepy crusted. While the breakfast menu is not very intricate, it offers up basics like fruit, quiche, danishes, bagels, oatmeal, eggs and breakfast burritos. It has some specialties like huevos rancheros with corncakes and the machaca omelet with fork tender meat and served with black beans. The café also put its own special spin on the bagel sandwich; the Honeymoon version comes with avocado, cream cheese, lemon pepper, heirloom tomato, red onion and sprouts.
This cashier-style café is a conscious one, serving up quality ingredients while making a substantial effort to support local businesses.
“We are ‘localvores,’ “ Thomas said.
“I’m not a corporate minded person,” Rivera added. “We’ve got to keep it in the community.”
And while most of the food they serve is organic, they don’t do it for the bragging rights.
“Being organic is such a trend now,” Rivera said. “We don’t advertise because we just believe in good food.”
While currently closed on weekends, Honeymoon Café is serving up something for just about everyone. They have the usual caesar and Cobb salads which are available with chicken or steak for an additional charge. But two of their side salads are the ones that shine. The strawberry fields salad comes with spinach, strawberries, goat cheese, pistachios, sugared bacon and red onions tossed in blueberry-pomegranate basil vinaigrette. The Tortellini salad includes cheese tortellini, black olives, artichoke hearts, sun dried tomato and dry salami in Italian dressing.
The café also offers daily soup specials that are served with pita and have a half sandwich or salad option. The butternut squash soup is good enough to make a daily trek downtown to see if they have it.
Honeymoon Café has taken standard sandwiches like the BLT and grilled cheese and made them unique. “BLAT” doesn’t sound appetizing? Well it is, adding mozzarella, avocado and arugula to the basic BLT. If you like the comfort that a grilled cheddar cheese sandwich provides, they have that, too but for those who dare to venture out, try the grilled cheese deux served on sourdough with fontina cheese, avocado and tomato. The Seven Peaks veggie sando is bound to tempt even the most ravenous of carnivores with pesto, roasted veggies, sprouts and mozzarella peaking up longingly from an open-faced pita. The chicken fajita quesadilla is a fusion of Mexican favorite’s green and red bell peppers, Spanish onion, organic chicken, fajita seasoning, with sour cream and salsa.
Honeymoon Café also offers deli sandwiches as well as burgers and garden burgers.
So get away from it all and head for a honeymoon a little closer to home; if you’ve eaten at the original it will make you fall in love all over again.