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# First meal of the day isn’t to be slept on
- URL: https://www.smdp.com/first-meal-of-the-day-isnt-to-be-slept-on/
- Published: 2008-03-13T15:00:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-24T23:39:26.000Z
- Author: Guest Author
- Tags: Opinion, Santa Monica, #archive-import

*By Maria Rohloff The Marinade*

IF I COULD EAT BREAKFAST EVERY morning I would. I love the most important meal of the day. It reminds me of my elementary school days, waking up to the smell of my dad’s eggs, bacon and pancakes. Or if I was lucky, his famous Navy breakfast concoction S.O.S. — S.t on a shingle — better known as creamed beef on toast.

Now most of us are lucky if we have enough time to order our $5 mocha, frappa, no foam, vanilla, soy, 140 degree, no extra water latté and grab a muffin to soak up the caffeine. Luckily the weekends allow for some sense of normalcy and ease to actually have breakfast.

As a local Santa Monican, I tend to gravitate towards dining venues that have great food and are easy to get in and out of. I love The Bagel Nosh at 1629 Wilshire Blvd. It’s been there forever and besides great bagels, they have an awesome breakfast menu. You have several breakfast options like two eggs, choice of bacon or sausage, hash browns and choice of bagel. I opt for strawberry cream cheese. It costs extra but it’s worth it. The food is your typical yummy, old-fashioned breakfast from home. Nothing fancy.

Another easy and tasty place to eat breakfast is the Tudor House, 1403 Second St., which provides an English twist to your morning meal. You can always get a seat, seriously. The décor is sweet, with lots of florals. It’s your typical English teahouse. It might be hard to convince your boyfriend or husband to join you because it’s a bit feminine but play up the food to lure him there. You enter through the gift shop, which has amazing imported items for sale, and then wait for someone to seat you. Daily specials are posted on a chalkboard at the entrance to the dining room.

The “cold” menu has an item called the “Breakfast Crunch,” which consists of homemade granola made from their own recipe served with strawberries, mandarin oranges, chopped dates and topped with yogurt. On the “hot” menu try the “Four English” breakfast — two eggs, two English sausages, English bacon, black pudding (don’t ask just try it), five sliced tomatoes, five baby potatoes and English baked beans. The one I like most is the “Half Benedict” with two toasted English crumpets topped with ham and poached egg with hollandaise sauce.

My third “easy to get in, get out” breakfast joint is Swingers on the corner of Lincoln Boulevard and Broadway. I don’t believe Swingers necessarily has to be for the young, hip and trendy even though the atmosphere screams it. The menu does not. It’s cool inside and out with hues of red, white, blue and orange? They rock music from classics to the new stuff and the counter has displays of cupcakes stacked in covered glass cake trays. The servers are hip and pleasant and will always help you with menu choices if you get stuck.

Surprisingly the menu caters to the vegan and vegetarian crowd, so make a note. They have a great tofu breakfast sauté with diced tofu, mushrooms, spinach, green onions, tomatoes, and ginger sauteéd in a tamari sauce, served with toast. I always have the huevos rancheros — two eggs served on two corn tortillas with salsa, black beans, cheese, and guacamole. Other breakfast items to try are Swingers French toast, which is two thick slices of Challah bread (Jewish egg bread that is braided) stuffed with cream cheese and bacon topped with sauteéd seasonal fruits and nuts; and Irish oatmeal (only served until 11a.m.), a traditional shell cut oatmeal served with brown sugar and milk. For an extra charge add raisins, walnuts or fruit of the day.

Now here is Maria’s wrap-up on “crowded but worth the wait” breakfast places: Jinky’s at 1447 Second Street has inside/outside dining. Put your name on the wait list as soon as you arrive; menu is huge, has a south of the border theme and a great selection of pancakes.

Bread & Porridge at 2315 Wilshire Blvd. has inside/minimal outdoor seating. The menu is all about country cooking with a few Cajun and Greek thrown in the mix.

Sunday Farmers’ Market at 2640 Main St. has many vendors serving food some might not consider for breakfast like tamales, but they are tasty. If you’re plus one, one of you stand in the crepe line and one of you stand in the omelet line and share, it’s worth it. That’s a wrap!

MARIA ROHLOFF is a food enthusiast and one heck of a cook. She

*Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on March 13, 2008.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/031308.pdf?ref=smdp.com)