A shoulder-high morning at First Point Malibu: perfect conditions…to precede a post-surf breakfast burrito.
Editor’s Note: This feature is presented by our partners at Visit California.
You’re wet, tired, and absolutely gassed. You just put in a few hours at your local break. Maybe you’re buzzing from a handful of excellent waves…or… maybe you were just out there for a while, paddling around frustratedly missing wave after wave. Hey, we’ve all been there. No judgment.
Regardless, of how your session went, it’s over, and it’s time to eat. At this phase, there are only two words that could possibly be on your mind: breakfast burrito.
Now, breakfast burritos are quite possibly the perfect meal, and surfers know a thing or two about ’em. What other hand-held food mechanism delivers the perfect balance of protein, carbs, veggies (sometimes), and fat wrapped up in a vessel of corn or flour? We don’t think an alternative exists.
In the spirit of The Inertia’s new series, Power Trip: A Radical Four-Wheel Adventure Through The Golden State, presented by Visit California, we wanted to take on the ambitious task of assembling a list of our favorite breakfast burritos from San Diego to Los Angeles.
Now, there were two main criteria that we used when evaluating locations to make this list. One: the salt and savoriness should be maxed off the charts. Two: the distance from relevant surf breaks must be minimal. We can’t pretend to have wolfed down every single breakfast burrito from Los Angeles to Mexico, but we’re confident we’ve sampled more than most, especially in the context of post-surf needs.
Without further ado, towel off your sandy feet, throw your wet wetsuit in the trunk, fire up the engine, and get off the lot. It’s time for a post-surf burrito.
Like our road trip, our burrito journey starts in the coastal village of La Jolla.
The Taco Stand | La Jolla, California
Too often, there’s a line out the door at The Taco Stand. It might be enough to discourage a visit. When you’re craving a post-surf meal, that’s totally understandable. But…if you happen upon The Taco Stand without a line or you’ve got time to kill after a wiggle at Windansea or any number of nearby gems, it’s well worth the wait. And…we realize we already broke our rule here by encouraging non-breaky burritos, but a taco or Al Pastor burrito here will supply a nearly identical level of satisfaction and deserves a mention.
West Toast Cafe | San Clemente, California
It’s hard to beat eating A+ food on the beach. Not near the beach. Or overlooking the beach. Nay, on the sand. With a primo location directly in front of T-Street, an iconic wave that nurtured many of San Clemente’s greatest surfers, West Toast Cafe could have mailed it in like so many beachside restaurants who maximize prices and minimize attention to detail on account of their location, location, location. They did not bite that apple. Instead, West Toast Cafe serves up a perfectly sized breakfast burrito (not football-sized, but not withholding, either) with perfectly melted cheese, bacon, thoughtfully fluffed eggs, and a perfect potato crunch for texture. Eat this while wearing your wet wetsuit between sets. Then get back in the water. Which is ten yards away.
Looking eastbound down the famous Huntington Pier.
Sancho’s Tacos | Huntington Beach, California
Okay, so there are seven Sancho’s Tacos locations. But visiting the location on the landside of PCH after surfing Huntington Beach Pier or Goldenwest just feels special. Still soaking wet with memories of a few Huntington Hops, it’s hard to beat the Surf and Turf Burrito featuring angus tri tip, sautéed shrimp, and the perfect combo of cheddar jack, pico de gallo, sour cream, and cabbage.
Fish 101 | Encinitas, California
A North County staple, go with what you’d expect Fish 101 to do right: the Grilled Mahi Burrito. We realize this is another a departure from the eggs, bacon, cheese archetype, but there are moments to color outside the lines. After banking a few waves at Beacons or nearby Cardiff, this is one of those times.
Perfecting a burritos’ ingredient ratios is a real thing.
Brother’s Burritos | Hermosa Beach, California
According to The Inertia Social Editor and decade-plus long Hermosa Beach resident, Juan Hernandez, Brother’s Burritos offers “the picture perfect dawn patrol and breakfast burrito the second you get out of the water. You could almost throw a football from the Hermosa Pier lineup to that place. And they’re SO good.”
A post-surf burrito from Senior G’s, enjoyed how it should be: on the hood of a car.
Senor G’s | Playa del Rey
El Porto Surfers, we got you. While El Porto might consistently gather America’s most eclectic group of Angeleno surfers and serve as Los Angeles’ most consistently disappointing wave, a quick drive north to Playa del Rey reveals a sneaky pit stop at Senor G’s Fresh and Healthy Mexican Food on the wetlands side of Culver Boulevard. The team at Senor G’s lives up to their name, cranking out fresh and healthy food (and juices!), and you can’t go wrong with the Jason Burrito: a delicious mash consisting of an over-easy egg, carne asada, cheese, and chilaquile sauce.
Holy Guacamole | Santa Monica
A few blocks from the water, you’ll find Holy Guacamole on the west side of Main Street in Santa Monica. It’s a convenient stop for anyone headed northbound after surfing Venice Pier, or southbound after stealing a few peaks around Bay Street. They’ve got 10+ breakfast burritos on the menu; we like the Richie… the mole sauce sets it apart.
Country Kitchen | Malibu, California
After navigating the madness of the lineup at Malibu, you’re famished. Your patience evaporated. Food is the solution. While getting photographed by paparazzi while dropping a few hundred dollars at nearby Nobu might be tempting (sarcasm), you can scoot a few miles south and vigilantly hook a left into the sneaky Country Kitchen. You will be glad you did. Their bacon, potato, egg, and cheese burrito is five stars. It’s a Malibu staple that’s absolutely worth a stop.
First and second point lining up on a Malibu morning. If you connect a ride just right you’ll pop right out at your car-park, and you’re minutes away from an A+ breakfast burrito.
Now, we know this list is not all-encompassing. We would be remiss not to acknowledge that there are egregious, possibly unforgivable omissions. We know we might have missed that hole in the wall that melts the cheese just perfectly over fluffy eggs, and for that we’re sorry.
The quest for the perfect breakfast burrito is an endless pursuit. So, in that spirit, please send through any local staples that we missed. Sharing is caring, and we intend to make updates to keep you stoked and well-fed.
