Penguin Cafe is a hidden gem family-friendly breakfast place in Laguna Beach where you’ll find many locals inside eager to enjoy some home style cooking in a diner setting. It’s one of our favorite places to enjoy a breakfast as a family.
Anytime anyone asks for recommendations for a low-key breakfast that is kid-friendly, I always refer them to Penguin Cafe!
Penguin Cafe Hours and Location
Penguin Cafe in Laguna Beach is open everyday from 7 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Breakfast is served all day. In addition to breakfast/brunch, you can also get a delicious lunch. Penguin Cafe serves sandwiches, burgers, soups, salads and more, in addition to a variety of breakfast food! We like to go for breakfast because it’s so goooooooooooood. It’s called Penguin Cafe now, but did you know that its original name was “The Penguin Malt Shop?” FUN FACT. Penguin Cafe served vanilla floats and iced drinks back in the day!
Penguin Cafe is located at 981 S. Coast Hwy, Laguna Beach.
Located right on PCH, Penguin Cafe offers the perfect vibe for families—and has for over 50 years! My daughter just lights up whenever we mention that we’re going to Penguin Cafe. From the cute penguin decor, to the old vintage-style diner, this place is the cutest.
Right when you arrive, the first thing you need to do is put your name in the running for a table! There is a clipboard outside, you can take it upon yourself to add your name and simply wait for the golden ticket inside—which is a member of the wait staff calling you in because there is a table that is ready for you!
Our first order of business is always coffee (and milk for our little one), and Penguin Cafe in Laguna Beach always keeps it flowing! The best part, is it comes piping hot and freshly made straight from a coffee pot—remember those?? Yep, they use those and it’s rad.
My go-to item is the breakfast burrito, which I talked about in my laguna beach breakfast burrito round up. My daughter absolutely loves the “pan-capes” (pancakes). My husband is our experimenter and tries a variety of things when we go! Don’t forget to check out the specials that they post on a whiteboard in the back of the place!
What’s the Wait Time Like at Penguin Cafe on a Weekend?
We usually visit Penguin Cafe on Saturday mornings! Since it’s first come, first serve, it’s always better to arrive early…however, we stopped by around 9:30am-10am a few weekends ago and we were seated in a booth within 10-15 minutes!
The waiting area is just right outside the doors where there is a bench with reading material (newspapers and city guides). You don’t want to stray too far away, because their turnaround time is fairly quick!
Seating is tight – if you’re with one other person, you can sit at the counter or a two top near the front entrance. If you’re in a group, the booths and the tables can seat 4 or more. If you have a large party, you may end up waiting a while for tables to clear out, so keep that in mind. They usually move a few tables together that are next to each other to accommodate larger parties.
Parking at Penguin Cafe
If you’re lucky enough to get there early, there is a very small parking lot behind Penguin Cafe. It’s free to park there. If not, there is ample side street parking but you have to pay the meter. Oftentimes we are able to find parking easily. If it’s a nice morning, we also sometimes take the Free Laguna Beach Trolley!
What’s the Food Like at Penguin Cafe?
The food at Penguin Cafe can be described as home-style cooking. The kitchen is small, but they serve up delicious meals that make you feel like you’re right at home! WIth a small kitchen, the food actually still comes out fairly quick—So that’s a good thing to know (especially if you have smaller children…).
From traditional breakfast like eggs, bacon and sausage, to omelettes, french toast, breakfast sandwiches and more! You want it, they probably have it! There are also some vegan options on the menu.
Beverages and Service
Coffee, tea, milk and juice is all that you’ll find at Penguin Cafe. So don’t visit Penguin Cafe if you’re looking for a mimosa or bloody mary! Speaking of coffee, the coffee at Penguin Cafe is strong and hot.
The best part about the coffee? When you need coffee, you’ll be refilled almost immediately! Hallelujah!
Overall, the service is great! Our Penguin Cafe servers are always friendly and fast. We always a great experience!
While you’re at Penguin Cafe, you can’t forget to check out all the penguin decor! It’s not overbearing but it’s still cool to see the artwork, figurines, and other creative items that are penguin themed.
We like to look for and find the penguins throughout Penguin Cafe! It makes it fun for the kids, and it also makes a conversation starter with the servers. Sometimes they know the story behind some of the things in there!
If you sit in the counter area, make sure you look closely at all the photographs. All throughout, you’ll find old photographs of Penguin Cafe in the early days and up until today! I loooooove seeing old photos of the cafe.
Next time you’re in search of one of the best laguna beach restaurants with a non-fancy home-style breakfast, head to Penguin Cafe! Its backyard is the ocean, so when you’re done with your meal, be sure to walk down and see the water!
After you’re done checking out the ocean, you’re perfectly placed in Laguna Beach’s HIP District! The HIP District is an awesome area where you can shop, check out art galleries, grab some coffee, and explore a variety of different places! Penguin Cafe is the perfect starting point for your day and allows you an awesome location to explore Laguna Beach afterwards.
If you check out Penguin Cafe, one of my favorite laguna beach restaurants, come back and let me know what you think & don’t forget to stay up to date with Penguin Cafe on Instagram!
The next time I’m in Laguna Beach we are certainly visiting, It looks like fun for the whole family.
If I had a child and lived in the area I would definitely bring it, but not only for him, for the whole family … I believe that it favors communication and family creativity the environment.
We’re just down the freeway in San Diego- I am def. going to add this to our road trip list!!