To many, including myself, picking a breakfast restaurant is a serious matter. Making sure there is something for everyone on the menu is crucial but the restaurant being aesthetically pleasing is a big plus, too. Sometimes you want a cute spot with light bites and other times, you’re craving a breakfast of champions. Luckily, the Daytona Beach area has all sorts of breakfast spots, including those offering a classic American breakfast as well as a not-so-typical morning dish. Below is a list of some of the best restaurants and diners in Volusia and Flagler counties for the most important meal of the day.
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317 Seabreeze Blvd., Daytona Beach; 386-310-8512, theredbud.cafe
Red Bud Cafe, located in the Seabreeze Historic District of Daytona Beach, has recently been the talk of the town after ranking No. 13 on the Yelp Top 100 Florida Restaurants list. To see if the food lives up to the Yelp reviews, I went for breakfast and ordered a crepe, along with the avocado toast.
At first, I was skeptical of the avocado toast just because I am never overly impressed with this dish; but Red Bud’s avocado toast made me rethink. The Italian bread was sliced thinly and grilled, making it crunchy, and was topped with finely cut avocados, tomatoes, and my favorite part, chimichurri, an uncooked sauce made of chopped herbs. The simple dish was full of bold flavors and freshness and was nowhere near a boring breakfast. As for the crepe, it was huge yet light and stuffed with turkey, scrambled eggs, cheese and sauteed onions and peppers. The delicate but packed crepe was a perfect dish for those looking for an alternative to a comfort-style breakfast.
The charming cafe is family-run and offers dishes fusing cuisines from their native Yugoslavia along with Italy, Australia and the U.S., with a variety of coffee selections, desserts and more. Red Bud Cafe is open every day but Monday from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.
749 E. Third Ave. and 306 N. Causeway, New Smyrna Beach; 386-410-4719, facebook.com/Wake-Up-Caf
Wake Up Cafe offers a pair of hidden gem breakfast spots in New Smyrna Beach. With colorful mix and match decorations, one would have no idea the cozy spot I visited in a strip mall on East Third Avenue would serve breakfast differently than anywhere else. To my surprise, though, this Argentine-inspired restaurant offers large breakfast dishes full of interesting flavors.
The menu has numerous non-traditional breakfast items, such as the chorizo skillet. The homestyle potato bowl is topped with crumbled chorizo shipped from Argentina. This pork sausage is seasoned well but is less spicy and has a stronger garlic flavor than classic chorizo. On top of the potatoes sit the manchego cheese, loads of rustic-cut
sauteed peppers and onions, and two eggs, your style. The chorizo skillet bowl is a perfect dish for those looking for a more lunch-like breakfast full of hardy veggies.
But, the spin on classic French toast is something everyone will enjoy. The sweet and salty French toast is simply delicious. The thick, Texas-style French toast is served as a sandwich with ham and American cheese and finished with powdered sugar. In disbelief that those few items created an umami flavor, I asked the server if that really all that goes into this dish, and the answer was yes.
Among the sides, there are the butter grits, which I recommend getting with the pisto manchego. Also known as Spanish ratatouille, pisto manchego is a combination of cooked-down savory tomatoes, eggplant, bell peppers, squash, onions, garlic and manchego cheese that tastes so good I forgot to eat it with the grits. Other menu dishes include panko-breaded chicken and waffles, and breakfast sandwiches, just to name a few. Wake Up Cafe is open every day from 7 a.m. – 2 p.m.
1382 Howland Blvd., Deltona; 386-259-5729, cockyroostercafe.com
The Cocky Rooster Cafe in Deltona may have cocky dishes but is welcoming with a restaurant diner decor displayed as if your grandma had a thing for rooster figures (was that just me?). The strip mall cafe serves breakfast and lunch daily from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. and has classic dishes such as omelets, eggs Benedict and the traditional egg plate with meat and hash browns. The restaurant also offers creative dishes fusing lunch and breakfast like I’ve never seen before, cocky if you ask me.
These plates include the “chicken and the egg” with Parmesan-crusted chicken topped with white gravy, fried eggs and potatoes or grits. Another fun dish has panko-fried eggplant with sausage gravy and eggs sunny side up. However, our server recommended an off-the-menu item called the “B street sandwich.” This breakfast sandwich was the classic bacon, egg and cheese but had a garlic aioli and pressed soft buttery bread that had the slightest crunch to it. A sandwich so traditional, but when done right can top any fancy breakfast option.
For those that rather have a sweet first meal of the day, the banana foster French toast, hands down, is the best sugary treat you can get. Cocky Rooster takes a cinnamon bun, transforms it into French toast, and fills it with custard and bananas that are drizzled in pecan crumble maple syrup and topped with lots of whipped cream. Curing any sweet tooth, this so-called breakfast plate is what I now expect anytime I want French toast, and no, it is not too rich: I finished my whole plate. It doesn’t seem like you can order wrong at the Cocky Rooster Cafe, and I guess that’s how they earned their cocky title.
215 Highway A1A, Flagler Beach; 386-439-0011, funkypelican.com
Funky Pelican in Flagler Beach has the ideal beach brunch aesthetic we all know and love. Something about eating a light breakfast with a view of the ocean makes you feel at peace but ready to have fun. Located at the base of the Flagler Beach Fishing Pier, the restaurant serves breakfast from 9 to 11 a.m.
The restaurant offers a smaller breakfast menu but still has all the favorites such as pancakes, French toast, Benedicts and omelets. Funkier options include the breakfast flatbread with sausage gravy, cheese, scrambled eggs and your choice of meat with drizzles of sriracha and hollandaise. This was an addicting flatbread, and perfect for those who wanted pizza but ended up at brunch.
If you’re craving tacos, you’re also in luck. The breakfast tacos come in twos or threes with the classic bacon, egg and cheese; or vegetarian style with scrambled eggs, cheese, sauteed mushrooms, onions, spinach and peppers. Both tacos are topped with pico de gallo and sriracha, but I would’ve preferred mine covered with a nice layer of salsa.
For those wanting to get funky at breakfast, they have mimosas, poinsettias (cranberry champagne cocktails) and bloody Marys; and for those wishing to get extra funky, there’s the Funky Pelican cocktail containing a potent-sounding mix of coconut rum, dark rum, banana liquor, orange and pineapple juice. Funky Pelican is an ideal place to take the girls for drinks and breakfast, especially before visiting all those cute shops and boutiques lining A1A.
4154 S. Atlantic Ave., New Smyrna Beach; 386-423-6656, thebakerstablensb.com
The Baker’s Table, a cozy Americanized French bistro, offers a small breakfast menu with big flavors during brunch Friday through Sunday until 2:30 p.m. The restaurant is tucked into the corner of a strip mall right by the beach for those wanting a bite before a day of sun and sand.
Baker’s Table has options such as a warm goat cheese tart with caramelized onions, walnuts, truffle honey and apple relish. This decadent dish is sweet and savory, making it a perfect breakfast appetizer. The restaurant offered an eggs Benedict dish but I went with the smoked salmon latkes. These Jewish potato pancakes were paired with scallion cream cheese, capers, spring mix, finely chopped red onions and smoked salmon so fresh the subtle smoky flavor dances on your tongue seconds after swallowing. This light dish is perfect for those not wanting to overeat before heading to the beach.
Being from New Orleans, I had to try the shrimp and grits. Baker’s Table puts a spin on the classic Big Easy dish by chopping the shrimp and adding chorizo. Overall good efforts for a dish that is surprisingly hard to master. Not until after I left did I notice I didn’t have a single egg with my breakfast. Sometimes, a non-traditional breakfast is what we need when feeling tired of the classic scrambled eggs and bacon duo.
Caroline Hebert, The Daytona Beach News-Journal’s restaurant and dining writer, can be contacted at [email protected]. Support local journalism by subscribing.
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