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    Pipes Cafe

    4.4 (716 reviews)
    Closed 7:00 am - 2:00 pm

    Pipes Cafe Photos

    Business Info

    PIPES CAFE ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Casual
    Moderate noise
    Good for kids
    Outdoor seating

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    Recommended Reviews - Pipes Cafe

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    Outside seating area!
    Phil R.

    Always a must stop when in the area... can't go wrong with scrambled eggs, fantastic home style potatoes with a bit of shredded sharp cheese, and toast!!! Usually a line so come prepared for a small wait... and definitely worth it!! Love the outside seating and local vibe! If you are in the mood... the pancakes are "to die for"!!!! Breakfast burrito as a grab and go is a great option too!! The picture of the the little plate is from 2018 and my visit in 9/5/2025 looked nearly identical... that's amazing consistency! Give these guys a shot. You won't be disappointed!

    Seairra D.

    I love this spot! I've walked past it several times and always see the outside seating completely full in the mornings so I had a feeling it was going to be a good spot! I work in the neighborhood and decided to give a try one morning. I got the breakfast sandwich and it was so good! I also stop in there for coffee sometimes - the barista is always so nice even though he stays very busy. I love supporting a local establishment rather than a chain like Starbucks.

    Local legend..... cool spot
    Peter I.

    Sort of a Cardiff legend place known mostly for their breakfasts, so I think I shocked them when I read the burger was good so it was lunchtime. I want burger and thank you Yelp. It was a good burger. Basic but great bun and really good beef patty. Nice big deck pretty day. Great service can't wait to go and try breakfast cause it looked. Epic.

    Three Eggs Tacos
    Nell C.

    Long time North County residents, we have only come to Pipes once before many years ago. The long lines deter us from dining but today we took a chance. Parking is always a challenge but if you park further north along San Elijo you can get a short walk and by the time you got to Pipes, you have worked up an appetite! Many customers favorites marked by a hibiscus flower on the menu. We went with the 3 Egg Tacos and BLT&A! Great choices and very tasty. Indoor atmosphere and patio space is very relaxed and dog friendly. Host and service is very friendly. Skinny Latte was just enough of a pick me up for a Sunday morning! The Ice Tea was amazing, full of passion fruit taste. Love it!

    Souvenirs
    Danielle B.

    Me, the hubby and our friends were visiting the San Diego area and on our way we were looking for a good breakfast spot and saw Pipes had great reviews on Yelp. We were able to find a parking spot right in front. The vibes of the restaurant are a good mix of surfer SoCal / Hawaiian laid back vibes. The hubby and I decided to share the Big breakfast with French toast ($15.75) and I ordered an orange and spice tea while the hubby had a coffee. Our breakfast was delicious and it was more than enough for both of us to share. The staff was very friendly. I wish this place was closer to where we live but we will definitely be back when we come to visit!

    #2 Breakfast Burrito no cheese add avocado
    Anola S.

    This place is a staple. Huge portions for an epic price. Staff always so happy and are so FAST! Love sitting on the patio while enjoying my massive breakfast burritos. One of the best breakfast burritos in north county (although they are very potato-ey HOWEVER they are cooked and seasoned perfectly so I'm not mad.) Ordered the #2 breakfast burrito no cheese add avocado. Bacon is cooked perfectly. Tortilla is fresh and warm. Proper amounts of all ingredients (besides the avocado, I'd like a little more plz! ) also did they change their salsa?! It's not bland pico anymore and it has a nice chipotle spice! I'm in love! Let me move in so I can eat here for every meal

    The patio
    Jon K.

    Just as advertised. Laid back atmosphere, nice patio, great friendly staff and good food. We had breakfast tacos and a ham scramble. The three tacos were very good but too much food for my wife. The ham scramble with cheesy potatoes and English muffin was very tasty. Again lots of food, this is a must visit gain and again.

    Pancakes, scrambled eggs with cheese, bacon
    Brenda S.

    This is a Cardiff staple. Such a great spot for coffee and breakfast. Definitely a locals spot, everyone knows everyone and is so friendly. The food is good, not bad. But not the best thing I've ever had. Just a simple generic breakfast place. I'd say it's the location and vibes that get people to really keep coming back. Ocean front view, Southern California weather in the cutest town.

    #1 Burrito add potato
    Sydni S.

    I love Pipes Cafe, it's one of my favorite spots to get a breakfast burrito in San Diego! I love that they have different burrito options so you can mix up what you order each time. I also love their salsa, it's not super spicy but it has a nice peppery flavor that pairs well with breakfast foods. The food is always ready pretty fast, despite being busy. Even though there's almost always a crowd I can normally snag a seat on their patio which is the perfect spot to eat on a nice day.

    Gary H.

    This is our first time as locals coming here and we were pleasantly surprised. It was packed with people but seemed that by the time we booked our order, tables opened up. The food was delicious and ample! We both orders scramblers and this is probably the first time I could not finish my meal. Overall clean place, great food, fair price, and fast service! My daughter wants me to post that the "bacon is great!"

    Coffee bar menu
    Sara B.

    Love this place. When I'm in this area I always come by. They have great food. I usually get a breakfast burrito. I've heard their cheeseburgers are amazing but I don't eat beef so I don't know. I ordered the tuna sandwich with lettuce added and it was tasty and filling. The service is friendly. It's a small surf shop vibe inside. There's an outdoor patio to catch some sunshine while you eat. They also have a coffee bar with a ton of choices. I definitely recommend you check it out. They also have cool merch. I may grab a hat for myself on the way out.

    Bacon egg and cheese burrito
    Cora S.

    Food was overwhelming. They give you a lot. Neither one of could finish our breakfast. Hubby had veggie scramble. I had bacon, egg, and cheese burrito. Service was quick and friendly for such a busy place. Had to wait a few minutes for a table on the patio to open. Pet and kid friendly. Definitely has a beach vibe.

    a table with a basket of food on it
    Justin S.

    Great local breakfast spot recommended by my Airbnb hosts. That was one of the biggest breakfast burritos I've had in a long time. And delicious too! I skipped lunch lol. Friendly people and a fun space with surfer decor. Lots of locals. The coffee was just ok. Everything else was amazing!

    Egg scramble

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    9 months ago

    Great scramble. Great people. Great patio. I've never had anything but great experiences here. Love it!

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    9 months ago

    A classic much try breakfast spot, they have been here for so long and built a great reputation. Love the staff here

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    6 months ago

    Bad food. Bad parking. Service is fine. Can't figure out for the life of me why it's highly rated outside of nostalgia

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    1 year ago

    Super service, delicious burritos, amazing view! This is a must in Cardiff. Parking was tough but totally worth it.

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    Page 1 of 18

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    Waverly

    Waverly

    4.3
    (1.1k reviews)
    0.1 mi
    $$

    What a cute little restaurant & bar! My husband and daughter treated me for Mother's Day lunch and…read morewhat a great time. The decor and ambiance really made the lunch enjoyable and relaxing. But let's talk about the food. I had the Baja Rice Bowl and it was than I expected from a grain bowl. Ingredients were fresh, perfect portions, and not overdone. The shrimp added great texture and was definitely needed. For a beverage, I went with the Bodega Boy. Even with mezcal being smoky in nature, the lime and mango really made it refreshing. For my dessert, the butterscotch pudding was a must have. It wasn't what I was expecting but what much better. It was decadent and if I could, I would have ordered probably 2 more. Just a heads up, there is a time limit for parking in the shopping center (can't remember if it's 1.5 hours or 2 hours), but was plenty of time to grab lunch and a beer next door.

    My boyfriend and I visited Waverly for the first time Sunday, June 14th, for brunch, with a…read morereservation. I had called earlier that week inquiring about a corkage fee, as well as if there were any brunch drink/mimosa specials (like a bottle w juice type thing most brunch restaurants do on weekends). I was so discouraged by the hostess I almost cancelled my reservation. I purposely made sure to call at an "off time" so as to not be disruptive, and the best answer I got was "ummmm i think the corkage is $25." And to the mimosa question, "yeah I mean, we don't do bottomless but we have mimosas and I think we have a bottle special." So unhelpful- if she didn't know, she should confirm. I believe it was the same hostess when we dined, who, because we ended up seated right next to the dj (more minus points, who wants to be seated there, let alone when he is setting up, and while we made a reservation and were celebrating his birthday), moved us to outside at the front and we could see on her phone texting more than once. So, we sit. Taylor starts our order (very nice!), and we ask about drink specials, she cites of course we can have a bottle of mimosas. But there are no specials. So the bottle of prosecco is $63 plus $5 for orange juice. INSANE. But again, this is why I had called. Had the hostess shared there was nothing offered other than what was online, we coulda brought our own and paid corkage. Since we were led to believe otherwise, we had no alcohol and instead just had coffee. Cue Miles: he took over for Taylor almost immediately. He was AMAZING! So nice, so helpful, really accommodating and just the right amount of suggestions and check ins. Truly, amazing. As was the food. We had the ricotta, the french toast, and the Benedict. All were great. And great prices for the food too. The coffee came out lukewarm and had apparently been brewed quite awhile ago but Miles was happy to bring out fresh. I had put on the reservation that it was a birthday, and Taylor had asked if we were celebrating anything, and I told her it was my boyfriend's birthday, to which she eagerly explained they love celebrating birthdays at Waverly. Imagine my surprise when ultimately it was not again acknowledged or celebrated in any way. Perhaps because Miles took over for Taylor, but if it's on the reservation, you'd think I wouldn't have to address it again, much less multiple times. All in all, a very mixed review- there were some exceptional pieces of our experience (Miles, Taylor briefly, and the actual food), but there were a lot of misses too. Super disappointing that this was a birthday brunch because the misses really impacted the experience.

    Photos
    Cute decor!
    Cute decor!
    Avocado Toast
    Avocado Toast
    Bloody Mary

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    Bloody Mary
    The Cottage

    The Cottage

    4.0
    (240 reviews)
    2.3 mi
    $$

    I'd like to first, thank the owner Jason for the beautiful gift of his famous granola…read more Now, onto the restaurant. I now understand why the cottage is so busy all the time. My first Takeaway is if you have children and you wanna go have a nice meal in a great vibe... This is the spot. Outside patio, gorgeous, inside tables equally pretty, and so easy to sit and enjoy. This was our first time at the cottage and we were lucky enough to have the very lovely energetic Tiffany as our server. The menu is very big and there's a lot to choose from so we decided to stay simple and see what we think. I had the buttermilk pancakes, which were delicious and huge, but you can get them either two or three, nice to know. Deborah got the eggs Benedict classic and she liked it and she also had a mimosa and of course loved it. It will certainly be on our list of brunch spots or lunch because we're in that neighborhood quite a bit. Thank you, Jason and Tiffany.

    So good. I loved both my brunch and my friend's…read more I had a roasted veggie egg white omelette with a delicious fresh scone and potatoes. My friend had the Chile Lime Shrimp Bowl. My tea was also delicious. Service was friendly and professional. The restaurant is really cute and well laid out, from the interior to the patio seating. I'm looking forward to having brunch here again.

    Photos
    Indoor Seats
    Indoor Seats
    Chile Lime Shrimp Bowl
    Chile Lime Shrimp Bowl
    BEES KNEES espresso, honey, cardamom, almond milk shaken drink

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    BEES KNEES espresso, honey, cardamom, almond milk shaken drink

    Pipes Cafe - tradamerican - Updated July 2026

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