Hidden gem inside the historic old fullerton hotel, also known as Villa del Sol. Love the atmosphere of this Cafe, food options are amazing, plenty to choose from for those light or picky eaters as well as those who have a hearty appetite, a MUST VISIT! read more

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Was very disappointed with this place. 1st thing, music playing I felt like I was at a funeral. Very depressing. Secondly service was turtle pace at best. Don't come of your in a hurry. Food arrived cold and not looking good. Do not recommend and will never come again. read more

First impression was not the best. Had an odor when walking in. Definitely needs a good cleaning. Everything is dirty. The bathroom was filthy. I was skeptical eating or drinking anything because of it. Made me uncomfortable kept thinking I'd get sick. No one was smiling when we walked in. Everybody looked really down and sad. Our waiter was nice. Didn't make too much eye contact with anyone. We went ahead and ordered food because the company I was with didn't seem to bothered by the dirtiness or the unfriendliness atmosphere. I ordered the country breakfast and was not a fan of that either. Like I said, I was very hesitant to eat the food there due to how dirty it was. I could see into the kitchen from where we were sitting, and I just saw old rusty piled up dishes and pans. It looked like the place had really been neglected. I definitely will not be going there again. We did see other people that walked in that seemed like they had been there before and actually enjoyed their time. Then we saw other people walk in and had the same vibe that I did. they kind of stood there, afraid to touch anything just kind of looking around and looking at people like wow are you serious? I am sure with lots of love and a good cleaning and washing of the place would definitely have a more welcoming atmosphere and environment. Highly recommend that they get a good cleaning service in there may be some fresh paint. There was a lot of shelves in there that had nothing on it but dust and wood appeared to be dirt. All it needs is a little TLC and I'm sure the place Would be a lot better. I feel bad writing this because the lady seem to be the owner and you can tell that she was a little rundown and possibly tired, probably doing the best that she can. And I'm not trying to be mean or rude. I'm just keeping it honest. A little investment into the business would really make a big difference especially the cleaning. I think if the atmosphere was better, everybody would be a lot happier and they would get a lot more business. read more

Cannot recommend this place enough! Amazing homemade food with the nicest people. Chef came out and personally met us and talked with us. I recommend the pesto omelette. The environment is beautiful and the food was delicious. We'll be bringing family when they come to visit. read more

Amazing brunch! Food is wonderful and service superb! This place is a hidden OC gem. The outdoor patio is nice! read more

The Brownstone Cafe - Birthday Celebration - New American Near Me - Fullerton, California

wow, this place is amazing for breakfast and lunch, a mom and pops place, with amazing food, all of it is good. read more

The Brownstone Cafe - beautiful court yard... they have wedding there. - New American Near Me - Fullerton, California

The food was actually terrible. I have had better food at cafeterias in college. Very very over priced!!! The decorations looked very cheap. Although the service was good. read more

Quiet and out of the way. Private spot to meet and talk. Fantastic eggs Benedict! Friendly mom and pop style.

I feel like I'm on vacation every time I eat here. The atmosphere is beautiful, the service is so amazing, and the food is great! This is definitely my favorite place to have brunch with my family and friends. read more

What an amazing location. They have a beautiful patio with a large fountain in the center in the old Villa Del Sol building in Fullerton. You get to enjoy delicious food, a tranquil environment, and a bit of history. Now let's talk about the food and the service. The staff is so helpful and friendly, it is like eating at a friend's home. The food is prepared to perfection and the coffee is delicious. This is one of my favorite DTF spots. My puppy Sunny Loves the patio. read more

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Great food. A large variety or both breakfast and lunch items. Kim the owner is so sweet and is a lovely hostess and server. The seating outside is in a beautiful courtyard. I'm surprised not more people know if this little gem. read more

The Brownstone Cafe - Brie and preserves grilled cheese with tomato soup! - New American Near Me - Fullerton, California

We had a large birthday party here and they were very attentive, food was wonderful and came out quickly, and they made sure we were all happy. read more

OMG!!!!!! The food here is soooooo yummy. I cannot wait to return. My mother and I were in the area for a doctors appointment, and we wanted to stop somewhere for lunch. I came across this place from my smartphone. The place is a little difficult to find because the name of the restaurant is not on the building...to my knowledge. All I can say is that you need to park in the lot on Wilshire then walk down the sidewalk to Harbor and make a left. Go to a tall gate that is two doors down and look up for the number 305 above. Go through the courtyard, and the restaurant is on the right. You can eat inside or outside in their beautiful & relaxing courtyard. My mother had a grilled chicken sandwich with pasta salad, and I had a Mediterranean grilled sandwich with pasta salad, I also ordered a cup of creamy chicken and rice soup...it was so creamy, cheesy, and it had a hint of a smoky flavor. I could not get enough it. This soup was packed with chicken and rice. On our next trip we plan to visit for breakfast. It is a bit of a drive for us, but it is well worth it! Oh, and our server was very friendly. read more

Good: love the location, nice selection on menu. My preteens loved the waffles. Ok: mushroom omelet was good but a little over cooked. I dont like when the eggs are brown. It was small. Coffee was a little weak. Bad: charged me $2 more to substitute cottage cheese when I told her I don't eat potatoes. Server touched the rim of my coffee cup when serving my coffee. Took 25 min. To get our order Just stating facts. So you can decided if you will come here or not. read more

The Brownstone Cafe - Over cooked small and over priced $15 upcharge for cottage cheese - New American Near Me - Fullerton, California

Went for breakfast for the first time and the food was delicious. Coffee has opportunity for improvement very diner like, but drinkable. Had the Mediterranean Omelet, and I'd order it again. So large I couldn't eat it all, but wanted to. The potatoes it came with were tasty and cooked well. The outside courtyard was relaxing and the service felt welcoming. They even offered to move an umbrella to shade us from the sun. read more

We have been going to Brownstone's for many years for breakfast and really enjoyed the atmosphere and food. After things started to open up again, we were anxious to come back. The service wasn't as good, but we understood it takes time to get back on your feet again after being shut down, so we've hung in there. We love the patio area and they kept the coffee coming as the food was being prepared. Than came last weekend!! The servers who greeted us were clearly over their heads as to how to treat customers. Both young ladies kept walking by us saying we'll find you a table, as we stood there looking at several tables available. We finally just said to server #2, can't we just take the one with the umbrella? We got a nod of the head. We waited to be served and waited some more. Finally server #1, who kept us waiting for a table and never did come back, took our order. I ordered a "scrambled egg" dish, no potatoes with a fruit substitute. My wife ordered eggs Benedict, no potatoes with fruit substitute. While waiting at length for our food, we had to ask both waitresses for more coffee because it never came...EVER! My wife finally walked into the restaurant with my cup and asked for a coffee refill. They told her they would bring it out. She said, No, we've asked twice...just fill it here and I'll take it out." Well, we finally got our food and I got fried eggs (not scrambled) with potatoes (not fruit) and my wife got her Benedict with potatoes (not fruit) and the muffins underneath her eggs were not toasted but just taken straight out of the bag and served cold!!! I opted to eat my breakfast with the fried eggs, as I didn't want to send the whole plate back. We asked for our fruit and my wife asked for a "toasted" English muffin to place under her eggs because that's the way you eat them! After literally 5 minutes (while her eggs sat there getting cold) our waitress appeared and walked right by us. We said we're waiting for our English muffin. She coldly replied, I know. She goes back inside and after another 5 minutes she brings the muffin. I have now completely finished my breakfast and my wife is just starting. Wow, I had to look twice to see if we were at Brownstone's! We fully understand the shortage of workers and restaurants trying to do the best they can, but this was truly a very bad experience. Ownership, please know that both these individuals need extensive training on how to deal with your customers who support you. We throughly enjoy your establishment, but you need to take a serious look at how your employees are performing (servers AND cooks). Please take this constructive criticism; we care enough about your establishment to take the time to comment. All we want is Brownstone's back to the restaurant we remember. read more

Very good huevos rancheros and the French toast was unique and tasty! Highly recommend the egg dishes and the service was great. A good local spot with great environment. read more

This place was alright. We went at the end of lunch rush so we got a table fast even though it was still busy. It was close to 3 pm, which is when this place closes, so there was only one server on staff. But she wasn't busy because it was slowing down. Even though it had slowed down, our food took an extremely long time to come out and our server was scarce around our table too. She never came back to get the check so I had to walk it up to the counter to pay it. On top of that, the food was pricey for being just ok. I got the fettuccine alfredo, which was pretty good, but it was swimming in oil. More oil than the amount of bread they give you. I went here because I had an e-foodie deal, but don't feel it's worth going back. read more

The Brownstone Cafe - Fettuccine Alfredo - New American Near Me - Fullerton, California

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My boyfriend and I met the chef and the owner and they were so sweet! We had some of the best stuffed French toast ever!!! I definitely recommend coming for breakfast. The patio is so cute and located inside of a courtyard. I've also heard that the tomato soup w/ the grilled cheese is to die for. I will be coming back to try that! read more

The Brownstone Cafe - Stuffed French Toast - New American Near Me - Fullerton, California

really good service, food was not terrible but not the best. got the waffle special. expected to get a whole waffle only got half, the eggs needed salt, the bacon was hard n dry, the potatoes were good 8/10, the waffles with the syrup were alright they didnt really taste like anything. overall a 7/10. read more

When I was served my beverage it was in a dirty glass that had left over chill powder on the rim and my food order had the wrong selection of preparation on it . read more

I love brownstone but lately their service has been bad. I was sat and pretty much forgotten then my drink was brought and never came back for my order. Such a let down! read more

I went to Brownstone for breakfast yesterday (around 10:30am on a Saturday) and was less than pleased with their service. My fiancé and I were seated after the young host unprofessionally realized he hadn't seen a line of customers form. We were seated and proceeded to be ignored by a waitress who seemed way in over her head. It took 15 min to acknowledge us and take our order. She wasn't exactly friendly either while taking our order. As people came, we noticed she was taking their orders and bringing out their food before ours. 30 min went by and not once had she checked on us or updated us on the food. I finally went in and told the host we were leaving because our food hadn't come out after placing our order 30 min prior - I even explained how other tables that came way after us were already halfway through their meals - and he said "oh ok." I mean, come on, I understand if you're busy but at least acknowledge your customers and update them on the status of their order. Needless to say, I won't be dining there again. Bummer since my first time there a few years ago was a good experience. Thanks to Fullerton Brewing Co., for their amazing service and quick turnaround with orders after that letdown! read more

I highly recommend coming here for breakfast and ordering the brownstone Benedict or salmon Benedict! They were both amazing choices. So SO yummy, especially the breakfast potatoes. Can believe I've only come for lunch.. was def missing out. read more

The Brownstone Cafe - New American Near Me - Fullerton, California

Recently was able to try this wonderful restaurant for the first time. I've been wanting to try it for a while now. Let me just say it did NOT disappoint, this place is a hidden gem!! The food was so delicious, fairly priced and big portions. I absolutely loved the tranquil courtyard but more importantly Chef Glen and his wife were AMAZING!! Truly wonderful people who care about their business and their patrons. We felt very welcomed and they went above and beyond for us during our visit. Chef Glen even so kindly gave us a cup of his incredibly delicious tomato soup to go! My expectations were far exceeded. This will be our new breakfast spot, definitely worth checking out!! read more

A good friend and I came here last weekend. We ordered the grilled breakfast burrito and the cinnamon sugar pancakes. I wasn't sure what to expect, but WOW. The food was delicious. The location was beautiful and calm, and my only regret is that we didn't have more time to enjoy the spot! The staff was also really accommodating; like I said, we didn't have a ton of time to spare, so we called ahead, gave them our order and our eta, and it was ready just moments after we arrived. Super thankful to the waitresses and the kitchen staff for an incredible meal! read more

Stopped in yesterday with the sister for a late breakfast. Lovely outdoor setting with efficient service and an ample breakfast menu. I ordered the sausage and pesto omelet and was not disappointed. Fluffy eggs cooked in pesto covered in cheese. Yummy. Would recommend a week day as staff mentioned weekends get crazy busy. It was calming to sit outside sipping coffee on such a beautiful day. read more

My wife saw a post about a good place for breakfast in the Casa del Sol and went there after our morning walk. For some reason, we thought Brownstone was only open for lunch...what a pleasant surprise to find out that they were also open for breakfast. It was so pleasant eating in the courtyard, the weather was perfect. Kim (owner) was such a delight and told us that this is their (her and hubby's) 25th anniversary. The food was delicious. We will make this a regular please to come after our morning walks. read more

This is the place you want to grub at before lying on your death bed. We had a lovely breakfast on a sunny and beautiful day out on their ever so cute courtyard. Surrounded with lots of green potted plants, the place was rather serene. As recommended by the chef himself, we proceeded to order their banana foster stuffed french toast with ricotta and their mediterranean omelette feta and mozzarella on top! Amazing flavors that compliment each ingredient. I am salivating as I am writing this review now! The picture I took of both dishes definitely speaks for itself. Both plates were cleared ever so perfectly. This place rocks! read more

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Cute, clean and quaint which is why they get one star. Waited an hour to get our food only to get the order wrong! The potatoes had so much salt that it would crunch with every bite. In the hour between ordering and getting the food the staff only came by once to check in on us. Never once were we updated on wait time or reason for the unusually long delay. Only when an older more season staff woman came check in on us did we get any service - 45 minutes had past by that point. In short, poor staff attitude (generally), zero attempt at recovery after order error, and extremely long wait time for a small order. Not ever going back. read more

I am so in love with this courtyard. I wanna stand under the arches in the twilight in my shoulder-baring white dress, hair fluttering in the wind and eyes searching up and down Harbor Blvd for my handsome Spanish fighter to whisk me away. Or I could just sit down and have a bowl of their amazing tomato bisque soup. I'm not picky. read more

The Brownstone Cafe - 1/2 sandwich 1/2 soup - New American Near Me - Fullerton, California

I was going to give this place one star due to my experience the last time, however, I do like the food here and I have had pleasant experiences with other servers in the past. It's a cute and quiet ambient place a great spot for lunch in the afternoon or late breakfast which is usually what I go for. This time ,however, our server (could not get her name, middle aged white woman) seemed to be the only person in the restaurant at the time. When my boyfriend and I had first arrived there were only two other tables with people sitting at them. Several of the tables needed to be wiped down and their plates busted from them, but we ended up finding a table next to a couple who was sitting behind us. I will start with how she never gave us any silverware in fact we had found where they were stocked and got them ourselves , she seldomly came to check on whether or not there was anything we had needed, she took a very long time to even take our order, at one point it seemed that she had given me an attitude when I had asked for extra sauce on the side, and it seemed to be that she was a much more pleasant server to the couple behind us. Once the other couple had finished their meal she had promptly brought them their check, they paid, they left. By this time she came by to take only my boyfriend's plate from the table (I'm not sure if she didn't know whether or not I was finished but she never came back) we waited for her to come back to clear our table and asked if we wanted anything else or to ask if we would like our check. I shit you not we literally sat at that table for over 20 minutes. We went up to the front counter two different times and even yelled ,"excuse me" for some assistance. I also had not mentioned that I had to be back on campus at 1 p.m. and it was now 12:35. Being that we were planning on paying by card we honestly almost considered walking out ,and we would have had she not come back out at that last minute. She eventually came back and asked if we wanted our check and after we told her that we were kind of in a hurry she came back out with it and that was the end. As we left tables were still completely dirty with old plates and glasses on them and the overall experience just felt incredibly unprofessional. I have had plenty of experience in the service industry and if I would have pulled any of the same crap that that server had my manager would have had my ass. Anyway I know this was a long review but hopefully this doesn't happen to anybody else that attends the restaurant. Edit: after reviewing many of these other comments I would say avoid this restaurant altogether. Let them reform their service training entirely first. read more

I've been hearing about this place for months from my culinary genius mother, so I figured I had to try it. I loved the ambiance. Indoor seating is cozy with lots of smaller tables and one or two bigger ones. Outdoor seating in a lush garden courtyard with a beautiful fountain. Our server was a total sweetheart and even let us order from the breakfast menu after breakfast hours had just finished. We all loved our meals, I had the Mediterranean omlette which was fluffy and moist at the same time...which is hard to achieve in my omlette-making experience. A couple of the guys had the sausage pesto omlette which they raved about. And a couple others ordered the strawberry French toast which looked amazing. Coffee served was delicious, I'm pretty sure it was Gavina. Can't wait to go back! read more

The Brownstone Cafe - Mediterranean omelet...scrumptious! - New American Near Me - Fullerton, California

We threw a baby shower for my friend here, and when we got there everything was all setup for us in the courtyard. The service was really top notch. The owner kept chatting with us and the poor waitress kept running back and forth for our water, utensils, etc. with a smile on her face! It was a warm, sunny day and perfect for a 15-ppl or less bridal shower. I order a half salad/half soup combo for $11. I got the tri-tip salad and the tomato bisque soup. The portion was a good-size, but I was really disappointed in the quality of my salad. It was basically some mixed greens with really DRY and chewy tri-tip on top. The dressing also wasn't very good. The tomato bisque was good, but extremely cheesy and creamy. I found a lot of chunky cheese on the bottom of my soup, and I would have preferred it if it was smoothly blended in... but maybe this is just my preference. The flavor was good though. It came with 2 baguette slices, which I used to dip into my soup. The problem with the food was they kept mixing up our orders! I was the last one to get my food and it took forever. When it finally came out she accidentally brought me a tri-tip sandwich. So she had to go back and get a new order in and I had to wait some more. A few other orders at our table were wrong as well. All in all a decent place for girls to hangout. The courtyard ambiance is really great, but if you're looking for some delicious food I would recommend you go elsewhere. read more

Stopped by just passing through town. This was the closest breakfast spot to us. Outdoor seating is nice in a courtyard with healthy plants all around. The service is nice and relaxed. The food was just ok though. I was a little bummed when they served sliced deli ham on top of my Benedict. The potatoes were slightly dried out from a warmer. I ate all my half still. read more

The Brownstone Cafe - New American Near Me - Fullerton, California

Originally we weren't planning on coming here, but everywhere else was packed so we decided to try it out. There's a stand outside that says to wait there to be seated, but no one ever came so finally I went inside to find someone. We ended up sitting outside which was nice because today is a beautiful day in Fullerton. What we ordered: - famous tomato basil bisque ($4): tasted like any other tomato basil bisque to us - roast beef panini ($10): actually pretty tasty compared to everything else we got! - spinach apple walnut & chicken salad ($12): NOT what I was hoping for. They ran out of walnuts so they gave me almonds instead. The chicken was extremely dry and not so tasty so I didn't eat any of it. -hot chocolate ($3): very large cup which was nice, but tasted like any normal Swiss miss type of store brand. Nothing special. Over all a cute place to sit and the staff was nice, but the foods was mediocre and way over priced for the quality. Will not be coming back any time soon. read more

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I've eaten here twice, once for breakfast and once for lunch. The cafe is located in the Villa del Sol so the atmosphere is really charming and quiet. It's great for a business meal or for a couple of friends to catch up on life. I had the country breakfast burrito and it was delicious! Perfect. Just perfect. For lunch I had the Matt's Special sandwich (apples, avocado, brie, balsamic vinegar on squaw) with a cup of soup. The sandwich was was surprisingly good. I would have never guessed that apples and vinegar would go together well, especially in a sandwich. The brie is what made everything go together perfectly. I can't wait to go back so I can have it again. The soup was pretty good, but was served only slightly warmer than room temperature. Call me strange, but I like my soup hot. The service was okay, but inconsistent. When we ate there the first time, we sat in the court yard and it took a while for our server to come around and check on us, but she was friendly. The second time I ate here I sat inside and my drink cup never got more than halfway empty and the server was super nice, even suggesting I could order a half sandwich for my meal if I wanted. So, the experience there wasn't perfect, but it was mostly positive so I'll be returning, for sure. read more

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This is my 3rd time eating at The Brownstone Cafe. The service has been AWFUL every single time. The only reason we gave it another shot was because the wait at Rialto was 40 minutes. I'd imagine that's why they stay in business. We had to ask to be seated, ask for drinks, ask for a coffee refill, ask to order, ask for silverware and ask for the check. The food was okay. Not great. I will NEVER eat here again. read more

The Brownstone Cafe - New American Near Me - Fullerton, California

I'd say the best part of this place is probably the setting. The outdoor patio next to the fountain is a serene place to enjoy a meal and company on a nice SoCal morning. I came on a November Sunday so it was gorgeous as usual. In the fall, I love all things pumpkin. I'm not a big breakfast person, so I wasn't that hungry. I ordered a pumpkin spice coffee and a bowl of pumpkin oatmeal. The coffee tasted more like tea. It was tasty and new to me, but not really up my alley. The oatmeal was a little bland. I didn't care to finish it. Someone came by to refill my Dad's coffee, and poured regular coffee into my cup as well without asking, then ran off. I had to get someone else to come replace it since I had a pumpkin spice. Kind of frustrating. There were also a couple long spurts where we didn't see anyone to help us. If you want to enjoy a beautiful Sunday morning in a courtyard, you don't need to eat at this place to do so. Pass. read more

When any establishment claims to be the home of anything, I'm immediately skeptical. To be that confident means one must have experienced many varieties of what they're laying claim to, which I highly doubt many do. Well, this cafe/restaurant not only claims but publishes on their business card that they are the "Home of the Famous Tomatoe Basil Bisque Soup!" Yes, they spelled tomato with an "e". Suddenly I was having flashbacks of the Dan Quayle "potatoe" mishap. Regardless, I was still excited to try their "famous" soup and decide whether their tomato bisque beats my all time favorite from a little chain restaurant called 4 Bs in Montana. Verdict: Underwhelmed. The consistency of the soup was a bit watery for my taste and it lacked the spiciness of what tomato bisque has to offer. The half chicken salad sandwich on a croissant was mediocre at best. The bits of chicken was drenched in mayo and the croissant tasted stale. If you want to enjoy a decent chicken salad, I suggest Cafe Verde in Pasadena, but more on that later. The only redeeming factor about this place is that it was tucked away inside a Spanish style building where you enter through wrought iron gates. It was a nice little hideaway and I was able to get some reading done which is always enjoyable. read more