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On the topic of diners, here’s one of my favorites — Rae’s in Santa Monica. I first came here with a friend who has been dining here for years — decades maybe — and he swears by the breakfast here. The first time he brought me here he was a little afraid that I wasn’t into this type of establishment, but I had to set him straight! I absolutely LOVED these old school places, the mom and pop style restaurants which have been around for god knows how long and is still churning out food like they did when they first opened. Rae’s is such a place.
At Rae’s the most popular breakfast item is the 2+2+2 which basically gives you two pancakes, two eggs and two meats of your choice. For about $5.50 that’s the best deal around! That is always my friend’s choice, not mine. To be quite honest, I don’t like pancakes, never have. I’m more a toast kind of gal but I’m not opposed to trying these pancakes my friend’s been raving about. The first time I took a small piece of pancake just for tasting purposes, but was so delightfully surprised at how bouncy its texture and how light and fluffy they were I had to take a second bite. After the first visit, I’d been thinking about these pancakes, yet on the second and third visits, I still couldn’t bring myself to order these pancakes and instead, took a few bites of my friend’s portion. As much as I love these pancakes, I just can’t eat two huge pancakes on my own.
For me, Rae’s has other delectable things to offer, namely the chorizo and eggs breakfast (pictured right). This plate comes with frijoles con arroz (refried beans and rice), corn or flour tortillas (or toast if you so wish) and potatoes. Also, don’t forget to ask for salsa, it goes really nicely with everything! Portions are large and you will definitely feel more than satisfied when you leave. If you’re a fan of orange juice, do not leave here without having some freshly squeezed OJ with your meal. YES people, it’s freshly squeezed! None of that orange concentrate stuff here and it’s so refreshing — if I wasn’t diabetic, I would totally have a glass of my own!
The older staff here have been with Rae’s for 20+ years — as my friend tells me — and you get the feeling that this is a family owned and run restaurant. They have a lunch menu as well but I’ve never had anything off of that so I couldn’t tell you what’s what, but breakfast is what I come here for! My only gripe is every time I leave this place, I smell like breakfast for the rest of the day but then again, there are worse things I could smell like!
Rae’s Restaurant, 2901 Pico Boulevard, Santa Monica, CA 90405. Tel: 310-828-7937. Find Rae’s on Facebook
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