The last time I was at Zimzala it was for a big party and the only thing I remembered was what a nice space it was in and how modern and chic it looked. Recently, I returned with friends for brunch and was happy to find that it was still as nice as I remembered it to be.
The restaurant is located inside the Shorebreak Hotel in Huntington Beach. They are dog-friendly so if you have a pet you want to bring along, they allow that on their patio. The thing which I didn’t like was if you park in the structure, they don’t validate parking. Alternatively, they have valet parking but I’m not sure how much that costs.
We were there around 10am, but even on Sundays, they only offer breakfast at that time. The lunch menu doesn’t start until 11am. They were nice enough to oblige us with one lunch menu item between the six of us since the others were perfectly happy with what’s offered for breakfast.
The kid at the table ordered the Blueberry Pancakes ($6.50 kid’s portion). I didn’t taste it since there wasn’t much on his plate to begin with. It must have been good because he had devoured it before the rest of us were half way through.
I’m not a fan of omelettes, but California Omelette ($12) was rather tasty. Hass avocado, applewood smoked bacon, scallions and monterey jack cheese made it really flavorful and the omelette was fluffy. The accompanying Yukon breakfast potatoes were also surprisingly good — and I’m not a fan of potatoes either.
I tasted my friend’s Huevos Rancheros ($11) — two eggs any style, pinto beans, corn tortillas, tomatillo salsa verde, sour cream, monterey jack cheese and Hass avocado. I don’t always like tomatillo sauce, but the one here was respectable and the hit to this dish!
Duck Confit Quesadilla ($12) was the least favorite of all the dishes tried. Laurel Channel goat cheese, chipotle creme, pomegranate chimichurri was a strange combination for the quesadilla. The goat cheese over-powered the duck confit. In fact, I couldn’t taste the duck confit at all, just goat cheese. What a waste of duck confit.
Biscuit & Gravy ($10) was a hit and miss. The housemade buttermilk biscuits were good, but the sausage gravy was tasteless. Fig apple butter was really tasty but couldn’t figure out what we were supposed to be eating this with. It also comes with two eggs any style and Yukon breakfast potatoes.
My favorite item of the whole meal was the Fish and Chips ($12). Stone IPA beer battered haddock was moist and flaky. The fish was very fresh and very well executed. The smoked onion tartare sauce was devoid of any smoky or oniony taste but still good. Accompanying French fries were also quite good.
We ended the meal with Fig, honey, balsamic, ricotta ice cream. The flavors were great but unfortunately the texture was grainy and icy. The biscotti served alongside was quite nice.
In summary, the meal itself was a hit and miss depending on what you ordered. By the look of it, lunch menu items probably fare better than the breakfast items. Still, the space is nice and the fact that you can bring your four-legged friends is the best part of all.
Zimzala
500 Pacific Coast Hwy
Huntington Beach, CA 92648
Tel: 714-861-4470
Haven’t been here in quite a while but those fish and chips sure look good!