Eat Out. Brunch at the Chateau Marmont.

We had an impromptu fancy Sunday brunch yesterday, at a place I'd never brunched before: the Chateau Marmont. The legendary hotel has a great bar (Bar Marmont) and the restaurant is a well-known dinner destination (they're famous for steak frites). Brunch was something I had just never considered.

On the drive over, around 11:15 a.m., we passed the ridiculous Griddle Cafe, with their usual huge crowd outside, all waiting for tables where they'd consume huge stacks of pancakes while listening to blaring music.

For about the same cost (maybe a few dollars more), we got a shaded table for three on the serene patio of L.A.'s coolest hotel immediately. A giant pot of coffee, croque madame, pancakes, eggs benedict, iced teas, and bloody marys later, we were extremely satisfied with the service and the food, and of course the setting. We even spotted a hot Hollywood director. The patio is really good for seeing celebrities.

If you can't make it to West Hollywood to experience the Chateau yourself, it's featured in some films, including Laurel Canyon and Somewhere (I'd recommend Laurel Canyon of the two). There's also a great out-of-print book, The Chateau Marmont Hollywood Handbook available on Amazon.

Chateau Marmont Hotel and Bungalows is located at 8221 Sunset Boulevard in West Hollywood. Info: (323) 656-1010, chateaumarmont.com

-- Leslie Anne Wiggins

Photo credit: modelsandmoguls.com

Eat Out. Lotería Grill.

I was halfway through my Sunday brunch when I realized I should blog about it.

Huevos rancheros at Lotería Grill in Hollywood are a great morning or mid-day meal, especially after a late Sidecar-filled night. The dish is on the menu with fried eggs, but our waiter was more than happy to adjust the egg preparation to scrambled at my request. The melon agua fresca was delicious, and the salsa that came with the chips was one of the tastiest spicy salsas I've ever had. The mashed potatoes (Papa con Rajas) were also notably scrumptious.

The Hollywood location is clean and bright, with large Lotería-style cards as decorations, so learning a few new Spanish words is an added bonus while you're there.

Lotería Grill is located at 6627 Hollywood Blvd. in Hollywood. Info: loteriagrill.com, (323) 465-2500. There's also a popular Farmers Market location, and one in Studio City.

-- Leslie Anne Wiggins

Photo credit: the BEAT

Eat Out. Malo [Sunday Brunch].

Silver Lake's Malo restaurant is well-known for its great margaritas and happy hours, but it just so happens that it's a great place to visit after those margaritas and happy hours too. The Mexican eatery recently began opening up early for weekend brunch, and the hip Eastside crowd is loving it--for good reason.

The brunch menu offers all the regular, great-for-the-hangover brunch favorites, like the breakfast burrito and chilaquiles (both seen above), but with Malo's extra attention to detail in flavor and fresh ingredients. The chilaquiles, though obviously not the healthiest meal, actually wasn't as greasy as I had imagined, and the portion was just right not to make me feel like I'd see it (or the night before) later. There were also fun and unique options like the mango and banana French toast that seem worth trying out.

And of course, with any good hangover brunch, Malo offers drinks--top-notch, of course. Their sangria is always a favorite of mine, and a mojito would probably be nice around noon. We tried the Malo Cafe, which had coffee mixed Kahula and tequila, and it was pretty strong. Made for a good wake-up call, at least.

Malo is located at 4326 Sunset Blvd. in Silver Lake. Brunch is served Saturdays and Sundays, from 9am-3pm.

-- Chau Tu

Photo credit: the BEAT

Eat Out. Blue Plate [Sunday Brunch].

Santa Monica is full of great brunch options, and Blue Plate is just another one of those always-busy spots that, thankfully, lives up to the hype.

The negatives first: Blue Plate is crowded, for the simple fact that it is in a tiny space and on the lively street of Montana Ave. (be prepared to pay for parking, by the way). Tables are uncomfortably close together, so expect to get cozy with your neighbors (my date and I seemed to get snooty looks from ours--not our fault!). Also, although I appreciate that the coffee and tea is fair-trade, $3 (the same price for juices and other drinks) just seems like a bit much.

But once you get down to the food, all can be forgotten. I was already saddling up to get a big meal by ordering the breakfast combo of two eggs plus a half-stack of blueberry pancakes, but then was informed that I would also have two sides on top of that! For $9.95! Our small table, needless to say, ended up pretty loaded. (Sorry for the lack of photos, by the way--we were starving.)

And all that food turned out great. The pancakes could have been a bit fluffier, but with so many blueberries packed in there, it was still delectable. My date's challah French toast was dreamily soft and sweet--probably some of the best French toast I've ever had. The fruit side I had had really good pineapple and strawberries, which tasted fresh and light. Altogether a well-made, simple brunch, hitting all the right spots to start off your day.

Oh, but one more downside, that my date pointed out: our plates were not blue. What gives? But we didn't even notice until we scraped all our food right off.

Blue Plate is located at 1415 Montana Ave. in Santa Monica.

-- Chau Tu

Photo credit: Blue Plate

Eat Out. The Potholder [Sunday Brunch].

Thinking of tomorrow's big Egg Day, Potholder on Broadway in Long Beach has some fantastic eggy dishes. This is definitely an early morning/afternoon place, open at 7 a.m. everyday, and closing between 3-4 p.m. this place has 40+ different scrambles, omlettes, and eggy concoctions! They boast to be the "King of Breakfast" in Long Beach and it's no wonder why.

On weekends though, this is definitely the place to be, with a wait of nearly 30 minutes at times, but with as many options as they have, it will take you at least that long to decide what to get.

Potholder has a 1970s feel, and clearly gradually expanded into the four different rooms it now occupies. On the walls, are pictures of devoted Potholder patrons around the world, all holding signs for this place. On top of Mt. Everst and thinking of Potholder? Hey, I'm thinking about it from South America. Now that's some Potholder love.

Potholder is located at 3700 E. Broadway in Long Beach.

-- Lauren Williams

Eat Out. A good egg is hard to find in Silver Lake [Sunday Brunch].

Instead of featuring just one restaurant this week, I'm going to take you on a tour--a breakfast odyssey, if you will--of the best egg dishes in my old 'hood, Silver Lake. The fact of the matter is there are a lot of restaurants on the east side of LA that serve worse-than-greasy-diner-food (because it's not even greasy, just bad) at extraordinarily high prices. And what's worse is that they all look so trendy and delicious. I mean, they have names like, Home, Good, and Millie's that just scream hip comfort food, and yet none deliver. So, very simply, here is where you should be eating and what you should be ordering.

The Kitchen-- Herb Baked Eggs ($10). Tiny restaurant, rustic dish, delicious.

Dusty's-- Eggs Moliere ($13). Just listen to the description: poached eggs, vegetable ratatouille & olive tappenade inside tomatoes, topped with asparagus. I absolutely crave this dish.

Cliff's Edge-- Cliff's Eggs Benedict with Rosemary Potato Wedges ($15). I love a good Benedict, so I needed to feature at least one. And really, this is worth the price, both for the dish and the setting in which you eat it.

Astro's-- The Breakfast Sandwich. When you're hungover, or just need some greasy spoon eggs, don't mess around, grab an egg sandwich from Astro's. Simple. They also serve canned corned beef hash-- you know, the kind that sort of looks like dog food, but is one of my absolute favorite breakfast foods.

The Coffee Table-- Eggs From Hell. I can't stand behind anybody's Huevos Rancheros in this neighborhood, but when I want things super spicy and served with a side of beans and tortillas, this is it.

-- Heather Robertson

Photo credit: Yelp!

Eat Out. Sipology [Sunday Brunch]

We had brunch at Sipology in Lauren's neighborhood last week. Never been to downtown Long Beach before. It's really lovely and almost worth the hour it took to get there. Leslie and I got hopelessly lost--I think we drove on at least 5 freeways, each slowly moving us in the right direction (so, thanks, 405). Finally there at the cute brick building that holds Siplogy, things were on the up and up. We wanted coffee and food and here we were.



Leslie ordered a fancy coffee drink and a slice of banana bread. Her order and service were prompt. Mine were not. The woman behind the counter never asked to take my order. I had to interrupt her morning paper perusal to stumble over what I wanted, because she looked at me like I was disturbing her. She didn't say, "Oh, I didn't see you there" or "Sorry, what can I get you?" or even "Can I help you, because even though I'm mad that you're here, that's what I get paid to do?" Her response was more like, "Really? You've got some nerve doing this to me. You are going to pay for this."

And after Leslie moved upstairs to join the rest of the Beat, I was left at the counter waiting on a breakfast bagel. I waited probably 20 minutes. Were they busy? I was the only customer, so probably not. I was patient at first, but then I got nervous that maybe they had forgotten, since they hadn't shown they really cared to begin with, so I asked. And the girl looked at me, annoyed, and said, "Uh. We're making it now." And just what were they making? A bagel, untoasted, with cream cheese, tomatoes, and fresh basil. How long does that take? When they finally dropped it on the counter, there was no, "Sorry it took so long!" just a turn on the heel and a dismissive glance. Awesome.

Everyone swears up and down that the food and drink at this place were top notch. Chau loved her mocha, Leslie thought the banana bread was divine, and Lauren recommended the place, so naturally she's a fan. I guess I just couldn't taste it through all the bitterness the insufferable people behind the counter had served me first.

They had free Wi-Fi, a great view, and comfy couches, which made it an awesome place for us to get some work done on a Sunday, but the iffy customer service trashed my experience.

Oh, and Sipology? Gallerie is a whack way to spell gallery.

-- Heather Robertson

Eat Out. Figaro [Sunday Brunch].

Figaro on Vermont Avenue in Los Feliz is a place some (including myself) consider a near-perfect brunch spot. It's on a street that has loads of cute shops for post-brunch strolling around, they have both inside and outside (sidewalk) seating, and the food is fresh and flavorful.

The meal is started off right with a bread basket--something many restaurants reserve for lunch and dinner only. It includes a varied mix of breads including olive and nut among others, sliced and with a little dish of strawberry jam on the side.

Their coffee is tasty and refilled often, the latte bowls are ginormous, and the hot chocolate looks like an image from a childhood dream.

We were all very pleased with our meals (omelettes for Lauren and I, a Parisian croissant for Heather, and a spinach salad with hard boiled egg and crumbled bacon for Chau) ... I went with the classic choice, Omelette Figaro (pictured). It was a perfect combination of mushroom, brie and avocado. I had a seen a neighboring bruncher with it and almost didn't order because it looked a bit dry. The egg and mushrooms are cooked together, then folded around thick slices of brie and soft creamy generous slices of avocado. I am SO glad I got it. I ate every last bite. The inside ingredients easily blend with the egg/mushroom exterior.

One downside to the cute European-style sidewalk seating--a sensitive car (parked near our table) alarm (loud!) going off every time a fast car or bus would pass.

Figaro Bistrot is located at 1802 N. Vermont Ave. in Los Feliz

-- Leslie Anne Wiggins

Photo credit: the BEAT

Eat Out. Square One Dining [Sunday Brunch].

As the land of unconventional jobs with nothing close to the regular 9-5 workday, Los Angeles makes for a wonderful breeding ground for the perfect brunch spot. In this regular feature, The Beat will feature the best of the tried and true brunch scenes, which you'll probably find filled weekday to weekend, morning to late afternoon, because frankly, is there any better meal than brunch?

In our inaugural Sunday Brunch post, we welcome you to Square One Dining. The eastside eatery only serves breakfast and lunch, so let’s just say the expectations do come high for how it’ll handle brunch.

Square One gets it right. Even starting from its décor and locale, the restaurant nearly steps out of the imagination for what the perfect brunch setting should feel and look like: quaint, quiet and with an outside garden patio, for goodness sakes. And even though Square One’s olive green walls fall within the shadows of hospitals and a Scientology Centre, you’re far enough into the neighborhood to barely even notice.

But it’s the food that really makes this place shine. The restaurant prides itself in using local and organic produce and hormone-free meat for its dishes, and it shows. The vegetables and salads are undeniably fresh, and egg dishes like my bacon, tomato, mozzarella and spinach omelet and Heather’s baked eggs were fluffy and light. Leslie and Lauren opted for one of Square One’s most popular picks, the brioche French toast. It was moist, buttery and served with fresh vanilla bean cream. Lauren had hers topped with figs, one of the seasonal fruits available, and it looked delicious.

Though the place can definitely get crowded on the weekends, the service was attentive but not too intrusive. Overall, if you need a sweet spot for simple, refreshingly fresh food served with obvious care, Square One is a great place to go. Plus, with all dishes under $14 (most around the $10 mark), it’s a pretty decent deal.

Sometimes, it’s just good to be square.

--Chau Tu

Square One Dining is located at 4854 Fountain Ave., near the intersection of Vermont Ave. and Sunset Blvd. Open everyday, 8 a.m.-3 p.m., street parking. 323.661.1109.