Harbor House Cafe in Sunset Beach is what places like Dennys and Norms strive to be. It’s the quintessential greasy spoon that made America what it is today. Harbor House is located just North from Huntington Beach on Pacific Coast Highway, right before you reach Seal Beach, it’s right next to the Water Tower House. There is another Harbor House Cafe located in Dana Point, but I’ve only ever been to the original in Sunset Beach that’s been around since 1939. The first thing you will notice when you enter Harbor House are all the old movie posters that adorn not only the walls but also the ceiling. Next you’ll think it’s a pretty small place, until you realize that hidden behind the front part of the restaurant is closed in patio that seats as many if not more then the front!
We’ve ate here a number of times, especially on some late night occasions after quenching our thirsts with numerous libations, and they have never failed to hit the spot. On this visit it was Sunday at around 2:00 PM when we arrived and it wasn’t too busy which was nice because we got to sit in the front at a window seat. They have a huge menu, with well over 100 items to choose from, so it should be able to appease all of those in your party.
Both myself and the Mrs. were starving but didn’t want anything too heavy since we were having a late lunch so we both decided on sandwiches. Mrs. DanGarion ordered the
Avocado Sandwich ($9.95), which had a whole avocado on it that was perfectly fresh, along with 4 thick slices of bacon, lettuce, tomato, mayo, and 2 slices of cheese. There was so much bacon the Mrs. took off half of it, which I happily ate for her! I always have a difficult time choosing what to order when there are more then 10 items on a menu, especially since I like to order different things from time to time, so I can review more then what I always order on a menu. I went with something I’d never had before at any restaurant; a
Hot Crab Meat Sandwich ($10.95), it came with 100% crab meat, that was topped with a whole avocado, along with a bunch of melted Monterey jack cheese, lettuce and tomato on grilled sourdough. The crab meat was great, it had a very good steamed crab taste and you could tell it wasn’t from a can or fake, it was delicious real fresh crab. Their was a little more cheese then it probably needed, so I took some of it off, but others might love the overflow of Monterey jack cheese. Along with both the sandwiches we had our choice of fries, onion rings, or cole slaw. We went with the onion rings, which were just the normal fare you get from a burger join, but they were huge and crunchy, plus they have a nice somewhat spicy BBQ sauce to drench dip them in.
Service was average, nothing out of the ordinary, nothing bad or exceptionally good. On other occasions service has been average to good as well. This is definitely a place to bring a big appetite, they have a huge menu that includes breakfast, lunch, dinner, and desserts. Talking about desserts they have some killer malts and shakes ( Handmade Choice of Oreo Cookie Bits, Blueberry, Chocolate, Pineapple, Strawberry, Fresh Banana, French Vanilla, Butterscotch, Peanut Butter, and Orange Juice); peanut butter shakes are my favorite! If you go in the morning on Saturdays or Sundays be prepared to wait if you get there after 8:00 AM, since they will be busy, but aren’t all the great places like that?
Visited on Sunday 09/28/08 @ 2:00 PM for lunch.
[xrr rating=4/5] – This is an average rating of all visits
Harbor House Cafe
16341 Pacific Coast Highway
Sunset Beach, CA
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