Best Breakfast in San Diego

The best 24-hour diner breakfast in San Diego.

Rudford's has been open since 1949 and still cooks like it. The breakfast burrito is one of the city's best, the coffee is bottomless, and the counter is the best seat in the house.

Local tip: Come at 7am on a weekday and you'll be seated instantly with better food than the weekend rush.

The best cheap beachfront breakfast in San Diego.

Kono's is a counter-service institution serving a potato-heavy burrito for under ten dollars with a view of the pier. It's not refined, but nothing beats it for value on the boardwalk.

Local tip: The line looks brutal but moves in ten minutes; eat on the seawall across from Crystal Pier.

The most consistent breakfast in the city, at four locations.

Snooze is a small chain, but the San Diego kitchens run tight and the benedict flight is the best way to sample the menu. Service is quick and the waitlist moves faster than the crowd suggests.

Local tip: Order the pancake flight so you can split three styles instead of committing to one.

The prettiest breakfast in San Diego, and the food holds up.

Morning Glory's pink dining room gets the attention, but the kitchen turns out genuinely excellent soufflé pancakes and egg dishes. Prices are high and the room is loud, which cost it a couple points.

Local tip: Weekday mornings are the only realistic walk-in window.

Enormous portions done better than the gimmick suggests.

Hash House built its name on tower-sized plates, but the farm-style cooking is solid and the fried chicken and waffles is a legitimately good dish. Go hungry.

Local tip: One order feeds two people — split it and add a side of bacon.

A Mediterranean-leaning breakfast that stands out downtown.

Cafe 21's Azerbaijani influences give downtown a breakfast that isn't another benedict list. Skillet dishes are the strength and the room feels personal rather than corporate.

Local tip: Ask for the sangria — it's the rare morning cocktail worth ordering.

A dependable neighborhood breakfast with fair prices.

The Mission has been a San Diego staple for decades with a Latin-leaning menu and rosemary potatoes people order on their own. It's not flashy, but it never misses.

Local tip: Cash tips help — the counter turnover is fast and service tips move with it.