Brunching: The Ramos House Café

I've said before how much I adore brunch.  I love a meal where both sweet and savory foods share the spotlight, a meal where the whole day is still ahead, a meal where coffee and champagne are both sipped with pleasure.  Yesterday my sweet hubby and I brunched for our anniversary at perfect local spot in San Juan Capistrano. 

The Ramos House Café is tucked in an old south Orange County neighborhood, right behind the train tracks.  Every twenty minutes or so, the train rolls in, making diners feel like they're taking a pause in a long-gone era.  All tables at the café sit outside with green vines winding overhead, cats sleeping underfoot and candles flickering on the brick walls.  On Saturdays and Sundays, the café offers only brunch, a pricey affair to celebrate a special day or a sunny day or just another day.  

My dear one and I started with an order of apple cinnamon beignets and huckleberry coffee cake.  The beignets were puffed with a golden crust, the perfect compliment to coffee and the ideal prelude to our main courses.  

For the entrées (for what would brunch be without multiple courses?), we indulged in a rich crab hash and a smokey bacon scramble.  Both dishes were hearty enough to get us on our way for the day, yet delicate enough to mark a special occasion.  

As we sat at our table for two (a very rare occurrence since our sweet daughter entered our lives), without sippy cups or goldfish crackers, we savored the food and we savored our time alone together.