Azul

As one of the big players in Downtown La Jolla for the past decade, Azul serves innovative Californian coastal cuisine in a warm dining room that offers a sweeping view of the coastline. While the dinner menu is tempting (lobster pot pie and muscovy duckling, anyone?), Sunday brunch is by far more relaxed and leisurely. Arrive early, snag a coveted table next to the windows and enjoy a quiet meal to unwind from all the crap you had to deal with during the week. Arrive late and you might be greeted by a loud and jolly crowd.


I personally like to take my meals in a more serene environment to take a break from my posh, glamorous lifestyle as a penniless student and amateur food blogger. Gotta get away from all those cute co-eds who hound me 24/7. You understand.

Not my table. It had better lighting. Hindsight: 20/20.

Sunday brunch at Azul comes with complimentary fruit and pastries as well as your choice of beverage--champagne, mimosa, orange juice, or bloody mary--to sip on as you choose a plate from four main categories on the brunch menu: breakfast entrees, french-style omeletts, savory selections, and wood oven fired flatbread. Prices average out to a very reasonable $15.

One could easily make a breakfast from this tower.

Warm crab & artichoke pastry: topped with two poached eggs and lemon hollandaise.

Remembering how much I enjoyed the salmon/apricot pastry from Jer-ne, I ordered this pastry. It did not disappoint. "Melt in your mouth" is a hackneyed expression used to describe food and I never use it. Today, however, I will make an exception. This pastry is so flaky and buttery that it really does (almost) melt in your mouth. (You know. Because butter melts at about 32 °C.) It is a perfect housing for the well balanced crab/artichoke stuffing, whose flavors work very well together and do not overwhelm the other ingredients--or each other, for that matter. Scoop up some egg and hollandaise along with a bite of the pastry for a creamy treat. You'll be glad you ordered this.

Not food, but you can eat it if you really want...

There are only seven tables next to the window. Each seat four. Want a table? Get to Azul early. Brunch starts at 10am. Hope to see some of you there! I know I will definitely make a revisit.




Azul, La Jolla
1250 Prospect St.
La Jolla, CA 92037
858.454-9616