The NYF and I dined here for a late brunch one morning before heading off to look at open houses in Soquel. The place was packed, but luckily we were next in line for a seat. The ambiance inside was kind of neutral, but had a bit of a minimalist diner feel, including waist high countertop and vinyl booths. Music playing was a combination of old jazz and motown, which added to the feel. Once seated we ordered our food. She had eggs, toast, and bacon, and I had a scramble with pesto and other goodies. I also ordered a side biscuit with gravy because it seemed like a good idea. I have to say this was pretty average fare. Typical greasy-spoon; and slightly overpriced considering what we received. The biscuit came out with all of the other food and it was obvious we had ordered too much. The biscuit was also drowned in what looked like the McCormick's store bought white-pepper gravy, and had already begun to congeal. Not exactly appetizing. My pesto scramble was incredibly rich and greasy; so much so that I couldn't finish. The NYF's meal was also greasy, but a little bit more manageable. I think the biggest problem is that our server disappeared. I had finished my water before the food even came, and she never once returned to fill me up, and I spent the whole meal feeling parched. When it came time for us to get going, we waited nearly 15 minutes for the check, including trying to flag our server down, before getting up and walking to the register, where we waited some more. All in all, there are other breakfast places in the area with better food, better prices, and MUCH better service. 2.5 stars read more

A cute little mom and pop spot. We sat at the bar for breakfast. The omelettes are incredible. Amazing customer service and great priced menu. We are just passing through and so glad we found this place! Definitely recommend :) read more

Sunrise is a tiny breakfast/lunch joint in Soquel, with straightforward good food at great prices. The girls that work there are awesome- they're cute and friendly, and do their jobs well. It's all about the Sunny Scramble for me, I've tried other things but it always convinces me to come back for more...Scrambled eggs with an addictive homemade Spanish sauce, avocado, black olives, sour cream, and tomatoes (which I ask to have added), it is so damn good it's ridiculous!! Sometimes when I wake up I just know that today's the day I have to get my Sunny Scramble, I seriously get excited about it! This became a staple for me when I was vegetarian, but I would still never add meat to it, although they have local Corralitos sausage, which totally rocks. My bf likes the corned beef hash, and it's not the canned stuff either (not that there's anything wrong with that, it has a time and place!) it's real corned beef cooked up with potato and bell pepper, maybe onions too, not sure. Last week we split the chicken apple sausage breakfast for 6.25, and it was really yummy and still enough to fill us up. No split charge either, which is nice. The decor is nothing fancy, a bit frayed around the edges yet it's clean, and they have good jazz playing to go along with the posters on the walls, very chill atmosphere. I like that they aren't worrying about making the place look fancy so they can jack you on the prices, as many places do. An icetea is $1, a bowl of soup is around $3, and the breakfasts are reasonable as well. I almost want to go there once I'm done writing this, damn you and your power over me, Sunny Scramble!! read more

Pros: My scramble was cooked reasonably well, albeit rather tasteless . Doctored with pepper and hot sauce, however, it tasted decent. Cons: Fruit cup was pretty awful, with melon pieces so unripe they were crunchy and had no taste. Toast was cheap sliced bread. Service was slow and inattentive at times, was difficult to get our check. Worst: Most disgusting bathroom in Soquel, door is sticky to the touch, fixtures and even walls visibly dirty. Ew. read more

Very small local homely place; so always a line at the weekend. Good range of basic breakfast dishes both veggie and meat. Dozen or so daily specials too. The scrambles are highly recommended. And the local cheesy Bavarian sausage is one to look out for! Mmmmm... Service was swift and unobtrusive; refilling my coffee 3 or 4 times without letting the cup go dry. Did I say I liked the scramble... Oh yes! It was cooked to perfection - the mushrooms were tasty, the asparagus was perfect (not overcooked) and the eggs moist. And the home fries were excellent - so often a letdown. They were both soft inside and crispy out. A hidden gem! read more

Food is good... really good. The corned beef hash & biscuit with gravy was fantastic! Service on the other hand was horrible. Don't think you will get good survive here unless you are a "regular". I'm a stickler for good customer service... hope this place steps their game up. Probably wouldn't come back unfortunately. read more

There' s roughly a 3-way tie IMO between this place, The Cliff Cafe and The Walnut Avenue Cafe as the best breakfast spots in Santa Cruz. You can't really go wrong with any of them. They're all on the slightly healthy side of a greasy spoon but in a good way. So how would I choose between them? If you want Verve coffee (good but really overrated like everything else in this county that lacks decent competition), hit up the Cliff Cafe and while you're waiting 90+ minutes for a seat, go across the street and buy a latte. If you're desperately in need of the downtown Santa Cruz panhandling experience, The Walnut Avenue Cafe is the place to go (and they probably have the largest menu of the three) and if you're in a hurry, and you just want easy parking and a good breakfast without any of the NIMBY thrills that make living and visiting here such an "experience", come to the Sunrise Cafe. it's a pleasant sleeper. Others have commented on specific menu items. Everything I've had there was good. read more

Came in for breakfast, had a wait of about 15 minutes for 2 people so not bad. This place IS small so expect to have a little bit of a wait time. The coffee was great! We ordered the corned beef hash and the western scramble. Both were SO good! So much flavor in both of them! And so MUCH food you could split if you wanted. I would get their biscuits on the side - so good :) read more

Sunrise Cafe - Corned beef hash and eggs - eggs were so fluffy! - American Near Me - Soquel, California

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Long wait on a Saturday, and slightly inattentive/shortstaffed (?) waitstaff, but GREAT food and totally worth it! The servers were friendly, though - and they tried to accommodate our party of 8 as best they could - they tried everything they could to get us to sit together, which was nice of them. Only slight complaints are that when we were seated, we didn't get menus - I had to ask for them after waiting a few minutes, and that was after we waited about 45-60 minutes for a table to begin with. Also, the food took forever, but again, being a server myself, I understand a busy Saturday morning at a breakfast place, so it's understandable. One other concern is that the half & half on the table wasn't chilled, and it had been sitting there for quite a while--it was room temperature, so I had to ask for new cream. It obviously needs to be kept cold, otherwise it will accumulate bacteria and make people sick. That was the thing that put me off the most - you can't risk making people sick by not practicing the proper food handling procedures. Other than that, the coffee was delicious, as was my turkey/avocado/tomato scramble, the homefries, and zucchini muffin! Everyone in our party loved their breakfast. I tried a bite of my nephew's pancake which was so good and fluffy. They also offer real maple syrup, which is a plus. One note is that the little space is not good for big groups - don't go there with more than 5-6 people, unless you want to wait a long time. Overall, though, friendly servers, awesome food, & wonderful place! read more

Had the bowl of fruit which was very good, nice fresh selection, and well priced. Oatmeal was super hot and tasty with the toasted nuts. Tried my friends Hash which was good, and the canadian bacon (rare i have it), but it was good as well. Coming out of the kitchen was a wash of amazing looking omelets, and platters and platters of food for days and days and days. We sat at the counter, and service was excellent. The servers all took care of us, as did the owner. Looking forward to returning this weekend when i'm back down in Aptos. read more

I went here for breakfast today because my boyfriend was craving biscuits and gravy. I read other yelp reviews and decided to try this lil hole in the wall. I ordered the French Toast Special, but i substituted the egg for french fries. :) My bf had 2 eggs, home fries, and sausages with biscuits and gravy. The potatoes were OK, they couldve been toasted at least. This is definitely not a greasy spoon, but its a cheap eat and somewhat tasty to try at least once. I wont come here again though. My search continues for the best breakfast. Other info about trip: It appeared to be the owner working in the back with the other cooks which was very reassuring! It is a small place so there may be a 10min wait. read more

My teenage son lives in Soquel so he is the one that turned me onto this place. One morning I went down to pick him up and we decided that we could use some fuel for the road. Awesome breakfast and I am not a breakfast person really. Good portions the kind of omelet that keeps you full well past lunch time and the home fries are outstanding. Friendly service, I think I recall four out of five watiresses being cute too, that never hurts in my book. If you ever happen to be in the little town of Soquel check it out. read more

I rarely eat breakfast but while on a Railroad Earth tour I had two fantastic breakfasts in a row! My mushroom, cheese, pesto, and avocado scramble was phenomenal, toast was toast, and the breakfast potatoes (that weren't crispy and burnt) we're awesome. There were quite a few crispy, overdone ones in the mix which I am not a fan of but for the most part I cleaned that plate. The wait was about 20 minutes on a Saturday morning which isn't bad for Soquel and the waitress was extremely nice and accommodating! If you're in Soquel this is THE breakfast to try! read more

Recently enjoyed the polenta dish with spinach, mushrooms and a couple of eggs on the top. Cheerful servers, happy regulars. Excited to return, it's nice to stumble into a keeper. read more

Most breakfast places give you too much, this place gives the perfect amount. I love the veggie/broccoli scramble. I do hesitate to write such a good review, the Sunrise Cafe is our own little secret with hardly a wait! read more

Randomly picked this Cafe on Yelp for breakfast today. It looked like a hole in the wall but upon getting closer it was obviously popular because every seat was full. It didn't take long to get seated thankfully. We we're really impressed with the portion sizes and it reflected in the price! It was more than enough food without being excessive and we weren't paying for leftover food. Everything was cooked to perfection. It was obvious that whoever was making the food really took pride in what they were serving. The staff was young, friendly and refreshing. We will definitely be back if we are in the area again! read more

I'm a little surprised by all of these great reviews. Our experience was not great. My order was completely wrong (I knew it was mine because it was topped with an extra add on I requested), but I didn't bother correcting them because I didn't want to wait an additional 15-20 minutes for the correct food with an already impatient toddler. I was never given the water I requested. The entire vibe of the place just felt a little depressing, even though there were like 4-8 other people in there at the same time as us. Overall, I was not into this place. The food was fine. My husband enjoyed his scramble, but the overall experience was just "meh". read more

Simple menu, not a fan of breakfast so hard for me to judge good versus bad

This little place is kind of a dump. When my friend and I were there the staff was young...friendly...smiled and they seemed really cool. After dealing with the staff, Sunrise Cafe became a charming friendly little dump. Our omelets were good. Nothing fancy there but solid food and friendly staff. It was a nice place to go and see who the locals are. I'd go back. read more

Sunday morning visit, we had to wait for a seat, to be expected... The food is very good and priced reasonably. The service was a bit slow. Easily qualifies for 4 stars. I will be back if I am ever in Soquel around breakfast time again. read more

We drove around to find a place to eat and found this place. A hole in the wall cafe but friendly staff. Asked about how long this place was here and was told 40 years. read more

On our way home from Santa Cruz. Nice quaint cafe for breakfast. Very friendly service. Parking is 50 cents in the rear. Corned beef hash w eggs was delicious. Potato mess was filling. We'll come back when we're back up north. read more

Reviews said great corned beef hash, but I thought it was just ok. It was homemade, but nothing special. In general everything could have used some more salt including the Potato Mess which was also a little over-cooked and too full of potatoes. Eggs were nicely cooked though and place was clean with good service. read more

My husband and I loved this place! I was delighted to find such fantastic vegetarian options along with some diner classics, all for a totally reasonable price as well. Service was great. Make sure you get the freshly made salsa! read more

Loved the original diner feel. Food was worth the wait. Local crowd. Great service. Would go back. read more

Sunrise Cafe - Polenta Egg Benedict and best mimosa. - American Near Me - Soquel, California

Good coffee, quick service, good food. This is how a small dinner should be. Almost like one you see in a movie about some place in the middle of farm country, well I guess it kind of is in farm country if you consider MJ a farm product of Santa Cruz. Marmalade in cups at your table, nice. The coffee was very good, a mixed blend gotten from a local vendor. All in all I recommend this place to anybody in the area looking for a whole hearted American meal. read more

The service was great, food wonderful, and the prices ok. We stopped in at the breakfast hour on a Wednesday and found seating right away was greeted friendly and served promptly. I hope this review doesn't change anything read more

While on vacation, we found this small old school diner. The food was good. I had the western scramble, very tasty. Portions were good, service was good. read more

rofl i didn't realize i'd already reviewed this place ahahahaha i had my first sunny scramble almost ten years ago. since then, i have had many, many more, including once when we were visiting from tacoma and staying in san jose, and i still drove my ass over 17 to bring breakfast back. i don't know what magic lies in the mixture of proteins and veg and carbs in the sunny scramble, but i can eat it at 8am, and still be going strong at 4pm. so yeah i kind of like this place~ read more

Pros. Nice homey place with good service. And decent food. I asked for a soft omelet and got it. They ovrr Corrilettos sausage. Cons can be a long wait cuse very small The feature eggs bennidict but the hollandais is really bsd. Tstes like cream if chicken soup. read more

Stopped by here on our trip down the hwy 1. Service is nice, the place is clean, and food: Spanish omelette was very good. It was surprisingly spicy but yummy. Pesto omelette was also good. The shrimp, avocado omelette was alright but they give you a loooot of avocado in it. The soquel special (basically eggs benedict) was very disappointing, however. The poached eggs were overdone. read more

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I had the tofu veggie who's is i think the only vegan option on the menu, i was just glad they even had a vegan option. The portion was big and it was delicious! I also really enjoyed the atmosphere it was cute, the wait did take a while but i noticed it went down after around 11am. Over all i wouldn't mind eating her again. read more

Nothing cooked correctly and took a long time for just 2 plates. Severs don't ask you for anything, rather eat ramen

This was my first time at this cute little Cafe, and I live in the area so I'm surprised I never saw it before! Delicious food, cheap prices, and such awesome customer service! Adorable little Cafe! Support independent stores! Peace, love, and enjoy if you find yourself here! read more

My FAVORITE breakfast place! Small, and can be a wait but definitely worth it! Portions are large enough to share and the coffee is excellent! The wait staff is friendly and nice! Love it here! read more

The breakfast here was good. The homemade gravy for the biscuits and gravy was completely phenomenal! That alone makes this place definitely worth a visit. read more

The place is small but cute. It's like a mini diner. The utensils were clean and the food was definitely satisfying with good flavor. The waitress was nice. The only think I didn't like was that when you order a water they give it to you in a plastic cup without a straw. Aside from that I see myself coming back in the future. I definitely recommend. read more

Sunrise Cafe - Veggie homemade potatoes - American Near Me - Soquel, California

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I love this place, and I am a local breakfast connoisseur. It's diner style, so keep that in mind. That said, the staff is very friendly and awesome, food comes quick, and great menu selections. Food details: good variety of choices. They serve a biscuit as a toast option which always excites me. Biscuits and gravy are good, coffee is decent. But the thing to get is the Sunny Scramble. They make their own ranchero-spicy sauce and it's amazeballs. I can't order much else when I'm there. It's hypnotizing. But everyone who goes there with me likes their food choices, so there you go. read more

Overall Food was decent, bacon was horrible ,, the service was over stretched, only one server for packed house on Saturday morning, might come back id ever in town to Try again . read more

Sunrise Cafe - Food was decent, love the atmosphere, only one server on Saturday morning, and she was busy. - American Near Me - Soquel, California

Foods are good here. I love their rosemary flavored home fries. Omelets are all great. I started asking to add the extra onion to their denver omelet, and that's my favorite for now! Coffee is, you know it's a diner's coffee, so it's not bad, but not great. They have nice lunch menu too (after 11am). Their burgers and philly cheese steak was pretty good! Best of all, their staff are super friendly and nice. After a few visit, they can remember your name and smile at you! It's a small diner always packed! Expect for waiting time in the weekend morning. Not much waiting space with only a small bench at the front so you have to standing around the door on the street while you wait. They have the ordinary signup board system and will call your name when they got the table for you. There are usually enough parking lots behind the buildings. They don't take Amex. read more