El Cajon Bistro & Bakery

This place has great food. But unfortunately they never answer their phone when we want to order food. So they have lost my family and I as customers. We have tried calling them multiple times in the past and tonight we called them various times and they will not answer the phone. HORRIBLE customer service.

The food was amazing and served in large proportions! It was pretty busy when I went and seating was a bit crowded but we still found a seat. The coffee was also spot on!
I had they eggs benedict with the Chipotle sauce. I forget what it’s called but definitely my new favorite breakfast: D

This place has the yummiest breakfast you could ask for! The portions are huge. I got the veggie scramble and made two breakfast burritos at home from my leftovers. My son got the chicken and waffles, and raved about the seasoning on the chicken and the sausage gravy. My nephew got the nutella french toast, and my daughter got it the next time we went, and both loved it. I don’t know where they get their bacon, but it is SO good! The prices are reasonable, especially considering the portion size. Staff is friendly. Never had lunch or dinner there, but I am betting they’re fantastic too. Only issue is that sometimes when they’re busy, they don’t have time to keep the coffee pots filled. But considering how fabulous everything else is, it’s a minor issue.
One other thing, that has nothing to do with quality, is that if you shouldn’t expect regular table service– you place your order at the counter, pay, and then they bring it to you at your table. There’s a stack of mugs and you get your coffee yourself.
Definitely the best breakfast in El Cajon!

By far the best breakfast food in east county. But their service is very sub-​par. You can expect to Wait on the phone for call ins on average for about 8 minutes. You really have to push for someone to help you if you want anything. So overall great food, mediocre service.

Don’t waste your time… literally. Service is friendly but extremely slow. Food is bland, tasteless, and overpriced. This is my second time trying and I have them the benefit of the doubt last time. Week not be going back and would recommend trying elsewhere

This place is amazing. The menu is extensive. The food is so fresh and wonderful. They also have juices and smoothies galore. You just have to come try it. The best!

Just came in and got an acai bowl. I got the large one with no coconut, but they accidentally had it with, so they made me another one free. They cashier was cool about it too, his name was Memo

Great little spot! I’m not a coffee drinker, but the almond milk caramel latte they made me was outstanding! Also had the TJ Benedict, which was so so good with perfectly poached eggs and carne asada meat. We got some Nutella French toast (or something like that) to share, and it was a perfect little sweet thing.
The menu is gigantic with a bunch of stuff to choose from, so you’ll need a few minutes to decide what you want. It’s also in a random little strip mall, but I hope it helps improve the area.
Service was quick and wonderful, despite us being a large group. Would definitely recommend for a great breakfast!

The only reason why I even bothered today was because I WANT them to be descent, but they are not.
Customer service is good, food is not. Please get it right guys !!! Your neighbor, Josh

I came here a couple days ago for breakfast with my family for the first time and it was great. So many different options to choose from and the food was delicious! Definitely recommend this place.

We were driving through town and wanted to get a bite to eat. We found this place on Unilocal and decided to eat here as it had great reviews. I had the corn beef sandwich and a salad, very good food. I love the variety of coffees they offer, and the smoothies are yummy too. A great place to eat, with an extensive menu.

I ordered chilaquiles. It was soggy and had no flavor. I also had to wait at least half an hour for the food to be done. Not worth it.

Such a pleasant surprise! I’ve been wanting to come here for a while and now I’m glad I finally did. So many good options on the menu. I tried the tuna salad which was delish! I will be back for sure.

Finally got to give this place a try! Came in for brunch a few weeks ago. I had no idea how big their menu was! So many options. I ordered the chicken fried steak which was really good. Super crispy and seasoned well. My friend got the ahi tuna salad and she said that was really good too. I also tried a strawberry smoothie which was really delicious!

This is the nearest restaurant to where we live in Granite Hills, been driving by it for a long time but never tried it before this morning.
Amazingly extensive menu.
Stopped by for the first time for an early lunch and were very pleased with the food.
I had a BLT and side-​salad, my wife a tuna salad sandwich (on gluten-​free bread, no extra charge) and sweet potato fries. The food was plentiful and delicious and the staff very nice and attentive. We’ll definitely be going back.

Nice breakfast spot in El Cajon. Friendly staff and good food. Only downfall is fresh fruit, is not so fresh.

This bistro in El Cajon seemed like a great little place to grab breakfast early on a Friday morning. The small eatery on the corner of Jamacha and Main opens at 7 am early every day of the week for breakfast and lunch. I’ve visited their other restaurant in La Mesa many a times since living in the area. Just like their La Mesa location, they feature many vegetarian options, healthier alternatives and lots of different juices. Also if you like coffee, they serve many different flavors of their drip coffee. Even though it seems like a small little place on the corner, it has a pretty good sized dining room (
) inside if you have a large party to eat with. The parking lot may be on the small side, but early in the morning most of the other businesses aren’t open yet.
The staff here was friendly and greeted my friend and I upon entering. They had no issue about making substitutions and getting our meal correct just the way we wanted it. I ordered the waffle special with eggs and turkey bacon. Unfortunately they notified me later on that they were all out of turkey bacon and I subbed it for some black beans on the side. The Belgian waffle here is large and thick (
) with powdered sugar on top. It comes with a side of whipped butter and their syrup is located at every table. The waffle was cooked exactly how a waffle should be, crispy texture on the outside with a soft inside layer with flavorful batter that isn’t overly sweet. I don’t think I could have asked for a better prepared waffle. The side of two eggs (
) were also cooked perfectly and their hot but mild sauce went quite well with them. The side of black beans though, were very disappointing and had a nasty smoky aftertaste, they smelled so bad that I moved them to the other side of the table. My friend also commented on how bad they were, dry and just plain gross.
Even though the black beans are to be avoided here, our meals turned out quite good. Everything came out about twenty dollars and some change which is a good deal for local restaurant’s breakfast. The food didn’t really surpass our expectations, as we’ve ate at their other restaurant and knew what we were getting ourselves into. We would come back to El Cajon bistro if in the area, but otherwise we would just hit up our local spot in La Mesa.

1. I love coffee, so right away i saw the variety of all the self serve brewed coffees & the hawaiin hazelnut was DA BOMB!
2.the guadalajara chilaquiles were so good! Everything waas yummy and fresh. The 1,2,4 breakfast was perfect, pancakes were fluffy and delicious.
I liked the service too, we were greeted as soon as we walked in and throughout were taken care of.
So glad i found this place close to home!

I ordered the S’mores pancakes (with eggs and bacon)…my husband ordered the ABC omelette.
The pancakes were soooo good (but I could have shared it with another couple people)…my scrambled eggs were good, but my crispy bacon wasn’t crispy.
My husband liked his omelette, but thought the potatoes lacked flavor (not bad, just not really good).
The service was great even though the place was packed.

I’ve been here a few times before because it has got a GREAT selection of breakfast/​brunch items ranging from burritos to omelets to sandwiches to belgian waffles! Prices are reasonable, ranging from about $ 6 or $ 7 to $ 12ish.
I’ve tried probably a dozen items here and I love it all. I’m a fan of the corned beef hash! I’m a simple breakfast eater and I actually prefer the canned corned beef hash stuff as opposed to the fancy chunks of corned beef at Hash House so the sloppy looking hash here is perfect for my taste!
You can’t go wrong with the scrambles or omelets here. I also love the variety of smoothies & of course, their famously refreshing & delicious Acai bowls!
Coffee is all self-​serve and they’ve got a selection of about 5 or 6 different flavors for you to choose from, which is perfect for a picky coffee-​drinker.
Unfortunately, I had to take off 2 stars due to the 2 teeeeeeny tiny quarter slices of super thin ham that came with my mom’s ham & eggs combo. The ham they used was of poor quality and came in a small portion. The rest of the items were on point, such as the slices of bread, fruit, fries, potatoes, eggs, etc.
I ordered an Acai smoothie, and was asked what size. I ended up getting an Acai bowl instead and had to get the order and price adjusted.
Overall, this is a clean, casual little «order first, seat yourself after» breakfast/​brunch place in El Cajon. The menus are strikingly similar to the ones at La Mesa Bistro & Swami’s as well. Seems like they’re all owned by the same people. I’d definitely still come back!