Cafe Belen — Restaurant in Los Angeles

Café Belen is a true gem in West Los Angeles, owned by a fellow Uni High graduate who I met for the first time, Juan. I learned that Juan is from Belen, Guatemala. Cozy with both indoor and outdoor seating, it's ideal for dining in or taking out for all ages and all palates, too. From the beautiful orchid to the strawberries and blueberries arranged like a flower on the pancakes, we appreciated all of the thoughtful additions to our wonderful meal.

What we ordered: I had the Egg White Fit Scramble—a flavorful and satisfying mix of vegetables: roasted broccoli, zucchini, onions, spinach, mozzarella cheese, and avocado, served with fresh fruit and toast. My husband enjoyed Belen’s Favorite, which included sunny-side-up eggs, fluffy buttermilk pancakes with berries, and chicken sausage. From their refreshing and healthy beverage options, I chose the ginger lemonade, which was bright, zesty, and absolutely delicious.

I am sharing what's on the menu because there's lots I want to try! Other Menu Highlights for breakfast include Steak & Eggs, Salmon Benedicts, Avocado Toast, Classic Frittata, Breakfast Wrap, Belgian Waffle Combo, Huevos Rancheros, Rib Eye Steak Chilaquiles. Dinner entrees feature filet Mignon, Ribeye, Chicken Piccata, Chicken Marsala, Seared Ahi Tuna, Barramundi, Miso Salmon. I loved that there were lots of Salads & Bowls: Chicken Quinoa Salad, Asian Chicken Salad, Roasted Veggie Tofu Salad, Southwest Salad, Cobb Salad, Tri-Color Mango Salad, Cuban Bowl, Miso Glaze Salmon Bowl, Flat Iron Steak Bowl, Honey Mustard Chicken Bowl. Plus I want to try some of their Pastas: Spicy Chicken Sausage Pasta, Chicken Pesto Penne, Belen Chicken Linguini, Tomato Basil Pasta, Shrimp Scampi Fettuccini. They also feature sandwiches & Burgers: Bacon Cheeseburger, Turkey Club, Blackened Chicken Sandwich, Turkey Burger, Impossible Burger, Steak Sandwich. They have an extensive Kids Menu: Pancakes, Cheeseburger, Chicken Tenders, Grilled Cheese, Butter Cheese Pasta. An unusually nice selection of beverages including Vampirito, The Hulk, Fresh Ginger Lemonade, Belen’s Shake, Purple Haze, Golden Milk, Horchata Iced Latte, Mimosas, Wine, Beer. Services was friendly and professional, too. Café Belen is open daily from 8:00 AM to 9:00 PM for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Convenient parking is available in the lot directly in front of the restaurant or on the street nearby. A wonderful local place to support and enjoy—you’ll want to come back...

This is a tucked away cafe with decent inside searing and minimal outside seating. Parking is tough since it's in a strip mall with very little parking.

Overall, the food was only ok. I was excited based on all the reviews I've seen, but maybe it's just not what I'm used to? We ordered the avocado toast and huevos rancheros. First off was the toast, came with runny eggs on top, a nice addition. However, the whole thing was bland. It literally tasted like eating egg yolks mixed with avocado and bread. The huevos rancheros were better, but I wasn't a huge fan of them. I honestly can't say if they are traditional or not since I've had this before, but it was prepared differently. Overall, I'm a little disappointed or underwhelmed with the food.

The service was great, though! We got seated, orders taken, and food delivered quick.

Maybe I ordered the wrong thing, but it definitely wasn't for...

With several hours before my car was ready, I came upon Belen after passing another café. One of the owners welcomed me as he was tidying up outside. I opted on the frittata with fresh fruit, and a cappuccino instead of my healthy daily home breakfast, to make it a brunch. I liked that Belen was new, bright and clean, even though the music was louder at times than I would prefer. The food experience was all right, closer to 3-1/2 stars for my European taste who finds eggs usually a little over cooked in American restaurants. I was hoping a Mexican café would cook eggs more “softly”, but I think the cook was trying to grill melt the cheddar cheese on top, instead of incorporating the cheese in the eggs. I needed coffee hence ordered the cappuccino that was regular, but in hindsight the juice selections were interesting. A fine café to stop by when...