Honeymoon cafe — Restaurant in Pismo Beach

My family and I look forward to our Pismo Beach vacations, including eating breakfast at Honeymoon cafe. Sadly, today's experience was unpleasant.

Whenever I order food anywhere, I'm careful to check that there isn't anything in a dish that will upset my body (my responsibility). I have many dietary restrictions, and had appreciated this restaurant most in town for their team's understanding.

Today, I ordered and received my dish with a food item not listed on the menu, one that I don't eat because I'm allergic. When I asked a team member to confirm the item was what I thought it was, she confirmed that it was and dismissively told me it was listed on the menu. I was surprised by her dismissiveness. I'd only ever experienced support in a moment like this, and expected it from this team too (my mistake). I told her I checked the menu and asked her to confirm. She did, told me it wasn't listed, and then asked what I'd like instead. She shared a recommended dish, I responded that it had an item I was allergic to, mentioning I had 13 allergies total. I ordered something else, and quickly realized I didn't confirm that I didn't want the item in that dish that I didn't eat (my responsibility).

I ran into the restaurant to confirm and found her telling another team member that I had 13 allergies (saw the eye roll too). When our eyes met, I delivered my message and waited while my family ate their meals.

When my dish came, it was incomplete. She told us that she'd get the side, but that she'd need more money from us to cover it. My original order included a side (although it wasn't clear just by looking at the plate). It was clear that she hadn't looked at our original order / receipt and did the math on what we owed (less than what she stated). Once she brought the side, we happily paid what she said she needed, wanting to be done with the situation and leave the restaurant ASAP.

She and another team member came by and asked how the dish was while I was eating. I kept kind and said great, thanking them for the food.

They tend to be busy, and were today. I understand and am empathetic to the challenges of the service industry. Honeymoon cafe is the best breakfast option for anyone with dietary restrictions in Pismo Beach, no questions asked. I hope that this experience, if nothing else, encourages anyone with them to ask "is there anything in this dish that is not listed?" when eating here to avoid an unpleasant experience...

Wife and I used to come to Honeymoon often and we loved it. But it seems that something has changed more recently. We've tried it a couple of times in the last year or so, trying to give the place we loved another shot, and they keep letting us down.

The first issue we had was when we ordered french toast. I was served way overcooked scrambled eggs and one of my slices of french toast was from the heel of the bread loaf. Is this the type of standards this place has?

We didn't return for a while due to this visit but gave Honeymoon another chance the other day. We both ordered the french toast once again. The cashier assumed we wanted scrambled eggs and didn't bother asking if that's what we wanted. My wife had to correct the order. Coffee was served with no cream and we had to make an effort to get someone's attention so we could get some creamer from the carton as there was none out for customers. We got our food and it was mostly better than last time, except that my wife's bacon was overcooked to the point of being inedible. Beyond crispy. On the verge of burnt. And on top of that, they didn't give us syrup with our french toast. Yet again, another thing we had to make an effort for to get their attention and ask for syrup. And these people ask for tips upon ordering? For what exactly?

It's embarrassing what they try to serve here sometimes. I looked over at another table and saw them try to serve pancakes to a lady who rejected them because they were burnt. They looked black. Is there any quality control at this place? Did they seriously think no one would notice burnt and black pancakes on their plate? Laughable.

We're frustrated because it used to be great. Not anymore. I'm surprised they still have a full house with the level of service and inconsistent food. Pay attention to the details. Quality is all...

I would definitely consider going to Honeymoon Cafe for my honeymoon. People there seem to be happy. I heard that SLO is one of the happiest places. I didn't really believe that for a while. I assumed that people in SLO were more concerned about being perceived as happy than actually being happy. So whenever they would take a happiness test, they would check all the happy boxes. After going to Honeymoon Cafe I realized SLO people might actually be happy. I wanted to go up to the people there and ask them how they were being happy. I've been working on being happy so I bought a bunch of "how to be happy" books. The books haven't been fully working though. I guess it makes sense, just because I read a book on happiness doesn't mean I'm magically going to be happy after. That would be like expecting to become a NBA player after reading a "how to become a NBA player" book. There are probably so many ways to become a NBA player just like there are so many ways to be happy. How is one book able to capture all those ways?! That's why I'm starting to have a distrust for these "how to be happy" books. I feel like they might be a money grab. I wouldn't be surprised if a "how to write a how to be happy" book came out. Anyways, maybe I should be reading less "how to be happy" books and instead just gravitate towards happy people. I would probably learn a lot more taking notes from them. That's why I want to go back to Honeymoon Cafe, the people seem happy and the food...