Blue Daisy — Restaurant in Santa Monica

EXQUISITE BREAKFAST ! My wife and I were up in L.A on Wednesday to take care of some personal business. We decided to chill out with an overnight stay at the Marina del Rey Marriott near Venice Beach. On Thursday morning we were up early comparing reviews of good breakfast spots and Blue Daisy on Broadway in Santa Monica was our agreed choice. Rather than check out of our hotel early ( 11am checkout ) we decided to drive over here ( 4 miles ) just before 8am and then scoot back to our room to brush our teeth etc. Sometimes things work out perfectly and we scored a shaded metered parking spot in front of the restaurant. A friendly male staff member asked if we wanted to sit inside or on the sunny outdoor patio....we chose the patio. Within seconds of getting comfortable a friendly food runner named Jorge ( with facial mask ) brought us tall glasses of cool water. We scanned the QR CODE menu with our iPhones and looked for what appealed to us. Before long a server named Marcelo ( also the manager & barista we found out later ) came by to take our breakfast order...2 x DOUBLE SHOT LATTES ( Marcelo said their lattes are usually one shot ) ), 1 x FRESH SQUEEZED ORANGE JUICE for me ( most places tell you it is fresh squeezed but usually it's not ), 1 x 3 EGGS WITH SIDE OF BACON for my wife who asked for scrambled eggs ( zucchini hash, plain crepe with jam ). I was totally intrigued by the original breakfast / brunch menu and decided to try something new to me...1 x ZUCCHINI HASH & POACHED EGGS ( I asked Marcelo to make sure the eggs were hard poached ). My Fresh Squeezed Orange Juice came out first and it certainly had the sweet smell of fresh squeezed orange juice. When I asked Marcelo he flexed his right bicep and said you bet it's fresh squeezed ! Of course it tasted perfectly delicious. And then to our amazement our 2 double shot lattes made their grand entrance. WHAT CAN I SAY....art nouveau style FLAMINGO PINK sculptured cups & saucers with resting spoons. AND TASTE....OMG probably the most incredible lattes we have enjoyed in ages ( made by Marcelo). I asked Marcelo about the coffee they use and he said it is BLACK WIDOW from South America. The restaurant was filling up very quickly and we just knew it was going to be a great experience. Our breakfast dishes arrived together as they should ( not everywhere else ) and looked totally scrumptious. My wife LOVES scrambled eggs whereas I lean towards hard poached eggs most of the time. ZUCCHINI HASH on both of our plates....WOW what an amazing flavor hit ! My hard poached eggs were exactly that...hard poached and they tasted sensational with the sauce provided. My wife loved everything on her plate incl her crispy bacon and the delicate crepe. And we were hoping our rich amazing lattes didn't run out...such rich flavorsome coffee must be savored to the very last drop ! Breakfast is a big deal to us and Blue Daisy resides in the stratosphere with the ABSOLUTE BEST. Thank...

A CLASS OF IT'S OWN ! Even though we live a lot closer to this fabulous cafe it's still a 60 mile hike from Irvine. We got sick of daydreaming about the amazing breakfast dishes and el perfecto lattes. On Sunday my wife and I hit the road at 7am for the long drive here....luckily not too much traffic. We parked in a metered street spot right out front at 7.50am. A BIT EARLY ! They open at 8am. And then we were in....familiar faces like Susy and Jorge greeted us. WHERE'S MARCELO I asked ? After I hit the restroom I ran into our good friend the mercurial manager Marcelo. I headed back to our table booth in the corner. Soon after Marcelo came by to say hi to my wife and take our breakfast order. SUCH A LOVELY GUY ! Now I was torn between ordering a regular double shot latte or a Turkish latte ( much larger but so delicious ). We love both....the local coffee roaster they use supplies them with a rich flavorsome blend. REMEMBER ! Blue Daisy is not a coffee shop nor a coffee bean roaster but I can assure you their incredible lattes are as good as it gets. WOW ! Marcelo suggested he would make us Turkish Lattes in the regular size art nouveau cups. YEAB BABY ! As Marcelo explained they still use their regular coffee beans but mix it with Turkish coffee..and of course sprinkle Turkish coffee on top. I also ordered a fresh squeezed orange juice...and let me tell you it was fresh squeezed moments before it was placed on our table. FOOD ! We both had to have Eggs Florentine ( ( sautéed mushrooms & spinach on english muffin, cream cheese, poached eggs, zucchini hash, hollandaise )...hard poached eggs for me and scrambled eggs ( special order ) for my wife. WHOO HOO ! Our amazing looking Turkish Lattes arrived and oh did they taste fabulous...blew up our tastebuds ! Before too long our Eggs Florentine dishes arrived...you have never seen a more delicious looking breakfast dish. Of course it comes with Zucchini Hash..to die for and a fresh side salad. LOVE LOVE LOVE ! When you travel 60 miles for breakfast you are hoping it's going to worth the long drive. AND IT WAS ! My fresh squeezed orange juice tasted perfectly fresh. We must have lingered on our Turkish Lattes until the very last drop was gone. Of course I had to get a selfie with incredible Chef Fermin and one with Marcelo the manager. WE...

I decided to give the place a try after seeing good reviews. I was seated at the bar. The first order was okay, nothing special, so I decided to try something more and ordered French toast. It came with four pieces of half-cut bread and it feels soggy. However, as I bit into the second piece, I immediately felt something odd and pulled it out of my mouth—it was a 6-7inch gray hair!

I showed it to the bartender right away, and he insisted it was a banana skin hair. Banana skin is supposed to break easily and it gets mushy by pressure and melt by saliva but this hair had elasticity, broken into 2 pieces by pulling. It came out all the way from my mouth, not be broken or get moosh or melted, clearly human. They broke a piece to demonstrate it was banana hair, possibly to avoid liability. Determined to confirm my suspicions, I took a piece of the hair broken by the bartender home and tested it by burning, it burned to ash—it turned out to be human hair.

The atmosphere was busy, and it seemed when my second order didn't come through, the cook hastily prepared the dish. Please consider asking your staff who handle food to wear caps or nets and ensure hygiene practices are maintained - Thank you.

Update : response to owner's respone I paid for all the food and drinks except for the French toast, where a hair was found(The hair went in my mouth). The server informed me that I didn't need to pay for the French toast. I only ate one out of the four pieces and returned the rest. I am not the one who cannot distinguish between a hair and a banana string. A young wonan next to me didn't seem to have any clue. I went to Casa Del Mar hotel after this incident to eat food with better quality, better service - Am I the one who wants free food pretending the incident? I have kept the piece of hair, and if necessary, I am considering to report this to the relevant authority if you insist it is not a hair. I expected that you guys accept a mistake and promise the more strict hygiene and I thought I would remove the review but your responding manner is aggravating...