If you don’t spend your Saturday morning rolling yourself into a burrito under your sheets, you’re missing out on the best activity to start the day. As much as I love spending an insane amount of time in bed, I equally love eating at the top of the morning. That might sound like a pair of conflicting hobbies, but I often find myself wishing to have brunch while under my sheets in bed. Would that be considered a breakfast burrito? Hopefully!

As much as I wanted to stay inside, I was set to have breakfast at Bread and Porridge in Santa Monica. It took everything in me not to take my comforter to the restaurant, but somehow I managed. Walking into the restaurant, Bread and Porridge felt warm and comforting. Like a bed—I promise I’ll drop the bed references here. Feeling so nice inside, I sat next to the window and was greeted by a waiter. He went over the menu with me pointing out a few popular items. My initial thought was to order the obvious: porridge, but looking at the menu it was hard to find. There was oatmeal and cream of wheat. Seeing only two options with no variation, it didn’t seem like porridge was their specialty (although it was in their name). Well that’s a tad disappointing. With that, I opted for a drink and pancakes.

The first item to the table was the Ghirardelli Hot Chocolate ($4.70). I could have ordered coffee or a latte, but for this visit I wanted something simple and reminiscent of being a kid. I may be quickly approaching thirty (oh crap), but every now and then having an adult version of a childhood drink is more than welcome. The hot chocolate here is similar in appearance to a hot chocolate served at any other restaurant: overall it’s uncomplicated. What sets this hot chocolate apart from other places in flavor is that it has such an enchanting taste that it’s almost irresistible. It’s rich, sweet, moody with each sip, and has a delicate gritty texture making it one of my favorite hot chocolates in the city.

To go along with my hot chocolate, I ordered the Strawberry and Pecan Pancakes (2 pancakes, $9.10; 4 pancakes, $10.40). The pancakes came with a pure Vermont maple syrup. Knowing that the syrup is grade A and has a robust taste in each pour, I almost emptied the bottle on my plate. It’s not as sticky and viscous as other syrups but it’s still full of a deep flavor to accent the pancake.

By itself, the pancake is decent. It’s not the kind that can be eaten on its own without syrup like at restaurants like Myke’s. While that sounds unfortunate, it’s not a bad thing. Because the restaurant has so many different toppings for pancakes from blueberries to strawberries the add-ons help enhance the taste. For myself, I went with pecans. Through this set of pancakes, what I found is should you order nuts as a topping, ask to have them easy. For my breakfast, the amount of pecans on top and inside of the became a bit excessive. On top of the pancake, the pecans can easily fall off and only the God given amount that you should eat will be on your fork. Thanks Jesus! With them infused inside of the pancake, the nuts can make it too crunchy. However, that’s more of a personal preference than anything else. With that said, add the nuts as you see fit and enjoy!

I may not have been able to have breakfast in bed, but eating at Bread and Porridge was a nice way to start the day. From the rich hot chocolate to the simple pancakes (with one preferential change), I was glad I stepped out of my breakfast burrito to have a real breakfast in Santa Monica.

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Address: 2315 Wilshire Blvd, Santa Monica, CA 90403
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