After several consecutive mornings of Cheerios and Safeway waffles, I wanted to try a local spot for breakfast during the final morning, February 10, of our trip to Carlsbad. Ever the expert in finding out where locals eat, my wife found the homey Don’s Country Kitchen in Carlsbad Village. My wife tried the scrambled eggs with kielbasa, mushrooms and Swiss cheese. She said the plate was good, but not a must-have. The boys ordered enormous pancake stacks (one apple, one blueberry), each piled one-inch high and about eight inches in diameter. Neither twin could finish. The blueberry pancakes are what I’d go with again. They were flavorful and loaded with blueberries. The apple pancakes featured small bits of red delicious apple with the skin still on.
I went with Don’s big omelet, which included spinach, bacon, mushroom and jack cheese with sliced avocado covering the omelet. The cheese and spinach made the omelet stringy and gave me some fight whenever I tried to pull away a piece of the omelet. They would have done well to chop the spinach more finely and to perhaps use a little less cheese. The hash browns were lightly fried, making them slightly underdone. They were more crunchy than crisp. The homemade biscuits were light, fluffy and delicious with jam.
Overall, I found the food quality average, but the small-town charm made the experience a positive one. Go to Don’s only when you have time to spare. We got there at about 10:00 am on a weekday and waited ten minutes for a table. It would be another 20 minutes or so before we were served our dishes.
Don's Country Kitchen
2885 Roosevelt Street
Carlsbad, CA 92008
(760) 729-2274
