About a month ago Los Pinos Restaurant and Bar in Cameron Park started serving breakfast.
Los Pinos is the restaurant at 3420 Palmer Drive which I recall used to be, in reverse order, Hemalayas Indian Restaurant, Blackwell’s and the club house for the Arnold Palmer Golf Academy.
My friend Russ Salazar and I had been talking about trying breakfasts along with our usual lunches for some time, so when I saw a sign announcing that Los Pinos was serving breakfast, I called him.
We stopped by about 10 a.m. on a rainy Friday and were graciously greeted by hostess and server, Rosana, who, with her husband Luis, are joint general managers. She surprised me by immediately commenting that the cook, Teresa, knew me and then guided us to the dining room and seated us at a nice booth.
Being that it was between breakfast and lunch, the restaurant was fairly empty, but during the time we were there, it became quite busy with diners, including a large group.
As we were looking over the menu, Teresa came out of the kitchen to say hello and give me a hug. I recalled her and her friendliness from when she worked at Fresh Mex Express near K-Mart, and would soon realize that she is also a great cook.
We ordered two breakfasts to share. Russ ordered the Breakfast Skillet, a combination of chorizo and bacon, with fresh zucchini, onions, mushrooms, potatoes and bell peppers. topped with scrambled eggs and served with a side of tortillas, sour cream, guacamole and Pico de Gallo.
I went for the Machaca Plate, a savory blend of shredded pork, eggs, onions, bell peppers, jalapeños and red sauce, served with beans or breakfast potatoes. I opted for both potatoes and frijoles since we always have to try the frijoles. I thought they were good, Russ thought they could use a bit more flavor.
The meals came and they were generous portions and beautiful, so beautiful I even took a picture of them. And they were as delicious as they looked.
We started by both taking some of Russ’ plate. What a great combination of delicious flavors from the mixture, which also was quite colorful. Russ asked if some of the meat was longanisa, another Mexican sausage similar to chorizo. He liked it and it turned out they mix the two for additional flavor.
My breakfast, although not quite as colorful, was equal in great taste. The shredded pork mixed with eggs, onions and peppers was delicious. And, the sliced jalapeños added an occasional, slight bite.
Rosana asked me if I would like some salsa or hot sauce, so I got some of their salsa to try with my meal. You know it was even better with a bit of that.
While we were trying to figure out how we were going to finish all the food, Teresa showed up at our table with a plate of their Steak and Eggs. Although the menu simply says carne asada, it was a ribeye steak, cooked perfectly.
The ribeye is my favorite cut, although I don’t eat it very often. Theirs was the tenderest steak I have eaten in a long time. We both savored it.
At this point we had spent the best part of an hour and a half eating and just all that was left were a few potatoes. Teresa came out of the kitchen again to bring me a sample of her chile verde, which Rosana had said I had to try. It was excellent with lots of tender pieces of pork in a light, but tangy, green sauce.
Then Teresa asked if we wanted to try a Breakfast Burrito. We wanted to, but, “Sorry,” we said, “No room.”
Let me comment on their breakfast potatoes. They are large pieces cooked, as Russ put it, “al dente.” At first I thought they were slightly undercooked, but then decided they were much, much better than the overcooked or hard as rock ones I am usually served.
In addition to what we had, the breakfast menu at Los Pinos includes a Breakfast Burrito, Breakfast Tacos, Huevos Rancheros, a Mexican Omelette, Chiaquiles (two eggs with onion, cheese, red sauce and tortilla strips), a Vegetarian Omelette, Pancake Breakfast and a Kids Pancake Breakfast.
All their menus: Breakfast (7:00-11:00), Lunch (11:00 -3:00) and Dinner are posted on their webpage at www.lospinoscp.com if you want more details.
They have the normal beverages to accompany your meal, along with a full bar. There is a lot of comfortable indoor and patio seating (weather permitting) and even a banquet room upstairs that is available for parties, meetings and such..
Again, a great atmosphere, great food and very friendly people.
They are open daily from 7 a.m. and close at 9 p.m. Sunday through Thursday, and at 10 p.m., Friday and Saturday nights. For more information call them at (530) 672-1403 or, again, visit their webpage at www.lospinoscp.com.
A couple of years ago we had lunch there and loved it. This was so good, I guess we are going to have to go back again for lunch or dinner.