Best Brunch Spots Near Glendale — A Local's Guide for 2025

If you're looking for brunch near Glendale and you've been defaulting to the same three restaurants on Brand Boulevard, it's time to explore. Some of the best breakfast in the area isn't in Glendale at all — it's a short drive north, along Honolulu Avenue in Montrose.

Montrose Shopping Park has been a neighborhood staple for decades, but the food scene has quietly become one of the most interesting in the foothills. Fewer crowds, free parking, and restaurants that are doing their own thing instead of copying whatever went viral last month.

Here are the spots worth knowing about.

Toasted — The One Everyone Talks About

There's a reason Toasted keeps coming up in conversations about breakfast in Montrose. Located at 2420 Honolulu Ave, this cafe created something called Toast Towers — thick-cut artisan bread stacked with ice cream, fresh fruits, chocolate, and toppings. It's a dessert-meets-breakfast concept that literally does not exist anywhere else in Los Angeles.

The Nutella & Banana Tower ($12) is the bestseller and a safe first order. But if you want the dish that makes people stop eating and start filming, go for the Saffron & Rose — saffron ice cream, rose water, and crushed pistachios on toasted bread. It sounds unusual. It tastes extraordinary.

The Toast Towers are the only reason I need to drive to Montrose. Nothing else like them in LA.

Beyond the towers, their full menu covers solid ground: a Armenian coffee that's brewed with cardamom and might ruin regular drip coffee for you forever, a Coffee Flight for the indecisive, breakfast toasts like Bananas for Biscoff, and a Turkey Pesto sandwich that keeps showing up on TikTok. The patio is dog-friendly, and the owners actually greet you when you walk in.

Joselito's — Weekend Mexican Brunch

At 2345 Honolulu Ave, Joselito's has been a Montrose institution for years. Their weekend brunch leans into traditional Mexican breakfast — chilaquiles, huevos rancheros, fresh salsas — with portions that suggest they want you to skip lunch. The salsa bar alone is worth the visit. If you're in the mood for something hearty and savory after a hike in the Verdugos, this is the call.

Black Cow Cafe — The Neighborhood Diner

Just down the street at 2219 Honolulu Ave, Black Cow is the kind of American diner-style restaurant that every neighborhood needs. Big menu, reliable execution, generous portions. It's been around for a while and has the Yelp reviews to show for it. Good for groups where everyone wants something different — someone's ordering pancakes, someone wants a burger, someone wants a salad. Covered.

The Proper — Elevated But Not Stuffy

If your brunch crew skews more cocktail-forward, The Proper on Honolulu Ave brings a slightly more upscale energy without the Glendale price tags. Good for a longer, slower brunch where the mimosas are doing some heavy lifting.

Gus and Andy's Kitchen — Old School Comfort

For the no-frills, hearty breakfast crowd. Gus and Andy's is the kind of place where the regulars have "their booth" and the server knows their order. Classic American breakfast, done right, at fair prices.

Why Montrose Over Glendale for Brunch?

Three practical reasons:

• Parking. Free street parking and free lots. No circling, no meters, no structures. If you've ever tried brunch near the Americana, you know how much this matters.
• The walk. After eating, you can walk the entire Montrose Shopping Park strip — bookstores, vintage shops, boutiques. It turns brunch into a morning activity, not just a meal.
• Originality. Places like Toasted are creating dishes you genuinely cannot get elsewhere. That's rare in LA, where every new restaurant feels like a remix of the last one.

The Pro Tips

• Arrive by 9 AM on weekends. By 10:30, the popular spots have waits.
• Most restaurants on Honolulu open at 8 AM. Early birds get rewarded.
• Toast Towers at Toasted are dine-in only — can't order them for delivery.
• Bring your dog. Multiple patios welcome them.
• From Glendale: take the 2 North, exit Honolulu Ave. Five minutes.

Glendale proper has its strengths, but for a weekend brunch that feels like a genuine outing — not just eating near a mall — Montrose is the answer. Start at Toasted for the Toast Towers and Armenian coffee, then walk the avenue. You'll wonder why you didn't discover this sooner.