Monkey Business Cafe

This place offers amazing service, quality food and pricing is fairly reasonable … Don’t take my word for it try it you Will not be disappointed

My friend recommended this place for brunch… she said the food is good, and the restaurant supports and trains kids who are aging out of the foster system so they have skills for the workplace.
She pretty much said it all. I ordered the acai bowl and the the «Hart» pancakes for my daughter. The portions are generous and the prices reasonable. The service is great and there is plenty of space for small and large groups.
My friend ordered the ricotta pancakes with a lemon crème fraîche, which was delicious. The berries and fruit in our dishes were fresh, large and sweet. Their shoestring fries were well seasoned.
Give this place a try and support a good cause!

Place is very trend, I would say for young people. It is baby friendly but when they are busy, it may be a little bit hard to find a table. Overall food was okay, not great.

Chilaquiles are amazing — huge portion too! Our server (Alex) I think was great… he was probably new or a bit timid? but his service was great and I was able to get him to loosen up a bit after a couple silly jokes I love the concept of this business! Helping out young teens get out there and giving them an opportunity to get some experience under their belt in the real world. Kudos! :)
Alex was the name on my receipt — and now that I see other reviews, I think Alex is the GM. So whoever the young man helping out at 8a on 6−14−16 — you rock!

This is one of the coolest restaurants in Orange County. The breakfast was incredible, the service was awesome. Their GM Alex runs a great local spot.
But more than that, they are doing a ton of outreach work for at-​risk youth in the neighborhood they service, where it is most-​desperately needed. I can testify to this because I’ve taught in Anaheim (very similar demographics) for 15 years. Monkey Business is definitely fighting the good fight.
So if you want a great meal, where your money will do more than just feed you, check this place out.

It was a cute little place, very a even smaller parking lot. Luckily, there are plenty of street parking around. There was a short wait on Sundays, expected.
There are some family style large tables, and small tall tables that accommodates only the love birds. It is a non-​profit business offers second opportunities to the troubled youth, AKA all the employees here were at some point in «trouble». They are very very polite, extra tentative, as if treasuring the people who put these together. I was very happy to be a part of this.
The food is decent, bacon is crisp and crunchy, sunny side ups are running and fresh. There coffee is quite good as well. The waitress even offered us to take extra coffee togo at the end of the meal, at no charge. How considerate! Overall, I enjoyed the experience here, and wish there are more places like this.
Come and show your support!

Service needs help. Wait to be seated was long. Estimated 35 – 40 min. Actually took 55 min. After being seated, took 10 min before even asked anything. After order, took 30 minutes for the food. Staff was very casual about everything. Which could be good IF they were efficient. Everything we needed we had to stand up and ask or get ourselves. Had to walk the check back up to them as well. One good thing was that they gave me a cold brew refill to go. Made up for the experience a little.
What we ordered:
Acai Bowl (1): came out room temperature and asked them if it was supposed to be cold. Manager said it was and took it back. Never saw it again so they took it off the bill.
The Outlaw Burger with brioche bun and upgraded fries to pulled pork fries (5): this was the lone highlight of our experience. Amazing burger! Crunchy onion rings. Meat cooked nicely. Pulled pork was on point as well.
Berry waffles (2.5): nothing special here. Waffles were dry and didn’t have much flavor. Had to drown them with syrup. All the flavor came from the cream and berries which were your basic whipped cream and berries.
Cold brew (3): decent cold brew.
Tables were nice and large. Good for kids and plenty of space. Enough space for strollers. Parking was a little painful but there seems to be plenty of street parking around the block. Overall, spent 3 hours there and won’t be coming back.

Inside the café is really loud, but I guess that depends on the time of day and people, so my friend and I sat outside. The scenery is great, and the service is friendly and helpful with recommendations.
The food was great and fresh. Burgers are served with shoestring fries – love them – so that’s definitely a plus. It’s well worth your money at this café.

Lovely place!
Parking can be a bit tricky in their tiny lot, but if you’re willing to walk a block or so, street parking is easy. Apparently you can also print out a free parking pass and park at the church across street (go to their website).
The place is not the fanciest but served its purpose. There’s a wait for Saturday brunch and it’s not too bad (about 15 – 20 mins for 4). They also had a small «waiting room» decorated with their business branding apparel and other things so you won’t be bored while you wait lol. Really cool. Service was great and food was delicious– highly recommend their banana pancake and outlaw burger. Ortega omelette was pretty good too. The only thing I wished they’d improved on was their potatoes. A bit too dry :(Also wished they’d improved on their coffee a bit. Too watery and sour for my taste (sorry I’m a big coffee snob).
Overall though, had a great time here and will def come back!
Ps. Gotta love their mission– To Heal, Educate, and Empower At-​Risk Youth to Become Healthy, Productive, and Self-​Sufficient Adults in the Community

I’m split.
Pros:
Kids heart shaped pancakes were really good. Thick, crispy, & tasty.
My husband enjoyed his breakfast waffle sandwich.
Con:
I wasn’t particularly impressed with the service. I felt like my waiter wasn’t that friendly or happy to be serving us.
My breakfast was actually very disappointing. Sausage & eggs were good but nothing fantastic. My sourdough toast was so hard and inedible. There’s a difference between crispy crunchy and my toast was rock hard but not burnt so I’m guessing just old and sitting out? Same goes for my potatoes. Super dry like over cooked by getting reheated maybe.
My husband also did not enjoy his cold brew coffee.
I too wasn’t a fan of my ½ coffee & hot chocolate.
They ran out of kids menus & there was a 40 minute wait on a Saturday for 2 & a high chair.
But I will say I may be back in the future I saw some other interesting menu items that I’d like to try. My husband and son enjoyed their food so I guess I just ordered the wrong thing today.

Huge green building you can’t miss, adorable restaurant with amazing food! Came here to brunch it with the girls and can definitely guarantee we will be coming back.
Food:
Portobello mushroom wrap w/​waffle fries (you can change the sides for something else from their extensive options e.g., shoestring fries, salad, fruit etc.) ($ 10): This wrap is a must if you’re a mushroom lover like myself. The balsamic sauce that comes enveloping the mushrooms and fillings inside the wrap may be a bit overwhelming for some people, but personally I really enjoyed the acidity that cuts through the heavy tortilla and cheese. The waffles fries are my fave! So crispy…
Berries-​n-​cream Waffles ($ 9): Delicious! So glad I got to steal some of my friend’s dish because I would’ve missed out on this treat otherwise. The combination of the fresh berries, dense whipped cream, and the lemon crème fraîche truly creates the most harmonious bite of food…
Only downside would be that it comes with two huge waffles with not enough toppings to enjoy both!
Fit Omelette ($ 9): My health conscious friend ordered one of the more calorically low and nutritious dishes on the menu. She asked to replace the feta cheese with tomatoes instead, which they modified with no issues! The taste was… As you would expect an egg white Omelette to taste – nothing special & wasn’t bad, but egg white itself was a bit overcooked. HOWEVER if you’re looking for a healthier option they definitely have friendly options, so try them out!
The restaurant itself gives a comfortable homey atmosphere, service is attentive and friendly! Parking is limited near the restaurant (maybe 10−12ish cars max), but they direct you to the First Lutheran Church lot across the street (no parking Wednesdays or Fridays).

Monkey Business Café is not monkeying around when it comes to top notch service and food, plus helping out the community! This is a restaurant that takes real pride and care when it comes to their food. Sadly a lot of restaurants standards have lowered these days. Not something you have to worry about here, they have high standards. They are a non-​profit social enterprise and use a Workforce Development Program.
Our server Alex was awesome, attentive, knowledgeable, and friendly. He was most excellent and well informed about food.
We had the pulled pork breakfast burrito. Which I now crave, because it seriously was the best breakfast burrito I’ve ever had. The homemade salsa that comes with is spicy but oh so flavorful. We also had the Berries-​­N-​Cream Waffles. The freshest berries, delicious homemade whipped cream, decadent lemon crème fraiche with powdered sugar. Talk about heavenly! The lemon crème fraiche was out of this world!

Unilocal challenge 2016 (⁵⁰⁄₁₀₀)
I drove by this place the other day and finally got to try it! Monkey Business is a small café. The ambience is pretty interesting, but cute! Breakfast is served all day, and you have a lot of options for lunch and dinner. They’re open throughout the day too so they don’t close early! I went on a Wednesday afternoon so parking wasn’t TOO bad. I found a spot on the street.
As for the food, we got the Outlaw Burger with Pulled Pork Fries and «the» salad (I forgot what it was called). Let’s say the outlaw burger was a good choice but it’s HUGE! It’s like a tall tower of onion rings in a burger with a warm brioche bun. Obviously I couldn’t finish it all but it was delicious! It comes with french fries, but I upgraded to the bomb pulled pork fries for $ 3! I love pulled pork!
I can’t really give an opinion on the salad but my little sis said it was good!
I can’t wait to come back and try the breakfast items and more! It took us so long to figure out what to get because everything looked so good! I can’t wait to come back!

Parking is awful here. I checked their website, and they offer a printout for parking at the church nearby, which is what I recommend. It also includes a free drink!
It’s a spacious restaurant that looks like a home, but I can definitely see this place getting very busy during peak breakfast hours. I came here for breakfast, and I enjoyed my omelette very much. I would like to return to try out other items.

I decided to come by with a friend for Sunday morning brunch. We arrived around 10 and had to wait around for a while.
I ordered the Egg McMonkey, but then added the ricotta pancakes since it appears everyone really enjoyed it. The egg McMonkey was great! Eggs, sausage and some cheese. The biscuits were good too. The ricotta pancakes — well I’ve definitely had better, but these were pretty good as well.
Nothing to complain about especially since they provide a great service to the community by helping out at risk youth — applause for that!
Protip: Egg McMonkey!

This place is so damn cute to me, but that isn’t the reason for the four stars, well maybe. Partially.
Portions are out of control here ladies and gent, so if you eat a lot like me you will be very pleased but then sadden as I could not finish my meal and it wasn’t a dish you can take home! Well you can take a salad home but I feel it will be nasty as the dressing was already on the greens but anyway onto the review.
The waiter who helped us was so friendly and very informative, very honest opinion when it comes to the food choices I was deciding against. In the end, I went for the Strawberry Chicken Avocado Salad. My husband went for the Outlaw. This is a lot of food my friends! I feel each dish can be shared with one other. The Outlaw burger has a small kick of spice to it which I assume was from the BBQ sauce but it was a glorious especially with the fried onion rings side with fresh fries. If you are on a diet, don’t get this as I am sure the calories are high on this piece of heaven but it’s okay because it was worth it and that bacon tho! Besides, I ordered a salad so it is okay as it evens out.
The salad was a mixture of all these different type of herbs which I love, walnuts, feta cheese, and topped with a nice vinaigrette that brings the entire salad together nicely. The grilled chicken was spot on with a hint of that lovely charcoal taste. Like I said, the portions were huge and I only killed about three quarters of the salad but I think if I didn’t attack the Outlaw I would be able to defeat the entire salad.
Four stars because I have been sick for days and this was my very first decent meal which I loved. Also left me with a stomachache as I only ate a bowl of rice for the entire sickness.
Worth the pain.

3 – 3.5 stars for the food, bumping up to 4 because of their work with at-​risk youth.
Came with a couple girlfriends for Saturday brunch around 10:30 and we were told it would be a 20-​minute wait, but I’m sure it was more like 10. Plenty of tables inside, plus a couple outside if you’d like to bring a pet and/​or soak up some sun. There is a separate waiting area/​store in the back for you if there is a longer wait.
I had the Egg McMonkey with bacon, and it came with a generous portion of seasoned potatoes that were nicely cooked. Just the right amount of crunch without being dry. The McMonkey itself was good — bacon was really good, but the biscuit was a little dry, and I needed to add hot sauce to it for some oomph. Coffee (locally grown and organic) was great and constantly refilled.
Good, solid food and great service that supports a good cause so I’m all for it :)

Just turned my location on my phone and saw this place come up with good ratings. The name caught my attention the most. When you walk in, its small and quaint. From 2-​seating condo-​sized dining tables up to 10-​seating large oak dining tables and nothing matches but it really works well with this place.
We ordered their chilaquiles and banana walnut pancakes. The chilaquiles had to kick to them they I wasn’t expecting. While they definitely were good, I was hoping for the plate to be fuller… more eggs and maybe a more ample size serving of avocado would’ve helped. The pancakes were beyond amazing. I absolutely love when the bananas are cooked in the batter and not just on top as décor. I had banana in all of my bites! They are a pretty nice size too.
This breakfast spot might come off rather pricey but that’s because they’re non-​profit organization that helps out the local community which is a plus in my book.

Four stars for taste but two stars for service average out to a three star experience. Monkey Business has the potential to be a really great restaurant.
The cook is fantastic. My veggie omelette with portobello mushrooms, spinach, tomato, cheese, and avocado on top was delicious and tasted just like homemade cooking. The pancake was good and the homemade whipped cream and banana made it a real treat.
My friend got the egg white omelette and she loved her breakfast as well. This was her second visit as she had recommended it to me so we came together.
The service was slow. The cook prepared the food in a timely manner but so many finished dishes sat waiting for servers to pick up that there was no space for more food. Several dishes sat a good five to eight minutes and probably hit their tables lukewarm at best. The issue was not a lack of servers. It was a lack of organization. They need a floor manager to help coordinate teamwork. If a dozen dishes are waiting to be delivered then it’s not the time for other servers to mill around. They could help each other out and share tips.
Overall I would not go again because the service was friendly but too slow and unorganized… but the food was good!

Monkey Business makes serious business out of breakfast.
After a long run with my friend on a cold day, we decided to go to Monkey Business with is great reviews for their breakfast. When we got there around brunch time, there was understandably a long wait to be seated but there were several people who opted to order to go. While we waited, there were copies of the menu sitting around for us to peruse.
Once my friend and I got seated, we were starving so we were ready to order and got the following:
Egg McMonkey: A McDonald’s Egg McMuffin on ‘roids! There is an option between sausage and bacon and I opted for sausage. But I did not expect the nice thick sausage pieces cooked piping hot with the eggs and cheese sandwiched between nice flaky biscuits. In addition, it came with potatoes that were cooked to a nice crisp with light seasonings.
Banana Walnut Waffles: Although I am not a fan of waffles, I found myself thoroughly enjoying these little blankets of fluffy confection. Cooked in between were pieces of banana and the candied walnuts provided a nice contrast of salty sweet.
There is limited parking in the private lot so you are better off looking for parking on the street. In terms of service, they were pretty good and attentive.
Overall, Monkey Business is a great place to eat especially for breakfast!