Amara Kitchen
Organic restaurant · Highland Park ·
Organic American breakfast, lunch, dinner with GF & paleo options
Organic American breakfast, lunch, dinner with GF & paleo options
"Highland Park locals flock to neighborhood breakfast gem Amara Kitchen for gluten-free pancakes, pastries, and cold brew. The popular breakfast burrito, wrapped in a gluten-free or Mejorado tortilla, gets filled with scrambled eggs, sharp cheddar, roasted purple potatoes, avocado, and salsa verde or Soyrizo for a vegan option. Or go for the Amara breakfast plate with bison breakfast sausage patties, eggs, fruit, and a choice of bread or a single pancake. Amara previously had a second location in Altadena that burned down in the 2025 Eaton Fire." - Rebecca Roland
"Organic, Paleo, Gluten Free, Vegetarian, Vegan friendly breakfast and lunch. This cozy spot has it all and the food is delicious! Amara is casually tucked away off the main streets, it's a quiet nice sunny spot worth starting your day at. Our favorites include the Vegan Buckwheat Pancakes and the Avotoast." - Friend of a Friend
"Amara Kitchen was cited among Altadena restaurants that were destroyed by the Eaton Fire as the flames descended from the foothills." - Eater Staff
"After operating for years in Highland Park, the owner opened a second location in Altadena in 2021 and was embraced for a casual all-day breakfast and lunch menu: cardamom date granola, a vegan breakfast burrito, almond-flour pancakes, green eggs with potatoes, salads, bowls, and sandwiches. One of the location’s strengths was an extensive coffee, tea, and fresh-juice program; regulars also came for an oat crumble bar, lemon poppy muffin, or pumpkin seed miso cookie — all made in-house. The restaurant sat next door to an 80-year-old hardware store; drone footage after the Eaton Fire shows the location and the surrounding neighborhood in devastating ruin. The owner has started a GoFundMe to help with recovery. — Mona Holmes, editor, Eater Southern California/Southwest" - Eater Staff
"Amara Kitchen in Highland Park doesn’t just have a couple of healthy dishes stuck between fried things. Their entire menu is focused on stuff that’s actually good for you. You should be ordering the paleo pancakes, but they also do creative things with eggs, like serving them with coleslaw, squash, avocado, and pesto. The space itself is pretty bare bones and service can be slow, but for a low-key Eastside brunch, Amara is a very virtuous choice." - jess basser sanders, brett keating
