Marion S.
Yelp
What do you call a hidden gem that everyone knows? Corner Cottage.
In another timeline, it'd be easy to pass by this small, beige building on South Victory Boulevard...but in this timeline, it's 9am on a Saturday and there's a crowd of people outside looking like they're waiting for a Black Friday sale to start. Why are all these people in line? They're waiting for the best breakfast burrito in town.
Corner Cottage has many things on the menu from breakfast burritos, burgers, and teriyaki bowls...but everyone comes here for two things: relatively cheap eats and the breakfast burritos.
There's nothing extravagant about the burrito...it's not the size of a house or filled with some sacred, organic meat or artisan potatoes. It's just a breakfast burrito...potatoes, eggs, cheese, and a meat of your choice wrapped in a tortilla. The best restaurants are the ones that do simple things the right way.
Some might say there's too many potatoes, not enough eggs, needs more cheese, etc, but to me the ratios are perfect. Yes, the burrito is pretty heavy on the potatoes, but the way they're cooked (everything is done on a giant, well-seasoned flat-top grill) makes it great. They're not fried and crispy, they're soft and pillowy. When wrapped together with the other stuff, it's almost like a mashed potato quality and texture. Could it use more egg, maybe, but you get just enough scrambled eggs and cheese nestled between the layers of potato.
The meat options vary from ham, bacon, sausage, and/or steak. Ham is OK, smoky and thin sliced ham you'd expect in an omelette or a sandwich. The bacon is crumbled to bits so you get it pretty dispersed throughout the burrito, but you never get that crunch or chew from a bigger piece. I've never had the steak, since I always get the sausage burrito. It's the best one since it's chopped up sausage links chunked throughout the burrito. It tastes very similar to the Farmer John's breakfast sausages you'd grow up with living in Los Angeles.
The best feature of the burrito is what separates theirs from the rest and it's the salsa. At first you scoff at the idea that a tiny cup is all you get...but then you realize that a little bit goes a long way. You can get the salsa in the burrito or on the side. If you don't like spice, omit it or get it on the side. I always get it on the side (and maybe ask for extra) so I can spoon it on when I want. Again, the salsa isn't anything crazy...it's just a pico de gallo with either jalapenos or serranos, chopped into an oblivion. The flavors are nothing simple though...it's spicy, sour, salty, tangy, zesty...it makes the burrito, it makes you want to take another bite.
Everything is cooked to order which is the biggest and only downside of this place...you might have to wait a while. On a Saturday morning I've waited around an hour for one breakfast burrito due to the line down the block and the waiting time, but it's absolutely worth it. On a weekday morning, the wait can be a bit more manageable if you show up early.
The burrito will set you back 8 or 9 bucks give or take. The prices have gone up over the past couple of years, but to get a burrito this good for under 10 bucks is kinda crazy. It's 11 with a small coffee. There are other places that serve crappy breakfast burritos for way more. A double cheeseburger combo with fries and a drink is also 11 bucks. The burgers are around 5 bucks...I wanna say a teriyaki bowl is 5 or 6? If you're looking for cheap, good eats, this is the place to go.
Over the years the other things that make this place special are the people behind the counter. The family that used to run it was so nice and clearly cared about the community they were serving. This year, they sold the business to a new family and they're carrying on those traditions. The quality of their product is the same, which makes sense since I recognize all the cooks to be same from all these years. I did notice little flourishes of modernization the last time I came in. They finally got some new fridges and a coffee maker. They have a computer ticket system versus hand written orders. The only thing that hasn't changed, this place is still cash only, but it's literally only a small price to pay to get a classic meal.