Encinitas Cafe: A Local Favorite With Strong Community Roots

Twenty-one years ago, the locally beloved almost shut down forever.

Thankfully, it didn't because longtime customers and community members volunteered their time and talents to save the local institution. The owner, Debbie Zinniger, remembers when she took over.

"I was a waitress here for four years and then we lost our jobs within a week. Everyone did," Zinniger said. "[The old owners] just closed the doors. They took every single thing out of here—they took the cushions and they took the fans."

As it is today, Encinitas Cafe was a community gathering place back then. According to Zinniger, there were a lot of flower growers in the area who would meet at 5:30 a.m. at the big booth located in the far left corner of the restaurant. They would fill the booth and come back for lunch and dinner daily.

Knowing how important the restaurant was to the community, Zinniger sprung into action when she learned that it would be closing. "I said to one of our customers, 'We need our restaurant back,'" she said.

"And then it ended up that [the customer] went to the landlord, called me and said, 'I got a meeting with the landlord!' He said, 'I'll pay,' and I ended up [taking over]," she said.

Zinniger remembered being scared since she was young and without any management experience—but the community supported her.

In addition to that customer who was able to sort out the lease and contribute financially, other regulars helped. "It was about 25 customers that helped me with painting, doing the tiles. The man who met with the landlord – his wife at the time designed the menu. She also did the logo. Customers were in here for 18 hours at a time," she said.

Thanks to everyone's efforts, Zinniger was able to reopen Encinitas Cafe within one month.

Volunteering so much time and effort to reopen the restaurant was undoubtedly kind, as Zinniger said, but the customers' actions revealed what Encinitas Cafe meant to the community.

Located on Highway 101, Encinitas Cafe remains a significant part of local culture today. Many of the customers who helped Zinniger 21 years ago still come to the cafe regularly. They dine in the comfort of familiar wait staff and cooks who have been working at the restaurant for just as long.

"I have waitresses who have been here for 21 years and 18 years," Zinniger said. "Two of the cooks have been here 21 years. They're a part of a little family. They care about the place. It's not just a job," Zinniger said.

It's this comfortable family atmosphere, devotion to the community and of course, home cooked food that continues to attract new customers. With menu items like daily roasted turkeys, homemade biscuits, fresh eggs and banana walnut pancakes, new customers quickly turn into regulars.

Whether it's the comforting food, free Wi-Fi, football games on two screens, or local artists' work that invites you in, make sure to stay awhile. You won't want to miss soaking in a local tradition.