After 30 years in La Jolla, The Cottage has expanded to North County San Diego with a new Encinitas eatery. Open since June, The Cottage Encinitas debuted in the renovated Encinitas Village area at El Camino Real and Encinitas Boulevard, serving American-SoCal cuisine from breakfast to lunch.
The Cottage has been a La Jolla institution since 1992, when founders Laura and John Wolfe turned a hole-in-the-wall pastry shop on Fay Avenue into a full-service restaurant. At the new breakfast-to-lunch restaurant, the menu includes La Jolla classics and cult favorites like French toast, avocado smash and Capellini crab cakes. New dishes like crab and prosciutto benedict, charred octopus salad and leg of lamb sandwich will be available at the Encinitas location, in addition to plant-based options like tofu “huevos” ranchero and cauliflower and lentil curry.
The brunch spread at The Cottage.
Jason Peaslee, now the owner of The Cottage, explored potential expansion areas for a long time, looking for the perfect La Jolla partner with his business partner Bernardo Kanarek. For Peaslee, Encinitas’ main selling point was its similarity to La Jolla as well as its proximity to The Cottage’s existing customers in areas such as La Costa, Carlsbad, Olivenhain and Rancho Santa Fe.
“We have been selective and cautious in our growth,” Peaslee said in a news release. “Expanding in the second location after a strong and sustainable residence, we wanted to find a place with the beach town and community-driven culture that has supported the success of The Cottage all these years, and Encinitas checks all the boxes.”
The Cottage Encinitas blends in with the “coastal craftsman” charm of original La Jolla. The restaurant has a large outdoor patio and an indoor dining room and bar with tufted upholstered booths and rustic cafe-style seating. Two locally-made paintings adorn the walls, along with art that rotates outside and is available for sale, with proceeds going to support a local non-profit that helps primary education. The sales counter features prepackaged bags of The Cottage’s bestselling granola and coffee blends, which are packaged and processed on-site at the roastery.
The Cottage is located at 127 N. El Camino Real, suite H and is open daily from 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. For more information visit cottageencinitas.com
