Green Street Restaurant

The food is presented as "californian", but is actually less west-coast inspired than you might imagine, with many "traditional american" dishes filling out the menu.

Of particular note for brunch/lunch (when I'm usually here) are the portobello mushroom sandwich, the avocado / lettuce / tomato sandwich, and the series of dishes called "Emily's Breakfast", "Charlie's Breakfast", etc, which are sophisticated, well-executed omelettes and egg scrambles.

They also serve a pretty good glass of fresh orange juice (which is meticulously filtered for pulp, if you're into that sort of thing).

This is in a little secluded section of the pasadena lake are called "shoppers lane"; as a consequence, it immediately feels more private and secluded, without immediately visible car traffic and a fair amount of pedestrian activity at the adjacent stores.

The indoor seating is pleasant enough, but the patio is gorgeous on a warm pasadena afternoon; I occasionally bring work here and pretend to do it while sitting at a table, sipping coffee, and people-watching.