Too Little Monkey Business

Taking a break from chasing after pedo-priests, I came to Monkey Business Cafe in Fullerton and found the place empty. It's a damn shame, and not just because the non-profit Hart Community Homes runs it as a training business for its at-risk wards, but because the food is as good as cafes run by four-star chefs. I'm currently licking my fingers clean of frosting, the last remnants of a chocolate cupcake bigger and tastier than those gourmet things that have been such a curious rage the past couple of years. It was the topper to a wonderful brunch/lunch.

The brunch part consisted of what's picture: their trademark Monkey Biscuit, a sort-of bran muffin baked around a soft-boiled egg and topped with different ingredients. Slice it in half, and the Monkey Biscuit will remind you of a diagram of a volcano and its many underground veins, or a gold motherlode. I ate one spiked with ham, some other Italian meat (sorry for being vague--I'm also trying to clean my computer clean of the frosting. Mmm...licking keyboard), and pico de gallo, a pizza condensed into a fist-sized snack. Two will suffice as a full lunch, but I was in the mood for a burger and ordered a Monkey Biscuit to go.

That burger! On a ciabatta roll, with the crispest non-salad lettuce I've ever had the pleasure of chomping through, a patty so delicious that I didn't even need to slather it with mustard like I do most of my burgers. You should visit Monkey Business Cafe to help out this deserving non-profit, but this is no mere charity case, either: the food is legit.