By Teresa Mariani

Photo by Micheal Kidd
	Fat Cat's Cafe at Port San Luis

Nothing beats a late lunch at Fat Cats Café in Port San Luis - unless it's breakfast or dinner there.

Fat Cat's has been a Port San Luis institution since 1985, serving breakfast, lunch and dinner 24 hours a day, seven days a week, year round. (They close for a half-day on Christmas, but that's it.) A big part of the restaurant's business are workers at a nearby power plant, also on the job seven days a week, 24 hours a day, year round. They make it a habit to stop by Fat Cats before and after shift change.

Other regulars include the harbor employees and boat crews on the job in the Port San Luis boatyard just across the parking lot from Fat Cat's, at the base of Harford Pier. Add bicyclists and surfers and plenty of other Central Coast locals, and you get a pretty eclectic crowd at Fat Cat's.

On a sunny day, you can find everyone trying for a patio table, to sit outside in the warm air and gaze out across San Luis Bay to Avila Beach and Pismo Beach. The patio is almost a sure bet anytime thanks to the gas heaters outside - with rainy winter days the sole exception. Bougainvillea spills over the patio walls and there are blossoms filling flowerpots everywhere.

Photo By Micheal Kidd
The Fat Cat's Patio

If you get a patio table, you may even see an actual fat calico cat or two slink atop the patio wall and settle in a corner - though the staff has adopted out most of the cats that have frequented the spot over the years.

But what you'll always get at Fat Cats, in addition to the bay view, is great homey food: burgers, fries, onion rings, fish and chips. You can even get an albacore salad or a shrimp salad, or an open-faced crab sandwich. Most fun, you can also get breakfast anytime - omelettes, French toast, eggs benedict, hot Danish. French toast at dinner? No problem. Fried Eggs at 1 p.m.? Sure.

For a great breakfast, lunch or dinner, try Fat Cats Huevos Rancheros (two eggs any style over corn tortillas and beans served up with homemade ranchero sauce and sour cream). Fat Cat's Huevos Rancheros are some of the best on the Central Coast. Ditto for the burgers - any of them, from the Ortega Burger to the Mushroom Burger.

The prices are reasonable (in the $4.95-$10) range, and yes, they have a kids menu. In fact, it's the perfect place for a meal with kids of any age. If you've been to Fat Cats before, you'll be relieved to know it's pretty much the same. The only change: the restaurant expanded its patio in 2001 for more seating, and has plans to eventually cover the patio so it can be used in rainy weather.

If you're feeling curious or nostalgic, you can visit Fat Cats online anytime at www.fatcatscafe.com

Or better yet, just plan to stop there when you come to Avila or Pismo Beach or San Luis Obispo.

Writer Teresa Mariani lives on the Central Coast.

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