Driving on a sleepy street on Noe Valley, I suddenly saw throngs of people on one end of a sidewalk. This should be it, my brunch pit stop of the day. Even for a cloudy early Sunday morning, Chloe's Cafe was already packed. For a group of 3, we waited for 30 minutes to get our seats.

The size inside the cafe is cutesy small as expected in any sidewalk cafe in the city. The kitchen was tiny, and the bathroom sink was a kitchen sink. The food all made up for the long wait and crowded space though.

Tip: Cash only. Give yourself a treat and order the pancakes.

smoked trout sandwich with blue tortilla chips