MORE EATERIES:

Harbor House Cafe, 16341 Pacific Coast Highway, Sunset Beach (with additional locations in Dana Point and San Clemente). Open 24 hours daily. (213) 592-5404. An array of stick-to-your-ribs meals, plus first-rate burgers, breakfasts and salads have made this 24-hour restaurant a popular landmark since 1939. Be sure to bring along a hearty appetite.

Sarducci’s Cafe and Grill, 31751 Camino Capistrano, San Juan Capistrano. Open daily, 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., Friday and Saturday till 11 p.m. (714) 493-9593. Although best known for its Italian dishes and seafood, this is also a great breakfast spot, as relaxed and friendly as the town it resides in. Try the Eggs Alaska, Seafood Omelette or Cajun breakfast. Sit out on the lower patio, and you can watch the morning trains pull in.