Gulf Shores Vacation: What You Need to Know

You’ve heard it all your life…breakfast is the most important meal of the day. In Gulf Shores and Orange Beach, it’s not just the most important, but is also one of the most delicious! No matter if you have an appetite for eggs or a craving for seafood, you can have your pick on Alabama beaches during your next vacation with these Orange Beach and Gulf Shores breakfast restaurants.

After much taste-bud tempting research, we’ve compiled a list of our six favorite breakfast spots at Orange Beach and Gulf Shores restaurants. Before you sink your toes in the sand, feast on these drool-worthy selections. It’s also perfectly acceptable to take a nap after breakfast while on vacation. You might just need one!

Gulf Shores Breakfast Restaurants: The Ruby Slipper Café, Orange Beach AL

Finding a starting point to talk about with The Ruby Slipper Café in Orange Beach is difficult. Every item on the menu gets a thumbs up! However, what this slice of breakfast heaven may be best known for is its benedicts. These aren’t your ordinary benedicts, either. Don’t order expecting your selection to be served atop an English muffin. Instead, you’ll find a monstrous, airy homemade southern biscuit.

You have six eggs-traordinary benedicts to choose from, including the Chicken St. Charles, which includes a fried chicken breast and two poached eggs finished with a pork Tasso cream sauce. The Shrimp Boogaloo Benedict is equally delicious, especially if you’re a seafood fan! This dish takes The Ruby Slipper Café back to its New Orleans roots with Gulf shrimp sautéed with pork Tasso and creole tomato sauce served over fried green tomatoes and, of course, two poached eggs.

Foodie blogger Erin Klema of The Epicurean Traveler said nobody does Eggs Benedict quiet like The Ruby Slipper. “What I really love about the Benedicts at The Ruby Slipper is the option to order two different ones — what they call the “Peacemaker.” Even narrowing my order down to two was a difficult choice! Eventually, I decided upon the Chicken St. Charles and the Shrimp Boogaloo Benedict. Both looked as mouthwatering as they tasted!”

Tasty Tip: Order a side of Pig Candy Bacon or the French Toast Batons stacked up like a game of Jenga. The kids will love it, and so will you! An Orange Beach and Gulf Shores breakfast doesn’t get much better than this!

The Southern Grind Coffee House, Orange Beach AL

The Southern Grind Coffee House is a local’s favorite. You can’t go wrong with breakfast in this relaxed, beachy coffee spot. There are two locations for you to get your caffeine fix, one at The Wharf in Orange Beach, and the newest location inside Hotel Indigo, also in Orange Beach. This mom and pop shop serves up a great selection of breakfast items, but our favorites are Chef Jim’s Belgian Waffles topped with fresh strawberries, fresh whipped cream and drizzled in white chocolate. If that sounds like pure indulgence…it is! However, you’re on vacation and that’s allowed! Another favorite at this Orange Beach restaurant is the Jalapeno Potato Scramble. Load up on your protein with three eggs scrambled with fresh baby spinach, Bella mushrooms and either cheddar, mozzarella, provolone or feta cheese.

Tasty Tip: If you need a wake-me-up, visit the Hotel Indigo location for a tall cup of nitro draft coffee. This is one of the only locations on Alabama’s beaches where nitro coffee is available for an Orange Beach or Gulf Shores breakfast. It’s worth the trip!

Brick & Spoon, Orange Beach AL

Rise and dine at Brick & Spoon located on Canal Road in Orange Beach AL. Voted one of the “Top 10 Breakfasts in the US” by Travel + Leisure, it’s hard to pass up the restaurant’s Shrimp & Grits. It’s a meal big enough to feed you and a friend, or ask for a to-go box and save the rest for lunch! Have your fork ready when the server brings a giant bowl of fire-roasted corn grits topped with a poached egg, Gulf shrimp, bell peppers, onion, house garlic and cream sauce.

Tasty Tip: Did you know breakfast should come with dessert, too? It does at Brick & Spoon. The Bananas in Pajamas is a favorite for kids and kids-at-heart with its crispy banana eggrolls drizzled in fosters sauce.

Sassy Bass Amazin’ Grill, Fort Morgan AL

When you want a down-home breakfast with made-from-scratch recipes, the locals know to head to Sassy Bass Amazin’ Grill in Fort Morgan. There’s nothing fussy about the food, and that’s what makes it so filling. In fact, grab a plate and head to the breakfast buffet filled with all your traditional favorites and a few unique dishes, too. The owner swears by the savory porridge made with grilled beef, pork and oatmeal porridge. Another one of our favorites at this Fort Morgan restaurant is the Western Omelet prepared with cured ham, onion, green pepper, home fries and toast. Sassy Bass is the kind of place you go to submerge yourself in the local culture. Meet locals with great stories to tell, and you may get some insider secrets for your Gulf Shores vacation, too!

Tasty Tip: As one of the few restaurants on the Fort Morgan peninsula serving the beach houses and condos in Fort Morgan, summer can get busy. Be patient. Have conversation and relax. You’re on vacation, and your Gulf Shores breakfast will be coming right up!

Café Beignet, Gulf Shores AL

When a quick breakfast is calling your name, and a sweet tooth is driving your breakfast choice, nothing beats Café Beignet in Gulf Shores. If you’ve never had the culinary pleasure of sinking your teeth into this puff of powdered sugary goodness, you’ve been missing out. You’ll wonder where these pastry delights have been all your life. Order a dozen for $12. You can order them plain and covered in confectioners’ sugar or get the vanilla pudding-filled beignets topped with chocolate syrup. Either way, you really can’t go wrong. Plan an activity outdoors after breakfast to burn off your sugar rush! We suggest a hike on the Hugh S. Branyon Backcountry Trails or the Bon Secour National Wildlife Refuge.

Tasty Tip: Get them hot and devour them hot! Beignets are best when they’re right out of the fryer and dunked in powdered sugar. These are the pillowy delights a Gulf Shores breakfast dream is made of!

Gulf Shores Top Breakfast Spot

Drumroll please! The number one spot for a Gulf Shores breakfast is…your own balcony or beachfront deck! Smell the salt air and enjoy cool morning breezes without changing out of your pajamas. Gulf Shores beach houses and Orange Beach condos come with fully equipped kitchens and everything you need for breakfast in paradise, minus the groceries and chef, of course! Pick up breakfast-ready muffins and fruit or send someone out on a Café Beignet run. Sip your coffee and enjoy the views of Alabama’s beaches. It really doesn’t get any better than this.

After you’ve had your fill of breakfast and are ready to embark on your Orange Beach and Gulf Shores vacation adventure, check out the newest attractions on the Alabama Gulf Coast. Get the latest in our blog, Four Hot New Attractions on Alabama Beaches.