We ate here the morning after Christmas while staying at the nearby Westin.

The plusses -- We both had excellent and large portions of French toast with pears. A woman at the table next to us raved about her egg dish. The service was good.

The minusses -- It was unseasonably cold outside and the restaurant could have been warmer. The coffee was too expensive, as previously noted.

The bottom line -- Because we visit Palo Alto only occasionally, we would pay the high prices for a good breakfast. It's no more than breakfast at the Westin.

The cafe does not post a menu by the door, so you don't know quite what to expect. We saw that it was connected to a bakery and that the restaurant was light and airy. It looked very inviting, so we decided to go in. The food was indeed good. My partner had the French toast with poached pears and I had a the beef hash with two poached eggs and pearl barley. They were both good. The beef was in fairly large chunks. There were some small pieces of carrot in with the barley and a few sprigs of arugula on top. The portion was such that it was not a very filling breakfast, but it felt just about right. A bigger eater might not be satisfied.

The coffee was a real disappointment. We ordered cappuccinos, because at $3.75 they were only 25 cents more than the regular drip coffee. Although the menu says that coffee is individually brewed for the customer, the waiter told us it was already brewed. The cappuccinos were lukewarm, very milky and had virtually no foam and

The problem is that our breakfast for two came to $50 with tip. For that price it should be something you rave about not just something that's good. Also, if I'm paying $50 for a breakfast, I'd also expect things like fresh ground pepper rather than a pepper shaker. And if you want to order a side of bacon, it will set you back $7. Although I love the general atmosphere, there are so many good restaurants in Palo Alto that I would go to instead of returning here.

I've had both coffee and a full meal at Mayfield Bakery and Cafe. As someone who is always bemoaning how hard it is to get a decent loaf of bread in California, I'm delighted to have found such a terrific bakery. The food was also lovely. I had fish with hazelnuts and capers. And because they do not hold the breads overnight, everyone who had dinner the night I was there received a free loaf before they went home.

While visiting Palo Alto and staying around the corner at the Sheraton we had two family breakfasts - one with four people on a busy Sunday morning and one with eleven people on a Tuesday morning. Both times the service was terrific, the food wonderful and the whole experience exceptional. Our waiter on the Tuesday was able to serve ten adults and a baby with different dietary needs, keep the wonderful coffee coming and get two of our party served and off to the airport without any fuss. The food is well presented, beautifully cooked and interesting.