by Mary E. Knippel

Menu and diners at High Tide.

February 2011 — If you are hungry after a visit to surf and sand, or if you’re bound for the beach and looking for a place to stop for a quick bite, check out Pacifica’s High Tide Restaurant Café and Crepery just steps away from the ocean. “Starting a restaurant is risky,” Bay Area native and High Tide owner Samer Jweinat said. “I like a challenge. I knew it would be a lot of hard work and long hours, but having my family with me makes all the difference.”

An entrepreneur since the age of 19, Jweinat has owned a variety of businesses, including a coffee shop, so the restaurant industry is not new territory for him. The family-friendly café, located at 5500 Pacific Coast Highway, serves up a breakfast, lunch and dinner menu just a few doors down from the Fog Zone, a tobacco shop also owned by Jweinat. “I felt the area needed a different kind of restaurant,” Jweinat said, “and when this location became available, I decided to open the café.” Colorful beach-inspired murals decorate the walls of the cozy café and offer a cheery atmosphere even on the cloudiest of Coastside days. Renovations to transform the location from a nail salon into a seaside eatery took a year.

Nutella sweet crepe. Photo: Mary E. Knippel.

“We believe in serving our customers great food and at good value for their money,” Jweinat said. Using the freshest of ingredients, from the bakery products down to the produce, Jweinat and his staff of extended family members strive to also deliver excellent customer service. Every menu item is available during regular business hours, so you can eat breakfast at lunchtime, or have a hamburger for breakfast. All of the entrees are under $10; the kids’ menu comes in under $4. Also, if you like to have a Mimosa with your omelette, or a glass of wine or beer with your pasta, you can enjoy them with your meal here.

Jweinat said the Savory Chicken Pesto Crepe is the most popular of the crepes, followed by the dessert crepe with Nutella, fruit, whipped cream and nuts. “Our crepes tend to be ‘California style,’” he said. “Using a special family recipe, we fill each one with the best ingredients and then we make them a little larger than traditional crepes.”

High Tide Restaurant Café and Crepery patio. Photo: Mary E. Knippel.

“We offer wireless here, too,” Jweinat said. He has recently been hard at work putting the finishing touches on a back patio area. “Besides offering more seating, a beautiful fountain and heaters,” he said, “patrons will be able to reserve this space for private parties.”

High Tide is open daily: Monday-Thursday 8 a.m.-9 p.m., Friday 8 a.m.-10 p.m., Saturday 7:30 a.m.-10 p.m., and Sunday 7:30 a.m.-9 p.m. For more information, call 650-735-5871.