The Hangout Restaurant and Bar in San Diego's Normal Heights took over the former Cafe 21 space at 2736 Adams Ave and carried forward its brunch legacy with larger portion sizes and a retooled cocktail program. The menu splits between a morning service of egg dishes, omelets, and specialties like short rib crumpets and C21 French toast, and an evening lineup of Mediterranean-inflected plates anchored by a Madi-style brunch ethos that extends into dinner with a Mediterranean fried rice and a pesto sandwich on house bread. Brunch draws the heaviest traffic, with the Dutch pancake and shrimp corn cake pulling repeat orders from the 92116 ZIP and beyond. The full bar pours craft cocktails alongside a rotating tap list, and the kitchen runs a separate happy hour menu with small plates and drink pairings on Thursday through Sunday evenings. A covered patio wraps the front of the building with seating for dogs and their owners, and a dedicated parking lot behind the restaurant eliminates the street-parking scramble that defines much of Adams Avenue. The same dining corridor connects to Dark Horse Coffee Roasters further down Adams Avenue, where morning regulars grab espresso before doubling back for the full sit-down brunch once the kitchen is firing. Catering packages extend the kitchen's brunch and dinner menus to off-site events, with platters scaled for groups of 10 to 50. The annual Adams Avenue Street Fair turns the restaurant's patio into a front-row seat for one of San Diego's largest free music festivals, and the Adams Avenue Unplugged acoustic series in spring brings a second surge of walk-in traffic from the neighborhood. The crepe cake — a stacked tower of thin French crepes layered with pastry cream — closes out the brunch menu as a shareable dessert built to order in a 12-layer assembly.