The Attic in Long Beach: Cheetos Mac-n-Cheese -- 'Nough Said

Behold this beauty. It's a signature dish at the Attic in Long Beach and it's food porn at its best. Mac-n-Cheese with bacon bits topped with crushed spicy Cheetos. Yes, Cheetos. I thought it'd be gimmicky but upon taking a bite of this super creamy concoction, I couldn't stop scooping spoonfuls into my mouth (while daintily wiping the red crumbs off my face).

It isn't exactly what you might want for breakfast, but it's pretty genius. The chopped fresh green onions added a bit of fresh crunch to the dish, not to mention my favorite color combo of orange and green. I got a reality check about how fatty it was when I had the leftovers and the whole thing just congealed in the fridge. Needless to say, this didn't deter me from devouring the leftovers after a quick spin in the microwave.

In retrospect, the pasta could have been a bit more al dente but heck, I was too busy enjoying the richness to notice.

I also liked the restaurant's list of refreshing drinks, like this one that had a gorgeous, bright orange hue and included carrot and ginger. It was a delightful drink to be had for brunch and I relished it.

Funny how the purported main course of a brunch, namely its version of eggs benedict, is getting second class citizen treatment here thanks to the creative use of Cheetos. The Boxty Benedict included two perfectly poached eggs and corned beef atop nicely toasted English muffin slices with a side of potatoes. I would have liked hash brown-y potatoes better but that's me getting greedy.

The kicker was the Guinness Mustard Hollandaise sauce, which sounded better in concept than in reality. I'm no lush but the mustard was so overpowering that I couldn't taste the Guinness at all. I'm not a huge fan of Hollandaise so it was fine. I got my fatty fix from the Cheetos pasta so I was good.

Service was pleasant and most of all, I loved the ambiance. The restaurant is a converted house, so it felt very homey and outdoor seating seemed nice too. The place was very bright and airy, almost like having breakfast at home -- except we got a sizzling plate of Cheetos sprinkled over elbow macaroni. I swear this isn't an indirect ad for Cheetos and no sponsorship deals were made prior to the writing of this post.