Clayton’s Coffee Shop: Coronado’s Diner at Tenth and Orange

Clayton’s is the diner at Tenth and Orange that still looks like a diner. Not a hotel coffee program, not a third-wave counter — a 1940s room with a horseshoe counter, booths, Seeburg jukeboxes, and a menu that runs from 6 a.m. eggs through dinner.

The house history (from owner Mary, on the site): it started as Gerry’s Coffee Shop in 1938. Gerry ran it until 1952, when Mr. Clayton took over. Mary bought it in 2008 after a milkshake-and-fries stop with her kid. They claim the only original horseshoe counter left in San Diego County. The Coronado Historical Association puts the same building at 979 Orange and notes the Clayton’s name from a later owner change — useful context, not a reason to skip breakfast.

Overview

Three doors, one corner:

• Coffee shop — (619) 435-5425. Location page currently lists daily 6 a.m.–9 p.m.
• Clayton’s on Tenth donut window — daily 5 a.m. Donuts, breakfast sandwiches, burritos, coffee. Walk-up, not a table.
• Mexican takeout — (619) 437-8811. Sunday–Thursday 7 a.m.–9 p.m.; Friday–Saturday 7 a.m.–10 p.m. California burritos, tacos, housemade jalapeño cheese sauce.

The coffee-shop dinner menu starts at 4 p.m. Breakfast-for-dinner is on that board. This is a walk-in. No OpenTable circus.

What You Need to Know

• Where: 979 Orange Avenue, Coronado, CA 92118 (Tenth & Orange)
• Neighborhood: Coronado
• What they sell in the diner: eggs and omelets (2-egg breakfast $11.99), benedicts, pancakes and waffles (hot cakes $13.99), burgers, dinner plates, homemade pies, hand-scooped milkshakes and malts
• Pies: Granny Smith apple (whole pie listed at $45), cream pie, berry pie
• Milkshakes: vanilla, chocolate, strawberry, plus diner flavors (Oreo, banana, apple pie, etc.); malt +$1
• Jukeboxes: 1940s Seeburgs, per the homepage
• Nearby on the same street: Little Frenchie at 1166 Orange — different meal, same walk

Getting There

Orange Avenue parking is street parking. The 901/904 have historically stopped at Tenth and Orange; the ferry and the bridge both dump you a short ride from this corner. If the donut window is the errand, that’s the Tenth Street side at 5 a.m. — don’t wait for the dining room to unlock at 6.

Good to Know

Sit at the counter if you can. That’s the point of the room. If you want a croissant and Champagne, that’s Frenchie up the block. If you want a milkshake after the beach, this is the one Mary walked into in 2008.

Site: https://www.claytonscoffeeshop.com/

Hours: https://www.claytonscoffeeshop.com/location/claytons-coffee-shop/

Menu: https://www.claytonscoffeeshop.com/menu/claytons-coffee-shop/

More local picks: https://www.hellosandiego.com/local-picks