Pouring sausage gravy and maple syrup over waffle was acceptable.

“The weather app said it was supposed to be sunny until later this afternoon,” my friend Valerie said as we watched large raindrops fall on our outdoor table at Pacifica Breeze Café in Del Mar.

The prediction was wrong, and the staff scrambled to close the zippered patio enclosures to protect the diners. Luckily, we had chosen a covered spot, and we drank our breakfast beverages — a $7 spicy Bloody Mary for Val made with Pacifica’s house-made blend — and a White Russian for me alongside an espresso.

Puddles form as the rain comes down at Pacifica Breeze Cafe.

This small café with indoor and outdoor dining and views of the Pacific Ocean is the smaller version of the Pacifica Del Mar located upstairs in the Del Mar Plaza. The larger restaurant is where the food is prepared.

We had ordered the chicken and waffle ($14) at the counter to split and grabbed a table. When our dripping wet server brought it to our table it was delivered with a metal plate cover and still hot from the kitchen.

As puddles formed, and some tried to make their escape in the rain, we sat at our table and poured the gravy onto our waffle—we ordered extra gravy— and dug in.

Besides coffee, the cafe serves morning cocktails for breakfast.

The chicken and waffle come with two poached eggs – ours were cooked perfectly — the bright yellow yolk was slightly runny—and the waffle was somehow crisp and still moist.

I’m not a regular chicken and waffles kind of gal. This dish is relatively new to me, having grown up in San Diego.. If this is what all chicken and waffles tastes like, it could bump my favorite breakfast burrito out of the number-one spot.

The chicken is white meat dipped in buttermilk and fried just crispy enough. Do not mistake this meat as frozen chicken strips; they are thick pieces of chicken cooked golden brown.

The country sausage gravy had bits of pepper floating in it and somehow went with the maple syrup; pouring both over the waffle was acceptable.

Normally dining al fresco in San Diego is a safe bet, but not this year. As Val and I dipped our chicken into the syrup and watched the rain pour down onto the sidewalk in front of us, it was like a dinner show with comfort food.