As the newest breakfast joint on the southeastern coast of the Big Island, the Kalapana Village Cafe has gained a reputation for serving up hearty breakfast and lunch dishes at affordable prices. While the breakfast menu is pretty standard fare – eggs, bacon, sausage, pancakes, home fries, french toast and smoothies – it's always satisfying and most of it has a local twist, such as avocado or Portuguese sausage.

 Oceanfront lava — Photo courtesy of Makuahine Pa'i Ki'i

They're also open daily for lunch with offerings such as hamburgers, fish sandwiches (with locally caught fish), garden burgers, fries and the like. Dining here is outdoors at picnic tables, but there's a roof to protect you from any rain.

Right across the street is the original Kalapana lava flow that overtook a flourishing town of the same name in the early 1990s. In the distance, the steam cloud from the current lava flow can usually be seen, which is currently taking over newer houses in the distance and adding new land into the ocean.

Local "grinds" in Kalapana — Photo courtesy of Nani Maloof

Kalapana Village Cafe is about a half-hour-drive from the nearest town, so it's an ideal spot to visit when you're exploring the Puna coast. It can be at the start or end of your Puna adventure, which will hopefully include a walk out to the beach across from the cafe.