Smooch Food: Breakfast Tacos and Szechuan Shrimp + Pork Dumplings from Earls

Thursday, January 1, 2026

Breakfast Tacos and Szechuan Shrimp + Pork Dumplings from Earls

Happy New Year and welcome to 2026! Our first meal of the year was at Earls. We woke up a tad late today and were rushing to make the 11:00 AM Mass, so we walked over to the nearby Earls for brunch afterward. I have made a personal decision to have a meal at Earls every New Year, a tradition we also kept in 2024 and 2023.

Szechuan Shrimp + Pork Dumplings from Earls
Chili crunch, black vinegar, roasted peanuts, and green onions

To start our meal, we ordered the new Szechuan Shrimp + Pork Dumplings, and they were absolutely divine. The delicate paper-thin wrapper was filled with succulent juicy pork and tender shrimp. The dumplings were drizzled with and sat on top of a bold tangy sauce made of dark black vinegar, spicy chili crunch, toasty roasted peanuts, and fresh green onions.

Breakfast Tacos from Earls
Scrambled eggs, aged white cheddar, pickled red onions, avocado, chipotle crema, crispy potato pavé, and garden greens

For my brunch, I tried the new Breakfast Tacos. These featured soft flour tortillas filled with fluffy scrambled eggs, sharp aged white cheddar, zingy pickled red onions, creamy avocado, and smoky chipotle crema. The dish was served with brittle crispy potato pavé and peppery garden greens. I really enjoyed the greens. I had only ever seen potato pavé in a YouTube video before, so I was happy to finally try it, though it was a bit too oily for my taste. The tacos were alright, but nothing truly wave-worthy.

Earls Breakfast from Earls
Eggs sunny side up, dry-cured bacon, sourdough toast, crispy potato pavé, and garden greens

Hubby went for the Earls Breakfast, which consisted of bright eggs sunny side up, salty dry-cured bacon, and crusty sourdough toast. His meal was also served with the same potato pavé and garden greens.

Ultimately, the company of my husband made this meal so much better than the food itself. For reference, here is the updated list of items we have tried at Earls:

Brunch