Chef updates traditional diner menu with dishes such as lemon-ricotta pancakes and award-winning vanilla-brined pork-loin sandwich

• Expires Jan 2, 2013
• Limit 1 per person. Limit 1 per table. Valid only for option purchased. Dine-in only. Must use promotional value in 1 visit. Valid for menu items up to $12.
• See the rules that apply to all deals.

$13 for breakfast or lunch for two, valid Tuesday through Friday (up to a $28 total value)

• Two salads, sandwiches, or breakfast entrees (up to a $12 value each)
• Two freshly baked cookies (a $2 value each)

$15 for brunch for two, valid Saturday and Sunday (up to a $31 total value)

• Two salads, sandwiches, or breakfast entrees (up to a $12 value each)
• One pancake sampler with three flavored pancakes topped with seasonal fruits (a $7 value)

Browse a menu of gourmet American fare that includes warm eggplant sandwiches with goat cheese, crab cakes, lemon-ricotta pancakes, and rosemary ham Benedict.

For 10 years, Mona Personius worked as a personal chef for Los Angeles's elite, including Annie Potts and Tim Curry, as well as denizens of San Francisco's posh Pacific Heights neighborhood. Wanting both a bigger kitchen for her catering business and a homey space in which to actually witness patrons' enjoyment of her cooking, she opened Mona's Table. A cross between an old-fashioned diner and a chic French bistro, the restaurant serves thick sandwiches, soups, and a different flavor of quiche every morning. Among Mona's signature dishes, the vanilla-brined pork-loin sandwich won a Fearless Fork award from the Alameda Sun in 2007, and locals have gossiped about the corned-beef hash ever since the mayor was seen sharing a cup of coffee with it. Every dish is made from scratch; even the coffee is brewed on a by-order basis. Daily specials are a mystery until guests take a seat in the warm space, but a critic at the East Bay Express shares an insider hint: the "best dishes have a subtle glow … a combination of simple ingredients layered simply together by an innately talented chef."