BUENA PARK, Calif. — Bill McMullan, owner of EggSlice, has been perfecting the breakfast sandwich for over 20 years.

It begins with a buttered brioche bun and includes crispy thick bacon and a fresh runny egg.

“Breakfast is going to be portable. It’s going to be on a bun, but it’s going to have every element you want in breakfast,” said McMullan.

Breakfast is McMullan's favorite meal, and he wants to give customers an egg-cellent morning.

“I love when the sun is coming up, because it’s a fresh start.”

McMullan’s journey did not start here, however. He has been all over the world and back to Southern California to create EggSlice. He was born and raised in West Anaheim, but as a young adult moved to Australia with his brother and stayed for love. He took a risk and began cooking in the Outback for workers there. It was his own form of culinary school. He taught himself everything.

"Do not repeat a meal," he said. "Make everything fresh. You are in the middle of nowhere, in the middle of the Outback. You can do this."

From there, McMullan ended up buying the breakfast concept from a chef friend. After 20 years, he found himself back in SoCal.

"I came back following heartbreak and love of course," he said with a laugh. "I always seem to be following a woman."

After popping up for a few years serving his high-quality, chef-driven sandwiches, McMullan now has a permanent location in Grange Hall at the Buena Park Mall. It is a full-circle moment because it’s actually the mall of his childhood.

"I was in Australia, chefing in Japan, living in Europe. And then, coming back to the U.S. and loving cooking and being offered a spot here at the Buena Park Mall, I went, 'Oh my gosh, that’s where I grew up,'" he said.

McMullan now plans to take his sandwiches to the next level. Everything at EggSlice is made fresh to order in about five minutes with every aspect meticulously thought out like using chicken katsu instead of schnitzel, which he says is eaten a lot in Australia.

“Bread crumbs are heavy and soak up oil, whereas the panko is a light, toasted flake and it’s a lighter crust,” he said.

The hand-dipped and fried chicken was inspired from McMullan's time down under, so was the homemade chili jam. It is made from kaffir lime, fresh ginger, tomatoes, garlic, chili, bell peppers, onion, vinegar with a secret ingredient. 

"We are always trying to pack in flavor, so instead of adding salt, which is neutral, we add fish sauce. It adds salt and umami."

From the house chili jam to the homemade sausage patties, every sandwich at EggSlice has its own flavor profile and you can mix and match how you please. McMullan’s long-term hope is to revolutionize breakfast with more locations to come.

“It’s designed for speed, for growth, but we’ll never ever forsake the quality of the food,” said McMullan.

Start your morning or evening even with quality breakfast sandwiches from EggSlice located at 8340 La Palma Ave. in Buena Park, Calif.