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At The Bungalow, the beef is prime and so is the ambience

The bewitching hour at The Bungalow in Corona del Mar is 5 p.m. every night of the week. That’s when the bar,a legendary place to have a martini,and the restaurant open for business. The way this craftsman-style building is structured, you have to walk through the inviting lounge to get to the dining room. We always want to stop and have a pre-dinner drink in this niche with its intimate tables and comfortable banquettes. Lately, we’ve been arriving early enough to have our appetizers in the bar, which also saves tying up the dining room table so long.

It could be a glass of wine or a martini in a lovely swirl-patterned glass before me. By the way, they sell a lot of martinis,the fact that this is the fourth-largest Skye vodka account in OC is impressive. The essence of my experience is that I love the look and feel of this lounge. I am obviously not alone, since plenty of people are surrounding the other tables. I appreciate the extensive use of wood and the understated sophistication provided by velvet and printed fabrics on banquettes in the lounge and the four booths in the upstairs dining room (there’s also a more casual dining room downstairs). It is a very stylish and appealing building.

Jim Walker, a longtime restaurant veteran here in OC, purchased the 3-year-old restaurant from its original owners in mid-1999. In the past year, he has refurbished almost every inch of it. He also hired as executive chef Tom Shields, a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America, who has a proven cooking record. When, after several meals, I talked to Jim and then to Tom, they both conveyed that all-around quality is the absolute must in today’s market. They noted that the philosophy here is that the customer deserves a friendly and appreciative atmosphere, attentive and professional service and excellent food. To quote Jim, “This is what makes the engine run.” Their sales figures are up 25% over last year, so the formula seems to be working.

There’s no denying that The Bungalow is primarily a steakhouse, specializing in luscious prime cuts (none better than the loin-end ribeye). But, along with those steaks, there’s a fine selection of seafood and even pork tenderloin with a very complementary mango-apricot glaze and meaty grilled lamb T-bone steaks spruced up with a toasted walnut pesto. They are much meatier than the chops from a rack of lamb. All meats are individually inspected upon delivery and logged into a kitchen journal to control the quality. Jim has a reputation for not dancing around with the purveyors. He and the chef know exactly what they want to serve, and therein lies the major reason for the success the restaurant is enjoying.

I easily could make a meal of appetizers alone. Give me a glass of Toasted Head “Dunnigan Hills” Malbec from their 160-label list (with an additional dozen or so on the Connoisseur’s List) and I can happily match it with the ravioli stuffed with exotically rich porcini mushrooms and topped with a creamy mushroom and Gorgonzola cheese sauce. It is also a wine that stands up to the filet mignon grilled on skewers, which have an Asian-style dipping sauce.

When I was having a Heather Ranch Chardonnay, the calamari, crab cakes and a jumbo prawn “martini” did well with it. The calamari is very interesting. The crisply fried morsels have a terrific fusion sauce comprised of bell pepper and Fresno chiles with the slight kick of jalape & #324;o blended with a little sugar and rice wine vinegar. It’s a lovely way to set up the palate.

Tom’s crab cakes are made with Maryland Blues and sided with crispy rounds of sweet potato and a jaunty pineapple beurre blanc. As for the prawns, yes, they are served in a martini glass with a unique Bombay Sapphire sauce. How about that marvelous gin mingling with some juniper berries, orange juice and horseradish smack-dab in the center of those shrimp?

Patrick and I are always bemoaning the fact that restaurants are short on soups these days. I would recommend you not skip the potage of the day in this place. So far, Tom’s gotten our attention with a rich and silky lobster bisque with a medallion of lobster floating atop it, a roasted chicken potage flavored with fresh tarragon, and an herb and roasted tomato soup with a deep tomato flavor seldom found today. Oh, almost forgot the one that dazzled my friends and me recently: a hearty chowder made with freshly roasted corn kernels.

Let’s go back for a minute to the beef that’s being served here. You know it’s prime grade. You should also know that it’s corn-fed from the Midwest, aged a minimum of 28 days. They print on the menu that this is the best quality beef in America. Less than 2% of all beef is prime grade. Having committed themselves to serving this exclusive beef, they also cook it correctly on a broiler putting out 1,600 degrees. With everything from filets to New Yorks, Porterhouses to those flavorful ribeyes, what’s not to love?

There are also combination plates available as well as several seafood specialties. In the latter, please consider the Chilean sea bass. It has a nice, crunchy hazelnut crust and a beurre blanc sauce zapped with chipotle pepper. The swordfish with a clean lemon-caper butter is also swell. Lobster is available on it’s own as are the Alaskan King Crab legs, but these two,as well as shrimp,are offered in combination with a filet.

I’ll end this missive by suggesting for dessert the outstanding praline cheesecake. You’re going to love it!

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