Coming into the holiday season, there are always a number of events that a true foodie shouldn’t miss.
On Wednesday, the Full Moon Harvest Dinner comes to Sapphire Laguna. In honor of the season and its bounties and the farm-to-table fresh concept, chef Azmin Ghahreman will cook a special meal. It will be a time when patrons also will learn about the impact of local sustainable farming, the ingredients used for the dish, how they were grown or raised and the quick journey from the farmer or fisherman to Sapphire’s tables.
Joining chef Azmin will be Evan Marks, founder and executive director of The Ecology Center, and Tim Hussman, president of Newport Meat Co., to discuss the clean and viable food concept that’s taking on more importance with truly serious chefs.
The three-course dinner is $65 (exclusive of beverage, tax and gratuity) with optional wine matching. There’s open seating from 5:30 to 10 p.m. but space is limited, so call today. Sapphire: 1200 S. Coast Highway, Laguna Beach, (949) 715-9888.
Anaheim White House has a glamorous new addition called the West Wing. One of the kickoff dinners to be held in that venue will be a five-course affair to accompany the Annual Tree Lighting on Nov. 22. The al fresco champagne reception begins at 6 p.m., tree lighting is at 7 p.m.—there is always a massive outdoor tree with marvelous decorations—with dinner immediately following. Cost is $95 per person. Anaheim White House: 887 S. Anaheim Blvd., (714) 772-1381.
Don’t forget to see the holiday season SOS Parade of Trees at Hilton Orange County/
Costa Mesa. Each year, there are many beautifully decorated ones that are auctioned off to benefit the Share Our Selves Adopt a Family program, which ensures a holiday meal and other necessities to at least 1,200 needy families.
On Dec. 3, it’s a free open house affair with the St. John the Baptist hand bell choir, Santa Claus, Monique Rea (author of “Toulouse the Moose”) and several activities for children.
The following evening—Dec. 4—is a reservation-only event with an elegant buffet meal set amid the glorious array of trees. There will be several kinds of creative projects to engage the children, as well as live entertainment and auction items. Cost for this even-ing is $75 for adults and $25 for child-ren. Contact Ashley Carlton at SOS for your reservation: (949) 515-5400 ext. 34 or by e-mail at acarlton@shareourselves.org.
The decorated trees and sponsorship for the event is put on by many of OC’s top decorators and companies: Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian, Hilton Worldwide, Anaheim Ducks and some two dozen other local business enterprises.
Special Menus
Through the end of the year, Brasserie Pascal in Fashion Island is featuring $10, $15 and $20 specials, all day, every day. The $10 menu includes half of a croque madame or croque mademoiselle sandwich, soup of the day, green salad and fresh potato chips. For $15, you choose from an array of appetizers and entrees to make a two-course meal or an entree and dessert. The jump to $20 is for a 6 oz. Creekstone Farm filet mignon, half a Florida lobster, rice pilaf and asparagus.
If you haven’t gotten acquainted with the true brasserie style menu (still very French) instituted since Pascal Olhats took over as chef and managing partner here, consider this my hint to do so. Cute place, good service and pretty romantic too. Brasserie Pascal, 327 Newport Center Drive, Newport Beach, (949) 640-2700.
At another French restaurant, tacos have invaded the menu. Well, not exactly. It’s the fun special at French 75 Bistro and Champagne Bar in Laguna called Le Taco Tuesday, but it’s actually a separate menu of savory and dessert crepes.
You take your choice of crepes and get a glass of house red or white wine in the deal. Consider shellfish in cream sauce, wine-braised chicken strewn with sherry cream sauce, a melange of seasonal veggies bathed in herb butter, or chocolate, hazelnut puree and banana tucked as a trio of sweets under a crepe cloak. This stuff is delicious and priced at $7 to $15.
There’s actually a lot of interesting culinary stuff going on. Every evening there’s the lobster menu. Gnocchi with lobster, bisque, whole Maine lobster and surf and turf are on that part of the menu. Every night from 5 p.m. to 6:30 p.m., all entrees are half off, and for Monday Madness, the entire menu is half off for the whole evening.
Every evening, you can also have a three-course menu for $30, and on Wednesdays selected bottles of wine are offered, along with some glasses of wine at half off. Plus, they offer a complimentary cheese plate with bottles of wine.
Should you want to stay in that comforting and pretty lounge for the duration, the 75 Lounge Menu (items priced from $11 to $14) sashays through many things. Some favorites are moules frites (mussels with fries), baby back ribs, free-range escargots, cognac-doused shrimp and killer sliders made with a combo of custom dry-aged beef, foie gras, duxelle of mushrooms and truffled aioli tucked together in the buns. Oh, and the Callibaut chocolate soufflé for two is fantastic.
The whole fall menu is centered on friendly, French-inspired dishes, and if you can’t find something to eat here, you’re stirring with a different spoon than I am. French 75 Bistro: 1464 S. Coast Highway, Laguna Beach, (949) 494-8444.
Juicy Tidbits
Alert: The Pleasant Peasant in Newport Beach, about which I wrote last month, will remain open until the escrow is finalized for its turnover to Franco Barone (the chef who just left Antonello Ristorante who will open his own Italian eatery there). Things like business escrows are hard to target for a tight closing date and so Lisa and Laurent Ferre will continue the Pleasant Peasant experience for us in the meantime.
In more of those juicy little tidbits items, one of the most capable restaurant managers, Thad Foret, is also leaving Antonello Ristorante. But don’t go fretting about Antonello as things will still be on an even keel. I promise.
Thad’s just repacking his mental suitcase and, after more than two decades running a smooth and sophisticated ship with owner Antonio Cagnolo, he simply wants to spread his wings even more. I am sure he’s going to be staying in Orange County and that we’ll still be seeing him a lot. There’s no official word on who will take his place.
But, Gino Buonanoce, who used to cook at Antonello before taking the chef/partner spot with Franco Vessia at now-closed Vessia restaurant in Irvine, is back at Antonello. He will share command of the kitchen equally with Sal Farrara, who has been at Franco’s side for 18 years cooking with a dedication as great as any chef around.
Anaheim Hilton
Sometimes a slap across the face with a noodle has a place in more than slapstick comedy. That was the case with a recent Chateau St. Michelle Dinner at the Anaheim Hilton & Towers hotel. The noodles of which I speak happened to be saffron flavored transparent ones that the chef had made from a rich broth to which he’d added a gelling agent and then cut into ribbons. Good and very interesting. The food quotient just kept going up from there at its new restaurant, Mix. Presentations were so beautiful that it really was a shame to demolish the food to eat it.
The wine dinner was not held in the restaurant. Instead, it was held on the 14th floor in a panoramic room, so we were getting sort of a sidebar sampling.
I will work my way through more parts of the Mix menu—relying heavily on organic and natural ingredients—soon, but I didn’t want to hold up my readers in case they’re in that area and want to try Mix on their own.
And, if you’re not up to speed on the money that’s been put into this hotel in the last couple of years for its massive renovation, then you’re in for another fine surprise when you see the very sophisticated new surroundings. Anaheim Hilton & Towers: 777 Convention Way, Anaheim, (714) 750-4321.
