A couple of Pascal Olhats surprises popped up recently, and they do not make me happy.
First, it was the sudden closing of the Fashion Island restaurant, Brasserie Pascal.
Pascal was only the chef consultant there, and his agreement with the owner, John Martin, included putting Pascal’s name on the restaurant since he was already such a well-known restaurateur and chef.
Pascal’s consulting contract expired a few months ago, and John caught everyone off-guard with the unannounced closing, even though we were still enjoying Pascal’s signature dishes.
Then, despite 20 years of “having a very successful business and being a good tenant,” as Pascal put it, he’s closing his Pascal Epicerie near Bristol Street North and Dove Street.
Pascal’s landlord, The Woloson Co., decided not to renew his lease.
The Epicerie has been handing out cards citing those facts, thanking customers for their support and sounding positive about relocating to a “better location.”
Epicerie will remain open through the end of this month.
Keep in mind that lunches and tea service amid the lovely Sherman Gardens setting at Pascal’s Café Jardin and Tea Garden Crêperie still allow us to enjoy his hospitality and great food. There you pay a $3 entrance fee to the gardens that’s refunded when you present your proof of purchase.
I’ll let you know about his new Epicerie location as soon as he finds it. But scoot over to the current location in Newport Beach before it closes so you can enjoy a vast selection of take-away food items or true French bistro food that can be consumed in the cute space.
Pascal Epicerie: 1000 N. Bristol St., Newport Beach; (949) 263-9400.
Break of Dawn
All of the serious food folks who have been enthralled with Dee Nguyen’s unique, love-driven food, billed as farm fresh, at Break of Dawn in Laguna Hills will have to wait patiently for a few weeks (we hope it’s only that long) while construction is finished on his new location.
It will be in the same center BoD currently resides in, the one that houses Trader Joe’s and El Torito behind the Laguna Hills Mall. But his lease on the present location is up at the end of the month, so there will be a hiatus of sorts.
The Dining Room at the Ritz-Carlton in Dana Point is long gone, but in its last years, the executive sous chef who was keeping that food so remarkable was Dee. He took his culinary loves from those years and married them to simplified presentations, all with his own international flair that hooked Orange County palates on his own restaurant big time.
Dee has an appreciation for art, and I think we’ll find the new place culling more of his artistic side in the decor. Meantime, take advantage of Break of Dawn’s unique cuisine and casually comforting indoor/outdoor ambiance until the end of the month.
It will tide you over until the new restaurant opens.
Break of Dawn: 24351 Avenida de la Carlota (behind Trader Joe’s), Laguna Hills; (949) 587-9418.
Ritz Time Running Out
This is, of course, the final countdown to closing for The Ritz at Newport Center. Its last day is Feb. 15—a special lunch and dinner will be served on that day, with all proceeds going to the staff.
The prix fixe lunch is $150, and the dinner is $250.
Call quickly—(949) 720-1800—to participate in dining these next two weeks, most especially for the nostalgic last day, as it is nearing sold-out status.
I know there’s lots of speculation about where The Ritz will land. No paperwork has been signed as of this writing, although I know of some possibilities they’re considering. I will keep you informed.
And may I take this opportunity to say that I find it very disconcerting that icons like The Ritz are abandoned and demolished by landlords, all for the sake of another high-rise of some sort? If it were a case of a guy having to make a living and do something more with his parcel of land, that would be one thing. But I hardly think tearing down The Ritz is meant to keep this landlord from financial collapse.
Irvine Company, the landlord, said it’s converting The Ritz site into office space as part of an expansion of Pacific Financial Plaza, the two-building office property that now houses the restaurant.
“With all the new restaurants we have opening in Fashion Island, we figured that that’s probably the best use for that particular space,” said company spokesperson Mike Lyster.
New Italian Kid in Town
Pirozzi CdM is at the top of my watch list because it will add yet another restaurant to Alessandro Pirozzi’s local havens of fantastic Italian food. It will join Alessa on Forest Avenue and Mare on PCH, both in Laguna.
A custom oven is being shipped from Napoli, Italy, for the new Corona del Mar location. So we can expect more of his crusty pizzas, along with entrees like lamb, chicken and steak Florentine, all baked in the searingly hot oven. Each of Alessandro’s locations boasts pastas made fresh daily in his own kitchens.
It’s no secret that I consider his food some of OC’s top-caliber eating.
I am anxious to experience more at yet another location when I think of dishes like limoncello-flavored fresh pasta in a delicate cream sauce with chunks of lobster, his octopus carpaccio, or fresh radiatore pasta (small square pastas resembling automobile radiators) draped in an aromatic lamb ragu.
Construction will probably last until about mid-March.
A Restaurant Worth Checking Out
While I’m confessing to my preferences and what influences them, I can segue to A Restaurant in Newport Beach, the formerly famed Arches that got its new name in 2008.
After experiencing it at that time, I stayed away until recently. I wasn’t sure back then what part was meant to keep customers happy and what part was ego, but the sense of self-importance I perceived at the restaurant made me step back and dine at other places.
There have been significant changes in food and people power since then, and it’s a place I now want to keep experiencing.
The big turnaround came 10 months ago when Julie and Doug Garn took over as managing partners, and almost everything in food and friendly ambiance changed dramatically. Their vision and the whole attitude of the restaurant made it a fine-dining stop that did not decimate the budget.
Service shines. The four wine sommeliers do an impressive job of letting us know about the many new and interesting wines on their list, many of them boutique finds, without being overbearing. The modern American food of Executive Chef Jonathan Blackford is attentively plated and seriously tasty. The entire current package now gives me every reason to spend a lot of time in the ultracomfortable surroundings.
Doug is known in business circles as the former chief executive and president of Quest Software in Aliso Viejo. His entrepreneurial spirit helped grow the small software company into a tech giant that went public in 1999. His leadership and business acumen are now serving us well as he focuses on being a first-class restaurateur.
Julie is what I call a dining room realist who can strip the romance and ego from being in charge and relate instead to what can make each diner’s experience more than expected.
Chef Jonathan leans heavily on the phrase “do it right” when referencing his dishes, which the restaurant said it derives from superior local produce and famed purveyors with the highest-quality standards.
He keeps a few of the standard dishes on the menu all the time, while the rest are changed seasonally to keep the choices for the customer fresh and in the best manner of healthful ingredients available at the moment.
This is an instantly comfortable restaurant.
Also, sitting in one of the big red booths in the dining room is about as perfect as seating can get. We recently had a leisurely dinner perusing an evening-long scene of customers while enjoying our own food, dish by dish. Good thing there was another couple sharing our table and meal—it allowed us to have even more tastes from Jonathan’s kitchen.
There are daily specials, but most of what I mention is on the printed menu. A great depth of flavor permeates the roasted red pepper and goat cheese soup. It sets up the palate with anticipation for what’s to come.
Brussels sprouts are a favored vegetable by chefs at the moment. We liked these with their leaves removed from the core, dappled with a picatta-style sauce and crisped. The chef loves his pork belly preparation, but he also makes a more refined dish with a similarly rich background by using veal breast. It’s braised in its own liquid with a touch of vermouth and cream and a sprinkling of forest mushrooms. High on my list of super tasty things.
We habitually try steamed mussels everywhere, and these were infused with the flavors of chorizo, fennel, a sprinkling of smoked paprika, saffron aioli and parsley for a bright melange of flavors.
The carnitas here should please anyone who’s into good Mexican-style food. The restaurant said it brines the chunk of Niman Ranch pork for 24 hours in milk, lime juice, orange juice and a mere hint of cinnamon, then seals it in a waterproof bag, and cooks it sous vide at the gentlest temperature for 12 hours. Fork tender and really, really good. The swordfish served with garlic pappardelle noodles, and the Scottish salmon, are notable seafood items.
Duck is the perfect fowl for the fall and winter season, and the chef renders the duck breast till tender and moist, cooks the leg confit-style, and serves the duo with delicious butternut squash ravioli with brown butter sauce. One of the steaks on the menu is the Imperial Wagyu flat iron, a flavorful blade cut that can be as good as a rib eye or New York. Have to also give a shout-out for the all natural bone-in rib eye that is a menu staple.
Lunch is a popular meal here and includes a great burger, small plates of spicy Ahi tuna, a meatball casserole, and the thing I cannot pass up: crispy Niman pork belly.
Many of you will remember the separate building facing PCH that housed The Arches liquor store for many years. It’s now another eatery belonging to A Restaurant called A Market, a more casual place with a menu loaded with yummy breakfast treats, salads and sandwiches, charcuterie and cheeses. There’s plenty to write about that and its own highly regarded chef, so I am saving all that for another column when I can expand adequately.
Let’s just say that A Restaurant is now a new chapter in local dining that deserves attention if you care about a welcoming vibe, really good food, and a friendly but sophisticated aura where you can actually have quiet conversations. That’s a rarity on the current dining scene.
A Restaurant: 3334 W. Pacific Coast Highway, Newport Beach; (949) 650-6505.
