Going, going, gone.
We know that a broad range of diners are deeply saddened that Riviera at the Fireside in Westminster was unable to renegotiate its lease; owner Perry Jehangiri closed the restaurant two weeks ago. Perhaps we won’t have to wait too long, though, for the Riviera to rise again—for the third time!—as customers and politicos are seriously searching for another location for the popular eatery.
The Riviera was at South Coast Plaza for decades, downstairs where Seasons 52 now stands. Clubhouse came along in the late ’90s and bought out the remaining part of the Riviera lease to build its multimillion-dollar concept. A decade later, Seasons 52 and Capital Grille gutted the Clubhouse building and started anew.
Riviera relocated to the long-standing Fireside restaurant in Westminster, almost a clone in looks to the warm atmosphere of the original Riviera. Now, after several years, plans are afoot to relocate once again.
When Riviera moved from its South Coast Plaza location a decade ago, I was quite worried that their old clientele would not drive to Westminster. Happily, I was very wrong, and loyalists followed and new local clientele developed, keeping the restaurant very busy.
Never have I wanted an old standby to reincarnate so badly because Riviera always did it right, with panache and fantastic service. The food has always hit the highest notes, and I’ll really be tracking this one for all of us.
Wine At Motif
There is nothing more seasonal, or arguably more fun, than drinking some of the freshly bottled Beaujolais Nouveau wine each autumn. The first vintage bottling of the year will be poured out Nov. 17; it’s the first day globally that the first vintage of 2011 can be poured.
We’re showing up that evening for the St. Regis Beaujolais Nouveau Dinner, which begins with a reception at 6 p.m. and dinner at 7. I am in a state of high anticipation at the very thought of having the food of Frederic Castan again. He’s the executive chef of the hotel and has regaled guests and us at past wine dinners with his refined, French-influenced dishes. The wines will be from Georges Duboeuf.
The price for dinner is $80, and it will be held in the Motif restaurant. For reservations, which should be made soon, call (949) 234-3405 or email jacqueline.doti@stregis.com. St. Regis is at One Monarch Beach Resort, Dana Point.
Something “Very Right”
There are some intimate restaurant gems that are so compelling that they sing of reasons not to go to big and flashy places. And, when a place has been passionately feeding and culturally educating us for 26 years, something is very right. That brings us to the charming Mayur Cuisine of India in Corona del Mar, with its treasure chest of genteel but exotically tinged tastes of Indian comfort food, fine service and calm beauty under the caring tutelage of owner Anju Kapoor.
There have been a few meals in my life that I can remember long, long after they’ve been devoured. And my first experience so long ago at Mayur—an artistic and tasty meal at a beautifully set table in a little alcove at the front of the restaurant—still resonates. I have been able to revitalize my palate and enthusiasm for dining so many times along the way, and I got another dose of Kapoor’s finesse last week.
After many recent meals at new and trendy places striving to pack a lot of people in between the walls, it was time for a sedate few hours for us. My husband Patrick and I prefer to dine slowly and meaningfully wherever we are.
Try lunch from the amazing bargains of prix fixe $10 or $15 menus. Soup or salad is the prelude on the $15 lunches, with five signature main dishes to choose from (with rice, naan bread and vegetable sides), plus dessert. At $10, you concentrate on main entrées with choice of rice or naan. A comprehensive à la carte lunch menu consists of almost a dozen entrées: shrimp or chicken tandoori, lamb dishes, fresh seafood, kebabs and curries among them.
At dinner, along with a complete à la carte menu, there are $30 (vegetarian) and $40 (non-vegetarian) prix fixe meals with five dishes, plus rice, naan, coffee or tea and dessert included. I’m keen to suggest vegetable-filled samosas, exotic mushrooms with basil, gingered chicken drumsticks, mulligatawny soup and minced lamb in lettuce wraps as possible starters.
Vegetables are of high importance here. The roasted eggplant with tomatoes and onions, sautéed cauliflower with potatoes, and a couple of spinach dishes rank highly with me, chosen from among about a dozen gardenesque offerings.
One good way to experience a lot is via the restaurant’s $20 Sunday brunch menu. At any meal—in this restful atmosphere of gentle colors, good art, nice table settings and lilting background music—the food holds its own in taste and comfort. Add a good, cold beer or a glass of wine to complete the calming repast. Mayur should be on your short “go-to” list.
Mayur: 2931 E. Coast Highway, Corona del Mar, (949) 675-6622.
Surprises, Change
Surprises sneak up on us, and it’s such fun to experience really good food and even unexpected art when it happens to pop up. Such is the case at the Hilton Anaheim.
There have been some upscale changes in the food at the big hotel lately. And a total renovation of the hotel has taken place over the last couple of years.
A new manager has taken over the helm within the last few months. The hotel acquired a consummate pro in the industry to lead the team and the hotel to a higher stature. Shaun Robinson had been the general manager at the Hilton Costa Mesa for several years (before that, he was at the Beverly Hilton), and he’s a well-known, community-minded team builder of friendly temperament (and delightful accent from Liverpool, his hometown) who is absolute in his seriousness about both customer service and fine food.
They’ve just brought in a new executive chef for the hotel who will also personally oversee the hotel’s Mix restaurant. I can attest that the food presentations and intentions have been above expectations.
Beautifully plated food arrives, the taste of farm-fresh ingredients and hand-crafted condiments carry through. It is clear that this restaurant is now as serious for the outside diner as for the hotel’s guests. We’ve dined a few times, finding it a good alternative to other Anaheim dining. Plus, just seeing the soaring lobby and ambiance of the hotel is an added perk.
Chef Kyung Soo Carroll’s new menu at Mix is strewn with imaginative dishes created from some of the finest organic and natural ingredients available in the region.
Remembering that Mix is a hotel restaurant, subject to serving three meals a day, diversified menus emerge for each meal. The breakfast menu takes us to territory far more interesting than usual. If you don’t want to à la carte it, the breakfast buffet is one of best around. It is, however, lunch and dinner that will beckon to most of us.
Fall Menu
On the new fall menu, roasted butternut squash bisque is pretty fantastic in taste and texture with its swirl of hand-whipped crème fraîche. Just double my order and I’m good. French onion soup topped with gruyere is classically pure. Lacquered Pacific salmon arrives still juicy on the inside and crisped on the exterior; it is partnered with lemon grass-scented jasmine rice and wilted baby bok choy.
Layers of flavor mark the Baja steak sandwich on parmesan bread with its additional strata of avocado, homemade spicy Mexican salsa, pepper jack cheese and tomato. At lunch, the five-cheese grilled sandwich, along with a side of freshly made soup, is the haute couture of its set. A swell mélange of veggies and greens is the salad bed upon which grilled fresh salmon rests, all of it drizzled with deftly homogenized lemon vinaigrette. Halibut surrounded by a medley of oriental vegetables and rice noodles has class.
Dinner expands on the best of the lunch offerings, and I’d encourage the super-satisfying short ribs braised with thyme and cipollini onions, the veal scaloppini with spaetzle, pork tenderloin with apricot chutney and the Niman Ranch New York steak barely perfumed with fresh herbs. If you’re someone inclined to do a fruit salad as your entrée—or as an appetizer to share—chef Carroll’s plate is built to impress. There are seasonal berries, kiwi, papaya and Humboldt Fog cheese served with young coconut juice and goji berry and orange blossom vinegar as the misty highlight.
Gotta love a traditional charred NY strip steak, more fun with the trendy crab mac ‘n’ cheese on the side. Short ribs are fork tender and rich, braised with root vegetables too.
While I’ve been busy eating these things, I have not tried the idea of choosing your preferred variety of fish and the cooking method and having it done to order. I have had a side of the fragrant Jasmine rice and chose to mingle it with shrimp (you can also order it naked or with chicken or tofu).
Do not miss dessert. There are always a few. And on some of our trips, they have ranged from a sophisticated trio of indulgent chocolate sweets on a long platter to a trio of country-style bread puddings and even a real banana split.
This is a terrific restaurant to enjoy with small children since the kids menu for goes way beyond the norm. Natural chicken sliders, a little chef’s salad, English muffin pizzas, and spaghetti and meatballs, in addition to the ubiquitous mac ‘n’ cheese, grilled cheese sandwich and such, make it much more interesting for them.
Now having hopefully convinced you that Mix can compete with free-standing restaurants—and noting that it’s a good-looking restaurant as well—while you’re there take the time to look at the massive murals that local artists have just painted on the walls around the pool area. They are so cool and colorful, and they give a whole new meaning to relaxation by a pool. There’s even one corner sporting one of the most fun pieces of water equipment (slides, unexpected dousings of water, platforms) for children that I’ve ever seen.
For a little vacation or merely for food that shines with pride and fine taste, here’s the info on Hilton Anaheim: 777 Convention Way, Anaheim, (714) 750-4321.
Down-Home Laguna
We’ve been hanging around Glenneyre Street in Laguna Beach a lot lately. After all, Broadway had opened in the old Five Feet space and was packed with customers, us among them. Now, across the street, Sorrento Grille has changed hands and changed its name. It is now Three Seventy Common Kitchen + Drink and executive chef Ryan Adams wears two hats as chef and proprietor.
This is a casual dining and drinking experience. The space features an organic, urban appeal, and there’s a commitment to sustainability. Galvanized French bistro chairs and wooden schoolhouse chairs surround the solid wood tables both downstairs and upstairs. A small bar is tucked at the bottom of the stairway, and a fully open kitchen is part of the downstairs ambiance as well.
Adams plans to present ever-changing seasonal menus highlighted by local foods.
Sit for a meal and you will soon be captivated by the bacon-maple popcorn. Food portions are on small, medium and large plates, the food is fun to share and the prices are friendly.
I’ve tried the chef’s small plate of broccolini with asiago cheese and prosciutto and a frisky fried egg on top. Way cool. Then, we had a couple of medium plates. The first was a tumble of sautéed wild mushrooms with parmesan and greens served bruschetta-fashion atop crostini. Second one was a creamy soft chunk of pork belly alongside some arugula, pistachios and figs.
Large plates have found us sighing over the roasted salmon with root vegetables and chard and a slightly chunky meatloaf wrapped in bacon, all the better with the mashed potatoes and mushroom gravy. Real comfort food. One of chef Adams’ grandmothers obviously was a fine baker since he “borrowed” her recipe for chocolate cake and it disappeared pretty quickly from our plates.
I have my next meal planned. I’m going back for game hen, shepherd’s pie, foie gras with huckleberry pancakes and the charcuterie board of meats, cheese, pickles and such. They get an extra pat on the back for the likes of grilled fish and roasted chicken on the kids’ menu. Locals can take advantage of Sunday nights for family-style meals at $25 per person (kids, half price); Tuesday brown bag night delivers a bottle of red or white wine for $15 with dinner. Wino Wednesdays feature a three-course dinner menu with a wine pairing for just $30 (in addition to the à la carte menu).
Plan on classic drinks such as martinis, gin bucks and Singapore slings. Perfect for this atmosphere. This place is meant to turn pretense on its head. Sounds like down-home Laguna to me.
Three Seventy Common Kitchen + Drink: 370 Glenneyre, Laguna Beach, (949) 494-8686.
50 Years
Speaking of longevity, Amelia’s on Balboa Island is celebrating its 50th anniversary. We’d been having doses of founder Amelia Seton’s home-style Italian fare pre-1976. The restaurant was established in 1961.
Amelia’s tradition continued for us and for OC since ’76 under the auspices of her daughter Hetty Robinson and her husband John, who took over ownership of the restaurant. When you think of linguine with clams, tomato sauces and creamy a-la-minute sauces blanketing toothsome pasta, fresh fish and even steaks with a hint of Italiana, Amelia’s always delivers. I appreciate being able to have a sampler seafood plate (two or three kinds of fish) with fresh pasta. Love the sand dabs, sole and deviled crab selections from more than a dozen swimmers. Steak lovers will find their meat as well, the highest seller being filet mignon with scampi.
Pastas of every fashion with their enduring sauces take over an entire section of the menu. Include cannelloni, manicotti and tortellini in that listing and the possibility of a tasting portion of more than one selection is yet another nicety for us.
There’s one adorable outdoor table, tucked in a tiny corner overlooking the pedestrians and shops. If it appears to be available and the weather is cooperating, I love to sit there. Otherwise, the dining rooms offer friendly comfort.
We are grateful for our long-term relationship with Amelia’s. Thanks Hetty and John and for the tradition.
Amelia’s: 311 Marine Ave., Balboa Island, (949) 673-6580.
