Fabled “May Gray” and “June Gloom” notwithstanding summer is soon upon us—and with it the annual slew of art festivals in Laguna Beach. The Sawdust Festival and nearby Art-A-Fair open at the end of the month; Festival of the Arts and Pageant of the Masters follow soon after. Laguna Playhouse offers leporine comedy “Harvey” in June, Greco-Mediterranean rom-musical “Mamma Mia!” in July.
I brave the tourist traffic for each summer’s pilgrimage—and feast locally first, before Pageant or Playhouse.
Here are three Laguna favorites within a short walk of the arts festivals, each of which recently launched new menus: Ocean at Main, Central Laguna Beach and Royal Hawaiian.
Central Bookings
Central Laguna Beach is indeed in a central location. The restaurant opened in June 2015, in the former Sundried Tomato Café spot. I initially assumed Central focused on Central American-cuisine and dined their several times.
A visit last month for a media tasting event showed its evolution to a more global approach that’s hard to pin down.
Managing Partner Anna Montoya is part Peruvian, Italian, Japanese, French and Spanish, which certainly explains her “American fusion with global influences” description of the delightful spot.
“I wanted a menu easy to pick from,” she told me, “something you want to eat every day.”
Montoya makes the de rigueur organic farm-to-table commitment, noting “natural, grass-fed beef” with many items dairy- or gluten-free, “healthy and tasty. We want an amazing atmosphere and amazing food.”
As with Ocean at Main, menu moves are diner-driven and produce a selection that melds worlds old and new.
The media tasting menu started perfectly: skirt steak empanadas with cherry tomatoes and spicy aioli.
The El Cubano with smoked lomo, pork belly, pickled tomatillo, Swiss cheese and dijonaise in a brioche baguette came next—a brilliant take on the traditional Cuban sandwich.
Other dishes we sampled and enjoyed: truffle mac and cheese—simple and addictive—crispy Brussels sprouts, panko crusted cod with crab and cauliflower puree, and tiger shrimp risotto with spinach and lemon butter.
361 Forest Ave., Laguna Beach 92651, (949) 715-0801, centrallagunabeach.com
Ocean’s Elaborate
Chef Craig Strong was a fixture at Studio Restaurant at Montage Laguna Beach for nine years, where his creative cuisine was uber popular with resort guests and locals alike. No surprise, since Strong earned a coveted Michelin star from his time at the Langham Huntington hotel and spa in Pasadena.
Strong lives with his wife and daughter in Laguna and last fall left the Montage to open his own restaurant, Ocean at Main—the name gives the exact location: Ocean Avenue near Laguna’s Main Beach—in the 1940s-era Aubrey St. Clair-designed building that once housed Laguna Federal Savings and Loan.
Ever since Strong opened house last October, I’ve dined there for dinner, lunch, and his lovely weekend brunch. I’ve fallen in love with his take on California Coastal cuisine—or at least my palate has.
I returned last week with three fellow foodies to sample his new summer menu, which Strong said was the first major menu overhaul since opening.
“I changed about 60%” of it, he said.
The shift roughly mirrors customer desires.
“Here’s the challenge. Some people say I want you to never change these dishes,” he said. “The other half says, ‘I’ve had everything on your menu twice.’”
Both appreciate Strong’s creativity; half want something new.
“I kept some staple, signature items,” he said, “and changed with the seasons.”
His oxtail kale risotto and roasted beet salad remain, alongside new dinner dishes including crab and melon salad and corn ravioli with lobster and truffle butter.
New lunch dishes abound: charred garden pizza, pork belly lettuce wraps, gourmet OAM (Ocean at Main) burger with Wagyu aioli and truffle fries, brioche shrimp roll, and a shaved steak sandwich.
With four hungry diners among us, we ordered all new menu items, including the burger; Strong delighted in describing its A5 Japanese wagyu beef.
He rendered much of the fat down and “used that for the aioli for the burger, which accentuates the flavor.” It comes with house-made pickles, topped with caramelized onions and crispy shallots, on a brioche and potato roll bun. Plus, there’s truffle fries, two of my favorite words.
“It tastes … Aaah!” he said.
Angels singing comes close.
Also lovely: the shrimp roll. Tempura-fried, add spicy sauce and brioche; the lobster roll takes a tasty new direction. Shaved steak is a legit Philly knock-off; Strong cooked there for a time.
Lunch is fun, he said.
“It’s something I have not done for many years … another side of me people have not been able to see.”
Our verdict: sensational! We couldn’t decide on a favorite, as crab salad and lobster ravioli—both only on his dinner menu but Strong snuck us a plate of each—competed with the burger and shrimp roll.
We’d need a Tony Awards ballot to settle the tie, or attend to them all.
222 Ocean Ave., Laguna Beach 92651, (949) 715-3870, oceanatmain.com
Royal Treatment Along Coast Highway
Royal Hawaiian opened in 1947 and quickly became a local favorite; the Lapu Lapu cocktail is legendary.
The restaurant had its ups and downs. It closed several years ago, reopening under new owners, OC entrepreneur and real estate buyer Mo Honarkar and his daughter, Hasty Honarkar.
The family incorporated old décor and accoutrements, brought in items that highlighted the restaurant’s Tiki theme, and ran it until January, when the Honarkars handed the keys over to new owner-operators, brothers Mariano and Martin Molteni.
Mariano goes by “Maro” and if that sounds familiar it’s because he used to own award-winning Maro Wood Grill, also in Laguna Beach. Chef Martin, meanwhile, splits his time between South OC and his culinary interests in Argentina.
The brothers hired ex-Tabu Grill designer Christine Hallen-Berg to create a refreshed look that includes bluer tones highlighting the original Tiki charm.
The menu—save for the Lapu Lapu—is all-new and blends the cultures of Polynesia with South America, which Martin says “run surprisingly parallel through the ages” to “weave these two worlds together” for Laguna.
“I’m excited to be here,” Chef Maro told me when I came in to sample some items before hitting Laguna Playhouse. “It’s a bigger space with a full bar and a bigger kitchen,” which means a bigger menu than his prior effort, “but it’s the same concept: fresh and local.”
The duo added a wood grill to the kitchen to cook signature steaks, as well as sausage, lobster, octopus and anything else grill-worthy.
I loved the grilled octopus with baby tomatoes, peanut and pepper dressing, and smoked bell peppers. It was tender, not chewy. I also tried the mesquite grilled sausage caracol, made with “pork, magic and love.”
A trip to Royal Hawaiian would not be complete without the Lapu Lapu, made with Bacardi white rum, Appleton rum, Myers’s Rum, and fresh juices, served over shaved ice. Refreshing as always, and large enough to share.
I ran out of time but plan to return.
331 N. Coast Highway, Laguna Beach 92651, (949) 715-1470, royalhawaiianlb.com
