It’s good to be back.
Four months ago, restaurants began closing their doors. The coronavirus aftermath ripped through the industry, taking out countless eateries across the country. The number of shuttered restaurants listed on Yelp was alarming.
Seven weeks ago, restaurants in California were allowed to reopen with new guidelines, from fewer tables to masks required.
But just when restaurants were showing signs of life, revised state guidelines announced on July 1 forced restaurants to stop inside seating for a minimum of three weeks.
Luckily, many restaurants were able to quickly pivot—something they’ve gotten used to over the course of 2020. Some already had sufficient patio seating to maintain business, others added outdoor dining area wherever they could, including the Anaheim White House, which moved tables to its courtyard to create an Italianesque al fresco dining experience.
Orange County has thus far avoided a mass casualty list of closed restaurants—and some have managed to return to enjoy above-average business (even with solely patio dining), which is being sustained by more people venturing out and more businesses reopening.
It’s a new normal to be sure, but I’m already used to seeing face coverings on wait staff and bartenders, and tables placed 6 feet apart. I have my own selection of face masks depending on the situation, from formal to fun. And I have indeed been having fun. Over the past month, I’ve been out to at least a dozen restaurants.
Here’s a look at how some notable spots across OC have adapted for the times.
Patio Greetings at Sapphire
When is a pandemic a good thing for restaurants? In the case of OCBJ 2018 Restaurateur of the Year Russ Bendel, the timing of the closures took place just after he had acquired culinary landmark Sapphire in Laguna Beach, which has a large patio dining area with umbrellas.
Bendel added Sapphire to his restaurant group, which includes Vine, Ironwood and Olea, in March. The subsequent pause gave Bendel and his team time to reinvent Sapphire, although the adjoining Sapphire Pantry was open for takeout, selling everything from coffee and pastries to killer breakfast burritos.
Sapphire is now officially open for lunch and dinner, and it was worth the wait. Bendel’s other restaurants have never offered a lunch menu, so naturally I was curious to find out what new items Corporate Executive Chef Jared Cook has added to the Sapphire menu.
“There is a lot in common from lunch to dinner, but we had to slim down the menu for lunch,” Cook told me in late June, when I arrived for lunch with fellow food writer Anne Marie Panoringan. “All of the starters are unique to this location at lunch, and we have a few new ones at night as well.”
One new lunch entrée is a chicken sandwich, which Cook has elevated beyond the norm.
“I get whole chicken thighs, bone in, cook them in duck fat slow and low for two hours,” explained Cook. “They come out skin on and I slide the bone out, chill them down, then pan fry in duck fat so they are crispy on the outside and gooey confit in the middle. I add huge homemade pickles—that’s the total package.” Add a sauce with garlic, dill and lemon juice, pack it all between chunks of an onion ciabatta roll, add a heap of golden hand-cut herb fries, and you have a double-fisted mouthful of goodness.
“My favorite is the chicken sandwich so far,” added Bendel as he came to our table with The Greeter cocktails, named after the original Laguna Greeter who used to wave at traffic from the spot where Sapphire Restaurant now sits. A larger-than-life statue of The Greeter stands in front of the Sapphire patio.
The Greeter cocktail is basically an adult snow cone with vodka, watermelon, aperol, cucumber and lime, all poured over shaved ice. A perfect summer libation.
Anne Marie and I decided to start with another new item—the house-made duck meatballs with rosemary cavatelli pasta, cipollini onions, melted garlic, forest mushrooms, and truffle goat cheese.
I took one bite, closed my eyes, and smiled. This is a delightfully decadent dish, with the ingredients bathing in a secret sauce that I could easily eat by the spoonful.
We split the chicken sandwich, and the burger, which Cook called “straight up all-American, less frills than our other burgers but the meat is so good, and the bun is so good, you don’t need a lot of other stuff. It’s the same patty we use at Olea.”
The chicken sandwich and burger were indeed as good as advertised.
I wondered about the local reaction to the restaurant, and new cuisine. Cook told me “people are excited about the food. Some people are coming twice a day. It’s good to be back and seeing people again.”
Cook plans to launch a weekend brunch menu this summer, something he’s never done with his other restaurants. He’s looking forward to the challenge of creating brunch dishes. I’m looking forward to eating them. n
Sapphire: 1200 South Coast Highway, Laguna Beach, 92651, (949) 715-9888, sapphirelagunabeach.com
Ladera Ranch Re-Launch
Imagine opening a new restaurant only to be forced to close it a few weeks later just when you’re hitting your stride.
That’s what happened to Paige Riordan when she opened Scarlet Kitchen & Lounge in Ladera Ranch last January. Billed as a modern speakeasy that combines “elevated comfort cuisine and East Coast classics balanced with West Coast ingredients and influences,” Scarlet boasts a classy interior with a striking quartzite bar, and a patio that Paige has temporarily expanded so her seating capacity is still plenty robust.
Locals had just started discovering Scarlet when it had to close in mid-March, but since reopening have been flocking back to soak up the atmosphere and savor the cuisine.
Riordan hails from the East Coast and has cooked in some of New York’s most prestigious restaurants. She attended culinary school at the Natural Gourmet Institute in New York City, where she honed her skills in holistic plant-based cuisine.
She’s not the only one in the kitchen. Riordan is joined by her father, Marty Manley, a former East Coast commercial fishing captain who “jumped ship” and attended culinary school at the Art Institute of Orange County.
Adding to the family affair, her husband, Matt Riordan, a former finance executive, serves as the restaurant’s general manager. Her mother, Anne Manley, manages business operations.
Even more intriguing: prior to attending culinary school, Riordan was a professional dancer and choreographer. For several years, she owned a dance company called Scarlet Fever, which inspired the name of the restaurant. As you might guess, Scarlet Kitchen is her new stage.
I was fascinated by Scarlet’s backstory and had dinner there last Sunday with fellow foodie Della Lisi.
My first question to Paige and Matt, whose restaurant is at the corner of Ortega Highway and Antonio Parkway: Why here?
“It’s a great area,” replied Matt, who noted that another 10,000 homes are due to be built nearby at the Rancho Mission Viejo development. “We knew the type of menu and restaurant we envisioned, and there was nothing like this here. It’s been a hit so far, but now we need to keep it going.
“We hit the jackpot,” added Paige. “We have regulars who come three or four times a week.”
As to the menu, it’s familiar yet eclectic.
“You can have a full Italian dinner, or a comfort food dinner, or you can go vegan,” Paige explained.
She suggested we try several dishes to get a sense of the menu, and started us with salmon sashimi with wasabi vinaigrette, hijiki seaweed caviar, and sesame seeds. The seaweed is marinated slowly so it takes on the consistency of pasta. It’s a beautiful dish.
This was followed by beet tartar, a tasty vegan version of beef tartar. This was accompanied by a beautiful lobster avocado salad, Marty’s clam chowder (New England style), and the most unique taco I can recall tasting—pulled carrot taco with avocado and herb slaw. The carrots are slow-cooked barbecue style and then pulled, resulting in carrots you’d swear were some sort of BBQ beef. It’s a pretty and deliciously savory dish.
Then came the signature entrée: Liquid Gold, a pork and lamb ragout with pappardelle and shaved parmesan. It’s an old family recipe, but Paige has elevated the sauce to the point that customers are clamoring to buy it by the quart. She’s hoping to bottle the sauce and sell it in retail stores.
Oh—did I mention we ate every bite, except for the leftover Liquid Gold, which still shined when warmed up for lunch the next day.
Scarlet is open Tuesday through Sunday for happy hour and dinner, with live music Thursday through Saturday evenings. A weekend brunch menu will be coming later this summer. By the way, the cocktails are creative and the wine-by-the-glass program is outstanding. While Scarlet is in South OC, the restaurant is worth seeking out no matter where you live. n
Scarlet Kitchen & Lounge: 30865 Gateway Place, Ladera Ranch, 92694, (949) 503-3086, scarletkl.com
Familiar (Masked) Faces at Bistango, Bayside
Bistango and sister restaurant Bayside, which is celebrating its 20th anniversary, comprise the Dining as Art restaurant group. Both have reopened, and have regular art exhibits inside the restaurants. Bistango boasts multiple artists, while Bayside features painting and sculptures from artist Russell Jacques.
Of course, with the new restrictions, you’ll have to gaze at the art from afar—or from the patio. Bistango in Irvine has a lovely patio, while Newport Beach’s Bayside has beefed up its wraparound patio with a new outdoor dining area that until now was the valet carpark spot.
Jacques’ artwork was on full display when fellow foodie Della Lisi and I dined at Bayside last month. All the familiar staff faces—albeit wearing masks—were back, and so was the full menu and live music seven nights a week (the live music continues on the patio until inside dining can return).
Tables have been removed for proper social distancing and clear panels added between booths, but it gave the restaurant an air of openness. Where some tables had previous been, there were Jacques sculptures in their place.
Della and I shared a crab cake, roasted beet salad, and seared scallops with lobster mashed potatoes as we listened to Tracy and the Blues Makers. Our server, Mavie, who has been at Bayside for 10 years, was delightful and funny as always.
Bistango has returned for lunch and dinner service, with live music Wednesday through Saturday. I popped in for lunch, and was pleased to see that the menu was only slightly reduced and still robust. Several pizzas have been added, and many classics are still listed.
I ordered the salmon burger, which came perfectly cooked and accompanied by shoe string french fries that proved to be addicting. Some tables had been removed and partitions added between booths.
“We’re glad to be back,” Bayside proprietor Marc Ghoukassian told me in June. His sister Karyn runs Bistango. “At Bistango, the weekend dinners are good, the lunches are coming back. But Bayside is packed. We’re back to the full menu, and even though we took some tables out, since we’re not using our private room for special events, we can spread everyone throughout the restaurant. We’re still doing the same numbers as before. We’re using every square inch of the restaurant.”
And now, every square inch of their patio.
Bayside: 900 Bayside Drive, Newport Beach, 92660, (949) 721-1222, baysiderestaurant.com
Bistango: 19100 Von Karman Ave., Irvine, 92612, (949) 752-5222, bistango.com
Raising a Toast
Wine Spectator has released its annual list of restaurants that have been designated as having the best wine lists in three categories: Award of Excellence, Best of Award of Excellence and Grand Award.
This year’s list includes nearly 3,800 restaurants from all 50 states and 80 countries and territories. And as always, nearly three dozen Orange County restaurants are included on the list.
One restaurant that year-after-year receives the highest accolade of Grand Award is Studio at the Montage in Laguna Beach. They reportedly have a selection of 2,000 labels, with an inventory of 16,000 bottles.
Two restaurants receiving the Best of Award of Excellence that always seem to duke it out for Best Wine Program at the annual Golden Foodie Awards are Selanne Steak Tavern in Laguna Beach and The Winery Restaurant in Newport Beach and Tustin.
“Once again, we are very pleased our wine list, which is managed by Certified Advanced Sommelier Vito Pasquale, has garnered renewed kudos from Wine Spectator,” said Selanne Steak Tavern owners Teemu Selänne (a Hockey Hall of Famer) and Kevin Pratt in a statement. “The recognition for 2020 is especially meaningful as our staff has worked diligently during this year’s pandemic to maintain our valuable wine collection for guest dining experiences, including the approved distanced and safe dining we are presently offering throughout the restaurant and our garden settings.”
Selanne Steak Tavern’s inventory of over 3,000 bottles exhibits strengths in selections from California, France, Italy and Germany. California cult wines are well represented.
The Winery Restaurant Sommelier and Partner William Lewis told me that restaurants honored by Wine Spectator are “respected because you have a wine list that needs to be noticed.”
Lewis has higher-end wines like Screaming Eagle, Scarecrow, and Schrader, but prides himself on selecting labels from other regions that offer value and flavor. He also looks for wines that go with The Winery’s cuisine, which tends to feature game and beef.
The Tustin location has an inventory of 505 labels and 4,500 bottles, while the Newport Beach location has 750 labels and 9,000 bottle inventory.
Other local Best of Award of Excellence winners include Mastro’s Steakhouse, AnQi, Andrea at Pelican Hill Resort, Napa Rose at Disney’s Grand Californian (my go-to restaurant for special celebrations), and The Ranch.
