Legendary OC Eateries Keep Serving Through Good Times and Bad
In this issue, I have covered some of the legends of Orange County dining. There are more than those I could fit within this space, but all of the ones I have included have special meaning. They offer a variety of dining styles and almost all are family run.
We have much to be proud of in OC. There’s the stylish new Aqua restaurant,sister of the very famous Aqua in San Francisco and the other sibling in Las Vegas,in the St. Regis Hotel in Dana Point. It means that finally even the cornerstones of powerhouse dining from that vaunted culinary city are noticing that we know how to eat down here. Without even going to the newest restaurants, we have so much fine food. I am getting lazier by the day about cooking. It’s hardly worth my mental or shopping or cooking time to do anything but go out to eat. I hope that you are dining out often as well.
My Restaurant of the Year is Royal Khyber, and it was really a very easy pick. I am taking you on a cultural and culinary tour of a far-away country without ever leaving Orange County. With travel curtailed at this turbulent time in the world, it seems exceedingly appropriate. I am taking you to Royal Khyber, a restaurant that has redefined delicious dining like no other on the scene. This restaurant offers such a vast education about healthful, delicious and totally likable food that I feel it’s foolish for any serious diner not to know it.
First of all, you will never know how stereotyped Indian food has become in our minds until you discover that what you have perceived of Indian dining in the past is not at all what you will find at Royal Khyber. You won’t find what are commonly referred to as curries and fiery foods that have defined the whole genre in our minds. You will find elegant flavors and sauces surrounding meats, poultry and vegetables. If you do a little research, you will learn that the spices and herbs used in the cooking here are extremely healthful. I am currently doing a one-woman show of sorts by having my business meals at Royal Khyber, because in every instance it gives me the chance to wow another person or persons. Not one in the past few months has not raved about what they’d learned and loved about food in this restaurant. And, they become new customers.
Royal Khyber is so eloquent in its product and mission statement that it can stand just as tall as any of our most touted French, Italian and Continental restaurants. The art of cooking is in high gear here, and I guarantee that you will thank me for changing your thinking about Indian food. In fact, forget about calling it Indian food; just call it haute cuisine with exotic Asian touches.
As for restaurants in general in Orange County, some of the things that are happening are quite scary. You must all know by now that Disney is taking over Wolfgang Puck’s abandoned Avalon Cove restaurant in the California Adventure park. Mondavi has given a 30-day notice that it will no longer operate the Golden Vine restaurant and wine venue in the park. Meanwhile, some principal names at the Clubhouse are dropping out of the picture. About three months ago, general manager and partner Michael Doyle left for Canada, his native country. Then the banquet manager left at the beginning of this month. Last week, partner and executive chef Leonard Delgado left, going to Cheesecake Factory. First of all, I wonder how these partnership deals are carved out. Anyone can pass out titles, but if it’s still only a paycheck that is the string holding the package together, it’s a string that can break or easily be cut.
Along with all this, most of the bigger restaurants have had plenty of empty seats since Sept. 11. Some of the smaller, individual ones have also suffered, but some have told me that their customers just kept coming in, obviously wanting and needing the comfort that the familiar and cozy nature their establishments offer. We all have to eat to survive,let’s get back in the swing of dining out in big and small restaurants alike. n
