Yard House Plans New Restaurants in Irvine Spectrum, Rancho Mirag
The movers and shakers of Orange County turned out en masse for the grand opening of Garden Grove’s Crowne Plaza Resort at Chapman Avenue and Harbor Boulevard. It was quite a party and the Mexican hacienda scenario provided by this hotel is very attractive. I saw so many people I knew,we were still meeting and greeting and swapping stories on the growth of OC at midnight. Be aware that this gala gathering began at 5 p.m. This is the largest hotel built in Southern California this year and Tim Busch, major partner in the hotel and CEO of Pacific Hospitality Group, was holding court throughout the evening, obviously proud of the result.
We stayed overnight and I can assure you that the rooms are very comfortable and large. One of the things I love about the hotel is the charming chapel. Tim believes that hotels should have chapels so that people can sit quietly and meditate should they wish. The hotel also can host 1,000 people in the largest ballroom. Rooms are $139 a night.
Considering that the newest Disneyland theme park just down the street is about to open, the Convention Center will be fully renovated and operational by Christmas, and that Disneyland plans a third theme park in two more years, the hotel will no doubt do very well. Stop in and see the pleasing ambiance when you are in the area.
While We Were Away
I loved all the restaurant messages that were left on my machine while I was away. Issay in Newport Beach burned down. This was the interestingly nouveau Italian restaurant (that used to be a Franco-Japanese restaurant of some note) owned by Sid Soffer, an OC expatriate who lives in Nevada. He also owned Sid’s, a longtime tongue-in-cheek hangout for the more colorful business crowd. It also was recently closed.
And, I no more than hit the ground running here and Trilogy was but a memory. I’m afraid to travel now,my world changes too much when I’m gone.
Yard House Expanding its Boundaries
Icon Restaurant Group will open another Yard House eatery in January 2001, at the Irvine Spectrum. It will be the second OC location and the third restaurant for the group. On the heels of signing a lease to open OC’s largest restaurant at the Irvine Spectrum, Yard House Restaurants LLC just inked another deal to open a fourth Yard House eatery in Rancho Mirage in October 2001.
The company launched its flagship restaurant in December 1996 on the Long Beach waterfront. The Costa Mesa location, atop Triangle Square, opened its doors last November. The Yard House at Irvine Spectrum will follow the company’s model created by founders Steele Platt and Steve Reynolds, which includes a signature oval bar, a fleet of seemingly endless tap handles, a menu of American fusion cuisine created by executive chef Carlito Jocson, and an expansive classic rock music library. The group initially did not have plans for a second OC location, but the concept has surpassed expectations.
At first, everyone seemed to talk about the huge selection of beers; however, the innovative menu has brought a lot of good press. Carlito is known for a commitment to quality food products and the service level at the restaurants is high.
Harald Herrmann, Icon’s newly appointed president, says the new Irvine location will encompass 15,200 square feet in a prime retail space next to the Improv comedy club and will closely resemble the design of the Costa Mesa location.
The Rancho Mirage restaurant, scheduled for an October 2001 opening, will be at The River, a lifestyle center under construction at the corner of Bob Hope Drive and Highway 111, near Palm Springs.
The group plans to expand The Yard House chain throughout Southern California and beyond. With the ink barely dry on the new contracts, the partners now are scouting locations in Pasadena, Ontario and San Diego.
Restaurants & Institutions magazine recently named The Yard House among the nation’s Top 100 independent restaurants for the second year in a row, and the Los Angeles Business Journal ranked the restaurant among the Top 25 in Los Angeles County.
Icon also owns Tequila Jack’s in Long Beach, which features more than 125 brands of tequila, prompting Spirits and Cocktails magazine to name it one of the Top 20 tequila bars in the country.
