Scott Palazzo of Palazzo Winery was in town recently to showcase two of his wines that are making waves with connoisseurs. Antonello Ristorante, under the watch of G.M. That Foret, created a last-minute tasting menu to match Palazzo? wines for a group of us enthusiastic diners.
We ended up having some Italian gourmet food that was an adventure in itself, but the wines proved that we were right to make time to taste them. For those who have wine cellars, these should really be of interest.
Palazzo? first release of Palazzo Napa Valley Red Wine (merlot, cabernet franc and cabernet blend) was only in 2005. Reminiscent of the wines of Saint-?ilion and Pomerol in the Bordeaux region of France, it quickly caught the attention of serious aficionados. With the release of the 2006 vintage, Robert Parker, the world? most powerful wine critic, gave it an unbelievable 94 points. Instantaneously the wine was re-quested by famous restaurants.
We also tasted his 2006 Truchard Vineyards Cabernet Franc, rated by Parker at 93 points, which is a sleek and sophisticated red that can fill my glass any time. According to Steve, he uses new world fruit but makes wines with old world sensibilities. At any rate, these wines go for $60 and $65 a bottle when ordered from the winery, but the current release of Cabernet Franc is sold out.
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Palazzo Winery: held tasting for two, touted red wines at Antonello |
Pizza Party
Wolfgang Puck was doing more than checking out one of his restaurant locations when he spent the day a couple of weeks ago at his Wolfgang Puck Bistro at Macy? in South Coast Plaza (formerly known as Wolfgang Puck Cafe). He was perhaps setting the stage for a new generation of chefs as he engagingly taught some local children how to make pizza.
The kids were completely engulfed in shaping their own dough for individual pizzas, slathering on tomato sauce and then adding their choice of toppings. The staff whisked the ready-to-cook masterpieces to the pizza oven and a few minutes later each youngster had his or her creation.
I took my grandchildren, Ava and Max; they were delighted with their experience and I intend to keep cooking with them at home. Of course, people like me also used the occasion to purchase a cookbook and to try some of the new bistro-style food at real value prices that Wolfgang has introduced. You will definitely want to have lunch or dinner there now.
Aside from a good selection of pizzas and pastas, this has become home to fabulous roasted chicken, some pretty amazing salads (Chinois chicken, chimichurri steak and roasted beet and goat cheese being among the flavorful salad selections), savory main courses and exciting sandwiches?ust the kind of stuff that makes us willing and able to dine out.
The menu extends the virtues of many dishes by way of Wolfgang? vision of American bistro food. These include short ribs as both a main course and on a wonderful sandwich with crispy onion strings, savory butternut squash soup, tandoori-style chicken with griddled flatbread, pastrami finding affinity for Gruy?e cheese, salmon with teriyaki glaze, bistro steak au poivre with fries, tuna tartare with avocado and crispy sesame chips, and down home meatloaf with mashed potatoes and wine sauce.
From interesting appetizers to rich but comforting desserts, Wolfgang has revitalized this whole menu at prices that range from only $7.95 to $12.95 at lunch and $9.95 to $16.95 for the main courses at dinner. Wolfgang Puck Bistro is located just behind the valet parking cabana at Macy? on the Bear side of the
center.
Jailbirds Lunch
Jail food has never looked so good.
La Vie en Rose in Brea is hosting the annual Muscular Dystrophy Jailbirds Lunch on Thursday where a portion of all participating lunch bills are donated to the charity to help deserving kids go to camp. Be sure that your lunch is included by mentioning Fifi Chao? column in the Orange County Business Journal.
The hilarity comes in via local business leaders who are ?rrested?and locked up by pseudo officers. In order to free themselves, each jailbird must raise a minimum of $1,600, which will send two kids with muscular dystrophy to summer camp. Of course, they will be scrambling to get their friends and business associates to bail them out and the jailbird who raises the most cash will get an added impressive prize.
If you are interested in participating or would like to join the ?itness protection program?and put someone you know behind bars?r even surrender yourself as a jailbird?lease contact the Muscular Dystrophy Association at (949) 251-0191.
For reservations and smiles galore while enjoying some of the best food in OC, call La Vie en Rose at (714) 529-8333. La Vie is located at 240 S. State College Blvd. (at Imperial) in Brea.
Openings, Closings, Events
Blue Coral in Fashion Island has closed. The restaurant that highlighted ocean hues in its d?or and straight-from-the-ocean tastes in its food was one of three in the nation, all of which now have closed their doors.
Even though Walt Disney Co. in Anaheim put a lot of money into the renovation last year of Yamabuki, its showcase Japanese restaurant, it has closed. I? never expected to find such an authentic and resonating Japanese dining experience under the Disney auspices, but there it was and many of us will miss it so much.
Also, Savannah in Costa Mesa? theater district is shuttered and undergoing renovations under new ownership. It had morphed from the original Chat Noir to Savannah Supper Club under the Culinary Adventures restaurant group, both indulging us with that seductive Parisian intimacy.
Likewise, the French 75s in Laguna and Fashion Island have also changed scenarios: Culinary Adventures has sold French 75 in Laguna to local businessman Kenneth Johnson (great stuff going on there now, which I will report on fully in my June column) and, as I previously reported, the Fashion Island location has segued to local chef Pascal Olhats of Traditions by Pascal in Newport Beach. That leaves Culinary Adventures with two Savannahs?n La-
guna Niguel and at the Huntington Beach Pier.
Watermarc is the restaurant that has just opened in the space that once housed the legendary Partners Bistro in Laguna for so many years. It? the collaborative effort of chef Marc Cohen, Terri and Richard Rothbard and architect Mark Singer, who are also partners in the Opah restaurants in Aliso Viejo and Irvine and 230 Forest, a longtime restaurant at that location in Laguna. I haven? carved out my dining strategy yet, so will have to report on the food and d?or in another column, although I? told extensive and charming renovations of the space have taken place.
Athos Fiori, a veteran restaurateur who opened Mamma Gina in Newport as the suave G.M. and then opened his own coffee boutique, has a new gig. He? sold the coffee business and now is the managing director at Pinot Provence. The restaurant already has the creative minds of Joachim Splichal, LuLu Delorean as chef and ultra cool G.M. Giuseppe Vitiello. LuLu? food alone is compelling, but taken together, this is a talented triumvirate that aims to please every customer. I? having dinner there?gain?his week.
A little out-of-town news. We took a week off and went to Hawaii, to the Big Island, staying on the Kona side. Naturally, we tried some restaurants, but the most memorable meal of our stay turned out to be the one at Roy? Waikoloa Bar & Grill. We tried some other places and left Roy? until the night before our return home. That was the mistake, because had we done it earlier in the week, we? have repeated the experience.
Roy? gave us the right amount of charm, superb service and, though we are very fond of the Roy? here in Newport Beach, Roy? in Waikoloa has a menu that? tied to the Hawaiian culture without being presented through a mainland prism. The Waikoloa menu? as creative as it is here in Newport Beach but truly has the local soul of Hawaii as the center point.
Memorial Day weekend brings to OC one of the most interesting and prestigious food and wine events: the Sixth Annual Food and Wine Festival held at the Balboa Bay Club starting Friday. It runs for the weekend weaving seminars with wine tastings and cultural dishes from around the world. Prices range from $35 to $125 per person for individual events or $525 for the weekend. Call (949) 645-5000.
Champagne for Every Meal
Did you know that Champagnes Deli & Grill, at the corner of Bison Avenue and MacArthur Boulevard in Newport Beach, now serves breakfast, lunch and an expanded dinner menu? The food at all meals is really good and done with fine ingredients, some of them organic. Granola is made in-house, egg dishes are quite interesting, French toast really does have a French accent, sandwiches and salads are well conceived and the entrees at lunch and dinner wander through tender ribs, homey beef dishes, a Gallic-accented meatloaf and even fresh fish. The pastries have become customer favorites. Open daily from 7:30 a.m. (8 a.m. on weekends) to 8:30 in the evening. Call (949) 640-5011.
Small Plates
A note on the Charlie Palmer restaurant: I find it amazing that they now have 24 small plates of savories and sweets served in the lounge from 4 p.m. to closing every day. And this not ordinary stuff?? talking about duck meatballs, roasted bone marrow, caramelized chicken livers with balsamic brown butter, crisp pork belly, dates stuffed with blue cheese, grilled skirt steak, signature steamed mussels, clams with coconut curry broth, blistered shisito peppers, shrimp a la plancha, three-cheese risotto cakes, soba noodles and sweet churros with smoked chocolate sauce. May I entice you further by saying that prices are $8 to $10? Charlie Palmer is at Bloomingdale? South Coast Plaza (with its own exterior entrance). Call (714) 361-4265.
Curbside to Go
Golden Truffle was the restaurant at the forefront of the Curbside Menu trend and others have followed the lead of chef/owner Alan Greeley. You merely call the restaurant and place your order and time you want to pick it up. Voila! They bring it to you curbside and you drive away with Alan? famously interesting food to eat at home. The May menu is internationally tinged and comforting in the offerings. The restaurant serves lunch Tuesday through Friday and dinner Thursday through Saturday. Give them a call at (949) 645-9970 or fax them at (949) 645-7831 and they will fax you a copy of the April curbside menu, then the fork? on your plate. Golden Truffle is at 1767 Newport Blvd., Costa Mesa.
