Two Cafes to Start 2002: Le Jardin and Plums
EXECUTIVE DINING
by Fifi Chao
Most of us are still trying to dig out of the overeating guilt syndrome from the holidays. We might be dining at home a little more in the near future, but my bet’s on all of us still ending up in restaurants several nights a week. We do need an alternative to heavy, overburdened food, though. I can’t think of a nicer welcome to 2002 than the interesting meals at Le Jardin and Plums, a pair of owner-operated restaurants where the food is really interesting.
The smallish, charming Le Jardin in Fountain Valley takes a step back into the simple glamour of old Saigon in the days before political agendas took their toll. This French-Asian caf & #233; may be in a mini strip mall only two blocks from the San Diego (405) Freeway, but it is nevertheless an oasis of bamboo garden and dining room embellished with large bouquets of fresh flowers and white-napped tables. The friendliness of an open kitchen commands the back wall and ever-gracious service backs up the good food. You will soon discover that it quickly gives a feeling of being a home away from home.
This may be the classic case of someone following his heart. Owner Dong Nguyen, you see, is an architect and avid cook. He kept designing restaurants for others and cooking only in his home kitchen until 1998. Then he used all those talents to open his own Le Jardin. Restaurant writers and customers alike embraced it. It was different and exciting. Dong had mastered French cooking as a hobby over the years and had been combining it with Vietnamese and Thai dishes. Thus, he knew what kind of dishes he wanted on his menu.
Le Jardin became a favorite spot for us and many of our friends. Then, lightning struck a transformer on another business in the mall and the fire traveled through the roof, severely damaging the restaurant even though it was at the end of the shops. It took about 18 months to rebuild, but Dong didn’t have to second-guess the original plans and change anything. He gave us back the same restaurant and the same compelling food. Le Jardin has just reopened; it’s ready for your visit and many more from me.
Food: oh, possibly the best take on cassoulet in the county (veal shank served in a bowl on lima beans and bits of fresh tomato). I must warn that this dish seems to yell for more of that good French bread they serve, since you will be trying to sop up every last drop of juice. The lobster soup is fairly classic, dashed with Cognac. Really worth ordering is the scallop soup in a fish stock studded with strips of leek and carrot.
Though they are listed as an appetizer, the roasted pork rolls with their rice paper wraps sometimes come to my table mid-meal. They don’t mind at all being part of the entr & #233;e parade. We often order the shrimp in coconut sauce, comprised of several large crustaceans floating in a slightly spicy broth reminiscent of the Thai flavors of complementary lemon and coconut. Strips of clam are sprinkled with spicy salt. Quail are marinated in a brace of fresh herbs, then grilled and sprinkled with juniper berry sauce. Steak is also marinated making for a crispy seared surface giving way to tender juiciness. Just have anything on this menu and then wonder all the way home how you missed such a treasure for this long.
Meanwhile, Plums in Costa Mesa is both a morning and afternoon delight. It closes as 3 p.m., so dinner’s out of the question. But, oh, those tempting dishes they come up with from 7 a.m. It’s a stylish little place. The dining room is clean-lined, bright and modern, almost Scandinavian looking, filled with colorful art on the walls. The pleasant tree-lined patio sits within a free-form wrought iron fence.
Breakfast, ordinarily served until 11 a.m., stretches till 3 p.m. on weekends. An omelet goes uptown in taste with its filling of asparagus and crabmeat; another is filled with a trio of wild mushrooms that have been saut & #233;ed with shallots and a shake of Marsala wine. Eggs Benedict take on a Southwestern flair with their peppered bacon and chipotle-cilantro hollandaise sauce. Love that big, fluffy Dutch Baby pancake in a snowdrift of powdered sugar and a squeeze of fresh lemon. No other restaurant that I know of serves its French toast crusted with grated coconut and topped with tropical fruit, bananas and strawberries. For purists, almost any breakfast combo you ever imagined is available. The difference is that the bacon is a specially ordered, peppered version and the sausage has background flavors of apple and maple syrup. It’s high-camp eggs and meat. The new-age hash is made of shredded alderwood-smoked salmon and topped with poached eggs napped in a tomato-speckled hollandaise.
Highly recommended for lunch is the lamb burger, far outdistancing the common beef burger. It’s bigger, juicier and has the added complement of feta cheese; truly a casual handshake away from all that rack of lamb on the sophisticated restaurant scene. Try mustard-crusted salmon sitting on top of fennel slaw or pan-fried Idaho trout with wild rice and field greens. Mediterranean Ni & #231;oise salad is up-to-date: a bowl of mixed greens topped with crunchy green beans, grilled fennel, roasted fingerling potatoes and strips of freshly seared rare ahi tuna steak. An albacore tuna and crispy vegetable m & #233;lange, spiked with cilantro dressing, is a good sandwich choice. Slices of Black Forest ham on top of artichoke hearts and Emmenthaler cheese allows a pleasant variation on the ham and cheese sandwich theme.
Plums pays attention to children too, giving them their own assortment of friendly dishes. There’s a small wine list to accompany the adult luncheon food and a dozen specialty cocktails. Remember the Gin Rickey, the Ramos Fizz and the Blue Cadillac? Have those, a Bloody Mary or the hoot of them all, the Stoli Root Beer Float. This restaurant is a sure bet to give your jaded tastebuds a lift.
AT A GLANCE
LE JARDIN
FRENCH-ASIAN BISTRO
Address: 17431 Brookhurst St., Fountain Valley
Phone: (714) 593-8511
Prices: Lunch entr & #233;es $5 to $8; dinner entr & #233;es $7 to $24
PLUMS
CAFE DELIGHTS
Address: 369 E. 17th St., Costa MesaPhone: (949) 722-7586
Prices: Breakfast and lunch items range from $6.25 to $13.50
