It always happens. People ask me for my favorite restaurant. Some people might have a place that is their constant go-to choice, but for those of us who love the thrill of finding the new, the interesting, the changing food landscape, we mostly have several favorites that match our mood or reason for dining out at the moment.
I like to spread my wings and see what chefs are doing all over the county. So for this article, I decided to go with restaurants where in the past year I’ve come away with one particular dish and maybe an honorable mention that have remained in my memory as something I want to repeat. If it provides a hint for you, then the article is successful.
Also, the U.S. is in the midst of the biggest cocktail revival one could have imagined. Thus we have the added possibility of joining the trend and trying the mixologists’ creative “craft” cocktails at most of these restaurants. Dozens of new taste profiles make cocktail creativity a nouveau science. Every bartender invents his or her own libations, so the tasting possibilities are endless.
I could have written only about the wine lists, too. I leave it to you to peruse and select. There are so many countries making stellar wines, and it seems to me that wine lists have become more refined in the past few years.
From the best-known names to boutique wines that can surprise with their different nuances and can easily become a swell pairing for the food, there’s much to discover.
Have a conversation with the sommelier who can lead you to new adventures in wine to go with your new adventures in food.
• ANAHEIM WHITE HOUSE
Dish: Osso Buco Milanese
887 South Anaheim Blvd.
Anaheim
(714) 772-1381
The fame of the Italian-born owner, Bruno Serato, is a PR driver on its own. He’s been acclaimed nationwide and in Europe for being the only restaurateur who feeds hundreds of children from low-income families every evening of the year—1 million meals and counting. So when you dine at this beautiful and refined restaurant, you are helping the children.
In recognition of his massive efforts, Bruno has been knighted by the Italian government, featured twice on CBS national evening news and in People magazine, was a CNN international Hero, and has acquired the Five Star Diamond Award of the American Academy of Hospitality Sciences (Donald Trump is on the board). There’s more, but I can’t list them all.
The cuisine has been the subject of numerous very positive reviews in international publications. Authentic regional Italian fare, carefully presented, shares a menu with steaks and fresh seafood.
There’s a comfort and taste of elegance in the Osso Buco Milanese of the Lombardy Region that speaks high-level Italian. Cross-cut veal shank is braised with red wine and a mirepoix of vegetables and fresh herbs served over creamy, soft polenta. Enough said.
• BROADWAY by AMAR SANTANA
Dish: Grilled Beeler’s Pork Chop
328 Glenneyre St.
Laguna Beach
(949) 715-8234
My mind is skipping right toward the progressive American cuisine and the Grilled Beeler’s Pork
Chop when Broadway is mentioned. This entrée delivers something special, even beyond the succulent pork.
As for Beeler’s pork, it comes from a specialty farm in Iowa where the swine are raised humanely with sun, meadowland, good food and no antibiotics, growth hormones or animal byproducts.
That ensures a level of sought-after taste, tenderness and healthiness. Take that lovely piece of grilled pork and give it some sidekicks of morel mushrooms stuffed with foie gras, pickled ramps and bean salad and, by golly, you’ve got yet one more memorable meal.
Love the New York impression here in the casually eloquent surroundings; the mingling vibes of artists, musicians, dedicated foodies, movers and shakers; and some of the best looking bar flies around. It’s comfortable for everyone, and the take-away from a first visit is that it really is a unique and lovable restaurant.
• CANELETTO
Dish: Salt-Crusted Mediterranean Sea Bass
545 Newport Center Drive
Newport Beach
(949) 640-0900
It is part of the Il Fornaio family, but the corporation gave us a gift when they decided to deck out the Newport Beach restaurant with a new name and a Venetian concept, and best of all, let it be Canaletto and not just another Il Fornaio with a different name.
From raw bar offerings, personalized charcuterie, freshly made pastas with true Italian sauces, veal and many other meat dishes that have tickled my fancy; right now the Branzino Al Sale O Alla Griglia is calling my name. The whole Mediterranean sea bass is either grilled or baked under a salt crust and served with grilled polenta and sautéed seasonal vegetables. Tableside presentation adds a nice memory of its own.
Various spaces have their own personalities. The bar area is big and community friendly. There’s a smaller dining room with a fireplace and a sense of intimacy that is quiet perfection. And there’s the beautiful main dining room with linen-draped tables and a tangible sense that you are in for a fine experience.
• CHEF CHEN
Dish: Chinese Beef Sandwich
Honorable mention: Wuxi Ribs
5408 Walnut Ave.
Irvine
(949) 786-8898
For almost all the restaurants in this listing, I can easily reel off a very favorite from recent meals. This time, I have to tell you about two menu items that I just cannot choose between.
I once wrote that the Beef Sandwich—roast beef and cilantro with a hoisin-influenced sauce rolled inside a fresh Chinese tortilla-like wrapper and crisply fried—is the best sandwich I’ve found in all of Orange County and across all cultures. I’m sticking with that. I cannot count the non-Asians I’ve introduced to this beloved Chinese “sandwich” and who are now about as stuck on it as I am.
Wuxi is an hour’s train ride from Shanghai. Its most famous food is the tiny Wuxi pork ribs. At Chef Chen, my palate thinks it’s back in the village of Wuxi when I nibble on the savory-sweet little pork ribs. I simply cannot think of this restaurant without thinking of them and wanting them again.
The restaurant is known for its dedication to some of the most famed dishes of Shanghai and Szechuan and for outstanding dishes from Taiwan. I’m taking a local food-and-restaurant broadcast personality there in the next few days just to have my two most memorable dishes.
• DRIFTWOOD KITCHEN
Dish: Yellowfin Tacos
619 Sleepy Hollow Lane
Laguna Beach
(949) 715-7700
Laguna got a terrific dose of seaside dining ambiance last year when Driftwood Kitchen debuted. It’s cantilevered over one of the most picturesque beaches, with a front wall of glass giving unobstructed views of ocean panoramas. The light, beachy, rather sophisticated interiors are relaxing, delivering a unique sense of style.
The chef expresses creativity without overdoing it. Clever appetizers and entrées of duck and seafood, lamb and steaks and more are given a new personality. Good presentations by friendly servers add a layer of customer contentment.
My etched-in-memory food item is an appetizer and/or small plate, depending on how you categorize some beautiful smaller palate pleasers. If I were ranking my memorable dishes of the year, the Crispy Yellowfin Tartare Tacos, a bombshell of texture and exquisite flavor, would be at the top of the list. So different, so remarkable.
To make the item, the chef mixes miso and sesame, cooks little rounds of the mixture and molds the warm discs into taco shells. He then fills them with the freshly chopped tuna, tucks in a little fresh cilantro and tops them with briny salmon roe. They are more than fantastic.
• FLEMING’S
Dish: Sunday Night Prime Rib Dinner
455 Newport Center Drive
Newport Beach
(949) 720-9633
Steak and fresh seafood are synonymous with the mention of Fleming’s, with thoughts going toward 100 wines by the glass and the wine list itself, the whole program being one of the most acclaimed in America. Add the high comfort level of the restaurant, and the adept service, and the vision is cemented.
My big memory from the recent past is about an entire dinner instead of one menu item in particular. I’m taken with the Sunday evening Prime Rib dinner that has been priced at only $39.95. From July 4 through Labor Day, it’s only $34.95.
You just cannot get more tender or tasty prime rib anywhere for this price, since it includes salad—from a choice of three—one of Fleming’s acclaimed accompaniments, and dessert. I wrote earlier in the year about the stack of onion rings that have absolutely no peers in the county. Last time, I chose them as one of our side orders. Note: All courses are full portions.
• IL BARONE
Dish: Pork and Truffle Cavatelli
4251 Martingale Way
Newport Beach
(949) 955-2755
There was a bit of wonderment out in the public when Il Barone took over a space five years ago that was tucked in the back of MacArthur Square off of MacArthur and Martingale way. It was not considered an ideal location.
We needn’t have worried. Owner-chef Franco Barone and his delightful hostess, business partner and wife, Donatella, have proven their culinary and hospitality point over and over again. OC diners have obviously been enthralled since those first days with Franco’s Italian specialties served in the charming, cosmopolitan and dressed-up dining room.
There are pastas that hark back to my childhood, where the population of our Midwest town was almost exclusively French and Italian immigrants. Franco’s Cavatelli alla Norcina made my “best of” list last time we ate at Il Barone; it seems as though the recipe of my Italian-American girlfriend’s mom has been transported to this kitchen. The delicate flavor of ricotta mingles with pork sausage, the perfume of black truffles and Grana Padano in such a nostalgic sauce that is strewn over the freshly made pasta shells.
Franco’s food has become famous, and there is indeed something for everyone on his menu.
• LITTLE SPARROW
Dish: Rabbit Agnolotti
300 N. Main St.
Santa Ana
(714) 265-7640
Agnolotti are a style of square ravioli from the Piedmont region of Italy. The pasta covers a savory meat or vegetable stuffing. Rabbit is one of my favorite meats, so it’s logical that a most memorable dish in this cute little dining room centers on it.
The chef marinates and roasts the rabbit confit style as the first step in making the Stinging Nettle and Rabbit Agnolotti. Deboned, the rabbit gets to cuddle with some stinging nettle—not the stinging genre, but the smooth leafed food variety—which tastes a bit like spinach with a hint of light citrus and cucumber. By the time the agnolotti are cooked and we discover the further delight of roasted mushrooms, culinary heaven has arrived.
This place has become acclaimed in its two years of life. The affordable but sophisticated new-American cuisine in a homey atmosphere is accompanied by friendliness and terrific service, adding to the vitality of the renaissance of downtown Santa Ana.
The menu has only a few entrées and small, or share, plates, plus some desserts. But the enchantment is that they are such interesting and tasty dishes that make big impressions.
• MARCHE MODERNE
Dish: Moules Marinière
3333 Bristol St.
Costa Mesa
(714) 434-7900
When I want to visit a svelte, fashionably designed Parisian bistro whose food keeps pace with the sophistication and aura, I go to Marche Moderne, a beautiful restaurant that really has no peers. Chef/owner Florent Marneau amazes customers with camera-worthy and extraordinary tasting food presentations, while his wife and business partner, Amelia, keeps ending our meals with delicious and unique desserts.
Florent fascinates us with upscale French food from his homeland, plus a few items representing dishes from various French-influenced countries around the globe.
For all the reasons I could go to Marche Moderne anytime, my reason lately is to have the Moules Marinière with Pommes Frites again. Prince Edwards Island mussels marinière style are steamed in sauvignon blanc wine, Normandy butter, parsley and garlic, and a sprinkling of freshly ground black pepper. The same ingredients are used in other restaurants for steamed mussels, yet I have not tasted any that were better than Florent’s. So whatever the magic is in his recipe/technique, this bowl of mussels is a blue-ribbon winner. Add the great pommes frites with their taste and texture, plus the perfect French bread for dipping into the broth, and it’s foodie dreamland.
• MESA
Dish: Pan Roasted Halibut
Honorable mention: Heirloom Apple Salad
725 Baker St.
Costa Mesa
(714) 557-6700
It’s no secret that this is one of my favorite restaurants, and I usually show up with a few others to embrace it and some of the most impressive food in the county.
The overall space has a cosmopolitan style distinct from any other restaurant. The middle of the room features communal seating where guests can gather around lovely tables for a great sharing experience. To the left of the large space, walls are lined with enticing banquettes—my favorite spots to dine—and walls of live plants, plus the charm of a fireplace. To the right is a more-than-compelling bar whose extended lounge is fitted with large booths. And as punctuation on the restaurant’s individual style, the already attractive roof is opened to the stars on balmy evenings, the times when we might be having a late craft cocktail experience with tidbits of fine food.
As I think of the name Mesa, I remember many dishes but none more than Pan Roasted Local Halibut dappled with beurre rogue sauce and farro risotto, pickled pearl onions and a few fava beans as spirited sidekicks. I almost always precede an entrée with the Heirloom Apple Salad as one of my appetizers.
• MOULIN BISTRO – EPICERIE
Dish: Best little Tuesday and Thursday night French home-style dinners
1000 N. Bristol St. N.
Newport Beach, CA. 92660
(949) 474-0920
This place is a little gift to Orange County. I search out the small, local eateries for their homage to genuine soulful food whenever I am in another country. Now Laurent Vrignet has brought that French version of the intimate, spot-on little cafe to us. Cute, no pretense, gloriously keeping the casual but genuine neighborhood food alive.
Some fresh French pastries or soft omelets for breakfast perhaps? A perfect Croque Monsieur or Croque Madame sandwich for lunch? A liltingly French Salade Frisee? A fine array of luscious cheeses? A long list of a la carte offerings all day is what you find. You quickly notice that a lot of the customers are speaking French, relishing this nostalgia.
While I have appreciated many things, the highlights for me are the $25 complete dinners on two nights: The Tuesdays at 7 p.m. chef’s three-course homestyle dinner (his choice of entrée for the evening); Thursdays are Parisian classic Steak Frites dinners featuring entrecôte, unlimited fries—the best—and salad. Seating is between 6 p.m. and 8 p.m.
• REUNION KITCHEN + DRINK
Dish: Chicken & Biscuits
5775 E. Santa Ana Canyon Road
Anaheim Hills
(714) 283-1062
The Southern part of my soul—I lived in the South a bit when growing up—got a first-class fix when I first discovered the perfect Chicken & Biscuits at this restaurant. It’s still the first food item I think of when Reunion is mentioned.
When a craving for this classic comes over me, I usually make it at home. The restaurant’s version often saves the day and my time, though. And I never tire of the inviting aura that Reunion emits.
Owner Scott McIntosh comes from a background working at Claim Jumper, Culinary Adventures restaurant group and Nick’s. He then owned Asada in Laguna before launching Reunion in Anaheim Hills, a part of Orange County that dearly needed a fine-looking, friendly restaurant serving really good food. He hit the jackpot in discerning what it wanted.
The whole menu is as comfortable as the restaurant itself, with lots of foods that reassure our less pretentious selves: Meatloaf, Fish and Chips, Short Rib Sliders, Crispy Pancetta Pasta and the like.
PS: I like sitting in one of the booths on one
side and the back of the dining room and perhaps starting my meal with a great version of the Bloody Mary.
• SCOTT’S RESTAURANT & BAR
Dish: Calamari Provençal
3300 Bristol St.
Costa Mesa
(714) 979-2400
Classify this as a “something for everyone” restaurant. The cool, modern decor is easy on the eyes, and the way Scott’s laid out the tables and booths gives the dining room a chic and very welcoming atmosphere. Add an impressive—feel free to think beautiful—open kitchen, and business, romance, and general dining all fit right in.
Sunday brunch includes renowned jazz musicians. Lunch is big with the business crowd and shoppers taking a break from spending money across the street at South Coast Plaza. Dinner is popular with pre- and after-theater diners.
Chef Michael Doctulero is one of those guys who are passionate about what they do, and it shows in his food and when he is smilingly walking through the dining room checking on customer satisfaction. There’s so much swell food here, things like Pacific Swordfish, Akaushi Beef & Foie Gras Burger, and Chilean Sea Bass with sake kasu essence.
Of all the impressive food I’ve had here, my first thoughts still go to the Calamari Provençal—garlic, olive oil, a tad of heat from chiles, and the typical herbes de Provençe peeking through the sautéed mixture. It goes so far beyond ubiquitous fried calamari.
• SEALEGS WINE BAR
Dish: Brussels Sprouts
21022 Beach Blvd.
Huntington Beach
(714) 536-5700
Alicia Whitney is a dynamic woman with a passion for life, wine and food. She turned her past experiences in the food and beverage industries into her own vision of what the quintessential wine bar/lovable local place should be. SeaLegs was born three years ago and has been a gangbuster success.
Now she’s about to open SeaSalt Woodfire Grill, a breakfast and meat house restaurant—think Santa Maria-style barbecue—in the same center.
There’s a sense of sophisticated beauty about SeaLegs. Use of fine woods and dashing upholstery join a row of crystal chandeliers as attention getters. Sit at the lovely long bar or at shiny wood tables and settle in for some wonderful craft cocktails, wine and superb food items.
From a menu of small plates of food, I’m remembering one item above all else: Mirin Glazed Brussels Sprouts. As a side dish or beneath the marinated Hanger Steak, they are unbelievably delicious.
The chef cuts the Brussels sprouts in half, flash fries them for crispness, and pan sears them with a few seasonings, followed by deglazing the pan with mirin. I want them right now. Top them with the Korean-style barbecue hangar steak and voila, you have a double dose of tastiness.
• THAI KITCHEN
Dish: Coconut Milk Chicken Soup
4250 Barranca Pkwy.
Irvine
(949) 857-1788
The first time I tasted the Coconut Milk Chicken Soup (Tom Kha Kai) at this lovely little place, it was back to memories of Thailand, that exotic, lush country where I’ve had the opportunity to travel and where I discovered its savory regional dishes.
Thai food in general is sort of magical for my palate; but in the U.S., it’s hard for me to find the tastes I actually remember from Thailand. Thai Kitchen gets me back there mentally every time.
No matter what I am ordering for a full meal, my addiction to the chicken soup kicks in to get things going. Curry Duck, the ubiquitous Pad Thai, Crispy Fried Chile Fish, or Ginger Pork may follow, but the soup comes first.
This potage is ordered with the degree of hotness from added chiles that you prefer. A metal vessel arrives reminiscent of a tube cake pan, in which floats a yellow broth whose aromas themselves are dreamy. It’s laden with slices of white-meat chicken, morel mushrooms, Thai spices, and the thrilling flavors of lemongrass and coconut. On my all-time list of the best things I have ever tasted, this soup, synonymous for me with Thai Kitchen, is in a place of honor.
• WATERMARC
Dish: Pistachio-Crusted Rack of Lamb
Honorable mention: Ahi & Watermelon Skewers
448 S. Coast Highway
Laguna Beach
(949) 376-6272
This contemporary restaurant is one of the gems of downtown dining in Laguna. It’s casual enough to fit the hometown vibe—open-concept dining room and bar and the open-air aroma of the ocean. Top that with a seriousness about food that ranks right up there with the most sophisticated restaurants. I called it “relaxation central with food that cements the relationship” when I first wrote about it this year. That still holds.
The menu is a collaboration between owner and Executive Chef Marc Cohen and Chef de Cuisine Kiel Anderson. The concept pairs food with wine and its “239 ways to enjoy remarkable wine and extraordinary food.” Critics have given Watermarc high praise for the guest-friendly pricing, too.
To adequately fill all of our eating needs, they even serve an a la carte breakfast. At lunch and dinner, menus waltz through many grazing plates, plus a parade of meat, poultry and pristinely fresh seafood dishes. There are also some vegetarian entrées.
I recently had two items here that are resonating loudly: an appetizer of Ahi and Watermelon Skewers with ponzu sauce, and the Pistachio Crusted Rack of Lamb with a tidbit of pancetta and a Bing cherry demiglace making a graceful appearance. Will do this soon again.
• WILDFISH SEAFOOD GRILLE & STEAKS
Dish: North Atlantic Lemon Sole
Honorable mention: Steak Oscar
1370 Bison Ave.
Newport Beach
(949) 720-9925
For a long time, the first item I think of when Wildfish is mentioned is the North Atlantic Lemon Sole. I never would have imagined that a tender piece of fish would taste good when dredged in Parmesan cheese. The tomato and herb salad sounded good, and the lemon-garlic butter made sense, but I was not used to a rather intense cheese meeting delicate fish. It was my husband, Patrick, who first ordered it, and I ended up stealing a good portion from his plate. I’ve been stuck on it ever since.
Honorable mention here goes to an old American classic: Steak Oscar is a beloved item from the past, except that at Wildfish it’s featured under the steak category on a menu that is mainly a seafood house. It is still important to my taste buds, and obviously to others since it’s a big seller. Give this good filet a top hat of fresh crab and asparagus and a generous ribbon of hollandaise, and my dining nostalgia is complete.
Many of my readers know that I consider this one of Orange County’s important restaurants due to its modern, cosmopolitan appeal, broad range of premium seafood, good-looking decor, and vibrant bar scene with one of the best happy hours around.
• THE WINERY
Dish: Foie Gras
3131 West Coast Highway
Newport Beach
(949) 999-6622
Once the ban was lifted on the sale of foie gras last year, the decadently rich goose liver showed up everywhere. Chefs seemed to let their creativity run wild. I’ve tried it a few times: sautéed, stacked between layers of crunchy puff pastry, topped with various sauces, and sprinkled with berries and sprouts and a lot of other accoutrements in between. Two weeks ago, I met a really memorable blend of flavors and textures in the current foie gras version at The Winery.
It was Saturday evening, and we wanted to have dinner with our dear friends somewhere with a good atmosphere. The Winery won our vote for its seamless views out to the yachts, the smaller boats, the whole Newport Harbor water scene, and the restaurant’s comfortable and attractive interiors. No less important is always the food that pulls in its own constant flow of hip reviews.
This version of foie gras has a perfectly seared medallion of goose liver atop a crisply toasted triangle of brioche. The strawberry gastrique spooned over and around the star ingredient makes the whole thing soar. It’s synonymous in my memory with The Winery.
