A New Year means a time to look forward to new restaurants, new chefs, new dishes, and new culinary experiences.
My latest new dining experience came from an old classic—Wahoo’s Fish Taco. The Tustin-based chain recently celebrated its 30th anniversary.
I had lunch a few weeks ago with Wahoo’s co-founder Wing Lam to sample several new menu items being introduced this winter under the title of the Kona Collection, featuring chili made with American style Kobe beef, and Maria’s green salsa, a creamy jalapeño version of the Mexican classic condiment. The chili can be enjoyed as chili fries, chili nachos, or in a bowl with generous scoops of white rice and jalapenos.
“In Hawaii, people love eating chili with rice; it’s a full meal,” said Lam. “We have been testing it at our Huntington Beach store for the past three months. We did not want to do a bread bowl. Who wants to eat a loaf of bread with their meal?”
After my first bite of the chili with rice, all I could say was “wow.” The next two bites elicited the same response.
“That is really good chili, and it’s perfect with the rice,” I told Lam. The chili nachos were also tasty, but the heartiness of the chili and rice was completely satisfying.
Also satisfying for Lam was having Wahoo’s invited to host a dinner last October at the revered James Beard House in New York City.
More than 60 guests enjoyed elevated versions of Wahoo’s signature dishes prepared on-site by Lam and his brother Mingo Lee.
It’s rare to have a fast-casual restaurant host at the James Beard House. Chefs are invited based on rigorous criteria such as national or regional reputation, the use of high-quality, seasonal and/or local ingredients, and a demonstration of excellence in a particular discipline.
The Wahoo’s menu for the James Beard dinner included elevated versions of a few Wahoo’s classics, such as an Enchilada Duo with Polynesian shrimp in red sauce and Blackened Chicken in green sauce with cauliflower rice, and a Taco Duo that consists of Grilled Wahoo Taco with roasted tomato sauce and Fried Haddock Taco with roasted jalapeño sauce.
“We were the first taco guys at the James Beard house,” said Lam, who added that it was the first time in years that he and his brother had served a formal plated dinner.
“Mingo spent three hours peeling and deveining shrimp, while I was slicing and dicing steak, and I had to filet and marinate salmon. We brought enough for 80 people. Plating that many at a time is hard, it’s heart palpitating.”
Wahoo’s Fish Taco has locations through Orange County. Visit wahoos.com.
Raising a Toast
Wing Lam’s other brother, Ed Lee, could not make it to New York. He’s a little busy with his own new project: Toast Kitchen and Bakery in Costa Mesa.
Billed as a modern diner, Toast moved into the space formerly occupied by The Golden Truffle, which chef/owner Alan Greeley closed last year. Chef Greeley is happily retired in Florida, although he’s made repeat trips to Orange County for special foodie events.
Toast opened quietly last July, but it’s only been the past several months that word is getting out about chef John Park and his delicious culinary creations.
I popped in to Toast last month to sample their weekend brunch menu.
“The Nutella French toast is popular, especially with kids,” Lee told me. “The chicken and waffles is good, but the burrito is our No. 1 seller.”
He also mentioned the chilaquiles and the pancake stack, but I was looking for something a little unusual, and found it with the garlic shrimp and grits.
“That’s a phenomenal item, but people are sometimes a little afraid to try new things,” said Lee. “I think within the next year, OC is getting ready to branch off from a burrito and two eggs with sausage. We have those items—you can’t scare everybody. The eggs are sous vide, not poached. We have to explain it to customers. Everyone wants something they are familiar with.”
And of course, Toast has toast: avocado toast, crab avocado toast, and pear toast, which Lee said is a top seller.
After trying the pear toast, I discovered why it’s so popular. Piled atop a large piece of Levain sourdough, “not as sour as traditional San Francisco sourdough and less acidic,” Chef Park told me, with slices of brandy-soaked pears, grapes, lemon ricotta, bleu cheese crumbles, crispy prosciutto, and arugula, topped off with a pear honey glaze.
I’m not a fan of bleu cheese, but all of the ingredients and flavors in this dish are so well integrated that the bleu cheese takes a back seat to the pears and ricotta.
The shrimp and grits dish is hearty yet not overwhelming. The grits are perfect—thick and somewhat cheesy, with maple glazed bacon, leeks and mushrooms providing extra flavor. I added a sous vide egg on top, which once punctured delivered yet another layer of flavor.
The restaurant is open for lunch and dinner with a menu that runs the gamut from a wagyu burger and a fried chicken sandwich to chicken pho pot pie and red wine duck cacciatore. Add a happy hour menu and a special Taco Tuesday menu, and you have one popular restaurant.
1767 Newport Blvd, Costa Mesa 92627, (949) 873-5057, toastkitchenbakery.com
South Coast Find
I recently discovered a hidden gem in the South Coast Metro area: Silva’s Fresh Eatery + Churrascaria, a Brazilian bistro open for lunch and dinner.
Silva’s opened last year with a kitchen led by Chef John Vega, formerly of Roy’s Newport Beach, and offers an all-you-can-eat feast for $22.95 that includes a salad bar, hot bar, grilled meats including sausage, top sirloin and skirt steak, fresh vegetables, and other items.
For those with smaller appetites, other options include one pass through the salad bar and hot bar, with a couple of meats. You can also order separate entrées from the kitchen.
I went to lunch here with a fellow foodie and we were both delighted with the variety of dishes. I loaded my plate with black bean and corn succotash, organic cauliflower, ratatouille, truffle mac and cheese, steamed rice, and sausage and tri-tip.
It was a hearty feast that I relished with gusto.
The atmosphere at Silva’s is relaxed yet refined, which fits the food perfectly. Definitely worth checking out next time you’re in the area and want to try something different. Silva’s also has a full bar and happy hour specials.
3672 S. Bristol St., Santa Ana 92704, (855) 600-5500, silvasfresheatery.com
Laguna Additions
Laguna Beach has always had a dynamic culinary scene, but it got even bigger recently with the opening of Harley, in the former 370 Common space, from Chef Greg Daniels, and Ocean at Main from former Studio at Montage Chef Craig Strong.
My dining foray at Harley with fellow foodie Della Lisi began with carrot fed beef tartare with mustard yolk, miso mayo, mushroom and black vinegar, and then continued on to New Caledonian blue prawns with polenta, quail stuffed with OC Baking Co. bread, truffles and sausage, and a side of wild mushrooms with garlic herb butter.
From the beef tartare through the prawn dish and the quail, everything was superb. And with so many items on the menu, including wild boar loin and fried chicken, I still need to try. I’ll be back soon.
I was also pleased to see that Chef Daniels retained the 370 Common layout, but refreshed the décor. We had an upstairs table with a view of the dining room, and noticed the restaurant was packed the entire evening.
Around the corner from Harley, Ocean at Main is offering lunch, dinner and weekend brunch. I have dined here twice, once solo in the dining room and once on the lovely patio with three friends so we could sample more dishes.
My dinner dish of lobster fettuccini was about as good as it gets, with generous chunks of lobster floating among the truffle butter and bisque sauce that coated the fettuccini.
At lunch, we all loved the turkey Bolognese sausage pizza, and the oxtail kale risotto with Parmigiano-Reggiano and garlic blossoms.
Harley and Ocean at Main are both welcome additions to the city’s culinary scene.
Harley: 370 Glenneyre St., Laguna Beach 92651, (949) 715-1530, harleylagunabeach.com
Ocean at Main: 222 Ocean Ave., Laguna Beach 92651, (949) 715-3870, oceanatmain.com
Restaurant Week
One of my favorite culinary events starts in a few days: the 13th annual Newport Beach Restaurant Week, which takes place Monday, Jan. 14 through Sunday, Jan. 27.
Over 70 participating restaurants, including many of my favorites, will offer prix-fixe menus for lunch and dinner.
These special two- or three-course menus includes lunches priced at $10, $15, $20 or $25, and dinners for $20, $30, $40 or $50.
Kicking off Restaurant Week is a dine-around experience on Thursday, Jan. 10 at Fashion Island’s Lincoln Experience Center. For $40, you’ll receive a culinary passport to sample food from eight top restaurants. The ticket price includes two glasses of beer or wine. Only 150 tickets are available. Last year’s event sold out, so get your tickets soon.
Visit dinenb.com for more information.
