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Food Frenzy ~ OC Register foodies eat their way through the county's restaurants

Archive for the 'Lunch specials' Category

Getting richer by the second: Lunch at Old Vine

October 3rd, 2008, 2:58 pm by Kat "I eat 'til my pants hurt" Nguyen

When I say richer, I don’t mean I’m becoming wealthy, sadly. I’m talking about all the rich food I’ve been stuffing my face with.

This mac n’ cheese ($12) from Old Vine Cafe in Costa Mesa is currently occupying my thoughts right now, though I tried hard for five minutes to crave a light and healthy salad. Thankfully, OV’s version — made with porcini mushrooms and a mix of artisanal cheeses like Gouda, white cheddar and queso fresco (mmm, look out for this hint of delicate smokiness) — satisfies without leaving me feeling like I have a five-pound brick in my belly …

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Burrata bust

September 29th, 2008, 3:22 pm by Kat "I eat 'til my pants hurt" Nguyen

Hi folks! So you know how I love my burrata. Usually …

Popped into Memphis at the Santora in downtown Santa Ana today for lunch with Jen. I’m a bit more partial to the Costa Mesa location, but this was much closer to the office and we noticed the specials board today listed an heirloom tomato and burrata salad. Sold. Jen and I both ordered it.

Out came a huge plate of mixed greens (heavy on the romaine lettuce side) tossed in an orange ginger vinaigrette with three slices of burrata, three wedges of tomato and all topped off with a crown of crispy straw onions ($12).

The dressing was just too sweet, almost creamy and did not pair well with the burrata or tomatoes. Needed a tad more acid — maybe a streak of balsamic or zip of lemon to cut the creaminess of the cheese and sweetness of the heirloom tomatoes. And the straw onions were another curious touch, a bit too overwhelming for the flavors involved.

I’ll stick to the gumbo or dinner options at Memphis instead.

(P.S. I’m still here! Alas, many of us here in the newsroom now have uh, redefined responsibilities so I will not be able to devote as much time to Gluttonista, but hope to still do as much as I can in my free time, which sadly, there doesn’t seem to be much of with our shrunken staff! Bear with me, folks.)

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Prix-fixe deals and other steals

September 22nd, 2008, 11:32 am by Kat "I eat 'til my pants hurt" Nguyen

Came across some of these awesome meal deals over at Gayot and other sources — thought I should pass them onto you, fellow foodies:

  • Charlie Palmer at Bloomingdale’s South Coast Plaza now offers a daily $26 three-course prix-fixe lunch menu. The menu, created by chef Amar Santana, features seasonal dishes such as summer’s refreshing heirloom tomato gazpacho soup starter, an entrée of spicy rainbow trout atop a bed of tangy cubed beets and a concert of sweet and salty with the chef’s signature praline tart, which comes deconstructed as a confit banana, fresh honeycomb and creamy milk sorbet. Charlie Palmer at Bloomingdale’s South Coast Plaza, Bloomingdale’s South Coast Plaza, 3333 Bristol St., Costa Mesa, CA 92626, 714-352-2525.
  • Morton’s, The Steakhouse in Santa Ana is offering a classic hamburger for $19.78 to benefit the Make-A-Wish Foundation. This gourmet burger, which inspired the chain’s founders to launch their initial restaurant, is Prime sirloin served with french fries. Morton’s, The Steakhouse, South Coast Plaza Village, 1641 W. Sunflower Ave., Santa Ana, CA 92704, 714-444-4834.
  • Azmin Ghahreman of Sapphire Laguna is offering a bento-style lunch box for $15.50. Artfully presented, the five-course lunch features home-fried potato chips with sage-rosemary sea salt, sautéed jumbo shrimp, a barbecue pulled pork slider, Southern-fried chicken salad and sesame-crusted ahi. Sapphire Laguna, Old Pottery Place, 1200 S. Coast Hwy., Laguna Beach, CA 92651, 949-715-9888.
  • Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar is offering a $99 Filet Mignon & Lobster Dinner for Two through September 30. The dinner includes two six-ounce filets, two Australian lobster tails, two chopped wedge salads, Fleming’s potatoes, sugar snap peas and two chocolate mousse with hazelnut bark desserts. Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar, Fashion Island, 455 Newport Center Dr., Newport Beach, CA 92660, 949-720-9633.
  • Chef-owners Florent and Amelia Marneau of Marche Moderne at South Coast Plaza continue to offer a three-course prix-fixe “Spontanée” lunch menu for $20. The first course is usually a salad, followed by two main courses to chooese from and at meal’s end, one of Amelia’s seasonal-inspired desserts. Marche Moderne, 3333 Bristol St., Costa Mesa, CA. 714.434.7900.
  • Three-course prix-fixe dinner for $35 at The Hidden Kitchen in Costa Mesa: Savvy Yelper Paul L. from Irvine recently raved about a very cool new dinner spot that has a secret identity: “The Hidden Kitchen is located in the Rooster Cafe, hence the name. By day, the Rooster Cafe is just that, the Rooster Cafe. But on Thursday and Friday nights (and soon to be Saturday nights), this quaint and cozy little diner becomes a quaint and cozy little bistro.” To read his review and see what he ate, click HERE.
  • Chef-owners Jacques and Olga de Quillien of Pescadou BIstro in Newport Beach have been offering a three-course prix-fixe dinner for $35 that’s beloved by locals. The menu changes, but generally features a salad or soup starter, followed by two main courses to choose from and of course, dessert. Pescadou Bistro, 3325 Newport Blvd., Newport Beach, CA. 949.675.6990.

Want more OC meal deals? Check out Fast Food Maven’s “Cheap-Chic Dining” list.

NY-style pizza in OC? Really?

August 19th, 2008, 2:30 am by Kat "I eat 'til my pants hurt" Nguyen

Al’s NY Cafe in Costa Mesa

I know, I know, I was dubious, too. That is, right before I had one bite of my wispy thin and crisp slice of pizza, hot strands of gooey mozzarella snapping into my chin. Ahhhh. I instantly had a New York flashback, and no surprise since it turns out the old owner of Al’s NY Cafe in Costa Mesa reportedly once worked at the legendary Original Ray’s Pizza. (My secret foodie fantasy is to go back to New York strictly to tour all of the city’s best pizza joints.)

For now, I’m happy to have Al’s. Loyal fans already know that the tiny joint, sandwiched between a 7-Eleven and a shoe repair shop, dishes up the closest to New York-style pie around. They’ve achieved that perfect thin and crispy crust with the right amount of cheese and marinara. I wandered in there finally after a reader nudged me a few posts back and I’m sure glad I listened. Pies here can be ordered whole or by-the-slice. A whole pizza is nice, but there’s something irresistibly satisfying about seeing a football-sized slice of pie spilling over the sides of a flimsy white paper plate …

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Arriba arepas!

August 11th, 2008, 11:21 am by Kat "I eat 'til my pants hurt" Nguyen

Mil Jugos in Santa Ana

It was Bobby Flay who inspired this visit to Mil Jugos in Santa Ana. Actually, reporter Niyaz Pirani (king of deep-fried foods, remember?) was watching Food Network’s “Throwdown with Bobby Flay” and the show’s episode was on making arepas, Venezuela’s beloved corncakes that are typically stuffed with cheese or meats. So Niyaz rounded a few of us up for an arepas (ah-ray-pas) lunch. Mil Jugos has been on my unwieldy “to try” list for years but I kept forgetting. Which of course, turned out to be my huge loss as I have been missing out on the tastiest sandwiches all this time …

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$35 omakase at Bluefin in Newport Coast

July 28th, 2008, 10:42 am by Kat "I eat 'til my pants hurt" Nguyen

Omakase lunch special at Blue Fin at Crystal Cove Promenade

For anyone who appreciates sushi, it’s not exactly the most affordable meal. I’ve easily plunked down more than $100 at the sushi bar — alone. So when I heard about Bluefin’s $35 omakase, or chef’s choice lunch special a few years ago, I was looking forward to this reasonable indulgence.

My four-course feast started with a pretty amuse bouche trio (pictured above) of heirloom tomato gelee in a martini glass, a tempura crab claw and a shotglass of ikura roe. The gelee was smooth and tart with bits of chopped green onion, a refreshing beginning before segueing to the lightly battered crab claw in ponzu sauce — my favorite of the three. The ikura or salmon roe was a pleasant finish, the silky orange orbs popping gently in my mouth. (During a previous visit, the amuse consisted of a lovely kobe carpaccio with bits of shiso, baby squid and the ikura roe.)

Next came a hefty sashimi salad that could have been a meal in of itself …

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1983 prices at Curry House

June 25th, 2008, 1:34 pm by jchin

Curry House is rolling its prices back to 1983 levels today. The “customer appreciation” deal actually started yesterday — sorry for the late notice. You can still get it for dinner tonight!

Curry House chicken katsu

Curry House specializes in Japanese-style curry, i.e. sweet, thick curry that’s much milder than Indian and Thai curries. O.C. locations are at Cypress (10953 Meridian Dr., #P) and Irvine (14407 Culver Drive).

I went to the Cypress location for lunch today and it was packed. Got there at 11:11 a.m., about 20 minutes before opening, and there were already 14 people waiting outside. At 11:40 a.m., the restaurant was full and there was a line of 10 inside. The servers were incredibly efficient and cheery. My chicken katsu (breaded and deep fried cutlet) curry lunch was just $5, down from usual of $10.15.

Where The Fish is De-lish

June 10th, 2008, 9:41 pm by Pedro

We’d driven by California Fish Grill in Cypress countless times without stopping, but on a sunny weekday off work recently, the missus and I decided to give it a try. From the outside, it looked like a fancier sit-down kinda joint, but upon walking into the nicely chilled restaurant, we discovered it was more on the fast-and-casual side of things.

What to order? Well, the answer is in the name of the place — there are no steaks on this grill. The waitress at the counter said the white roughy with garlic butter sauce is a customer fave, so that seemed an easy choice. And I’ve always felt the other good test of a seafood restaurant is what they can do with a deep fryer, so the calamari and shrimp platter filled out the order.

fish_29091.jpg

The white roughy, which as you can see, comes with fries, cole slaw and bread, is a tasty deal at $7.49. It was moist and flaky without being fishy, meaty yet delicate, and simply prepared: charbroiled in the garlic butter, with maybe a dash of seasoned salt and cayenne pepper, it’s a meal that lets the natural goodness of fresh fish come through.

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Shin Sen Gumi: Robata-yakitori bliss

May 23rd, 2008, 11:34 am by Kat "I eat 'til my pants hurt" Nguyen

Shin Sen Gumi in Fountain Valley

I’ve been going to Shin Sen Gumi in Fountain Valley (arguably home of the best yakitori or Japanese skewered chicken in OC) since the day it first opened sometime in 2000 or 2001, I believe. I was working out of the Fountain Valley news bureau and was ecstatic that a new ethnic restaurant was coming to town. Actually, a bit too eager. I showed up that first day and walked in a few minutes before the 11:30 a.m. opening time and barged right into the middle of what appeared to be some sort of ceremony or group prayer. Oops.

I took my sheepish behind back outside and when I was invited back in a few minutes later, everyone shouted at me. Of course, I quickly learned that it’s the traditional Japanese greeting to patrons: “IRASSHAIMASE!” I was hooked after a satisfying (and under $10) lunch of udon and a bowl of rice with tare negima or teriyaki chicken thigh skewers with green onion and even more so after sampling the bounty of dinner yakitori selections.

Seven or eight years later, I’m still enamored with the loud, pub-style atmosphere and the deliciously chargrilled meats, like the shio negima (salted chicken thighs with green onion), tomato maki (bacon-wrapped cherry tomatoes — you know you want some), arabiki pork sausage, and the uber crunchy nankotsu (chicken cartilage). All for around two bucks a skewer…

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Sushi at the spa

May 21st, 2008, 5:57 pm by Kat "I eat 'til my pants hurt" Nguyen

The Retreat in Costa Mesa

Talk about an unusual location for a sushi bar — inside a swanky spa and fitness club surrounded by corporate skyrises. Christopher over at Splitends suggested we hit up The Retreat in Costa Mesa for lunch and he was so sure I wouldn’t have found the place that we decided to take one car over together. Good thing he did. I would have been driving in circles looking for the three-month old sushi bar hidden inside The Spa, near South Coast Plaza.

Which brings me to the not-so-cool part: You either have to valet your car or park across the street in the structure, so there’s already a few bucks you can add onto your meal tab. (On the upside, I was later told you can get your valet parking stub validated, but there’s still the tip!)

Once inside, you walk past the opulent spa lobby and straight into the small restaurant where the dark and velvety colored walls provide a stark contrast to the spa’s bright and gleaming marble. We bellied up to the sushi bar and asked for what the freshest fish was: Bigeye Tuna, Red Snapper, Toro or Spanish Mackeral was the immediate reply from the young sushi chef. The bigeye was such a luscious shade of deep crimson, we couldn’t resist. We didn’t expect to be presented with a beautiful sashimi rose …

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