Provenance
2531 Eastbluff Dr.
Newport Beach, CA 92660
Sometimes, I really hate my regular job. I know hearing someone say that is not a big shock, but I only feel this way sometimes. For the most part, I am pretty happy where I work. I have been there for 26 years now, and it has afforded me to go on vacations, gives me a roof over my head, and allows me to go out to a few restaurants. Then there's a day like a couple weeks ago. I had inventory weekend, and there was a media tasting at a new restaurant that I have been waiting to try since I heard about their opening. There would be no way I could get out of work, so in my place, I sent my way better half, Katie, to enjoy a great afternoon at Provenance in Newport Beach.
Provenance is the new restaurant from Chef Cathy Pavlos of the highly acclaimed LUCCA Cafe in Irvine. If you go into Provenance thinking this will be like LUCCA, you would be mistaken. LUCCA is a Mediterranean restaurant that draws its inspiration from all countries bordering the Mediterranean Sea. The culinary inspiration for Provenance comes from the California wine country. That cuisine is, of course, greatly influenced by France and Italy, which means so is the food of Provenance. Just like the food of California is influenced by Asian and Latin flavors, the food making its way out of the kitchen at Provenance will have a slight tinge of Asian or Latin flavors on top of French and Italian basics.
Katie came home singing the praises of Chef Cathy. Chef Cathy is, of course, worthy of these praises. She's an architect with a degree in Architecture and Art History, a Master's Degree in Social Ecology, and a PhD in Environmental Design and Analysis. Literally, she's one smart cookie. She grew up in Huntington Beach but has lived in Italy and traveled throughout Europe and the East Coast.
Chef Cathy grew up in Huntington Beach when the city was rural, and at Provenance, she's returning to her roots with a garden right on the premises. Farm to Fork is all the rage now, but that's how she lived growing up, and that is what they are striving for here at Provenance. They cater to a 35-year-old clientele, and these diners are part of the LATTE culture, which means they are looking for local, authentic, traceable, trusted, and ethical restaurants. It doesn't get any more traceable than knowing that the vegetable on your plate is from the garden in the back of the restaurant. Just as they were settling in, the food started to make its way out. Let's see what Chef Cathy had cooked up this afternoon.
Speaking of the garden, starting things off was the Salted Garden Beets ($14). Joining the beets on the plate was a Di Stefano burrata, avocado, mandarin aigre-doux, chard, and a sherry-maple vinaigrette. I just learned that aigre-doux means sweet and sour while writing this. I should have taken French instead of Spanish in school. Katie went nuts over this. She claims she has never had a better-tasting burrata, which played well with the myriad flavors here. The beets added an earthiness, while the mandarin sauce provided a sweet and sour combination.
In 2005, when LUCCA opened, Housemade Charcuterie ($23.50) was not as big as it is now. Fast forward to the present, and almost every fine dining restaurant now offers charcuterie. Provenance is no different, but its offerings include potted rillettes, duck pate, sliced charcuterie, pickled veggies, and mustard. Katie really liked the variety here.
Next up were a couple of sandwiches off the Provenance lunch menu. The Turkey Meatloaf ($15) is definitely right up my alley. Joining the tender turkey meatloaf on this sandwich was applewood smoked bacon, Fiscalini Farmstead cheddar, cippolini in agrodolce, Boston lettuce, tomato relish, sweet pepper jelly, and house aioli. It's not your usual humdrum leftover meatloaf sandwich here. If the meatloaf sandwich sounds unique, the Roasted Leg of Colorado Lamb Sandwich ($16.50) is something you see only occasionally. It's topped with a Meyer lemon confit, mixed chards, a Kalamata olive tapenade, and the house aioli. For lamb lovers, this one can not be beat. As if the insides of the sandwiches are not enough to make you happy, the bread at Provenance comes from Dean Kim's OC Baking Company, so you know it will be great.
Showing off more from the garden at Provenance, the Honey Balsamic Roasted Baby Carrots ($7). With such a simple-sounding dish, there was a lot going on here. The carrots were fork tender and popped with flavor from the addition of a spice blend, dill, chives, and the unusual inclusion of feta cheese.
The bounty from the garden continued to make its way to the table with these two other offerings. I have never really been a fan of Rapini ($8.50), but this version has me rethinking that. Topping the usually bitter vegetable is a spicy tomato sauce, green garlic, and a fried egg, my favorite part of this dish. Genius. Chef Cathy has found a way to make even rapini taste good. The Sweet and Sour Winter Squash Medley ($7.50) was plated so that you could see Chef Cathy's architectural background. The tall black kale surrounded the squash and sprinkled with roasted pumpkin seeds. This dish seemed to scream Autumn.
The lone lunch entree was this Mahi Mahi ($21.50). This fish was encrusted with pistachios and served alongside a quinoa medley, tomatillos, salsa verde, and a hint of citrus. Katie really enjoyed this earthy dish. She liked the fish but was taken aback by the quinoa. She said she could have just made a meal of the quinoa medley.
Now, on the dinner menu, and starting things off, there was this starter: the Whole Smoked Idaho Trout ($27.50). For smoked fish lovers, this is a must. It's topped with ribbons of hearts of palm, capers, artichoke hearts, oven-roasted tomatoes, and smoked olive and lemon cream. Katie's not much of a smoked fish fan, so she did not try this, but I really enjoyed the plating here, so I had to include this shot.
The fish parade continued with this pan-fried New Zealand Sole on the Plancha ($28.50). For being pan-fried, this fish was light and lacked any noticeable grease. The sole was served with crispy prosciutto, planche potatoes, spinach, tarragon, and an infused brown butter sauce. It's a very nice fish dish for light eaters who do not want to sacrifice flavor.
New Zealand not only brought us the sole above but also this lamb. This Rack of New Zealand Lamb might look like it's not cooked all the way through, but at Provenance, they cook some of their meats using the top-of-the-line Sous Vide station, which cooks meats all the way through to the desired temperature in a vacuumed packed bag. It's a popular cooking process by Thomas Keller, which cooks items evenly from the inside out. Also served with the lamb is a blood orange leek risotto and a cilantro macadamia nut pesto. A lot more creative than that horrible mint jelly option.
When Katie came home and showed me the pictures she had taken, the one that caught my eye immediately was one of the Roasted Jidori Chicken ($23). Often, chicken can be bland, but looking at the chicken here made me crave it. It comes with garden veggies, baby Yukon potatoes, blistered Brussels sprouts, and pan gravy. Comfort food with a modern twist. According to Katie, the chicken was some of her tenderest. This is a meal that you can feel good about eating.
Just like at LUCCA, Provenance will be serving brunch, but for right now, brunch at Provenance is only on Sundays. There is no run-of-the-mill eggs Benedict here. This is the Homemade Whiskey and Brown Sugar-Cured Wild Salmon Gravadlax. This Nordic-style way of serving salmon is placed on top of two house-made English muffins, with poached eggs, dilled Hollandaise sauce, and fried capers placed on top of the salmon.
They love their fish at Provenance, and plenty of seafood is on the brunch menu here. This Pan Seared Idaho Trout ($17.50) is something other than what I would typically order at brunch, but the menu description piqued my interest. This dish comprised two poached cage-free eggs, root veggie loose hash-browns, and baby garden greens, all with a mustard cognac Bearnaise sauce. Katie liked every aspect of this plate, but the root vegetable hash browns got her attention.
I love hash for breakfast, but many of them are mediocre. After seeing the picture of this CAB Shortrib Corned Beef Hash ($16.50), I have high hopes for this version at Provenance. Served with a sunny-side-up egg, butternut squash succotash, and Wasabi Cream, this promises to be full of big-time flavors. I look forward to trying this as soon as possible.
Last, we return to the dinner menu for this grand finale, the 32-ounce Certified Angus Beef Porterhouse Steak for 2 ($93). This was brought to the table medium rare and was one of the most tender pieces of meat that Katie had ever consumed. It is carved off the bone and served with grilled vegetables, potatoes, and sauces from their garden. If you are a steak fiend, you should get this at Provenance.
When they could not eat anymore, an excellent trio of desserts were brought out. Pastry Chef Alice Castro, formerly of Park Avenue in Stanton, has been brought on board to create the desserts at Provenance. Always a sucker for apple pie ala mode, the Cast Iron Apple Pie ($9) looks like it will be a winner, with a salted caramel sauce and Calvados ice cream. For those who do not know, like me, until I looked it up, Calvados is an apple brandy from France. For a lighter dessert, try the Plate of Cookies and Mini Pastries ($9). Carrot Cake ($9) always gets my attention, and after seeing this one, I had to stop myself from licking my computer screen trying to get a taste of the good-looking cream cheese frosting. Like at Park Avenue, many of Alice's desserts feature house-made ice creams with unique flavors. All the more reason to save room for dessert when dining at Provenance.
For the next couple of weeks after her visit to Provenance, Katie could not help but sing their praises. She told many people they must try it with us so I could experience it very soon. Provenance was everything that Katie thought it was going to be. The food was amazing, innovative, and Chef Cathy really inspired her. I was upset that I missed this event, but I was glad Katie got to experience it.
For more information about Provenance, go to their website here: http://www.provenanceoc.com/
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