The Recess Room
18380 Brookhurst St.
Fountain Valley, CA 92708
Time is flying by. It seems like Christmas was just a month ago, but it's already here again next month. When I was growing up it felt like it took forever for the holidays to get here, and now that I'm way older than I'd like to discuss, it seems like every three months we are putting up Christmas lights and running around like maniacs for gifts for our loved ones.
I bring this up because it seems like just a short while ago that we were invited to try out a new restaurant that took over a shuttered Coco's on Brookhurst. The restaurant was started by five friends who met while they were playing basketball in elementary school, each went their separate ways, but all came back together again to bring something different to their hometown of Fountain Valley. That restaurant was the Recess Room, and believe it or not, that was three years ago. Man time flies when you are serving up some great food.
Flash forward to now, and the boys from the Recess Room are expanding their operating hours by serving lunch for the first time in their history. The food served here would best be described as Asian fusion, but even that description is not quite right because the eats at the Recess Room have elements from not just Asia, but from pockets all over the world. Whatever they label it, I was pretty excited to see what they had cooked up for their legions of fans that had clamored for them to open for lunch for a long while now.
Lunch will be served Tuesday through Friday from 11 to 2pm to start, and then they will see how it's received and maybe tweak the hours after that. Lunch will be a little different setup from the usual dinner service at the Recess Room. At lunch, you will order near the front door, where a large chalkboard will be hanging with the midday offerings. You will then be given a number, grab your utensils, and then wait for your food to be brought out to your table.
There's not much crossover between the lunch and dinner menus, which is a little upsetting for fans of their famous Blue Crab Beignets, which you all need to try for dinner as soon as possible. The lunch menu features three sandwiches, a quartet of bowls, two salads, a sizzling platter, and a smattering of sides. Nothing on their lunch menu is over $16, with most items averaging about $12, which is what most of us end up spending at our local fast food spot for lunch. Very reasonable. Enough buildup, let's see what the Recess Room came up with for lunch.
This Sizzling Platter ($16) must be a very popular item, as we were told that it was not available when we got here, but then they told us that they had one left. Lucky us. This is a meat lover's dream. This hat trick of meats was filet mignon in a cognac pepper sauce, albondigas meatballs, linguisa sausage, and is finished off with a fried egg and slices of a french baguette. The best meat out of the bunch was the linguisa, which had a nice little kick to it at the end of each bite. The albondigas meatball was loosely packed but still full of flavor. The steak was a little overcooked, due to the fact that it's served on a sizzling platter, so it's still cooking while it sits there. The sauce helped it out a bit, and we utilized the bread by sopping up the rest of the sauce. The egg was overcooked as well because it was the last thing we ate, as I was focused way more on the meat. Definitely, a must-try for people who want a hearty meal in the middle of the day.
My first time at the Recess Room three years ago they had a bone marrow burger on their dinner menu. It has since been replaced by the Bacon Bourbon Burger, which sounds just as awesome. The new lunch menu has brought back a new version of their Bone Marrow Burger ($14). Just like that first burger I had here, I was surprised that this burger was as subtle as it was. The bone marrow butter came through in waves but did not overwhelm. The high-quality grind of the grass-fed patties was evident and played nicely with the bone marrow butter and bacon jam. The cheese and red onion rounded this out perfectly. I also wanted to make mention the bun here, it was stellar. Nice and soft, but still structurally sound. Kudos to the LA bakery where they get their bread from. A very flavorful burger that will not make you sleepy for the rest of your workday.
Not anything like you can get in the City of Brotherly Love, this Fili Cheesesteak ($15) was just as delicious as any Philly I've had recently. Made with some fantastic filet mignon, grilled onions, provolone cheese, and tied together nicely with ponzu butter, I ate this way too quickly. At first, I thought it needed a bit more in the way of condiments, but once I got into the sandwich it really surprised me with all of the flavors melding together nicely. Again, the bread on this was awesome. My lone complaint would be the underdressed salad that came with this. Very bland, but it could be made better by ordering some extra dressing.
The only item that appears on both the lunch and dinner menu at the Recess Room are these Brussel Sprouts ($5) and for good reason. They are one of my favorites. These crispy sprouts come with shaved parmesan, chopped hazelnuts, brown butter, a touch of lemon, and lap Cheong, which is a Chinese sausage that's dried and resembles bacon, but with a subtle sweetness to it. A lot going on in this bowl. I love all the textures and flavor profiles and I'm thankful that they don't ruin it by adding balsamic or maple, which can overwhelm the palate. I do wish the Brussell sprouts were in bigger pieces instead of shredded, but still, a must-get side dish.
It might be controversial to say this, but I'm way more partial to tater tots than fries. There, I said it. I stand by my statement. That means we had to give the Recess Room's Ooey Gooey Tots ($6) a try. These classic tots were sprinkled with grated parmesan and a very good cheese sauce. I'm not sure what kind of cheese this was made with, but it was delicious, but not too heavy. Puts those poor skinny fries to shame.
With a lunch menu executed this well, it makes me wish that I worked closer so I could try more of their midday offerings. I was pretty impressed with everything that we had for this media sneak preview of the lunch menu at the Recess Room. I liked the more casual setup for lunch, and the price point is just a couple bucks more than what you'd end up spending at the Wendy's down the street. Even though time is speeding by like crazy, I foresee a return trip to the Recess Room in the near future. At least now we have the option of not only enjoying dinner here but lunch as well.
I would like to thank everyone at The Recess Room for their warm hospitality and generosity during this special sneak preview of their new lunch selections. Judging by the reaction from the other people here, they are going to be very busy starting on November 5th, when their lunch service starts up. I'd also like to extend my appreciation to my new boss and plus one this afternoon, Melissa. Maybe after this fantastic meal, she will give me some extra time off. C'mon superstar, you can do it. Lastly, I'd like to thank one of the best PR people in the business for the invite to this great event. Nerissa Silao, you are always such a pleasure to catch up with, and I thank you for the invite. It was much appreciated.
For more information about The Recess Room, head to their website here: http://therecessroom.com/
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