Fly N Fish Oyster Bar and Grill
2304 West Ocean Front
Newport Beach, CA 92663
Well, this is my last restaurant review for a while, where we actually did eat inside a restaurant. I have finally caught up with all of my reviews after this one. I feel bad it's taken me this long, but my work has been pretty crazy.
For those of you that don't know, I've been in the grocery business for 32 years now. I have never seen anything like we have been experiencing since the early part of March, I'd describe it as a tidal wave of people. Buying everything in their path. Even the stuff that normally doesn't sell, like vegetarian hot dogs in a can, (yes, it's a real thing).
Those first few weeks included some very long days and lots of overtime. Towards the end of March, things started to slow down thanks to the addition of plenty of new employees, many of whom are refugees from our area restaurants. The fact that a lot of products weren't coming in and that a lot of people over-bought earlier in the month also contributed to an easier workday for me.
The first part of April saw the stimulus checks make their way into customer's bank accounts, along with the Easter holiday, which also provided another bump in business and some busy workdays. I guess I'm telling you all of this to ease my guilt a bit for neglecting you and the beloved restaurant blog that I've enjoyed writing these past ten plus years.
Anyways, back to this restaurant review. This visit to Fly N Fish was during Orange County Restaurant Week, which this year ran from March 8th to the 14th. Katie and I decided to take advantage of a beautiful Sunday afternoon to have lunch near the coast and walk afterward. As we approached the restaurant we were met with what was quoted as a 45-minute wait, so our walk would be moved to before our meal, which suited me just fine on this picturesque Southern California day.
Fly N Fish is situated off by itself on the north end of the Newport Beach Boardwalk, in the area right by Mutt Lynch's, and sandwiched between Beach Burger and the Newport Beach Hotel. The restaurant, which opened in 2012, is pretty small, with a cozy bar on the right-hand side of the dining room, high top tables in the center, and partial booth seating lining the left side of the space. Be warned, you will definitely get to know your neighbors, as the tables are spaced close together, and the vibe here could be described as raucous, especially during this Sunday Funday time we chose to visit.
The man helming the kitchen is Executive Chef Julio Hawkins, a Seattle native who has been at Fly N Fish for a considerable amount of time now. He's very present in the dining room getting feedback from diners on what he calls food that is simplistic and honest, with little bursts of flavor. His one-page menu runs the gamut from small plates, oysters, soups and salads, fried fish platters, sandwiches, and house specialties. We were here for the OC Restaurant Week $20 lunch menu, so let's see how that all worked out for us.
Before we get to that restaurant week menu, Katie really wanted to try their Spicy Ahi Tuna Poke ($20). Not the wisest of moves. This poke dish was comprised of cubed poke, avocado, tomato, cucumber, toasted macadamia nuts, green onion, and black sesame seeds. It was garnished with ginger and a dollop of wasabi, along with five white dots of some indistinguishable sauce that lacked any flavor. This was one of the mildest of poke dishes we have ever had. Not sure why it's called spicy poke on the menu, as bland poke would have been more appropriate. You're better off getting poke at you local build your own poke place at your nearby shopping center.
Now onto the OC Restaurant Week $20 menu. Course number one was their award-winning cup of Clam Chowder ($7). I was not sure what award this has won, I could not find it on their website, but it was a pretty solid rendition. This white chowder had plenty of chopped up leeks, potato, bacon, and of course clams. I liked that the clams were left in good-sized pieces and the base of this was creamy. It could have been a little thicker for my taste, but it's easy to see why they go through 10 gallons of this a day during the summer tourist season.
In lieu of the usual dessert course that comprises many restaurant week menus, at Fly N Fish they forgo the sweets and give you both soup and salad, which I liked a little bit better. This Organic Mixed Greens Salad ($7) was pretty basic with its fresh mixed greens, sliced cucumbers, tomato wedges, shredded carrots, red onion, and four sourdough croutons, (yes I counted). I was hoping that the roasted pear white balsamic vinaigrette dressing could liven things up here, but it was poured with such a light touch, that most bites did not include any dressing at all.
Katie opted for the New Zealand King Salmon with Angel Hair Pesto as her lunch entree. This was pretty good-sized for a lunch portion. Salmon can sometimes be tricky, but this was done wonderfully. Katie really enjoyed the oven-roasted tomatoes but found the spiced walnuts kind of misplaced here. The excellent angel hair pesto helped me realize that I do not have pesto nearly enough.
I really have enjoyed sand dabs when I've had them at other places, so I chose the Macadamia Crusted Oregon Sand Dabs on this late afternoon. The sand dabs themselves were a little on the dull side. There was no pop of flavor, and the wilted spinach, microgreens, or lemon broth(?) did not help things out at all. I should have probably had the fish and chips, which I spied on our neighbor's table, which looked like a better option.
Restaurant week is a chance for a place to put their best foot forward and showcase what they are all about. I think Fly N Fish did that this afternoon. Chef Hawkins, as mentioned earlier, wants to serve food that is simplistic and honest, with little bursts of flavors. Unfortunately, the bursts of flavor did not come for us on this visit. Save for the clam chowder and the salmon dish, everything else was very humdrum. Service was rushed because they were so busy but very professional. I'm glad that we had the chance to partake in OC Restaurant Week, as it's a great chance to try restaurants that you've wanted to try forever. I look forward to dining in restaurants again, once we are allowed to.
Out of five escalators, (because the nearby Dory Fish Fleet Market at the Newport Pier started in 1891, the same year as the escalator was invented), five being best to zero being worst, Fly N Fish gets 2.5 escalators.
For more information about Fly N Fish, head to their website here: http://www.flynfishoysterbar.com/
No comments:
Post a Comment