Swinging by for Some Carolina Vibes

Porch and Swing

2010 Main Street Suite #170

Irvine, CA 92614

When I first met Katie's family back in 2009, I have to admit I was not in love with their choices of restaurants. They'd head to Mimi's Cafe, Cedar Creek, El Ranchito, and if Papa was in town, Coco's on a fairly consistent rotation. Not exactly top-notch spots. I always found things to eat at these restaurants, but I knew there was better out there. 

I might have been the one to gently push them to expand their culinary horizons, but the real catalyst for better restaurant experiences was Katie's mom, Lynn. She became enamored with food and restaurant programs on TV. As Netflix became more popular in the later years of the last decade, she became entranced by immersing herself in Chef's Table, The Great British Baking Show, Salt Fat Acid Heat, Ugly Delicious, and others. 

Seeing these shows and the creativity that the chefs possessed got her to expand her restaurant repertoire by trying new places she read about in magazines, newspapers, and of course her son in law's fantastic restaurant blog. When I mentioned Porch and Swing as a possible dining option for a long-overdue meet up with her and her cantankerous husband Dennis, she could not say yes quickly enough. 

It really was a slam dunk, especially after I mentioned the very impressive resume of Chef Justin Werner. He won Chopped on Food Network, worked at Noma, the Copenhagen spot that has been called the best restaurant in the world, he also did major time at high-end restaurants in New York, and then made the move to OC working for Jason Quinn at Playground DTSA for the last four years.  

Venturing out on his own now, Porch and Swing is his tribute to the cuisine of Charleston, South Carolina. A city which borders the Atlantic, so it's a mixture of seafood and soul food. Chef Justin highlights this cuisine with the highest quality ingredients, a seasonal menu that changes quite often, and a relaxed and cozy atmosphere at his restaurant. 

Burger lovers will remember this space as being the old Mick's Karma Bar at the Irvine Concourse Office Towers. It has been expanded a bit, with a nice patio for al fresco dining, when the weather permits, which is about 300 days per year in OC. 

The inside has been opened up a lot from when they were slinging hamburgers here. The ceiling has been raised, the walls painted white, and a 12 seat bar tucked into the corner conveys a very open and airy space. The one-page menu is divided into four parts starting with a bread section, followed by salads and starters, then an eight pack of entrees to select from, and a trio of sides to finish things off. Instead of writing about the menu, let's take a look at what we had on this evening. 

Since I was eating with three people who are all into the keto life, I was a little surprised when Lynn suggested this Skillet Cornbread ($10) to start. This skillet came out scalding hot, with a dollop of spiked honey butter melting atop the cornbread very rapidly. I'm not positive what it was spiked with, but it added just the right amount of muted sweetness to each bite of the cornbread. My first bite was okay, but as I ate this I warmed to it. It's not a sweet cornbread, but I liked the dense texture of it. 

Lynn seemed to be calling the shots this evening, as she jumped at the chance to try these Suncoast Farm Figs ($16). The fresh figs were joined with creamy goat cheese, pistachio pieces, and a gastrique. I'll admit I'm not much into figs or goat cheese, but I found myself coming back for my fair share of forkfuls. The figs were fine, but what made this for me was the way the other ingredients enhanced them. You get the earthy feel from the pistachio, the creaminess of the goat cheese, and the sweet and savory from the gastrique. It became a winning combination. 

Katie will lead us in the first of our four entrees this evening. Even though she requested that the Imperial Farms Wagyu Flank Steak ($36) be cooked well-done it actually was edible, which is not always the case in some restaurants. Someday she hopefully will venture into having her proteins cooked in the medium range, maybe. The steak had a good crust to the outside of it, while the inside was juicy, even though it was well done. It made me think that if they could make this well-done piece of meat taste this good, their medium rare flank steak has to be out of this world. This came paired with some crispy kale with shallots strewn on top. This kale was much to Katie's liking.  

It's always a crapshoot as to what Dennis will be having for dinner when we go out. His tastes run the gambit from just having soup for dinner to having a big entree. On this evening he surprised me once again by going for the Seared Scallops ($27). These three scallops were perched above a corn puree which was very tasty. The scallops were done perfectly, with a wonderful tenderness to them. The whole plate did not last too long, as Dennis enjoyed it very much. 

The Braised and Glazed Short Rib ($26) is what made an appearance in front of Lynn. As is the case with all of the things we had off of the entree portion of the menu, it was plated in a sauce, puree, or as you will see in my upcoming meal, grits. For the short rib, the puree was composed of sweet potato and brown butter. It featured a tinge of sweetness which helped counteract the slight savoriness of the fork-tender short rib. I liked the give and take of the bite that Lynn allowed me to have. The flavors seemed to be vying for my attention. A very well crafted plate. 

It's not every day that you see Roasted Pork Jowl ($26) on a menu. Hopefully, that will change after this stellar plate. The pork was juicy and tender, with all of the bites resembling the moistest bite of carnitas that you've ever encountered. The richness was broken up by the addition of a surprisingly spicy pepper jam. The grits were one of the best I've had in OC and paired nicely with the pork. Definitely, a meal which will keep you comfy on these colder winter evenings. 

Our last hurrah at Porch and Swing for the night was the Rice Pudding Cloud ($12). This simply made dessert was created using one of the lightest rice puddings I have ever had, a sliced banana, and a salted caramel drizzle on top. The pudding was light and fluffy, but not crazy sweet. The banana and the salted caramel provided the sweetness for this dessert. 

Porch and Swing really impressed me and lived up to Chef Justin's very impressive resume. The food was well executed, great ingredients were used, and the subtle ways he infused flavors into each plate was nicely done. I will say that the portion sizes are not going to overwhelm you at Porch and Swing, but the superior level of the meals and technique will make anyone who appreciates fine food happy that they came here for lunch or dinner. Service was first-rate, and they have a good-sized patio for people that are more at ease sitting outdoors. We had a wonderful conversation with Chef Justin at the end of our meal, where we got to talk all things food and other things about the restaurant industry, and also got a quick tutorial on all the microgreens that he uses at the restaurant and how he uses them to infuse flavor into his dishes. Most importantly, we had the chance to witness my mother in law show her inner fangirl for chefs, as she was practically swooning by the end of our evening at Porch and Swing. 

Out of five birdies, (because the first golf club in the United States was established in Charleston in 1787, the same year my father in law got his first and only birdie on a golf course), five being best to zero being worst, Porch and Swing gets 4 birdies.  

For more information about Porch and Swing, head to their website here: https://www.porchandswing.com/