Another Emerging Restaurant in Dana Point

Craft House

34094 Pacific Coast Highway

Dana Point, CA 92629

When I first started this food blog seven years ago, I thought that Dana Point had some of the worst restaurants of any OC city. I'm sure there were some good ones back then, but the Jolly Roger, Wind and Sea, and Harpoon Henry's were some of the first ones that I reviewed, and they were all pretty much awful. Then, as I started to delve deeper into the restaurants of this seaside city, I began to find some good eats.

Stack's Pancake House is one of my favorite breakfast spots, Harbor House is always a great option for late-night grub, and then other restaurants began moving in to liven up the dining scene in this beautiful city. The Shwack is a great option for burgers, Jimmy's Famous Tavern livened up the harbor area, and Waterman's Harbor was a definite upgrade to the former Jolly Roger spot. Now a new wave of restaurants has hit Dana Point, and we had heard some good things about Craft House, so that's where we headed the night before Thanksgiving.

Traditionally, the night before Thanksgiving is a pretty slow time for restaurants, but the full tables of customers at Craft House evidently did not get that memo. Luckily I had made reservations, and we got seated at our table, right at 6 pm. This address used to be a carpet store a few years back, but you wouldn't know it by being in here now. The high ceilings, dark-toned woods, and partially enclosed patio overlooking PCH really made this restaurant pretty comfortable, although a bit loud.

The Owner/Chef of this joint is Blake Mellgren, an OC native, who started in the restaurant business at an early age, graduated from Loyola Marymount, and then after graduation, moved to New York to work as a line cook at a famous NYC restaurant, while also completing courses in restaurant management at the International Culinary Center. He moved back to OC in 2014, and two years later, opened up Craft House.

Chef Blake was very active this evening, running food and chatting with guests. The menu at Craft House has a good array of items for your dining pleasure. They have ten appetizers, along with 11 entrees for people to choose from. I had seen earlier on this evening that their local fisherman purveyor had brought them an 85-pound bluefin tuna, and they offered it three ways on a special menu, which you will see Katie took advantage of. Let's check out all the other food and beverages we took advantage of.

I had a hard week at work leading up to Thanksgiving this year, so an adult cocktail was definitely in order. The Moscow Mule ($11) would be my choice this evening. This version was pretty good at first, with quite a bit of bite to it, but as it got watered down as time went on, it kind of lost a little of that bite. I probably just should have drunk this quicker. I forgot to take a picture of the drink menu, so I am not quite sure what set this apart from other mules I have had, but it did provide a nice spice in the first couple of sips, and I'd still get it again.

None of the appetizers really piqued my interest too much on this evening, so I let Katie pick, and she went with these Hush Puppies ($13). This was one of the lighter hush puppies I have had. It was not as dense as most tend to be, which I liked. The menu said these came with crab and chive inside of them, and then was served with an Old Bay aioli. The crab was really not that prominent, as the inside of each hush puppy had just a few wisps of crab included. I was also not too big of a fan of the Old Bay seasoning, as it was a tad too salty, and I wished for a softer sauce.

As hinted about earlier, Katie opted to try part of the 85-pound bluefin tuna that Craft House got earlier in the week from the waters off of Dana Point. This Bluefin Poke ($18) is just the light meal that Katie needed on this night before Thanksgiving. The tuna was mixed with some avocado and some other seasonings, but still, let the fish be the star of the show. It's easy to try to do too much with this, but Katie was happy that they kept the natural integrity of the tuna here. The wonton chips that were served with this were a very good vessel for scooping up the fresh tuna. She was very content with this meal.

I went for a more substantial meal on this evening, as I ordered up the Grilled Meatloaf ($24). This meatloaf is made up of the holy trinity of meats, ground beef, pork, and bacon. I thought it was going to be too greasy, but it was firm and full of flavor. I also had some reservations about the use of tomatoes as gravy, but I warmed to the idea as I ate this. The hominy puree was a lighter alternative to mashed potatoes, that actually worked here, Even the greens were done correctly. This entree had a southern slant to it but was done in a much lighter way.

As if we did not have enough food already, we also got two sides at Craft House. The Mac and Cheese ($8) was a favorite of Katie's. No macaroni was used here, as they instead used ear-shaped, orecchiette pasta, with a cheese sauce made up of Gouda and cheddar, and then topped with bread crumbs. The orecchiette was cooked perfectly, and the cheese sauce was a little sharp, but still manageable. They were a little heavy-handed when it came to the breadcrumbs, as they overwhelmed a bit here. The Roasted Cauliflower ($8) was much more to my liking. It was grilled just enough to give it a pleasing crunch when bitten into and was sprinkled with cotija and slivered almonds. I would have liked this even better if it had come with a dipping sauce, but still worth getting.

When I had read Brad Johnson's restaurant review of Craft House in the OC Register, he raved about the chocolate bread pudding, but unfortunately, that is no longer on their dessert menu. So, both Katie and I picked one dessert off of their four-item dessert menu. I went with the Apple Tart ($8). Not sickeningly sweet, this puff pastry was filled with granny smith apples and then topped with vanilla ice cream and a drizzle of caramel. I liked this but was not in love with it. The apples tasted very fresh, and there was plenty of ice cream included with this, but it was missing something that I could not put my finger on. Katie on the other hand really enjoyed her dessert, the Pumpkin Spiced Latte ($8). This was not like any latte you could get at Starbucks. They took a pumpkin chocolate chip cookie, and then put coffee-flavored ice cream over that, and finished it off with a maple gastrique. I'm not a fan of coffee, so this was all Katie's, and she seemed fine with that.

I left Craft House liking it but thinking that this restaurant is still a work in progress. I don't mean this in a negative way because I really enjoyed my entree here, but I think that the future is when this restaurant is going to hit its stride. Not unusual for a restaurant that has only been open for a mere ten months. The management team here is first-rate, and very hands-on, which is great in this day and age. They really did a great job making sure everyone was comfortable and making sure that every table was well taken care of. I did not think that the prices were too out of whack for this area, and they seemed to be right in line with other restaurants around Dana Point. It's restaurants like these that have changed my attitude about dining in Dana Point.

Out of five lanterns, (because several street names in this city are named after different colored lanterns), five being best to zero being worst, Craft House gets 3 lanterns.

For more information about Craft House, head to their website here: https://www.eatatcrafthouse.com/

A Blast From the Past, Naugles Returns

Naugles Corporate Kitchen

18471 Mt. Langley St.

Fountain Valley, CA 92708 

For people that are over the age of 40, you have definitely heard of Naugles. Most of all the people in this age group that we encountered are pretty excited about the return of this iconic fast food chain. For people under the age of 40, allow me to introduce you to Naugles, a Mexican fast food restaurant, which probably has a soft spot in the hearts of your parents and other older people you may know, who grew up in California, Nevada, and parts of Missouri, Utah, Illinois, and Arizona.

Naugles was founded by Dick Naugle, who was a former Del Taco partner back in the day. In its heyday, there were 275 Naugles restaurants in operation, in 10 states. Then in 1988, both restaurants were bought by the same company, and merged with each other. This was the beginning of the end for Naugles, as the parent company began systematically converting all of the old Naugles into Del Tacos. By 1994 the conversion was complete when the last remaining Naugles in Missouri were turned into Del Tacos.

Now fast forward to 2010, when my friend, and fellow food blogger, Christian Ziebarth, wrote a blog post about his love of Naugles, and he was taken aback by the avid response that he got from his readers. Christian then started doing pop-ups, featuring Naugle's original recipes, made by people that actually worked there back in the day, and these Naugles pop up events were big hits, and just whetted everyone's appetite for more Naugles. This is when Christian went to court to try to get the Naugles trademark from Del Taco. After a long trial, he finally won the right to use the Naugles logo and recipes, which has paved the way for the return of Naugles.

Christian and his investors have a very aggressive plan in place, a plan that calls for close to 275 Naugles restaurants in the near future, and maybe even more than that when all is said and done. They are looking at spots that will offer a 24-hour drive-thru, which was one of the many innovations that first took place at the original Naugles back in the day. For now, there's only one spot to get your Naugles fix, and lucky for us in OC, it's centrally located right here in Fountain Valley.

This Naugles Corporate Kitchen is open every day from 8 am to 9 pm. They also have a seasonal location, which is operating during the summer months, near the Huntington Beach pier. I have to admit I only remember eating at Naugles a couple of times in the early 80's, as my parents were pretty loyal to Del Taco and Taco Bell. I recall eating at the one on Esperanza Road a few times, and also the one on our way out to the river, but other than that, I don't remember too much about the food, but was excited to give it a try.

Christian recently hosted a blogger meet up at his corporate kitchen in Fountain Valley, and he was even gracious enough to allow my sister and brother in law, who are big Naugle's fans to also attend. I was even more excited when we walked into Naugles for the first time in decades. The bright colors really evoked some long lost memories in me and got me even more excited to try their reformulated original recipes, which now match current health sensibilities, without sacrificing the original flavor of the food. We quickly ordered at the counter and waited patiently for our food to arrive at our table.

Katie's meal was the first to come out, and I was the first one to grab some of her French Fries ($2.50). I love crinkle cut fries, and these were done right. Fried nice and crisp, the crinkle in the fry held just the right amount of ketchup when dipped. Katie was pretty excited by the Combo Cup ($5.00), which is basically a taco in cup form. It comes with beans, cheese, beef, choice of sauce, red or green, and was topped with tomatoes, I swiped a few bite of this as well, and really enjoyed it. It was kind of like a combo burrito, in cup form. To round out her meal, Katie also got the Naugles fan favorite, the Cheese Burrito ($3.00) with green sauce. This is like a quesadilla, but even better, because you get more cheese in each bite. I've heard numerous stories that this is a great thing to consume after a late night of drinking. You'll feel a lot better in the morning after having one of these cheese burritos.

For my meal on this evening, I went with the Combo Burrito ($5.50) and the Naugleburger ($6.00). I feel bad that I did not take a picture of the inside of the combo burrito, but burritos are not really the most photogenic of food items. It was good, as it was full of ground beef, beans, plenty of cheese, and red sauce. It was like a better version of the one I had at Del Taco last week. The Naugleburger was truly something special. I had asked Christian about it, and he boasted that a lot of people feel this is a superior burger to In-N-Out, and I'd have to agree. This comes with double patties, two slices of cheddar cheese, lettuce, tomato, white sauce, and pickles. The cheddar cheese really stood out here, and I liked the way the white sauce complimented the beef and other toppings. I'll have to get some extra sauce on the side the next time I have this burger. A very fresh, and appetizing fast food burger.

My brother in law was very excited by these Hombre Nachos ($5.00), which could easily feed three people. Plenty of tortilla chips are topped with beans, house made cheddar cheese sauce, beef, and sour cream. Even though I'm not really a fan of cheese sauce, I even enjoyed these, and I was happy that they did not skimp on the toppings here. There's nothing worse than getting nachos, and most of the chips are not covered by anything. This was not the case with these nachos. Every chip was covered with cheese and the other toppings. Very well done nachos at Naugles.

I was pretty full at this point but wanted to give their Original Taco (2.50) a try. It was just as good as the new Del Taco that I'm addicted to at Del Taco. This taco reminds me of the ones I had as a kid. The cheese tastes freshly grated and was plentiful. There's a nice sized layer of beef included here, and the lettuce and tomatoes are both fresh. As an added bonus, if you're eating at Naugles on a Tuesday, they offer two tacos of your choice, a bag of chips, and a drink for only $5. A great deal, and I recommend getting these hard shelled beef tacos.

I have to admit, I left this rebooted Naugles pretty excited by the food, and for what the future has in store for this eventual chain. My uncle asked me if I thought Naugles would be able to compete with the Del Taco's and the Taco Bell's of the world, and my answer is an emphatic yes, as long as the stay true to the concept, and churn out food like we had on this evening. They might have to expand their menu a bit, but this evening proved that people who are nostalgic for Naugles, will be very happy with what they eat here.

Thanks so much for hosting us Christian. We are very happy to see your dream becoming a reality and look forward to seeing how everything works out in this venture. We would also like to thank all the energetic employees we encountered on this evening. You all take great pride in this restaurant, and it shows.

For more information about Naugles, and to keep up with all the latest news from them, go to their website here: http://www.nauglestacos.com/index.php

Mesa Proves to Be a Good Opening Act

Mesa

725 Baker Street

Costa Mesa, CA 92626

Going through my day to day routine, I never really stop to think that I'm getting older. Most days I still have the mindset that I'm in my late twenties/early thirties, or after a long day at work, maybe pushing 35. The truth is, as much as I don't feel like it, I'm a lot closer to 50, than I am to 40.

I bring this up because Katie had gotten us tickets to see Culture Club, who were playing at the Segerstrom Concert Hall in Costa Mesa. I had told a number of my coworkers about going to the concert, but not too many of them knew anything about this 80's band, that featured Boy George. After some awful singing of some of their hit songs on my part, and my coworkers still having no clue as to who Culture Club was, I was left feeling like my parents probably did when they were shocked that I did not have any idea who Bobby Rydell was when I was a kid. Now a little dejected, I needed a good restaurant to head to before listening to "Do You Really Want to Hurt Me".

Katie had bought the tickets two days before the concert, (I know, I'm shocked there were still tickets available too), so I only had a day to make reservations. I quickly went to Open Table, which is my favorite spot for making restaurant reservations. I saw Mesa was available at 6 pm and jumped on it.

I had heard some great things about this restaurant, and their very talented chef, Niki Starr Weyler. She has been at Mesa for two years now, and before that, she had been working at Broadway in Laguna, and two restaurants that are no longer with us anymore, Charlie Palmer at Bloomingdale's and French 75. A pretty impressive list, and she's gotten glowing reviews at Mesa, which has been around since 2007.

Mesa is located in a corner of The Camp shopping complex, which has way too small of a parking lot for a retail center with this many in demand shops and restaurants. It's best to save the headaches of driving around in circles or following leaving patrons to their cars, and just pay for valet parking at Mesa. We arrived a little before our 6 pm reservation time and were met with a locked door. They don't open until 6, which I found to be a little odd, but they make up for it by being open late, until 2 am, and serving food almost until closing time.

I loved the feel of this 21 and over restaurant. We got here early and got to watch this loungy, LA kind of vibe restaurant, fill up with the young, gorgeous people of the South Coast Plaza area. Even though this joint was way hipper than a 40's something guy going to a Culture Club concert, I definitely felt comfortable here, and it was great for people watching. The main attraction for me in the dining room, besides the clientele, was the retractable room, which was open on this mild fall evening, and made this restaurant even cooler than it already was.

The small, compact menu is not going to overwhelm diners with a wide variety of things to choose from. They offer three salads, some pizzas, nine entrees, and the largest section of this menu is the appetizer portion, which included a good assortment of things, including their signature item, the Cast Iron Skillet Mussels. I did not order this because Katie would not eat it, but when we come back, I'm getting this for sure. For now, let's take a look at what we did order.

I have shied away from getting drinks in restaurants so I could focus more on the food, but I felt like letting loose on this evening and tried their version of a Moscow Mule ($7). No cooper mug here, but this beverage was still delicious. It came layered with vodka, ginger cordial, lime juice, and Angostura bitters. Different from others I have had, maybe due to the ginger cordial being used instead of a ginger beer. It gave this a little more depth.

For a month or so now, I have been on a real beet kick, and when we saw that a Roasted Beet Salad ($13) was offered at Mesa, we could not resist. This salad included roasted gold and red beets, a beet puree, champagne vinaigrette, burrata, pickled cherries, and croutons, which were really more like toast points. I don't think the menu described this quite right, or maybe I had envisioned something completely different. The beets were delicious, and the inclusion of the pickled cherries was a nice surprise. I did not get very much burrata here, and I felt six pieces of beets were more like a sample than an actual salad. It was clean tasting and light, but I expected a little more substance.

Entree time and Katie had this Wine Braised Short Rib ($26). This Italian-tinged dish featured some freshly made gnocchi, mushrooms, caramelized onions, and Parmesan cheese. The short rib was unbelievably tender, and what made this dish for me was the very well done sauce, which coated the meat and gnocchi perfectly. Real stick to your ribs kind of dish, and I could not get enough of that sauce. Luckily this was a pretty filling dish, so Katie allowed me to finish it. What a perfect wife.

I had some pretty mediocre experiences with pork chops growing up. My mom would get the really small ones at the store, and then fry the heck out of them, until they were made even smaller. They had such little meat on them, I would often just fill up on jarred applesauce and the boxed au gratin potatoes on pork chop night at home. This Berkshire Pork Chop ($29) is a very distant cousin of the pork chops of my youth. This had more meat than all the pork chops I had as a kid combined, and the pork on this one was tender and flavorful. I really enjoyed the cranberry mustard sauce way more than I thought I would when I saw it on the menu. Both the bacon braised Swiss chard and the butternut squash puree really rounded this out nicely. This helped get me over the trauma of overly done pork chops.

We had to get going to our concert, but there's always time for dessert, and I knew we had to give their Aunt Lauren's Fried Cookies ($11) a try. A few miles down the road is the home of everything deep fried, the OC Fair, but these were much better than anything you can get in July at the fairgrounds. These little balls of cookie dough were fried nicely and were not overly greasy, so you got the full flavor of the dough, and they came with plenty of vanilla ice cream. Maybe a little more chocolate in the dough or a dipping sauce would have made these even better.

Mesa was a total hit for dinner before the concert. Maybe the beet salad was not what we were expecting, but our entrees and dessert really hit the mark on this evening and made our date night even better. We'd definitely come back to Mesa when we are going to see another 80's band that no one has ever heard of, and thus making us feel like we are older than we already are. From Assistant General Manager, Joshua Uhler, to our waitress, Ashley, and everyone else we encountered on this evening, we had fantastic service, and they really made us feel welcome during our stay. I even forgive Josh and Ashley for having no idea who Culture Club is, but they promised me that they would Google them.

Out of five chameleons, (in reference to Culture Club's most well-known song), five being best to zero being worst, Mesa gets 3.5 chameleons.

For more information about Mesa, head to their website here: http://www.mesacostamesa.com/