Tuesday, July 19, 2016

Taking a Dip at Splashes


Splashes at the Surf and Sand Resort
1555 South Coast Highway
Laguna Beach, CA 92651

I do not take advantage of the beautiful coastline of Orange County nearly enough. I realize this almost every time that I drive to one of our beach cities, and can visually see the water through my dusty windshield. The picturesque ocean view always takes my breath away. I'm always thinking to myself, why am I not down here more often. Then I remember that I'm part of the pasty posse. The sun and I do not mix too well, as my snow white skin usually burns in about ten minutes of exposure. Katie's right there with me, so it seems the only time we make it to experience the beach is when we get the chance to dine at the shore, which we had the opportunity to do recently at the Surf and Sand Resort in beautiful Laguna.

Every time we are at this beach front resort, we are instantly transported into vacation mode. You can honestly feel the stresses of your workday wash away with the tide. We were invited to this sun kissed resort to meet their new, or I should say, new to us chef, Chef Ron Fougeray, who has the pleasure of working in this beautiful paradise. With views like this, I wouldn't get much done, but I'm generally a lazy person.

Chef Fougeray comes to us from Philadelphia, where he built up a pretty impressive resume. After graduating from culinary school, Chef Ron went through a snow storm to meet with famous chef, Georges Perrier of Le Bec-Fin, and agreed to work for free for him, just to get a start in the business. Three months after that he was hired, and worked every station in the restaurant, until the business was sold six years later. He then moved on to another French restaurant, the critically acclaimed Bibou BYOB, where he would be named Executive Chef in 2013, and win a whole host of accolades, including being named a finalist for a James Beard Award as Best New Restaurant. Alas, he would leave this prestigious position as a promise to his OC raised wife, that they would move back to her beloved Orange County, and the much more cordial weather.

Philly's loss is the Surf and Sand's gain, as he took over the kitchen almost a year ago. His predecessor at Splashes was more Asian influenced culinary wise, while Chef Ron is of course much more trained in the French style of cooking. This has lead to a complete overhaul of the menu at Splashes, which has been a big hit with the guests of the resort and the locals that flock here for stunning views and world class cuisine. They were going to be featuring Chef Ron's Summer Menu on this evening, which all of us food media were all looking forward to experiencing.








I couldn't resist adding a few more pictures of the spectacular view we experienced. We did get cheated of a sunset because the clouds rolled in, but beautiful nonetheless. We were met with a glass of wine, and situated on a patio right above the pool deck. It took every ounce of my being not to strip off my clothes and join the other vacationers having a great time in the water, but I knew I had some eating to do on this evening.




When I was growing up, I would have never have guessed that Brussels sprouts would be as big as they have gotten. I never really had a bad association with them like a lot of my friends, because my mom never made them. These are not your mother's Brussels Sprouts ($17). They came with a lighter touch than most restaurants deliver, with a splotch of cranberry puree streaking across the plate, along with lardons, dried mulberries, and a watermelon radish julienne. I really liked this summer version of this classic veggie side item. Of course I could have handled more lardons in this, but those little pieces of pork made themselves known, and still allowed the Brussels sprouts to be the star of the show. I was not even bothered by the inclusion of fruits with vegetables like I usually am. A very nice dish with a good array of textures, which kept me interested.




Not on the summer menu, but I think Chef Ron wanted to show off some of the things he picked up on a working vacation he recently took to France with the other JC Resort chefs. This Salmon dish had us all smiling. The salmon was rubbed with peppercorns and espresso grounds, and came with a mustard-mango sauce and a fresh herb salad. The salmon was cooked wonderfully, and the rub did not overpower the natural flavor of the fish, but enhanced it. I liked the sauce well enough, which is a big statement considering I'm not really into mustard or mango. Look for this to make an appearance at Splashes soon, if we have anything to say about it.





Back to the summer menu, and when you think of summer, soup is probably not something you think of, but at Splashes they offer this Chilled Cantaloupe Soup ($15). This is prepared table side, with a dramatic flair which I always enjoy. Little bits of duck prosciutto and mint oil join an orb of melon sorbet, as a cantaloupe and honeydew soup is poured over the top. Unique flavor profile, and refreshing are what came to mind when I ate this. I'm not really into melons, but I think the duck and mint oil kind of softened the sweetness here, and made for a lovely chilled soup that can be enjoyed fully once the temperatures reach the triple digits in a month or so.



Ahi has really hit the mainstream, as you can now get it in any strip mall across OC, but not as fresh and delicious as this Ahi Tuna Crudo ($19). Chef Ron adds a whole slew of items to these dice sized tuna cubes; cured black olives, jicama, raspberry vinegar, mustard oil, cucumber, and an excellent avocado mousse. It's not overly dressed, and the avocado mousse really comes through at the most opportune times.



Lastly, we are just steps from the ocean, so of course more seafood was needed for our last savory item of this evening. This Bay Scallop Ceviche was a fitting end to our evening at the Surf and Sand Resort. Good sized hunks of scallops were served alongside cucumber, radish, dill, celery leaves, citrus supreme, and verde jus. There were notes of citrus, along with a freshness that most restaurants seem to miss when preparing ceviche. I liked this reworked take on this classic dish.




Desserts are something special at Splashes, and we were lucky enough to finish with this Mango Meringue Tart ($13).  I'm always partial to non-fruit desserts, but this dessert might have shown me that there is some merit to non-chocolate desserts. This tart had three distinct layers to it.  The mango puree was sandwiched by a praline crumble on the bottom, and a very well done and eye pleasing meringue topping this. Not overly sweet, but you knew you were having a dessert item.

This was just a sampling of what Chef Ron has in store for his guests when they visit the Surf and Sand Resort. The Grilled Lamb Loin, Duck Breast and Halibut are on my radar for the next time we eat at Splashes, but I'm sure Chef Ron will have some nightly specials that may entice me as well. Perfect for out of town guests, or locals who want to take advantage of where we live, Splashes at the Surf and Sand will not fail to delight.

For more information about the Surf and Sand Resort and Splashes Restaurant, click here: http://www.surfandsandresort.com/splashes/

Thursday, July 14, 2016

Centrally Located Peruvian in Laguna - CLOSED


Central
361 Forest Ave. #103
Laguna Beach, CA 92651

As it gets closer to my birthday, we get a lot busier trying out new restaurants. This trip to one of our favorite coastal towns was perpetrated at a birthday party for my good friend Joe. I had not seen my old roommate Rob for close to a year and learned that he had moved down to Laguna with his fiance, Bre. He mentioned that we must have dinner with them at one of their favorite spots, Central.

Central is a Coastal Peruvian restaurant, which of course means it is seafood driven, but there's so much more to it than that. Peruvian fare has been described by New York Times Food Critic, Eric Asimov as being one of the world's most important cuisines, and a great example of food fusion, due to Peru's multicultural makeup. Influences come from the immigrants that came to this South American country from Europe, West Africa, and Asia, and who mixed their cuisines with the indigenous population of Peru, including the Incas. The result is a unique kind of food, but one that I've always been rather fond of. I was especially excited because Rob and Bre talked so highly of this restaurant, and Rob is not always so easy to please when it comes to food.

Central just had their one year anniversary, which is a big milestone in the restaurant business. Located in the old Sundried Tomato space, and sharing the same shopping center as Laguna Wine and the Laguna Beach Visitors Center, this restaurant is kind of tucked away from the crowds, but if you are still lost, just look for the iconic red English phone booth out front, and you'll know you're close. Like a lot of restaurants in their first year, there has been some turnover here, and when we were here in early June, they had just lost their chef but were confident that their sous chef, who had been at Club 33 at Disneyland, could take over. Not sure how it all played out for them, but looking at the menu online, it looks very similar to the menu when we're here just over a month ago.

We arrived at Central at just before 6 pm on a Thursday evening. Laguna had not been hit with a ton of tourists, so it was relatively easy finding parking before the hoards of Pageant of the Masters and Sawdust Festival attendees start crowding this small town. I never came here when this was Sundried Tomato, so I'm not sure how much has changed, but I really enjoyed the atmosphere here. Lots of exposed wood, cool, hip music, and a small ten-seat bar dominate the space. There's about ten or so tables inside, with a few more outside on their patio, near the fountain. We were finally settled in to see if this place matched Rob's hype for it.




We were patiently waiting for Rob's much better half to arrive from work, so we started with a round of drinks while catching up. Not sure if Peru actually has a national cocktail, but when I typed that into Google, the Pisco Sour ($12) was the first thing listed. The base of this beverage is pisco, a white brandy made with muscat grapes, and joined in the glass by egg whites, fresh lime juice, simple syrup, and angostura bitters. This was a very frothy drink, with a unique taste. The sour definitely came through, and I did get the lime, but not much in the way of the syrup. Much better was Rob's selection, Cristal ($6), which is Peru's number one selling beer. This lager went down smooth, with a very mild taste to it. Not too hoppy, and light. I'd get this on my next visit here.




Just as our appetizers arrived, so did Bre. We had ordered two appetizers to start, the first of which was this Pulpo a la Parilla ($17). I was actually surprised that they wanted to order this grilled octopus starter, but I've always been a big fan of octopus, so I was all for it. The wonderfully done octopus was paired with onions and grapefruit, an aji Verde, romesco sauce, and topped off with an organic fried egg. The romesco sauce here was top notch and helped elevate this appetizer to greater heights than it would have attained without it. The fried egg could have been cooked a little less, so the runny yolk could cover the delicious octopus, but it was still delicious. I was trying to play it cool by not favoring this appetizer, but I wanted one all to myself.




A little less to my liking were these Lamb Empanadas ($13). The lamb inside of these was very good, tender with a good seasoning to it, but the empanada shell was a little too heavy and kind of on the dry side. I was hoping that the aji agro dulce sauce, which is like a sweet and sour sauce would have helped, but it kind of fell flat in adding anything to these empanadas.





Rob and Bre also got this oddly named Tomato Tower ($14) before our entrees made their way out. This gets a lot of love from people on Yelp, and from Bre and Rob. This is basically the Peruvian version of a Caprese, with its heirloom tomatoes, burrata cheese, opal basil, balsamic, and the only difference I could detect from across the table was the addition of the zucchini carpaccio. Maybe because of the new chef here, the presentation of this salad is different than both Rob and Bre remember it, and the pictures on Yelp definitely show a different looking version of this. This is a more spread out version, instead of being more vertical, which did not wow Rob and Bre like the times they had this before. Not bad, but a different preparation than they were used to, and one that was a little more challenging to get all the elements into one bite.




Since it was my birthday in a matter of hours, I went big at Central by ordering this Braised Lamb Shank ($32). I don't eat lamb nearly enough, and this version has got me hooked again. This good-sized lamb shank was joined by Peruano beans, crispy kale, sarza Criolla, which is a salsa made up of onions and other items, a cilantro gremolata, and finally, all tied together by chicha de hora jus, which from what I can at least guess by looking online is a Peruvian corn beer, but I might be wrong about that. Whatever it was, it helped make this dish a winner. The lamb was tender, without the gaminess that sometimes comes with ordering lamb. There could have been more sauce here, but the sauce that was present was very good and added to this mutton. The beans and onion salsa helped round this dish out perfectly. A very good meal to start out my birthday week.




When most people think of Peruvian cuisine, they almost always mention the most famous Peruvian dish of them all, the Lomo Saltado ($29). Of course Central has their own version of this dish, and Katie, Rob, and Bre all got this as their entree on this night. This dish, which was inspired by Chinese immigrants in Peru, is basically a stir fry dish with sliced filet mignon, cherry tomatoes, red onions, and french fries, all served on a bed of rice. Katie expected the filet to be a little more tender than it was, and she would have liked there to be more sauce and onions included with this. She did praise the fries though and thought they were a highlight of this dish.



We selected two desserts to share between the four of us, the best of the two by far was this Banana Empanada ($8). The outer shell was a little tough to get through, but I loved the creamy banana inside, which went well with the smear of Nutella and the ice cream. Yes, they needed a little more ice cream added on here, but a very satisfying dessert.



I was not as excited about this Mango Cheesecake ($8) as I was about the banana empanada. I must admit that I'm not really a big fan of mango or cheesecake, but none of my table mates were that impressed by this dessert ether. The mango flavor was muted, and only present in the cut-up mango placed on top of this, and the cheesecake underneath was only average. I did enjoy the cracker crust, but would much rather have ordered an extra banana empanada.

It seems to me that Central is kind of at a crossroads, and still trying to find some stability with their head chef position. This is definitely not unheard of in the restaurant business, but you want the food to be served in a consistent manner from a visit to visit. If they get some stability in the kitchen, the skies the limit for Central. They have a good base menu, and I look forward to seeing where it goes from here. The lamb, octopus starter, and the banana empanada were standouts, but other items need some work. Service on this evening was excellent, and we were never in need of anything and felt right at home. The restaurant can get a little loud, especially near the end of our stay when they were doing a booming business. Peruvian cuisine is due for a big breakout in the US, and we're looking forward to experiencing it at Central.

Out of five pieces of chalk, (because the oldest college in the Americas, the University of San Marcos, was founded in Peru in 1551, and I'm sure being that old of an institution, the professors here have used lots of chalk), five being best to zero being worst, Central gets 3.5 pieces of chalk.

For more information about Central, head to their website here: https://www.centrallagunabeach.com/

Sunday, July 10, 2016

LAX Pickup With a Stop at Truxton's


Truxton's American Bistro
8611 Truxton Ave.
Los Angeles, CA 90045

We have been looking to explore more of LA, so when we were set to pick up our friends at LAX, we decided to see what restaurants were around the area. A quick search of Yelp lead us to Truxton's, which is only a few miles away from the airport, and looked pretty promising. We left OC an hour and a half earlier than we usually do when traveling to LAX, which gave us plenty of time to give Truxton's a try.

Truxton's has been around for ten years now at this Westchester location, which is not easily seen from busy Manchester Avenue. A good landmark to look for is the much more visible Paco's Tacos Cantina, which is situated right in front of Truxton's. Along with this spot, they also have another location, which is situated in Santa Monica.

Truxton's describes itself as an American Bistro, a restaurant where the neighborhood comes together to enjoy classic dishes which are reinvented using unique flavors from around the world. The menu definitely reflects this, as they have a wide assortment of things to choose from. A quick glance at the menu shows the influences of Vietnam, India, Korea, and Thailand just to name a few. There are plenty of appetizers, burgers, entrees, and healthier options, some with a global twist.

We got here at just after 8 pm on a recent Sunday evening. Even at this rather late hour, the restaurant had a fair amount of people eating here. Truxton's is one of the more comfortable restaurants we have been to in a while. A high wooden ceiling absorbs a lot of the noise, so you can actually hold a conversation with your table mates, but the restaurant does have ambient noise, so it does not feel like you are eating in a mausoleum. The center of the restaurant has a nicely sized bar, which has 2 TVs above it. I was trying to come up with a restaurant that this feels like, and I could only think it was a brighter, more open version of a Lazy Dog Cafe. Let's hope the food is better than at Lazy Dog.




When I hear the words monkey bread, I automatically think of the delicious cinnamon pull-apart that my mom used to make on Christmas morning. The Monkey Bread ($4.75) at Truxton's is not like that, but still pretty tasty. This is a pull-apart, but instead of being made with butter and cinnamon, it's made up of cheddar cheese and garlic and served with three dipping sauces; marinara, garlic butter, and ranch. I really enjoyed this version. The bread was soft and cheesy, and the three dipping sauces kept me interested. I'm usually a ranch kind of guy, but I think I liked the garlic butter best with this. I can see why this gets a lot of love online from their customers.


Both Katie and I had salads here to start with, and for Katie, it was an easy choice, the Truxton's House Salad ($4.95) would be her selection. Their house salad starts with romaine lettuce and is then topped with plenty of feta cheese, tomatoes, Persian cucumbers, and an oregano vinaigrette to finish it off. She liked the lightness of this salad, and that they kept things simple and fresh. She'd have a hard time not getting this salad on future visits here.



Longtime readers of this blog know that it's almost impossible for me to pass up a Caesar on my first trip to a restaurant, and that was the case at Truxton's also. This Creamy Caesar ($5.25) had a different dressing than most but was constructed very well. The dressing did not seem to be anchovy based but had a smoother tang to it than a traditional Caesar dressing. Nice for a change. I was also a big fan of the shaved Parmesan and croutons here. They were big enough to have a real influence on this starter salad. A very good version of my favorite salad.




Katie really had a hard time making a decision about what to have for the main portion of her meal at Truxton's, but after some great debate going on inside her head, she finally made up her mind to have the Taos Chicken Sandwich ($14.98). This sandwich was anchored by a grilled chicken breast, with chipotle mayo, greens, pepper jack cheese, bacon, tomato, and avocado added to the very good torta-style bun. She felt this was a great spin on a traditional chicken club sandwich. She liked the use of the torta bun and the moderate heat from the insides of this sandwich. She opted to upgrade to sweet potatoes for an extra dollar and was happy with the result. They were fried nice and crisp, with a tender inside.





With so many options on this menu, I'm almost ashamed to admit that I reverted to my old standby of a bacon cheeseburger. Truxton's version of this classic burger is called the Gilly Burger ($15.85), and it comes with shredded lettuce, tomato, applewood smoked bacon, Tillamook cheddar cheese, caramelized onions, a spicy 1001 dressing, and crispy onion strings, all on a brioche bun. I liked this burger but was not blown away by it. It had a lot of my favorites on here, but they kind of fell flat. The spicy 1001 sauce was neither spicy nor did they add enough of it to make its presence known. I loved the Tillamook cheddar cheese, as it is one of the best, and it spreads wonderfully when melted. The half-pound beef patty was fine, but the real star of the show was the brioche bun, which did an admirable job of keeping everything in line. I upgraded to garlic Parmesan fries for an extra dollar, which was actually pretty tasty. The garlic and seasonings actually clung to the fries and did not settle to the bottom of the basket like other restaurants' garlic fries are prone to do.



We still had an hour to kill before picking up our friends at LAX, so dessert was needed to stretch things out. Salted caramel, according to my dad is played out, and if a guy that still loves Peter, Paul, and Mary thinks something has reached its expiration date, then maybe it has. We still tried this Salted Caramel Carnival Sundae ($6.98), just to spite my dad and his trend theory. They use a salted caramel gelato here and include caramel-infused cinnamon churros and fresh whipped cream.  I kind of thought that this was going to be better than it was. The gelato here was a little on the runny side, and I think this would have tasted better with ice cream instead. I did not really get too much salt out of this, but there was plenty in the way of caramel. The churros were the best part of this, with a good amount of caramel inside of them, but it was hard to incorporate them into the gelato portion of this dessert.

Truxton's is a great option for people picking up or dropping off people at LAX. We are up this way quite a few times a year, and with a large number of offerings on their menu, we look forward to coming back again and trying more of their food. The standouts for me on this visit were the monkey bread and my Caesar, but everything else was good, but not driving all the way from OC was great. The comfortable feeling we encountered at Truxton's was not only due to the decor and feel of the restaurant but also from the great service we received from our server, Stanley. He was personable, answered all of our questions, and perfectly balanced the fine line between making sure we had all that we needed and being too intrusive. We will definitely keep Truxton's in our minds when we are near LAX.

Out of five lions, (because this restaurant is located in the Westchester section of LA, which is also home to LMU, whose mascot is a lion), five being best to zero being worst, Truxton's American Bistro gets 3 lions.

For more information about Truxton's American Bistro, head to their website here: http://truxtonsamericanbistro.com/