I lived in Washington D.C. for 12 years and it was there that I started my fascination for José Andrés with Café Atlantico, Zaytinya, Oyamél and now Jaleo.

Rumbi brings a taste of the Islands in the form of burgers, rice bowls, entrees and salads. While most think of Hawaii when they think of the Islands, Rumbi goes to the Caribbean, South Seas, Bali and Jamaican Islands as well.

There is a new restaurant coming to Mission Viejo! Rumbi Island Grill has taken over the old Mustard’s Cafe space on Alicia Parkway in Mission Viejo.

Servers are one of the first to greet me and the last when I leave a restaurant. How that server treats me and other patrons is a direct reflection of the restaurants core values is it not?

They’re finally here! It’s been a little over 2 months since we found out that The OC was going to be host to a new cupcake bakery. Frostings Cupcakes in Lake Forest will open on July 2.

A nice neighborhood Burger Cafe with a nice selection of California Beers. Use of produce and meats from local farms is important to them and it shows in the craft of making a good burger…

I was intrigued at the idea of a Filipino restaurant located in a food court inside a Mall. How much foot traffic sales was she getting? I was surprised!

I celebrated my birthday with Tim and we decided to go to Pizzeria Ortica in Costa Mesa. We were greeted promptly with a smile. Everything tonight wasn’t what I expected, it was better…

I don’t eat breakfast enough, but maybe the new Specialty’s Cafe & Bakery at the Irvine Spectrum will change my mind…

I have been on a baguette hunt these last few weeks. There have been a few places that have been recommended to me, but I Cream Pan takes the prize so far…

Formerly Saigon Grill, it is now the Pho Ha Noi. I went in with some expectations, but sadly walked away disappointed. I think the first clue should have been that the place was empty…

It was pretty busy and it seemed most of the chairs were filled. There were only 3 sushi chefs behind the bar. There are about 4 servers/hosts. Each time someone walked in waiting to be addressed, the were blantantly ignored…

Savannah is closing its doors tonight as it serves its last dinner service. Culinary Adventures which owns the restaurant has decided to close this location. Formerly Chat Noir, the restaurant was rebranded as Savannah shortly before the departure of the then owner of Culinary Adventures, David Wilhelm.

Now Jamillah isn’t the most pretty restaurant. The place is a bit run down and there hasn’t been any remarkable upgrades since they moved in. They have seating for around 65 and is lit by florescent lights in a drop down ceiling. The food fortunately outweighs the shortcomings.

The location on El Toro Road in Lake Forest apparently closed their doors just over a week and a half ago according to an employee at the Lee Sandwiches next door. I took a peek inside and they have been stripping the location of fixtures and furniture.

The Islands Restaurant at Laguna Hills will close at the end of the day on Wednesday, March 11…

Happy Birthday to the Rockin’ Baja Coastal Cantina! This year they celebrate 25 years of soups, shrimp, burgers and salads to sandwiches, tacos, tostadas, fajitas as well as their famous Baja Buckets!

Well what a nice detour it was today when I originally had plans to go to The District in Tustin and head to RA Sushi for the $10 Prix Fixe menu for OC’s Restaurant Week. Delightfully, I ended up at Bistro West and went home with a happy stomach!

To kick-off the start of The OC’s first Restaurant Week, I went to Zov’s Cafe Bakery & Bar in Irvine for their $10 Prix Fixe Lunch menu ($15 with dessert). Zov’s Cafe Bakery & Bar is owned by Zov Karamardian who owns Zov’s Bistro in Tustin…

Orange County will be hosting their first ever Restaurant Week! Starting this Sunday, February 22, over 80 restaurants throughout Orange County will be offering Prix Fixe menus for $20, $30 or $40. Restuarant Week goes thru Saturday, February 28…

When I first moved to Mission Viejo almost 2 years ago I found Casa Franco, a small Mexican Restaurant. The place is kinda small, not always full, but there are always people in there…

We sat to dinner and was presented with a fairly simple menu. Marcella’s offers some traditional Italian dishes like Spaghetti Alla Carbonara, Gnocchi Con Bolognese and Pizza, but we opted to do an array of small plates…

I work near the Irvine Spectrum and always looking for places away from the actual Spectrum itself. The Jackson Barne Grill is just around the corner from my office and offers lots of great dishes, some not-so-great dishes..

On the 1st floor of the Macy’s Home Store at South Coast Plaza, is the new Signature Kitchen that is actually 3 restaurants in one – a collaboration of Nancy Silverton, Marc Samuelsson and Cat Cora.

Continuing on my Sunday quest for places that use sustainable food sources or that are organic in nature, my next stop was Mäni’s on Fairfax. Mäni’s is a bakery and a restaurant located on Fairfax between 3rd and 6th near The Grove and the LA Farmers’ Market. Mäni’s bakery features items free of additives, preservatives, hormones and artificial sweeteners…

It is Sunday and I decided I was going to spend a day up in LA and try to hit a couple of restaurants. My focus was to find places that use locally grown produce and use local purveyors and farms…

I haven’t been in a Ruby’s probably since high school so this was a bit of a treat for me as well as getting to celebrate my friend Brooke’s birthday. There were about 12 of us there for lunch. The interior decor is rich with wood and colorful posters from old 50’s/60’s scifi movies…

The location in Lake Forest is a small place but cozy and friendly. It seats about 30 people or so and is always busy during lunch. I’ve never been there during dinner, but so far I have no doubt that it is equally busy…

Quail Hill is a great place to eat for lunch. They have great outdoor seating for all the restaurants that seem to be clustered in this corner of the center. Being lunch it was busy and the restaurant was full…

After reading the reviews of many of my fellow bloggers, I wanted to try out Mentatsu. After my haircut at the Crew Salon in The Lab, I called Tim and we met at Mentatsu located at Baker and Bristols behind the Wahoo’s…

Jersey Mike’s Subs has opened up a shop here. I was on my way to Wahoo’s when I saw the grand opening signs. No one was in the shop, yet the other restaurants on either side of them was busy (Panda Express and Golden Spoon Yogurt)….

Kaisen Kaiten Sushi Bar. Who knew that this little unassuming sushi place across from South Coast Plaza (well…diagonally across) could be so fun? I was hanging out with my friend Tim. We decided to go to sushi and he brought me here. From the outside…

When I walked into the place you instantly smell the mesquite in the air, it’s intoxicating. We had gotten there just before noon and the place was packed. Jerry has a good selection of dogs, sausages and burgers…

The SweetSpot Baker’s Workshop had their grand opening in the Irvine Spectrum on Monday, 11/24! The day before they had a soft launch for family and friends and everyone was excited…

[UPDATE 11/19] The Veggie Grill at Irvine Spectrum opens on Friday, November 21st. Yes…I went to a vegetarian restaurant. I was a bit hesitant, but in the interests of health, we went. Tim and I left the office and headed towards UC Irvine for lunch. After having a hard time finding parking in the University Town Center lot, we found something near Trader Joes…