If you’re a New York-centric east-coaster like Matt, you probably think this post is going to have some cool LA stuff in it, and you’re probably pretty excited to see what the heck is so great about this city on the other side of the country. Unfortunately for you (and Matt), Newport Beach is almost 45 miles from Los Angeles, which means if you’re visiting your friend in Newport Beach there is basically a zero percent chance you will see any part of LA. (Because of traffic, 45 miles is like an hour and a half on a good day.) But there is good news–it’s not as bad as it seems. The OC is not just a series of sad strip malls filled with chain stores and restaurants (well, not entirely) and there is actually some cool stuff in those strip malls if you know where to look. Luckily for you we have done the looking.
Unlike Matt, Bryn spent her teen years watching all things “OC”. I mean hello… The OC, Laguna Beach…I felt like these characters were my friends… therefore, I was pretty well versed into what I was getting into when heading out to this west coast vacation. Life has been extra hectic lately, so Bryn was psyched to have a slower west coast change of pace and spend time with our friend Alli, who graciously hosted us for the long weekend in her oceanfront condo… that view (as featured above – front row sunset view every night)!
Starting the day off right
Tupulo Junction – Newport Beach – Breakfast – Great fried green tomatoes. Bloody Mary was on point with a great meaty crab claw and a spicy creole shrimp and grits.
Honor Coffee – Lido Village – Everything about this place was beautiful. I loved the California chic aesthetic of the interior. It was filled with beautiful oak tables, contrasting with the white marble and shiny gold fixtures. The exterior was just as gorgeous and welcoming. I think we went there everyday of our trip. As you can tell, I was on sensory overload in there… they make fresh batches of Indian chai everyday in a big metal pot and the smell of the warm cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg just hit you when you walk in. Bonus – they also made a good flat white as well and had some yummy pastries.
Eat Chow – Costa Mesa – Breakfast – despite the silly name of this place, the food here was yummy! We are suckers for chilaquiles, so we have to get them when we see them on a menu. Chilaquiles is a Mexican dish comprised of tortilla chips covered in salsa and cooked on the stovetop until they chips get a little soft. They are then topped with cheese, queso fresca (like sour cream) and black beans and of course a goey fried egg. I had the beef brisket tostada which is basically a crispy tortilla sandwich covered in black beans, tons of brisket, cheese with the most perfectly ripe avocado to top it all off. Skip the coffee, but make sure to dove into the food!
Sidecar donuts – Costa Mesa – Breakfast – This place has some wild combinations – cookie dough, milk and cereal, and pb & J. But the more we ate the simpler donuts, the more we seemed to like them. The Saigon Cinnamon crumb and the Butter and Salt were two of our favorites. We had to wait in about a 5-10 minute line, but it was worth the wait. Plus – they have beautiful packaging for buying the donuts in bulk 🙂
Vacancy Coffee Bar – Newport Beach – Very good to excellent flat white from Toby’s Estate beans and their La Marzocco machine. Good looking cronuts and breakfast sandwiches too. Minus one star for paper-only cups but still a solid option.
Outpost Kitchen – Costa Mesa – Don’t be distracted by the siren song of the farmhouse skillet—it’s almost certainly healthier that what you are expecting and if you’re trying to recover from last night then it won’t be what you want. Instead, the various iterations of avo toast are the way to go. Espresso pulled from their La Marzocco is real solid—especially in the form of a flat white—though I’m not sure what is the deal with the all-paper cups. Minus one half star for the skillet full of undercooked vegetables and and minus one half star for not having a proper cup for people to drink their coffee out of.
Common Room Roasters – Newport Beach – Totally legit coffee in such a cool space. I can’t say enough about the decor and design of the space—it’s super hip. The only complaint I can find to lodge is it’s only open till 3:00p or 4:00p; so make sure you get your caffeine fix early.
Something for lunch?
BearFlag Fish Co. – Lido Village – Lunch – this is a much more traditional style poke – almost more of a ceviche style that is served with fresh tortilla chips. When we ordered it, I was thinking we were getting a poke bowl. We got the spicy tuna that that had an Asian flair to it with sesame seeds and oil. We tried the salmon as well, but I think I could eat the tuna poke one everyday and be perfectly happy.
Malibu Farms – Lido Village – Lunch – We weren’t hungry, but we couldn’t pass up eating at this cute little farm to table overlooking the water. We shared a cauliflower pizza. We weren’t quite sure what to expect, but the crust was crispy and delicious and was a great base layer for this fresh lunch. They also make a mean Arnold Palmer. I was feeling under the weather, but their cocktail ingredients all looked fresh and delicious – Lots of citrus and herbs to be added to them. Right now they are only serving brunch and lunch, but dinner is coming soon.
Cauliflower Crusted Pizza – arugula-bail pesto, fresh mozzarella, heirloom tomoatos, fresh arugula and lemon
Wild Tacos – Lunch- trying to get our SoCal taco fix before making our way back to the east coast. I had the catch of the day which was a red snapper taco, and Matt had a carnitas taco and a beef taco. My corn obsession continues, so we ordered an elote as well. The tacos here were good. They have a casual outdoor patio area with umbrellas to relax on.
Saigon Beach – Vietnamese – Newport Beach – They have a green curry rice with crispy pulled pork on top that is phenomenal. The Pork and Beef buns were good, the Bahn Mi was good, but, I would like for the bun to have been a little lighter and fluffier and I’m a sucker for all of the fresh veggies and cilantro, I was hoping for some more.
Ending the day on a high note
Lido Bottleworks – Lido Village – Dinner – We weren’t super hungry, when we went here for dinner, but we got the buratta and chicken wings and it was the perfect little dinner that we needed so we didn’t wake up starving in the middle of the night.
Jidori Chicken Wings – had a beautiful glaze on them, fresh herbs and peanuts
Buratta – Smoked peach puree was underneath a beautiful burrata paired with perfectly ripe peaches and pistachios. It was served with crispy rosemary flatbread crackers – which gave it the perfect crunch.
Manhattan Beach Post – Manhattan Beach – Definitely had some strong points but also had some weak points. The food was generally good; the Brussels sprouts and green beans were pretty dope, but some things were lackluster and some things were just not good (crab, gnocchi and a Meyer lemon cream sauce?) They have a very strong selection of wines by the glass including 3 oz pours so you can try a bunch of different wines, but then our server seemed to lose interest in our table about halfway though the meal and I basically had to flag her down to order another glass of wine. It was not bad but also not good enough that I would feel the need to come back here next time I’m in Manhattan Beach.
What about in between all the food?
Hi-Time Wine Cellars – Costa Mesa – In between all the food? Why not try drinking? : ) Hi-Time has a giant selection of booze of all kinds, spirits especially. Also a fantastic selection of (self-serve) wines by the glass and really good tastings for fair prices on the weekends. We had a great wines of Burgundy class that was one of the highlights of our trip. Eight tastings for $35 and three of the pours were from bottles that retail for over $100.
Daydream – Newport Beach– In case you need a new surfboard, some insanely expensive (I think?) ceramics and some really solid coffee, this is your spot. Sight Glass espresso pulled from their hip white La Marzocco results in a very good flat white. The shop is cool if not necessarily practical (though I guess a lot more people buy surfboards in the OC than I imagine) and it is merchandised very coolly so if nothing else you can look cool on Insta : )
Gunwhale Ales – Costa Mesa– Friendly bartenders, mostly good beers (the Hazy IPA and the Watermelon Grissette were the best we tasted) and a cool space (I’m starting to sense a trend in SoCal that they take very great pride in their interior decoration), especially the outside patio. Not a ton of room so it may get crowded at prime times but on a sunny Sunday afternoon it was a good place to hang out.
Barley Forge Brewing Co. – Costa Mesa– Good food and beers, though mostly the beers were not stylistically in my wheelhouse (though the Coconut Rye Stout is right down the middle of my strike zone—don’t miss it!) The space is not as big as you might be imagining; it was pretty busy during the Chargers game on Sunday afternoon but not so busy our party of three couldn’t find a seat. I’d definitely come back for burgers, tater tots and beer. Their BLT was solid with perfectly ripe heirloom tomatoes and the creole creamed corn was awesome.
Lido Marina Village – Newport Beach –This is a great little find on the peninsula! Great mix of shops and restaurants, trendy and cool spaces to shop and hang out. The shops are high-design and so they are on the expensive side but it is a fun place to just wander through with the wife; a great place to kill an afternoon.
Lido Village Books – Newport Beach– Very cute little book shop in Lido Village. A great curated selection of books of all kinds, a wonderful place to spend an hour and find something you never knew you needed to read.
Alta Laguna Park – Laguna Beach – Good facilities leading to great hiking/biking/riding trails with spectacular views. Can be somewhat crowded on the weekends so if you’re biking the trails (wear a bell) be sure to find somewhere off the beaten track—I’m sure you’ll be able to.
Car Wreck Trail
The Butchery Quality Meats – Costa Mesa –This place is my Graceland. This is the place in Newport Beach to buy your meat/beer & wine/snacks/spices/prepared sides/wood for your smoker(!)/pre-made sandwiches/everything a self-respecting man needs to have a good time. Sure it isn’t cheap but it’s good quality and a great selection. As long as you know how to cook it, you won’t regret it.
Rent a Duffy –The Newport thing to do is to rent a duffy (a small boat with a surrey on top) and bop around looking at houses on the water and other boats or more appropriately yachts I should say. Matt wasn’t sure about this idea initially (since he can’t sit still – ever), but came around to it when he realized we would have good wine and meats and cheeses and would get to spend time with friends too. I didn’t need any convincing, the boat goes slow, I get to sit in the shade and watch the world go by, it sounded perfect to me. I love getting to see islands from a different vantage point, it is something I always loved when we had a boat growing up and I loved it probably even more in Newport Beach since there was just so much to watch! Seals barking, a floating tiki bar, yachts that belong on the bravo show, below deck. There was just so much to take in.
Bike Ride – They have great bike paths in Newport Beach that take you along the ocean and some of the back roads/alleys. It’s an easy ride down to “The Wedge”, which is a spot along the jetty known for great surfing and breathtaking sunsets. Another great idea is to take your bikes on a short ferry ride over to Balboa Island. On Balboa island there are some cute restaurants and shops.
All in all, the OC is a pretty great place to spend a long weekend, especially during the off-season. Typically great weather, good outdoor activities, decent restaurants and good coffee shops make it pretty easy for city-slickers like us to assimilate and have a good time. It does also help to have ocean-front accommodations of course, but you’ll have to talk to our friend Alli about that one. Hang loose!