Dafoodangel's Blog

Las Brisas Restaurant in Laguna Beach…

I’ll start off by saying how special Saturday night was. I’d like to congratulate my friend Andrew for proposing to his girlfriend and also my friend Charlene and giving me a chance to do a review on one of the top must visit restaurants in Orange County. I guess you could say, killed two birds with one stone. Anyways, it was a magical evening, great company, great food, and happy times as usual. So lets not stop there and lets get those mouths savoring…..

Las Brisas Restaurant

361 Cliff Drive, Laguna Beach, Ca 92651

(949) 497-5434

www.lasbrisaslagunabeach.com

First off, when you arrive in Laguna Beach, you’ll notice Las Brisas is located on Cliff Dr, and yes it is on a cliff. The view there is breathtaking during the day, and absolutely gorgeous at night with all the lights.

From the outside the restaurant looks small, but once your inside, surprisingly, the restaurant is huge and there’s such a warm feeling emitted from the decor. Las Brisas offers private rooms for events, a large outdoor patio, and 2 fully stocked bars. While walking through, you’ll notice from every room, you’ll get a view to the ocean. Now lets get on with the food, because I know that’s why we’re here….

Las Brisas is known for their seafood, but they also offer your usual chicken and beef meals as well as salads and appetizers. There were so many of us that it was hard to keep track of everything but ill talk about everything that I got to try. We all started off with a shared appetizer, the Guacamole Estilo Mexico which is exactly what it sounds like. Fresh guacamole served with an assortment of red and yellow corn tortilla chips made fresh. Also ordered were the Coctels de Camarones and the Ceviche de Pescado. Both were very delicious….The Coctels de Camarones featured 5 large prawn shrimp fresh from the sea and served with a tequila cocktail sauce. The prawns were juicy and had a nice sweet flavor to them which went great with the tequila kick you get once dipped in the sauce. The Ceviche de Pescado was made from sea bass and marinated in the usual lime/orange juice but also featured mango chunks. I must say, it was actually quite refreshing eaten on a corn chip. It has a sweet flavor to it rather than the usual ceviche you get anywhere else.

As we ate, i was also introduced to their special muffins. Such a wonderful taste of cornbread mixed with the slight kick from the jalapeno. Yes, that’s right, cornbread muffin with jalapeno. Definitely not an odd flavor, and with a little butter, its a great way to start the evening.

During the course of the meal, I ordered both a Pinot Noir by Cambria and a Chardonnay by La Crema, both which i might add went great with everything we ate. Although i recommend the pinot noir for a red meat, it did surprisingly go very well with our seafood. The Cambria Pinot Noir features a light flavor cultivated from the mixing of black cherry, strawberry’s, grapes and cranberry’s. Not dry, served at room temperature, such a buttery rich taste with a hint of oak , it tasted great on the palate of my mouth. Now the Chardonnay by La Crema was better suited for the seafood we ordered. Like the pinot noir, it had a smooth, creamy texture that features the taste and smell of ripe pears, a bit of vanilla, a touch of honey and just a hint of oak. This was a great wine and paired with the seafood, it definitely brought the taste to a whole new level.

Now on to my actual meal…..Las Brisas offers such a diverse menu to their patrons. It was hard to make a choice, but i ended up ordering the Frutas del Mar. The Frutas del Mar had a little bit of everything. It came with a broiled/baked lobster, sauteed sea scallops, prawns, crab, and fresh mahi mahi served on a bed of white rice and veggies covered in a tomato garlic sauce. The mahi flaked off with a fork and just melted in my mouth.  At first i thought the tomato garlic sauce would over power the seafood, but after a few bites, I realized that it actually accentuated the rich flavors in every bite. The lobster was fantastic, with a hint of lime and garlic, it went well with a little bit of the sauce. The scallops were amazing, sized about the same as a half dollar, and bursting with a sweet savory flavor. It had a buttery texture so delicate and flavorful. The prawns were just as good. Made from the same fresh pickings, they offered a nice smokey flavor from the grill. The crab was delicious as well, just like the lobster, it too had a hint of lime and garlic. The claws were already cracked and opened for you.

Although i didn’t get to try the rest of these with the exception of the Calamar al Mojo de Ajo, I did manage to take a few pictures to try and capture the savoriness and flavor. The Calamar al Mojo de Ajo definitely changes the definition of calamari. With such a unique flavor, not only is it not chewy, it melts in your mouth with every bite you take. Ill start off with a picture of that.

…..and this is Robalo ala Cozumel; Sea bass broiled and glazed with a chile paste

…..Mero con Tomatillo; Halibut grilled with roasted tomatillo sauce

……Playa del Sol; Fillet of Sole, layered and topped with crab meat.

and of course dessert. With such a great meal, what better way to end it than to have a delicious and sweet ending? The newly engaged couple ordered the Creme Brule while I ordered the Berry Tostada. The creme brule, was OK in my books. I thought it was a little too rich and too sweet. Although it was still quite delicious. It does have a different taste than the usual creme brule. Still a very good recommendation to end the evening. The Berry Tostada was awesome. Its a medley of fresh berries atop vanilla bean ice cream put into a tostada shell fashioned with almonds. The fruit liqueur dressing that came on the side went great with the berries and ice cream. The almond tostada shell was excellent as well, sweet from the almond taste with a a bit of caramel used to hold it together.

Overall, it was a great night, great company for an awesome engagement. Oh, and I almost forgot about the champagne we toasted with was Perrier Jouet. Awesome champagne by the way, not too dry, light fruit taste and full of flavor.

Congrats again to my friends, the newly engaged couple. I hope you have all the happiness, love, and prosperity in your life and may we all enjoy it together. Always good food, always good drinks and always good times, signing off with “Bon Appetit”

August 4, 2009 - Posted by daFoodAngel | Uncategorized