Good restaurants in the General Irvine Area

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<p>Oh the best ribs is Tulsa Rib in Orange on Collins and Tustin. I haven't been to Johnny rebs in a long time so I must go back.</p>

<p>I need to go to Turners because I went to high school with the manager there. Hopefully I can get a high school discount too.</p>

<p>I swear nirvinerealtor I am not picking on you but Taco Mesa has gone down hill in the last few years. As trivial as this sounds they changed their pinto beans to refried and I haven't been back since. I emailed them too and no response. It may not count for much of their business but I did spread the word about them and I know that if you multiply it out they should at least respond to my email. They did open a Taco Rosa in the marketplace though so I will go check that out. </p>
 
The closest "Taco X" to Irvine is Taco Rosa in Newport Coast on San Miguel, behind the Pavilion supermarket. My wife insists that I point it out...





For chinese dim sum, go to China Garden on Walnut and Jeffrey; for dinner go to Sam Woo on Culver and Deerfield. At all cost avoid the Sam Woo in Costa Mesa. For home style chinese food, go to Phoenix-something at Walnut and Culver. There may be better chinese food elsewhere, but these are the best in Irvine.





And yes, we love Honda-Ya in Tustin too! Get there early or risk standing on line forever.





When we lived in Manhattan we went to a great Scandinavian restaurant called Aquavit. Is there any good one around?
 
Don't know of any Mongolian BBQ in the Irvine area, but know of a good one in Fullerton.





Mad Wolf


<address> 4110 N Harbor Blvd


Fullerton, CA 92835 </address>

(714) 879-6651





Fairly inexpensive, all you can eat at $10 a person...or is it $8.








I wouldn't bother with Chinese food in Irvine. None of them are any good. You'd be better off traveling to Hacienda Heights / Rowland Heights in LA County.
 
This is not Mongolian BBQ but if you like Persian food I highly recommend Paninni in Corona Del Mar. My g/f and I go their quite often and you can get a 2 filet cabobs, bruschetta, a bottle of wine, desert, and an espresso for less than $100.00. Might sound like alot of money but you can eat on all of this for 2 days.
 
<p>Nobody mentioned VN food. Try Thanh.</p>

<p>15315 Culver, at Irvine Center Dr.</p>

<A href="http://www.thanhrestaurant.com"><p>http://www.thanhrestaurant.com</p></a>
 
<p>graphrix,</p>

<p>Beans! No worry, I will get an answer for you direct from the owner. I have been asking him for years to open his restaurant in the Market Place area.</p>
 
"Can anyone recommend a good Mongolian BBQ place?"





I love Ghengis Kahn in Costa Mesa. It's on 17th near Santa Ana, sort of behind the IHOP.





Bummer to hear about Taco Mesa. I haven't been in years, but keep wanting to go, but haven't yet. Looking forward to the new Taco Rosa, though.





OCF - thanks for the VN rec. We had been going to one on Barranca off of Culver (in with a Thai place and a Lampost Pizza), but don't know enough about the cuisine to recommend it one way or another, although we like it.





For Indian, we like Swaad (http://www.swaadirvine.com/) off of Culver and Alton.





The only Scandanavian restaurant I can think of is the cafe at IKEA.
 
I just had lunch at Taco Rosa in the Marketplace and it was very good. Really busy and they haven't worked ot the service kinks yet. The had the original pinto beans there so I was happy. Must take siesta now.
 
For fast, cheap and delicious Carne Asada burritos, mahi tacos, and the like, try La Sirena Grill in Laguna Beach (Mermaid St, in the village behind Sorrento Grille).





Unbelievably good and cheap Chinese food at S.W. Bar-B-Q Seafood, 5406A Walnut Ave, Irvine. Always crowded.
 
...and for those of us who overindulge in the Irvine area Fine Dining scene....there's a Jenny Craig on Culver and Walnut. I'm exactly 14 days in and 10 lbs down! WooHoo!!! My counselor is Stephanie and I swear, between how incredibly awesome she is, and how surprisingly delicious the food is, I feel kinda like I'm at a swanky spa in my own house.



Me and Valerie Bertinelli, we could be twins. I am in a race with her to see who can drop 30lbs the fastest. I love JC!
 
Graphrix,





We had the same experience at Taco Rosa! We frequent the Taco Rosa in Newport and decided to give the new one a try. The food still was excellent but the service definitely has some kinks to work out. The wait was pretty long but we'd still go back. We were all carded even though we're all 30...the waiter looked at my husband's license more intensely than any waiter I've ever seen - it was pretty funny. He even called the manager over to get a second opinion!
 
<p>I am so glad to learn that Taco Rosa is here locally; I am a big fan and Mexican food is not even my favorite. I am going there for lunch today.</p>

<p>ohnelly, you must not be a native here in Irvine. It's a very conservative town. Kids here are taught in elementary SMOKING and DRINKING are LIFE ABUSE! </p>

<p>Food Food Food, great selections. We all love good food here. I think this make OC an attractive place to live.</p>
 
If you guys are willing to go a little south,





Cosmos Italian Kitchen in Aliso Viejo is a good Italian place. Most of their stuff is decent. I LOVE their diavlo sauce. Caution: It can be very spicy!


<a href="http://events.ocregister.com/venues/show/25846-Cosmo-s-Italian-Kitchen">Link</a>





Mario's Cucina in San Juan Capistrano. Good food in general. I like their Swiss Chard ravioli. The owner is very nice. Apparently they make almost all of their pasta from scratch.


<a href="http://orangecounty.citysearch.com/profile/32541574/san_juan_capistrano_ca/mario_s_cucina.html">Link</a>





If you're willing to drive WAY down south, here's a shameless plug for my friend's family-owned sushi restaurant in Encinitas. The Blue-Fin roll is highly recommended.





Blue Fin Sushi


257 El Camino REal Suite D&E


Encinitas, California 92024
 
There are 3 good places on Lido that are great for dates



The Cannery - a bit pricey but very good food. Upstairs is lively and downstairs is formal. Make a reservation on weekend nights though because it is crowded.



Sabatinos - this is out of the way on Lido, kind of in the little neighborhood. It has great Italian food and at night a guy sings on the patio. It is very relaxing. Try the sausage appetizer - sounds weird but it is excellent. Google it to get directions because it is hard to find.



Bluewater Grill - This place is good for seafood. The bar area is fun and casual. The prices are good for seafood.



For a really nice dinner, try either Bungalow or Landmark on PCH in CDM. Both have great food and high prices. Both are also good if you just want to go for drinks. I think Bungalow has free filet sliders on Monday or Tuesday during happy hour, but call and double check the day. They are delicious! Both are places that your wife will have an excuse to dress up for if she (or you) is into that.



In Irvine, I actually really like Il Fornaio even though it is a chain. The food is good and the service is always great. It is kind of in an office complex though, so that is a little strange. You can park in the complex for free if you don't like valet.



Plums in Costa Mesa is great for breakfast, although it does get crowded.



Another good breakfast place is The Cottage on PCH in Laguna and right across the street is Las Brisas which has a good champagne brunch but not so great lunch and dinner.



Try Mozambique in Laguna for something different. The patio upstairs is a really cool atmosphere. They also have live music.



For a sports bar, try Chronic Tacos in Triangle Square. Guys like this place because the girls wear skimpy outfits and they have a ton of TVs and greasy mexican food.



Also, Rudy's on the Peninsula can be a fun place to watch sports if you are into the 20-something crowd.



Also, I am a huge fan of Taco Rosa in Newport too, try it if you haven't. It has great prices.



I just went to Royal Khyber (sp?) in Costa Mesa across from SCP for Indian and really liked it, although it was pricey for Indian food. Try the vegetarian Thali, even if you aren't vegetarian.



Your wife will love the chocolate soufle at French 75 or Chat Noir.
 
<p>i second eek's comment about the mongolian place, mad wolf! we go there for lunch all the time. a little hole in the wall, not the prettiest on the inside, but goooood food. its about 8 bucks for all you can eat. or you can get one big bowl for like 6 bucks.</p>

<p>yummm.</p>
 
There's another Mongolian BBQ place just south of Mad Wolf called Great Wall. It's on Harbor blvd just south of Harbor & Imperial HWY. Great Wall Mongolian BBQ is a little cheaper and usually not as crowded.
 
Found a store on Ebay selling discounted Entertainment Books for Orange County with lots of great deals for local restaurants. We buy one of these every year and love the great deals.





<a href="http://www.stores.ebay.com/Discounted-Entertainment-Books">www.stores.ebay.com/Discounted-Entertainment-Books</a>
 
Random places in Irvine I like to go to:





*Gelato Amore at University Town Center


<a href="http://biggestmenu.com/rdr/CA/Irvine/Gelato-Amore-1591338/Vanilla-Gelato-Piccolo-sized-14199"> http://biggestmenu.com/rdr/CA/Irvine/Gelato-Amore-1591338/Vanilla-Gelato-Piccolo-sized-14199</a>





*Pho Bac (Vietnamese noodles) at Barranca


<a href="http://biggestmenu.com/rdr/CA/Irvine/Pho-Bac-1591299/value-platter-31341"> http://biggestmenu.com/rdr/CA/Irvine/Pho-Bac-1591299/value-platter-31341</a>





*Pasta Bravo at Barranca


<a href="http://biggestmenu.com/rdr/CA/Irvine/Pasta-Bravo-1-1590435/Chicken-Linguine-Pesto-22936"> http://biggestmenu.com/rdr/CA/Irvine/Pasta-Bravo-1-1590435/Chicken-Linguine-Pesto-22936</a>





*Panera Bread at Barranca


<a href="http://biggestmenu.com/rdr/CA/Tustin/Panera-Bread-1593705/You-Pick-Two-36066"> http://biggestmenu.com/rdr/CA/Tustin/Panera-Bread-1593705/You-Pick-Two-36066</a>





Kinda pricey, but standard. Hm... this looks like a boring selection The IKEA restraunt food is good too, in Costa Mesa.
 
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