Let the Culinary Journey begin

August Restaurant Reviews:

Pascal – San Juan Capistrano

This restaurant was sponsored by Ann Carter in June. You go to the counter, order your food and it’s brought out to you. A group of 8 went. An additional 2 other people showed up and the restaurant was able to accommodate them.  The pate sandwich was excellent. The lamb panini was very good.

They also have a bakery counter as well as a prix fix monthly menu. This restaurant is highly recommended.

Lulu Creperie Café – Laguna Hills

Sponsored by Sharon Kvas – This restaurant  was opened over 30 yrs. ago by a French woman. She is still a waitress there 3 times a week. There is a large breakfast and lunch menu. They specialize in both savory and sweet crepes. 11 people went and most ordered savory crepes and enjoyed their meal. The staff was efficient and accommodating. Separate checks were no problem. They happily moved the set-up from inside to outside dining as there was a nice breeze. Kudos to Lulu’s !

Coast Fish Company – Irvine

This restaurant was sponsored by Muriel Asch & Betty Talcott. Located in the Los Olives Marketplace where the Whole Foods is located. 8 people attended. The lobster roll and the calamari sandwich was great.

They also have generous food portions.

 

 

 

Bellman Grill Malaysian Bistro – Tustin

Sponsored by Liz Blecker. She mentioned that she goes back and forth on this restaurant as sometimes their service could be improved. Their food is very authentic and excellent. This food has lots of flavor.

This time around they were way more organized in their service. One of the foodies commented on their chicken curry dish being very good. They have great pastry. The ambience is also great.

ARC – Costa Mesa

This restaurant was sponsored by Liz Blecker. A group of 8 people attended. This place has been rated as number 8 of the best restaurants by Orange Coast Magazine. All their food is cooked over a wood-fired grill.

They have great pizza and their tomato bisque was one of the best Liz had ever tasted. Judy Blando ordered the soup. Leslie Palm commented that her calamari came out in a sizzling cast iron pan and was told to transfer it to a plate to stop the cooking process.

Annette Howard was taking a group or anyone who wished to go after our meeting over to the The Pub (the old Scarantino’s) off of El Toro. They have great prices. Leslie Palm commented that their pineapple upside down ice cream dessert was very good.

 

Signature Sports Bar – Laguna Niguel

Richard Bourke indicated that if you like watching sports, this roomy bar has many screens with great comfort food and a good crowd.

UPCOMING SPONSORED RESTAURANTS

Carol Agon commented on how easy it was to “sponsor” a restaurant. She had previously sponsored Café Matinee in May and it was her first time. All you do is call the restaurant, work with the manager to make a reservation for the group. Make sure they accept separate checks. Many times if they don’t the restaurant may limit the size of the group, or ask for cash. Contact all the people that have signed up to go and confirm.

Ghengis Khan – Wed., 8/22  Dinner @ 5:30 pm

23615 El Toro Rd. Unit P, Lake Forest (949) 951-8296

Sponsored by Carol Agon (805) 610-1043

This a Mongolian BBQ type restaurant – Noodle & rice dishes cooked on a large grill in front of you, plus a Chinese menu in an airy, group-friendly space.

Greek Bistro Authentic Greek Cuisine – Thurs., 8/30 Lunch @ 1:00pm

25292 McIntyre St. & La Paz, Suite A, Laguna Hills (949) 249-2222

Sponsored by Pat Gahan (949) 586-0830

Beautiful restaurant, great patio, friendly service, fresh ingredients.Outstanding food with a friendly staff.

South of Nicks – Mexican Kitchen & Bar – Wed., 9/5 Lunch @ noon

540 So. Coast Highway, Laguna Beach (949) 715-3717  ( Cash Only !! )

Sponsored by Peggy Mc Caughey (949) 870-8058

Compact, brightly colored destination for creative takes on classic Mexican fare.

Carol DaVona will be sponsoring another wine tasting at another time. More details to come on that.

We will be having an ice cream social at our next meeting. Ice cream will be provided, however, we are asking members to provide the toppings.

 

OTHER CLUB NEWS:

Foodies had a speaker from the Laguna Woods Foundation board, Pat Leftwich,  come and speak with us.

The foundation is an all volunteer board that was founded in 1997 as a need to help residents became clear.

It is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization, a non-profit corporation.

More than 94 cents of every dollar goes right back to the residents. Assistance is provided for prescriptions, paying utility bills, medical/dental bills, taxi vouchers, gas cards, Stater Brothers cards, caregiver services, etc.

They have 2 appeals or calls for donations yearly. Many of the clubs will donate. Sometimes there is money left in trusts for the Foundation. They do have a website: www.foundationoflagunawoodsvillage.org.

Leslie attended the President’s meeting for clubs. It was decided that 90% of club members must be residents of Laguna Woods. There are 3 names that need to be submitted as contacts for that club. For 2019 at least 3 names for officers will need to be submitted by March. She has received the billing for our room for the 2^nd Sat. of every month. We have asked for Dining Rooms 2&3 and moved our barbecue to the month of June in 2019. She anticipates getting a “storage” room for the group in 2019.

She also stated that Lovern and Zoe Swanagon had originally started foodies about 4 years ago because they wanted a group to go out and do their fine dining with. At that time, they were responsible for putting out the newsletter, doing the treasurer and restaurants coordination, in addition to running all the meetings. Then about 1 year ago, Lovern passed away. After 1 year in Foodies now needs new members to step up and continue on with these duties. Some present members prefer to continue in their role, however, it has been found that it works best having a minimum of 2 people per role.

There will be a board meeting and an email will come out for all the new people who have volunteered to take up a new duty. This will provide a “transition” and some kind of continuity for the newer folks. Anyone interested in a position please email or contact Ron Atkin @ Ronald.Atkin@yahoo.com or (562) 761-3421 or

Leslie Palm @ LesliePalm@comline.com or (949) 588-0726.

OTHER RESTAURANT / WINE NEWS:

Carmen Pacella (our BBQ chef) talked about the Orfilia winery down in Escondido. As the son of a wine vintner in Italy he and his wife have traveled the world and tasted many wines. They highly recommend the wines at Orfilia. He talked about the possibily taking a group down sometime during early December. Perhaps the group could hire a van. Of course, this all depends on how much interest/participation there would be in wine tasting.

Newsletter Sponsored by Diane Mendoza: