Newport Beach Restaurant Week 2010 - Things to Do in Orange County 66

It's that time of the year again. Newport Beach Restaurant Week is starting this Friday.

January 22nd - 28th, 2010.

http://www.newportbeachdining.com/restaurantweek/restaurantweeksplash.asp

I personally love this event. I know that they have the Orange County Restaurant Week, and Dine LA in Los Angeles. But this Newport Beach Restaurant Week just has a special aura to me. You sort of have this sense that it's a local city thing, and its nice to get to know all of the great areas and restaurants around Newport Beach.

Anyway, I just wanted to recommend a few things since this is my third time attending this event.

1. Go for lunch. Lunch is cheaper to go compared to dinner. You spend only $15 or $20 for lunch compared to $25 to $35. If you go with two people, it makes a huge difference in the total bill after you finish eating.

2. If you want to save money, be cheap, and just order water. Drinks tend to add to the total bill, and I'm not sure if you want to do that because part of the fun is being able to eat great food at a great restaurant for a great price. So just drink H2O. It's good for you, and its free.

3. Check out the lunch menu on the online menu feature they have on the event's official website. Some restaurants are a little cheap, or they just didn't want to put the extra effort to put up a good menu for you. They will only give you two courses, or count a soda as your first course. It is a suppose to be three course prix fixe menu, so when that happens, it is a bit disappointing. Of course, some other restaurants are extremely generous on their offering, and that's what I'm going to show you next.

Out of my experience, these are the restaurants that give the best deals for the Newport Beach Restaurant Week. Again, try to go to these places for lunch. Unlike the Dine LA event, the Newport Beach Restaurant Week allows you to reserve during the weekend. So you should be having lunch at these places this weekend.

Anyway, here are my recommendations. All of them are hyperlinks so just click on them to see my review.

• Cannery Restaurant

• The Ritz Restaurant & Garden

• The Beachcomber at Crystal Cove, Part 2

• Tommy Bahama Island Grille

I've tried all of the restaurants above with the exception of Tommy Bahama Island Grille, where I am going to kick off this year's Newport Beach Restaurant Week with. They are all worth your money and time.

Hope you enjoy it too!

http://www.newportbeachdining.com/restaurantweek/participating-restaurants.asp

The Hobbit - Things to Do in Orange County 65

So, you're looking for a special dinner for that special person?

Well, look no further than to The Hobbit in Orange, CA. This is probably one of the most special dinner experiences you will ever treat someone to in Orange County.

The Hobbit is a special little restaurant that's been around for some time. The owners transformed their house into a restaurant. Once you're here, you'll feel just like family.

The evening starts off by some cocktails with other guests if you get there a little early. You will need reservations to dine here, so as long as you made it, they will have a tab set up for you under your last name. Just go up stairs to enjoy some cocktails at the bar with other guests. When we were there, people were celebrating their anniversaries, birthdays, and just having a special dinner with good friends.

Once you have your initial cocktails, you are led into The Hobbit's basement - their wine cellar. They will welcome you with a glass of champagne and many many hors d'oeuvres. The hors d'oeuvres are served buffet style, so you are welcome to eat as much as you want. Of course, you do not want to over do yourself here because you came to The Hobbit for a 7 course dinner. That being said, all of the hors d'oeuvres are just awesome, and I definitely went for seconds and thirds.

Alongside your hors d'oeuvres, since this is the wine cellar, your main purpose here is to pick out the wine you want to have during your dinner. The staffs at The Hobbit will help you pick out some of the best wines from all over the world. Since we're no sommelier, we decided to go with the wine pairing option that they have for people like us.

Once you are done with this step, you are off to your table. The servers here are amazing, and the setting is also beautiful. You will definitely be in for an experience when you dine here. Our dinner started at about 7:30PM and we were there till about 11:30PM dining. There's actually an intermission between your meals since its so long. How about that for an experience?

Here was the menu that we had when we went.

1) Champagne & Hors d'oeuvres

2) Olive Poached Swordfish, Fava bean & Fennel, Quinoa Salad, Red Pepper sauce

3) Grilled Quail, Rissolee Potatoes & Braised Artichokes, Baby Leeks, Thyme Jus

4) Marinated Heirloom Tomatoes, Baby Rochet Arugula with Basil Vinaigrette, Goat Cheese

5) Sorbet

6) Garlic & Herb Crusted Rack of Lamb or Fresh Alaskan Halibut

7) Grand Marnier Scented Ice Cream, Apricot Compote with Almond Cake

Needless to say, we were quite full after the experience.

The Hobbit is definitely a place you want to bring that special someone for that special day in Orange County.

Be sure to make your reservations before you decide to go. And just as a final note, there is a dress code here just in case you were wondering.

The Hobbit

Website

2932 E Chapman Ave
Orange, CA 92869
(714) 997-1972