Greer's OC | The latest in Orange County fashion, dining, and trends.

Serious Slurping in Anaheim

By Greer Wylder

September 12, 2010

Kappa Ramen just opened in Anaheim sporting a funky ambience in the same strip mall spot as former ramen-ya Lai Lai Ken. Kappa Ramen is a restaurant for serious slurping. Only those up on Japanese folklore will know Kappa as the mysterious water creatures with a fondness for food, mischief, sumo wrestling and of all things, good manners. It’s chef/partner Eiji Kanazawa hails from Kyoto, Japan and is a familiar face from some of Orange County’s best-known Japanese restaurants, including Genkai in Irvine and Corona Del Mar, and Japon in Lake Forest. Whether you’re a traditionalist ramen devotee or are…

Savoy for Small Plates!

By Greer Wylder

July 03, 2010

Looking for a new place to dine? The Savoy Restaurant and Lounge just opened at The Hotel Hanford, a new boutique-style hotel near South Coast Plaza. The Savoy specializes in a small plates tour of Europe created by Executive Chef Michael Carpenter, and to compliment the cuisine a private wine salon and tasting room is due to open late summer with an award-winning selection from Sodaro Estate Winery, as well as select wines from Napa Valley’s Coombsville region. A sample of the Savoy Restaurant menu includes a trio of tempura shrimp, seared ahi tuna and baked sea scallop; spicy tuna,…

Taste Test

By Greer Wylder

May 24, 2010

OK, so it didn’t happen overnight, but good things are worth waiting for. It took Fleming’s one-year of tasting, testing and perfecting more than 50 additions (where can we get a job like that?) before narrowing it down to eight new menu offerings. And now, Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse has added smaller portion sizes, healthier options, at accessible prices. Fleming’s enlisted two culinary experts, LA-based Chef Jamie Gwen and Tampa-based Chef Jeannie Pierola to create two new innovative steak dishes, deemed New Classics. Chef Jamie Gwen created a porcini-rubbed filet mignon, reinventing the classic pairing of blue cheese and filet mignon.…

Welcome to Rustica!

By Greer Wylder

April 25, 2010

The much-anticipated Rustica, an exclusive new restaurant by award-winning Chef Grant MacPherson just opened at Fashion Island. Rustica features a blend of modern Italian and California cuisine. With some 50 acclaimed restaurants and dining concepts worldwide already under his belt—namely, Malaysia’s Datai Hotel, Raffles Hotel in Singapore, Wynn Las Vegas and Wynn Macau—Rustica will be where he returns to his first passion– cooking. The menu offers almond wood-fired flatbreads, hand-crafted pastas and unique salads, as well as entrees like black peppered Kobe Beef carpaccio, wild mushroom risotto and roasted Pacific salmon with white beans. Favorites on the menu include tuna…

French Happy Hour!

By Greer Wylder

April 25, 2010

Bistro le Crillon in Newport Beach, known for its award-winning wine list and Provencal cuisine, just launched “bouchon hour” (5 to 7 p.m. Monday through Saturday) featuring white and red wines by the glass for $4.95 and free tapas. Many of the wines are highly-rated vintages from California, France, Italy and Argentina. And Bistro Le Crillon also serves a new three-course prix fixe dinner menu, and a special Sonoma Cutrer gift box set, ideal for wine connoisseurs. The menu features a starter selection of mesclun mixed green salad, traditional Caesar or soup of the day; the entrée choices include Norwegian…