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

Innovative sushi at Ikko

By Greer Wylder

February 22, 2010

Ikko is for sushi lovers with an open mind. However, it’s not for anyone looking for sushi rolls or even soy sauce on the table. The tiny restaurant is known for its innovative delicacies at the hands of skilled sushi artist Ikko Kobayashi. Sit at the bar and ask for the omakase (chef’s choice), which starts at $60 for six courses and you might wind up with treats such as the steamed egg custard with sea urchin sauce and black truffles, oysters with ponzu mousse or foie gras tacos, and so on and so forth. Otherwise, tasty picks include the…

Southern comfort

By Greer Wylder

February 16, 2010

Old Vine Cafe has long been known for its fabulously approachable wine-paired dinners, but savvy fans already know that the Costa Mesa eatery serves up some serious brunch and breakfast fare as well. And now, Sunday brunch has gone southern: two eggs, fresh-baked biscuit with honey butter, house made scrapple and a panko-crusted fried green tomato—makes for some must-eat morning eats, no? For those who prefer something less breakfast-y, there’s also a new salad of seasonal greens, hearts of palm, artisan-cured ham with crispy-fried artichokes tossed in a creamy tarragon dressing and aged pecorino. You can also never go wrong…

Spring for these rolls

By Greer Wylder

February 06, 2010

Where to go if you’re in coastal OC and have a hankering for Vietnamese spring rolls? That would be easy: Bamboo Bistro in Corona del Mar. The sister restaurant to Little Saigon’s famous Brodard Restaurant, Bamboo Bistro serves a more mainstream clientele with its fusion offerings. Take Bamboo Bistro’s roasted duck spring roll, for example: tender and flavorful duck with crispy skin nestled in fluffy vermicelli noodles, lettuce, cucumber and crunchy asparagus, all wrapped in a translucent and chewy rice paper wrapper. It’s a refreshing appetizer, but be forewarned, you’ll want to eat more than one serving. There are other…

A Slice of NY by the sea

By Greer Wylder

February 01, 2010

New York-style pizza in Seal Beach? You betcha. The tiny pizzeria on Main St. may be mere steps from the beach, but it really does deliver a respectable rendition of NY’s beloved pie. Pizza-lovers have long been hailing Slice of New York Pizza as one of the most authentic joints in Orange County for giant slices of pizza with just the right thinness and crispness (ask for the crust to be extra well-done if you want that more crunch). At $6 for two slices and a soda, you can’t really beat that now can ya? It gets packed quickly, but…

Still smitten: Lola Gaspar

By Greer Wylder

February 01, 2010

After more than year in business, downtown Santa Ana’s darling gastropub-meets-tapas bar is still going strong. Three words you should become acquainted with when you arrive to Lola Gaspar: duck confit fries. The dish—which features pulled duck piled on a crispy bed of fries and topped with salsa verde, crema and queso—is a tasty play on carne asada fries, a popular Mexican fast food treat. Come to think of it, Lola Gaspar’s menu pays homage to another street food: tacos, except you can find specialty versions including venison and buffalo meat tacos, too. The mac & cheese, served in a…