Maybe to keep crazy dogs like Sassy away from the world at large. Just kidding. Sassy is Janet's Shih Tzu, and she's really cute and sweet, but hyper as the day is long. We decided to go on a walk down to the beach, but left Sassy behind as apparently she was too tired and would need to be carried half the way.
The cool thing about Janet's gated community is that there is a path that leads down to the Dana Point coastline. It was a cold and foggy day, but the beach and hillsides are still breathtakingly beautiful, and it was a really nice walk. We passed both the St. Regis hotel and the Ritz Carlton on our way down the ocean. Of course our biggest motivation for taking the walk was to prep for our fabulous dinner later. After about 3 miles of walking, we felt like we had created enough of a calorie deficit to head back to the apartment and get ready for a fun night on the town in Laguna Beach.
Thanks to some Chowhound recommendations, we chose 230 Forest Avenue restaurant. The place was packed, and we had to wait a while to be seated in spite of reservations, but we were also running a bit late thanks to a very slow cab driver. We sat at the bar and ordered two glasses of Hess Select Cab Sav, one of my favorite wines, and within 10 minutes were escorted to our table.
The bread, hot and fresh, came in a paper bag and was served with a side of olive butter. Now usually I don't like olives, but the butter was actually quite good. And the bread was crusty on the outside, and nice flaky, buttery wonder on the inside.
We started with two appetizers: the roasted beet salad with hazelnut crusted goat cheese and shallot vinaigrette, and the prosciutto wrapped shrimp with mozzarella, herb pesto and young basil. The roasted beets could have been cooked a little longer, but overall the dish was very good - especially the goat cheese. And the shrimp dish was perfect and an interesting combination of flavors. The fresh mozzarella was a nice contrast to the tangy pesto and salty prosciutto. A winning combo.
Wonderful shrimp with pesto
The service at 230 Forest was spot-on and they clearly know how to handle their stuff even on the busiest of nights. We had both forgotten it was St. Patrick's Day, so downtown Laguna Beach was rampant with rabid drunken types, all hungry for a good meal. Our waitress was friendly and attentive, and she kept a watchful eye without hovering or getting in the way.
For dinner, Janet ordered the wild King salmon in a saffron and tomato broth. She gave it a thumbs-up and said it tasted good. The presentation was nice and it looked appetizing, though for some reason I didn't take a bite - think I just plumb forgot!
I opted for the seared Ahi tuna with lobster mashed potatoes and edamame. The tuna was crusted with black and white sesame seeds, which was good but I think they overdid it with the sesame. I can understand the use of this nutty seed to balance a fishy fish, like mackerel, but with fish as neutral as Ahi, I don't really get the purpose. All you taste is sesame seeds. However, the fish was fresh and perfectly cooked. The accompaniment of lobster mashed potatoes was something that seems like a good idea, in theory, but it just doesn't work. I love lobster, and I love mashed pots, but together, it was like a fishy blob of paste. I don't think fish or shellfish really works as an ingredient in mashed potatoes. I think a jalapeno mash or a saffron mash would have worked better with this.
The edamame was good, and the sauce was nice as well. I liked but didn't love, sigh. But stay tuned for Part 3, as a little French brunch place saves the weekend with some delectable mid-morning fare.
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