Mayur Cusine of India

Mayur
2931 E. Coast Highway
http://www.mayurindianrestaurant.com/
Visited July 14, 2008 :: Charity, Lorianne and Steve.

I love Indian food and have always wanted to try this place out. I have no idea why in three years I haven't just done it. My obsession started in Chilliwack, British Columbia, Canada with a sweet Fijian sister whose family immigrated to Fiji from India [and then from Fiji to Canada where she met and married her Canadian husband]. She cooked the best Indian food for us and everytime she did, I swear I gained even more missionary weight. She taught us how to eat it like a local--with our hands. To this day, it is really difficult for me to eat curry with anything other than my fingers and warm Roti. Though, we used plates instead of banana leaves, it was quite a good time rolling rice, sauce, chicken and yogurt into bite-size balls and popping them into our mouths with our fingers. A little bit of messy heaven.

I think the staff at Bombay House in P-town loved watching me eat with my hands, but I'm not so sure their Orange County cousins would have appreciated it. Much to my shagrin, I did not touch the meat or sauce with my fingers, just the roti and na'an.

Ambience: 6.5

We were one of two parties enjoying Mayur on this occassion. Monday nights, clearly, are a great time to eat out with no wait in Corona del Mar. The lighting was a little bright for me and the seating a little too open. In my ideal Indian establishment, there are heavy tapestries and wall hangings, dim lighting and close seating. The price-point is a little high for the setting, in my humble opinion.

Food: 9.5
I am not joking around when I say this was really good Indian. I will also not lie when I say that I was initally disappointed by the portion sizes and when Lorianne said, "I am loving the portions," I secretly thought, "that is not going to be enough food for one such as me." I was wrong. It was plenty of food. I ordered one of my favorites, Chicken Tikka Masala. Lorianne enjoyed the Lamb Korma [which I have to add, came out topped with pure silver leaf as a garnish and is not only edible, but very good for you--silver is a natural anti-viral and aids in digestion]. I cannot remember what Steve ordered. However, the Garlic & Spinach Na'an and the Roti met my highest expectations. The Jasmine Rice, also prepared to perfection. Our meal was complimented by refreshing Mango Lasse. mmmm. I should also mention that Mayur is Zagat rated.

Service: 7

Considering we were one of two parties...I think we could've been paid a little more attention. The other party was a curtained room full of Cougars [not the rise & shout kind], and the staff was constantly running back and forth from their table. I felt a little left out. Had I not been privy to that observation, I would've thought the service adequate and appropriate. The best service of the night was when Steve picked up the check and refused to let the ladies contribute. Many thanks, Steve!

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Mayur, the Peacock, is the National bird of India. It stands for peace and prosperity... and arrogance :)

*disclaimer: photos taken with my camera phone and are not all that flattering.

Rothschild's

Living in Corona del Mar I get the chance to pass all of these restaurants on pretty much a daily basis. I have passed by Rothschild's numerous times and never once did I have the desire to try this place. To me it looked like stuffy place that only old people would eat at. So I went into this evening with some apprehension (and with a killer cold). To my surprise it was a pleasant experience. While I was pretty much right on about the stuffy environment and the old people the food was delicious. Adrienne and I got the minestrone soup which was very delicious (and yummy for my cold too). I am not sure exactly what everyone else got but I do know that Holly got some sort of chicken dish and it was pretty much the best chicken that I have ever tasted. Our server was very attentive to us and our needs. He even noticed that Holly loved the to-go bag and brought her another one to take home.

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Ratings: (these are all my opinions not the entire groups BTW)

Ambience: 6.5

Food: 8.79

Service: 8.5

In a discussing the restaurant with the group the consensus was that we were all pleased with the place. The girls and Dan all stated that they thought it would be a good place to take a date. I didn't agree however... but then again I am more of a Taco Bell kind of girl.

Holly enjoying her yummy chicken dish

Charity devouring her pasta something or other.

By far the youngest and best looking group in the restaurant.

Best part of the night is when Dan proposed and Dan and Holly took their engagements shots in the front of the restaurant.

Panini Café

Panini Café
2333 E. Coast Highway
http://mypaninicafe.com/

Visited July 2, 2008 :: Holly, Charity, April, Adrienne, and Lindsey.
Prior to our visit to Panini Café, there was some confusion. Don’t be fooled by Google’s misrepresentation and think it is the same breed as Caffe Panini. One in our party has been avoiding this place for years, all because she thought it too was owned by Ten. Such a shame.

Ambience: 8.5
Suits the cuisine. Once you walk through the doors of this quaint Italian/Mediterranean establishment you feel like you’ve walked off the water taxi in Venice and into a family owned and operated eatery, including the flat screen television playing the evening news. Concrete floors & and canned soda helped create a homey and casual atmosphere.

Food: 9
I enjoyed the use of fresh mint and basil in my homemade lentil suppa and grilled chicken panini with Roma tomatoes on crusty Filone bread covered in melted brie. Mmmmm. Other dishes that adorned our table included a generous chicken kabob plate; seared Cajun ahi salad; couscous with tomatoes, raisins and walnuts; and paninis with goat cheese, sundried tomatoes, pesto, and other yummy ingredients. We followed up our meal with the banana bread pudding con vanilla bean gelato, or was that Dryers? Either way, it was pure goodness.

Service: 7
The servers approached us in a tag-team style. I’m actually not even sure who our server was, but we were well accommodated. They didn’t seem to mind when our party grew & our water glasses were always full (the abundant condensation reminded us that we were, in fact, in CDM). It’s a small place with aspirations of relocation down the street sometime before 2010. There are no reservations, so go early or expect a bit of a wait.

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We highly recommend Panini Café and have affectionately added it to our list of “to revisit…often.”

The Crow Bar

The Crow Bar

2325 E. Coast Highway
http://www.thecrowbarcdm.com

Visited June 11, 2008 :: Holly, Charity, April, Mike and Adrienne.

We had mixed feelings about this adventure to The Crow Bar. It's a contemporary turn on a traditional bar by offering spruced up entrees and other wannabe-fancy fare for too high of price for the quantity and quality of food they serve.

Ambience: 6

We found the atmosphere to be noisy and uninviting. We literally had to shout across our table to hear each other. Other than the noise, the modern decor and layout showed some interesting detail.

Food: 7

The food portions were pretty small for the price. I ordered a burger with fries that came out teeny tiny, but it was only $10. As far as flavor goes, I would've been happier with TK Burger. Charity seemed to love her ahi sandwich and Mike thought his halibut was great (it was served teeny tiny as well).

Service: 3

Our server was miserable. He was an Australian chap with awkward teeth and invincible breath. He was short with us and inattentive, possibly due to the fact we ordered mostly waters to drink. But even when patrons don't drink alcohol, it's not an excuse to treat them poorly and give them virtually no attention.

When we ordered I asked if I could try just one fry (not a whole order, just one specialty French fry from their side dishes), he snapped at me, "No! I will not bring you just a fry!" I was thinking, There is no way this halitosis-bearing loser just told me he would not bring me a single fry to taste-test as a first-time patron to this snobby establishment.

Our food took a while, but what took even longer was our server's attention. He never checked on us or our food and we had to fan him down for the bill. He was a royal Australian idiot.

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So all in all, I don't think I'll ever go back to The Crow Bar. I'm not sure if the others agree, but I think The Crow Bar was pretty lame and overpriced.

Our Goal. Our Passion. Our Summer.

Have you seen how many restaurants line the Pacific Coast Highway? Not to mention the oh-so-many that are packed in Corona del Mar alone? Well, we’ve noticed. Granted, it took us until 2008 to embark on such a monumental, yet feasible goal—but it is in the works: Dining at every eating establishment on PCH in Corona del Mar (with the exception of chain restaurants).

We shall begin our dining experience at the north end of CDM on the west side of PCH until we reach Hazel. Then we will continue from the south end on the east side until we reach Avocado.

We have something to look forward to this summer and invite any of our friends to join us! It will be fun and although it may not necessarily be our passion, it sounded good in the title.

Bon Appétit!