Occasionally we stumble across an Orange County restaurant that meets our OC Locavore seal of approval. We look for locally sourced ingredients prepared in a fresh and innovative way.
In the Newport Beach strip mall location where the highly regarded Pascal closed its doors some months ago, we've discovered a wonderful new restaurant - Juliette. This little gem - at the moment a diamond in the rough - is well worth the trip. The Executive Chef, Daniel Hyatt, is currently sourcing from the venerable Santa Monica Farmer's Market; but he is attempting to find even more local Orange County ingredients.
Open less than a month ago, the kitchen is still working out a few minor kinks. That said, we've dined there 3 times in the last 8 days, so they are definitely hitting all the right buttons. Comically, one of our favorite dishes one evening was a mistake - the heirloom tomato, watermelon, buratta cheese, arugula, and balsamic dressing salad was accidentally made with beets instead of tomatoes. We happily munched through half the salad before we caught our waiter's eye to point out the mistake. He quickly replaced the salad as described on the menu, which was equally appetizing.
Not to be missed is the Farro Risotto, made with squash blossoms, trumpet mushrooms and Swiss Chard. Farro is a barely-like grain -- chewy and nutty -- and while it sounds fairly hearty for a summer menu, it delivered a big plate presence on a small plate menu. This treatment was so tasty that we have reconsidered our previous notion of risotto as a wintertime dish. Other favorites are the Tuna Crudo, with an amazing jalapeno mango sorbet and micro shiso (although one night the dish was a little too soupy), and the Beer Braised Octopus with gnocchi, Castelvetrano olives and Romesco (which is essentially a Spanish pesto). The french fries include an excellent house made ketchup and harissa aioli. For dessert, one night we had a cheese platter, and the Pierce Point cow cheese from Cowgirl Creamery was outstanding. Another night we had the fabulous Salted Caramel Pot de Creme.
Despite our minor quibbles (which include the lack of any amuse bouche, bread, or even breadsticks to tide you over), we will be returning again very soon. Given Pascal's long tenure in this location, we can only hope that Juliette will enjoy the same longevity. If not, it won't be for the lack of our patronage..
