Starfish Asian Coastal Cuisine

Starfish Asian Coastal Cuisine

Upon entering Starfish - the latest venture for local Laguna Beach resident and business owner, Nancy Wilhelm - I zone out and escape from busy Pacific Coast Highway where the cacophony of street cars buzz in my brain and the dusty funk of engine exhaust wafts through my nostrils. As I’m escorted past the hostess cubicle to my table, I find myself engulfed in a warm Shangri la and instantly my perception shifts from frenzied to peaceful-exotic as I anticipate the upcoming continental feast.

For her encore Nancy has succeeded in creating another alluring dining establishment with Starfish Asian Coastal Cuisine. Le Cordon Bleu graduate Chef Jarvis Yuan - a native San Franciscan reared by Taiwanese parents - is credited for confidently expediting dishes with his talented kitchen staff. Having spent many days of his childhood hanging out in his family’s many restaurants, Chef Jarvis confidently transports flavors from Southeast Asia to south Laguna Beach.

The setting of avant garde Asian inspired décor: thick padded-jade colored banquettes, shiny black lacquer furniture and Asian antiques, rekindles my memory of the wonderful dining establishments I visited in Southeast Asia. For an instant I consider a surreptitious pinch to my arm. Am I merely just minutes away from my home? Immediately I notice the pretty emerald colored glass tiles glistening from the horseshoe shaped bar where attractive mixologists cater to thirsty and equally attractive bar patrons. I gently shake the marbles in my dome grounding myself back to reality. A little voice in my brain confirms that I am in Laguna Beach and advises me to sit back against the comfy banquette and enjoy the culinary adventure.

Ahi poke, Korean style tacos, Vietnamese pho, garlic noodles and whole Asian style fish are merely a sampling of the many dishes I have enjoyed at Starfish. And that does not include the fabulous cocktails and dessert. I’m not quite sure where to begin!

Sichuan Yu Sang small Japanese eggplant is slow braised to tender perfection with house made sambal – Asian spicy chili sauce. I could have devoured this whole side dish alone had I not been forced to share with my dining comrades. A slow braising method reveals the rich deep purple hue of the eggplant and the sweet-salty and spicy combo triggered my greedy craving for more!

Starfish poke - small chunks of yellow fin tuna, crunchy pine nuts, micro shiso and tobiko caviar - is tossed with a hint of truffle oil and served with a side of taro chips. Traditional sesame oil does not over power this dish and the woodsy truffle oil blended with aromatic tiny shiso leaves is a nice gourmet touch.

The highlight of my dining experience at Starfish was the “fish of the day.” My dining group and I decided on the wok braised method. After all, woks are essential cookware in an Asian kitchen – it would have been sacrilegious not to eat wok fried fish. Choy sum (inner core of bok choy) cabbage, sweet Thai basil, black bean sauce, bits of sweet garlic and bright red Thai chilis are generously ladled over a whole slightly-crispy fish. In an interesting, non-traditional presentation, the fish seemed to “stand on its own” as it was methodically placed in a sculptured u-shape form on the plate. One of the servers offered to “filet” the fish and, needless-to-say, the server could use a little more experience filleting whole fish. But the flavor was lovely and I would not hesitate to order this dish upon my next visit to Starfish.

My first experience with the garlic noodles left me feeling less than satisfied due to the oil which had coagulated at the roof of my palate. Alas, never give up…every restaurant deserves another chance. Upon my third trip to Starfish, I ordered the wild mushroom garlic noodles. Third time was a charm as these noodles were prepared well with a blend of three types of exotic mushrooms, sweet basil and delicate noodles. One taste confirmed the over- dressing of oil problem had been solved although my dining partner complained that the ratio of noodles to veggies seemed a bit out of balance – he would have liked more veggies in the over abundant noodle mound.

I would gladly visit Sarfish solely to drink the specialty cocktails. A groovy libation is the Citrus Brynner made with Hangar One Citron Vodka, elder flower liqueur, white wine, grapefruit bitters and lemongrass. As I sip my refreshing aperitif, I remind myself of the medicinal benefit of lemongrass being a gentle degestivo and I take root looking forward to my upcoming dessert.

Those in the know appreciate my love for all things coconut – especially coconut cuisine! Therefore, at the conclusion of my savory meal it was imperative that I had my very own order of coconut panna cotta. To my delight I was served an over-sized portion of Bavarian cream layered with essence of exotic passion fruit. Although the consistency was a bit gelatinous, the flavors and creativity of this dessert was wonderful. I closed my eyes and savored each layer separately. As I enjoyed each individual flavor again I was reminded that Nancy, along with Chef Jarvis, had succeeded in transporting me – even for a brief repast – through the tastes, sights and smells of Asia at Starfish. Bravo!


Open Daily 4:00p.m.
Spirits, Beer & Wine

Oki Doki

“Oki Doki” is located in Costa Mesa in a small shopping center at the corner of Bristol and Paularino. The restaurant serves lunch and dinner and offers healthy Japanese, Vietnamese and Chinese style food.

If you do not arrive before noon, good luck my little pork dumpling…there are a handful of other restaurants in the center that cater to the busy lunch crowds - therefore, parking is very limited. I spent about 10 minutes looking for a parking spot (and yes, “patience is a virtue”!). The dining establishment is pretty small with about 18-20 tables so you may feel a little crowded.

I started with a “Thai Ice Tea” which is a mixture of Thai tea, sugar, cream and condensed milk (try not to think about the calories!). My tea was flavorful and not too strong or sweet.

The “Imperial Rolls” are rolls wrapped in rice paper and filled with vermicelli, shrimp, basil, cilantro, mint leaves, bean sprouts and julienned lettuce along with a peanut dipping sauce. Although the accompanying sauce was very good, my roll was over-stuffed with vermicelli noodles and not as much shrimp as I would have liked.

Some folks think you should not go to a Chinese style restaurant without trying Egg Drop Soup. Oki Doki makes a wonderful egg drop soup with a nice flavor, velvety texture and plenty of pieces of corn…I thoroughly enjoyed it!

My dining partner and I decided to share the “Seafood Chow Fun”, a combination of calamari, shrimp, scallops and imitation crabmeat (pounded white fish), bok choy, tomatoes, carrots and broccoli served atop chow mein noodles. Although we asked our waitress to have the chef “spice up” the dish for added intensity, the entre came to us sans the requested spice. Bummer! The combined flavors were delicate but tasty none-the-less.

We also had the “Chicken with Vegetables” and I have to admit the dish was quite dull, lacking in rich flavors. The chicken was skinless, boneless white meat but very plain in seasoning. Guys, don’t get me wrong, I understand some folks like simple food with delicate flavors! I did not take photos of the dishes since there was practically no variation in appearance compared to my Seafood Chow Fun dish. I will say that all the veggies in the dishes were very well prepared in that they were slightly crunchy and not soggy or over cooked.

The service was lacking, possibly because the restaurant was full and it was the lunch time crowd. We asked our waitress more than once for extra water and had to inquire about one dish that came to the table late.

My desire is to return for their dinner menu since it looks much more interesting with items such as “Sautéed Shrimp & Scrambled Egg”, “Burdock Salad”, “Little Neck Soup” (most likely clams), and “Seafood Pancake” to name a few.

My take on Oki Doki is that their lunch menu offers dishes that cater to folks who enjoy simple food…simple food for subtle palates! All in all, I will return and give Oki Doki another chance, albeit, not during the lunch hour so that I can avoid the traffic jam in the parking lot and try the interesting dishes that are only available on their dinner menu.

Cheers!

Open daily. No lunch on Sunday.

"O" So Good

Friends, a new restaurant has moved into our lovely town. “O fine japanese cuisine” (yes folks, that’s the correct spelling) is located in the Albertson’s shopping center at Pacific Coast Highway and Wesley Drive in South Laguna. “O” is an off-shoot of a small chain of Japanese restaurants based in Irvine. Upon entering the eatery, behind the blue beaded curtains, you will find a small dining room which offers traditional Japanese cuisine and a lovely sushi bar that has a warmly-lit countertop which is filled with pretty cut blue glass. The ambiance with soft mood lighting, sushi bar countertop, beautiful hanging hand blown blue pendant lights, along with comfortable seating, is very inviting!

When my husband and I walked in we were graciously greeted by a smiling staff, seated and immediately served a nice amuse-bouche (a single, bite-sized hor’doeuvre, different from an appetizer, not ordered by the customer and selected by the chef as a pre-dinner treat). Our amuse-bouche was radish slices which were marinated in sesame oil, soy sauce and sprinkled with sesame seeds. Very tasty and a nice change from typical soba noodles or marinated cucumber slices.

Our meal consisted of:

Hamachi Belly Sushi;
Yellowtail Kampashio;
Crunch Salmon Tataki Roll;
Yellowtail Hand Roll;
Steamed Asari Clam Soup;
Mountain Potatoe w/Umei (Chef special treat);
Yellowtail Bones (ribs) Baked w/Garlic Chips; and
Mango Pudding w/Seasonal Fresh Fruits

The pieces of fish for the sushi were very large and very fresh. No skimping on fish at “O”!! My Crunch Salmon Tataki was a visually gorgeous cut roll filled with crab meat, crispy tempura shrimp and white onions (we had our sushi chef add asparagus for some veggie) then rolled with salmon slices that had been dredged lightly in cornstarch and quickly seared on the outside. The final result was a delicious roll which was topped with ponzu garlic sauce and red tobiko (flying fish eggs). I also tasted a hint of smokey flavor, very nice. Yes sir…may I have another!!

A wonderfully refreshing treat was the Yellowtail Kampashio. Small cucumbers cut into delicate flower halves were filled with a generous portion of sliced yellowtail sashimi then topped with jalapeno slices, tobiko and pickled wasabi. I have never had “pickled” wasabi and found it to be a little hot and spicy…just the way I like it!

For all you clam lovers out there you must have the Asari Clam Soup. The soup is a very simple but tasty light clam broth with an over abundance of fresh clams which flavors intensify over time. Delicious.

Mountain potatoes anyone? Prior to my maiden voyage to “O”, I had never heard of these little taters. The julienned potatoes were served sushi style in nori surrounded by a quail egg; shiso leave and umei (salty plum paste). When I popped one of those babies in my mouth the raw quail egg exploded and the crunch from the mountain potatoes and salt from the umei blended very well together. Obviously, raw quail eggs are an acquired taste but this chef’s surprise was a delight!

My evening concluded with the Mango Pudding which was topped with fresh fruit (diced strawberries, blueberries and kiwi). When I tasted the pudding I could only think of an exotic summer day…very light, refreshing and not too sweet. The pudding and ice cream are made fresh every week.

As for the booze menu, “O” stocks 24 (yes, 24!) premium sakes, including, but not limited to, Hot Plum Sake, Grape Sake and Yuzu Omoi Sake (with a citrus scent from the yuzu oranges). They also carry traditional Japanese beers, red wine, white wine and champagne.

As a local in Laguna for over 20 years I have been a loyal fan of the same sushi bar in town. I must admit I enjoyed stepping out of the box and trying a different sushi restaurant. O fine japanese cuisine is splendid, the chef is very creative and the sushi extremely fresh. I highly recommend “O", they definitely have my seal of approval. Welcome to Laguna Beach “O”!!



Open daily – lunch too!
Convenient parking and good $price$ point
Shelley Teng (owner)