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Since 1969, restaurant, hotel, travel & other witty reviews by a handpicked, worldwide team of discerning professionals—and your views, too.

First Cabin Restaurant Review

The Balboa Bay Club & Resort
1221 W. Coast Hwy. Send to Phone
Newport Beach, CA 92663
949-645-5000 | Make Restaurant Reservations
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Classic Cal-Euro cuisine with a Newport Harbor view. First Cabin Restaurant is one of our 2012 | Top 10 Orange County (CA) Romantic Restaurants | Top 10 Orange County (CA) View Restaurants | Top 10 Orange County (CA) Outdoor Dining Restaurants | Top 10 Orange County (CA) Mother's Day Brunch Restaurants |

Cuisine

Open

Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner daily

Features

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Dining room at First Cabin, Newport Beach, CAThe Balboa Bay Club & Resort’s First Cabin restaurant sits right on scenic Newport Harbor and has a comfortable, classy interior and a sunny patio. The menu features classic Cal-Euro fare, as well as some traditional dishes from chef Josef Lageder's native Austria. Breakfast has lots of healthy options, and traditional American favorites like eggs Benedict and buttermilk pancakes. At lunch, you can order up the creamy lobster bisque with its big bites of lobster, or opt for a sandwich, entrée salad, steak or seafood. Dinner is a more formal affair, so start with the house-cured gravlax carpaccio, classic escargots Bourguignon or seared ahi with lemon grass-scented avocadoes and a delicate seaweed salad. For mains, try the seasonal specialties or signature dishes like butter seared sand dabs, classic Châteaubriand for two, juicy Colorado lamb rack or the Austrian-style paprika rahm schnitzel (veal scaloppine in a mushroom Cognac sauce accompanied by homemade spätzle). Dessert is worth the wait, especially the carrot cake and warm chocolate torte. The wine list is full of well-known bottles, mostly from California and France.

User Ratings & Reviews for First Cabin
Average rating    1
Reviews 1 - 1 of 11
Terrible
by mx71 on 12/17/2010
 
As a professional chef, I have certain expectations when it comes to a restaurant, food and service independent of each other. If the service is below expectations, the food can make up for it, and vice versa. In the case of The First Cabin, both fell short.

It started with an arrogant server, who looked down upon our table being that some of my fellow diners needed some menu items explained. It followed with a minimum 45 minute wait for our 2nd course, 3 other tables having come after us being served first, Not to mention it tasted like it had been under heat lamps for half an hour once it was finally received. The final course was on time and delicious.

Upon voicing our concerns to the FOH manager, all we got was a sorry. The manager implied that we were in the wrong for bringing it to his attention. Upon checking my bank account the next day, I noticed an amount charged to me greater than I had signed for. The FOH manager on duty on that day :) me that they charge a 20% authorization charge until the payment clears. In all my years of experience, I've never once dined at or worked for a restaurant that necessitated such a charge. That being so, I was charged more than the guaranteed 20% hold regardless. The last straw for me was after calling and voicing my concern to what I was told was the service manager, he told me he was too busy to talk to me and the restaurant needed his attention.

Needless to say, neither I or any of my acquaintances will ever return to this establishment. Nevertheless, I welcome them to try and rectify this.
 
Reviews 1 - 1 of 11



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