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Orange County Culinary Events

Hungry? Need to fill your culinary calendar? Here is where you will find all the restaurant and culinary happenings in Orange County. We feature a calendar of special dinners, tasting menus, prix-fixe meals, food festivals and other culinary events, including regularly occurring food events as well as special one-time-only events featuring top chefs. Keep checking back so you can know all that's going on in the world of restaurant and food events in Orange County.

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CULINARY EVENTS

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Through March
Prego in Irvine is celebrating its 25th anniversary by offering a three-course prix fixe dinner featuring dishes from its original 1985 menu. In addition, each course is paired with wines form Prego's extensive list of Italian and California wines. Some of the dishes include a rotolo di formaggi e verdure (mozzarella and fontina cheeses roled with eggplant, zucchini, basil and sun-dried tomatoes), spaghetti alla carbonara and traditional tiramisu. The cost is $19.85 per person (exclusive of tax and gratuity). Prego, Irvine Towers, 18420 Von Karman Ave., Irvine, CA 92612, 949-553-1333.
 

Looking for the freshest produce the season has to offer? Pay a visit to one of Orange County's many certified farmers markets. Find one in your neighborhood!

ONGOING EVENTS

Ongoing
Balboa Boat Rentals and The Cannery have teamed up to combine two of Newport’s best entertainment: boating and fine food. Their Savor the Sea Package features a relaxing two-hour electric Duffy boat rental, along with a to-go banquet of sumptuous food as you pull up to The Cannery’s scenic wooden dock. Three different dining packages are available for up to 10 passengers and start at just $15 per person, plus boat rental fees. Reservations must be made at least 24-48 hours in advance. Balboa Boat Rentals, 510 E. Edgewater, Balboa Peninsula, Newport Beach, 949-566-0060.

Brasserie Pascal Ongoing
Brasserie Pascal offers meal deals that are available all day, every day. Diners can enjoy half a croque sandwich with the soup of the day, salad and potato chips for $10, a two-course prix-fixe menu for $15, Surf & Turf of filet mignon and half a Maine lobster for $20, and a $25 Grill Deal featuring a 14 oz. Creekstone Farm "Chateaubriand" with french fries, grilled vegetables and either béarnaise or peppercorn sauce. (All prices are per person.) Brasserie Pascal, Fashion Island, 327 Newport Center Dr., Newport Beach, CA 92660, 949-640-2700.
 
Wednesday-Sunday
Lucca Café, an upscale Euro bistro located in Irvine's Quail Hill Village Center, serves up the only fresh antipasto table in OC. Regulars nosh on domestic and imported cheeses, charcuterie, olives, marinated vegetables and cold salads while sipping a glass of vino from the restaurant's list of 60 wines by the glass. Lucca Café, Quail Hill Village Center, 6507 Quail Hill Pkwy., Irvine, CA 92603, 949-725-1773.
 
Fridays, Saturdays & Sundays
Shades at the Hilton Waterfront Beach Resort offers a $30 prix-fixe menu on Friday, Saturday and Sunday evenings, in addition to the regular menu. The selections changes monthly. A green theme surrounds the March menu, with items like roasted organic vegetable panzanella salad, free-range lamb chops, white beans with roasted tomatoes and rosemary, and vanilla panna cotta with organic berries and pistachio biscotti. Shades, Hilton Waterfront Beach Resort, 21100 Pacific Coast Hwy., Huntington Beach, CA 92648, 714-845-8444.
 
Fridays
Chef John Garcia of The Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel's Restaurant 162' presents an ever-changing seafood menu every Friday evening. Using only seasonal and regional fish, chef Garcia's four-course menu includes such items as a orange-vanilla-butter-poached lobster and a rispy barramundi with pea puree, heirloom carrots, morel mushrooms, roasted shallots and beet foam. The meal ends with a dessert sampler. The cost is $65 per person. Restaurant 162', The Ritz-Carlton, Laguna Niguel, One Ritz-Carlton Dr., Dana Point, CA 92629, 949-240-2000.
 
Fridays
Avanti Café, a gourmet eatery and deli for vegans on Costa Mesa's hip 17th Street, serves up super fresh margaritas by the glass ($5.50) or carafe ($13) every Friday evening from 6 p.m.-8 p.m. These drinks are made from fresh, organic citrus and agave juices and are always served on the rocks. Avanti Café, 259 E. 17th St, Costa Mesa, CA n/a, 949-548-2224.
 
Fridays
Park Ave. in Stanton features a Friday night four-course shrimp dinner, beginning at 4 p.m. For $25, the dinner includes a Caesar salad and popcorn shrimp, shrimp bisque, 10 pieces of shrimp scampi with creamed spinach and sea salt-crusted baked potatoes, plus a cappuccino crunch ice cream sundae. The price includes tax and service. Park Ave., 11200 Beach Blvd., Stanton, CA 90680, 714-901-4400.
 

Fridays
Surf City USA residents looking for fresh produce and artisan products regularly stop by the Huntington Beach Farmers Market and Art-A-Fair. Approximately 50 vendors participate in the event, which is held on Friday afternoons (weather permitting) at the ocean view Pier Plaza. Admission is free. Call 714-536-2213 for more information. Pier Plaza, PCH & Main St.

Sundays
Five Crowns, an iconic restaurant in Corona del Mar, serves a champagne brunch each Sunday in its English garden. From 10 a.m.-2:30 p.m., chef Dennis Brask cooks up classics such as eggs Benedict, roast beef hash, seafood crepes, tournedos of beef and---the restaurant’s signature dish---standing rib roast of beef. Champagne, breakfast pastries and appetizers are included with the entrée price. Five Crowns also serves Sunday dinner from 5 p.m.-8:30 p.m. Five Crowns, 3801 E. Coast Hwy., Corona del Mar, CA 92625, 949-760-0331.

Wine dinners & tastings at NovusVinum.com

RESTAURANT AWARDS

Just published! Our annual restaurant issue features the Best Cheap Eats and our Top 40 U.S. selections, including including Corton in New York and more!

DINING ON A BUDGET

Splurging at top-rated restaurants is fun for special events, but where can you go for a good quality meal that won't break the bank? Gather the change out of your piggy bank and sofa cushions and take it to one of our selections for the best cheap eats in your area. Also, check out our picks for the Top 40 Cheap Eats in the U.S.