TABLEAU – South Coast Plaza https://www.southcoastplaza.com Tue, 17 Jan 2023 19:51:12 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.1.1 Weekend Escape: Brunch + Shop @ South Coast Plaza https://www.southcoastplaza.com/stories/2023/01/weekend-escape-brunch-shop-south-coast-plaza/ Sun, 15 Jan 2023 09:06:42 +0000 https://www.southcoastplaza.com/?p=87625

WEEKEND ESCAPE:  BRUNCH + SHOP

Our favorite weekend destinations at South Coast Plaza

Weekends are meant to be restorative. Self-care, rest and perhaps some retail therapy are on the menu. Two favorite pastimes—brunching and shopping—are the perfect complement and South Coast Plaza offers the best of both. Here are four favorite brunches that are served Saturday and Sunday.

Tableau Kitchen + Bar

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SOUTH COAST PLAZA

WEEKEND BRUNCH SPOTS

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The covered terrace, lush with exotic plants and cozy with heaters, has a bustling brunch scene. Regulars and newbies come for chef Ross Pangilinan’s fusion offerings—cuisine based on a French foundation layered in with Filipino flavors. 

The top seller is chef’s signature pork cheek adobo & fried egg with hollandaise, an addictive garlic fried rice and finished with chimichurri and crispy shallots. 

Another favorite is duck & French toast—a confit duck leg is paired with thick cut, custardy French toast topped with blackberries and warm maple syrup— a taste sensation of savory, crunchy and sweet. Ross takes the same French toast to the islands with tropical fruit, toasted coconut, macadamia nuts and crowned with a picture-perfect scope of ube (purple yam) ice cream. 

Chef John Park’s philosophy is straightforward:  Brunch should be served daily rather than waiting until the weekend for a little indulgence. Fans agree and avail themselves of his creative brunch offerings served until 3 every day. 

A full bar offers a variety of A.M. cocktails but the mimosa flight lands on many a table—four stemless flutes are filled with well-chilled bubbly then topped with juice combos– guava jasmine, kalamansi mandarin, strawberry lemonade and blueberry hokicha.

Popular sweet dishes include jasmine milk tea French toast with brioche, strawberries and candied lemon as well as mixed berry pancakes—blueberry pie compote, graham cracker streusel and farmer’s market berries, finished with whipped chamomile cream. 

A signature is the chicken and waffles and trust us, you haven’t seen a delicious interpretation like this: Golden crispy fish-shaped taiyakis are filled with kecap manis custard and paired with garlic soy chicken wings. 

Savory options include a luscious mushroom toast with soft scrambled eggs, tomato sofrito, crème fraîche, spinach and shallot vinaigrette. Try the unique salmon chilaquiles rojos—grilled salmon, avocado, black beans, chamomile pickled onions and a sunny egg—the unusual combo of grilled fish (textbook crispy skin) works well with the Mexican breakfast classic. 

Rock and roll chef Nick Weber serves up French café classics for weekend brunch, interpreted with his unique touches. You won’t find a more authentic rolled French omelette, rich with creamy brie and a tart crème fraîche drizzle, served with greens dressed with a lively vinaigrette. Bonus: crispy but tender potatoes.

Permission granted –unlike Monday-Friday lunches—for a leisurely start with a brunch cocktail. The ruby-hued sparkling Kir Royal is splendid; the refreshing French Shandy blends lemonade with elderberry and beer.

Weber’s talents include that of baker: he personally makes his own buttermilk biscuits every morning. They’re used as the foundation for his take on strawberry shortcake with sweet cream, macerated berries and strawberry crunch. Chef’s favorite, though, is the eggs Benedict: The fluffy biscuits are topped with Fra’ Mani’s lightly smoked rosemary ham and just-poached eggs. For a Parisian touch, the hollandaise is laced with champagne. Hungry diners will dig into steak and eggs—a perfectly cooked and tender sliced Bavette steak, plated with eggs over easy that’s immensely satisfying.

Outpost Kitchen is the place to be weekends—the patio, dining room and bar are buzzing. Reservations are highly recommended. Mixology is a finely honed art here and a popular morning starter is the Mesa Michelada —India pale ale, bone broth-infused tomato juice with a rooster spice blend rim. A tribute to South Coast Plaza’s affinity for luxury is The Gucci– Luna azul blanco, campari, lime, agave, Italian blood orange soda. Something the Gucci family would agree on—è delizioso!

Australian proprietor  and founder Jay Lewis’s attention to detail and vision behind every dish is apparent. Just about everything is made from scratch daily—from the cold pressed juices squeezed fresh to hot sauce;  cocktail  garnishes are dehaydrated in-house and no expense is spared on raw ingredients. You taste the difference.

The Land Down Under created two brunch staples: flat whites and avocado toast—both not to be missed at Outpost. Fresh avocado slices are fanned over hearty country toast, topped with a tangle of green, house-made red pepper pesto, feta and finished with lemon olive oil. Eggs are optional.

A head turner is the smoked salmon & shrimp Benedict—a towering plate of perfectly cooked seafood atop toast, poached eggs, hollandaise, pickled onion and whole grain mustard. Generous portions allow for sharing. A one-of-a-kind creation is the bangers & smash. It has it all—English pea pancakes, smoked cheddar mash, fried eggs, dolly gravy and BBQ Hungarian sausage—the lime keifer yogurt lends brightness to the indulgent dish.

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]]> Tableau Kitchen and Bar https://www.southcoastplaza.com/stories/2022/02/tableau-kitchen-and-bar/ Mon, 07 Feb 2022 07:07:56 +0000 https://www.southcoastplaza.com/?p=70248

TABLEAU KITCHEN AND BAR

Q&A with Chef John Park and Restaurateur Ed Lee

 

The newly opened Tableau Kitchen and Bar is on its way to becoming a local favorite.  A collaboration between Chef John Park and restaurateur Ed Lee, this casual eatery in the Crate and Barrel wing is all about New American cuisine with global influences and unique twists.

For Lee, previously known for co-founding the popular Wahoo’s Fish Taco with his brothers, this eatery is the latest addition to his successful independent restaurant ventures.

Meanwhile, Park brings to Tableau a resume full of diverse experiences under the tutelage of major chefs, including stints in Los Angeles at the Michelin-starred Providence, XIV by Michael Mina, Lukshon, Father’s Office, Koi, and Water Grill.

Park’s strong pastry background shines at breakfast, with dishes ranging from mushroom toast to an Asian-inspired take on chicken and waffles. Lunch savory offerings include delicious sandwiches made with crunchy artisan toast and unusual fillings like roasted eggplant or fried burrata.  For dinner, green curry mussels and uni pasta are foodie favorites. Some diners like to pick up the freshly baked pastries or cookies on the way out to enjoy at home.

South Coast Plaza recently chatted with Lee and Park about their latest venture. Here are excerpts from that conversation.

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Q&A WITH ED LEE AND JOHN PARK

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SOUTH COAST PLAZA: After your success with Toast Kitchen + Bakery, why did you and John decide to open a restaurant at South Coast Plaza?

ED LEE: John and I initially met while he was working a pop-up shop selling pies at a restaurant that I was helping out at. One day, while at the Wahoo’s at South Coast Plaza, I noticed an empty space available to rent. Every day I would walk by the vacant space and sensed that we could utilize it.  Since Toast’s main focus has always been breakfast and brunch, I knew John wanted to showcase his culinary skills surrounding other food, and that this would be the perfect location.

John Park and Ed Lee

SCP: How would you describe food and approach at Tableau?

LEE: You can always tell when John has touched something because it will have his own unique flair. He uses flavors that oftentimes, you aren’t quite able to put your finger on. His ability to put unexpected twists on classic dishes is unparalleled. For example – our jasmine tea French toast – who does that? His approach is unlike any other.

Photo: JT Harsadi

SCP: John, when people talk about your culinary talents, they always mention your mastery of savory and sweet.  How did that develop? 

JOHN PARK: The focus of my career has always been sweets and pastry but I took time to pay attention to the savory cooks. I have been fortunate to have worked at some great establishments and under the tutelage of talented chefs. I took advantage of that and learned so much.

SCP: What’s your attraction to brekkie dishes?

PARK: Breakfast is easier to incorporate my pastry background since some dishes are sweeter, like French toast and pancakes.  I use my baking background for the house-made everything spice bagel for the citrus-cured salmon.

SCP: What’s a personal favorite?

PARK: My favorite breakfast dish now is our play on chicken and waffles. We make classic Korean fried chicken wings glazed with sweet garlic soy and instead of a traditional waffle we serve two taiyakis filled with kecap manis pastry cream. Kecap manis is an Indonesian sweet soy sauce that when mixed with custard creates an amazing salted butterscotch-maple flavor. 

LEE: My favorite dish is the curry mussels — it’s mind blowing and unlike anything I have ever tasted. Another favorite is the avocado mousse. The dessert brings me back to drinking avocado smoothies during my childhood in Brazil. If you grew up anywhere such as South Asia or South America and you taste this mousse, you will be immediately brought back in time.

SCP: How about a favorite among the many seafood dishes?

PARK: On the dinner menu, I love our salmon dish with misugaru gnocchi, lima bean pesto and fish sauce vinaigrette. Misugaru (a powder made from roasted grains popular in Korea) lends a nuttiness; the fish sauce vinaigrette brightens it up.

Our most popular seafood dish, however, has been the green curry mussels with sweet potato, fresh herbs, serrano chiles and an outstanding poblano chorizo that we source from The Chori-Man in San Pedro.

SCP: Please tell us about the plan for the upcoming community table. 

LEE: The idea behind the community table came about when John asked, “What else can we do to help our community?” The community table gives us the opportunity to fundraise once a month while simultaneously showcasing the remarkable talents of John and the kitchen team at Tableau.

John’s dream is to end world hunger and homelessness. The community table allows us to work to this goal one small step at a time. It also helps build connections with the community members that we are helping, and to perhaps one day, provide them a job at the restaurant.

SCP: We understand it’s important for you to support the underserved in the community.  At Tableau, which organizations are you assisting?

PARK: Our first non-profit partner at Tableau is Vocational Visions, based in Mission Viejo, whose mission is to create pathways to employment, life-long learning and social inclusion for adults with intellectual/developmental disabilities.

SCP: About the restaurant’s name – what’s the thinking behind it?

PARK: Tableau comes from the old French for “picture or painted target.” We usually use tableau to describe a vivid lively scene like a happy gathering around the table. The significance for me is that gathering and connection.

At Tableau there’s a great photo of my four kids at a table, celebrating a birthday. Guests have commented how happy they look. My hope is that our guests can experience that same joy whenever they dine with us.

MATCH STONEWARE

ONLY AT SOUTH COAST PLAZA

Hot drinks at Tableau are served in beautiful handmade ceramic cups from Match Stoneware. “We’re excited to be the first restaurant in Orange County to showcase Match’s ceramics,” Park said. “What I love about their pieces is that it looks like a lot of time, effort and thought went into them. We hope that guests have the same reaction to our food.”

TABLEAU KITCHEN & BAR

LEVEL 1, CRATE AND BARREL WING
714.872.8054

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