Dining Review -- Stephen Santacroce

* EDITOR’S NOTE: Some artistic license has been taken with this

column. Read with a grain of salt.

A winter storm had replaced the hot, dry, Santa Ana winds with a cool

ocean breeze. I’d been working a restaurant case all morning and had

worked up an appetite. My name’s Santacroce, Stephen Santacroce. I’m a

food critic.

Appetite in hand, I headed to Ruby’s to get something to eat. Ruby’s

has plenty of locations, but I’m a sucker for the original at the end of

the Balboa Pier. Maybe I’m nostalgic, maybe it’s easier to shake a tail

on a deserted pier in March, or maybe I just like the view.

Walking up the pier toward the white and red ‘40s-style diner, I

remembered my first encounter with Doug Cavanaugh, who owned the joint.

It was 1980, and I was a young, cocky critic just starting out. I’d

been dumped on the beach after being worked over by a couple of thugs

hired by a chef who didn’t like it when I said there was too much goat

cheese on his arugula and pine nut salad. Cavanaugh was running along the

beach and stumbled across me dining on a mouthful of sand and seawater.

He asked if I needed help and offered me a lift.

On the way, he told me he’d just sold his restaurant in Nantucket and

moved out here. He’d spotted a dilapidated building at the end of the

pier on one of his runs and thought about opening it as a ‘40s-style

diner. He’d name the joint after Ruby, his mother, who’d been a looker in

her day. As he dumped me at my car, Cavanaugh wished me the best and

promised me a free cup of joe any time I stopped by his restaurant.

I reached the red and white square building at the end of the pier and

noticed it was deserted. I looked around but didn’t see any signs of

trouble. It was then that I noticed a sign posted on the door “closed

until June 2002 for renovation.” So much for nostalgia.

Undaunted, I headed over to the newer Corona del Mar restaurant. From

the outside, the place resembles the original location. A simple white

building with the art deco curves, and glass popular in the ‘40s was

topped with a strip of red neon and adorned with Coca Cola signs. It was

a cheery looking place, and I liked it, even if my mood didn’t always

match the decor.

Inside, a leggy blond in a red and white striped uniform asked me

where I’d like to sit. The uniform reminded me of a candy striper at the

hospital, and if I kept staring I’d be the one needing medical attention.

I thought of grabbing one of the red leather and chrome stools at the

white Formica counter, but I figured I’d get dizzy spinning around to

follow Blondie, so I opted for a red leatherette booth in the corner

instead.

I smiled up at the waitress, and she handed me a menu, informing me

that maybe I’d find something I liked in there. I told her to give me a

few minutes and sent her off for a cup of coffee ($1.69, free refills)

before she cracked wise again.

I glanced at the menu, trying to make up my mind. The food at Ruby’s

is typical diner, served up hot and fast. Burgers are the house

specialty, thick patties with names like the Aloha burger (pineapple ring

and teriyaki glaze, $6.29), big band burger (Dijon mustard and grilled

onions on grilled sourdough, $6.29) or the Aegean burger (feta cheese and

onions, $5.99).

I don’t like to complicate my meals and usually stick with the basic

Ruby burger ($5.29, $5.79 with cheese), and maybe some fries or onion

rings ($1.39 for half-order of fries or $1.99 for rings along with a

burger). Or sometimes, when my cholesterol was low, I’d splurge for a

bacon cheeseburger ($6.59) with thick, crisp bacon and a couple of slices

of Swiss.

Maybe the blond gave me thoughts of getting in shape, but whatever the

reason, I felt like something lighter. I glanced at the salads. The Cobb

($8.29), loaded with chopped egg, avocado, turkey, bacon and blue cheese

might do it, or maybe the Southwest chicken salad ($8.29), romaine topped

with a grilled chicken breast, mild white cheese and tortilla strips in a

cilantro dressing.

I glanced sideways and two legs that could’ve given Secretariat a run

for his money distracted me momentarily. It was Blondie with my coffee. I

told her to give me a few and paused to sip the strong, hot brew. The

coffee is a strong point at Ruby’s, served in thick white ceramic mugs

that were always kept full. Ask for a half-caf-wet-latte, and you might

as well ask for Mideast peace to go with it; and you’d probably have a

better chance of getting the latter.

Plain coffee was just fine with me, especially on those days when I

needed a good breakfast to soak up the scotch I’d polished off the night

before working a case. There was nothing like a good skillet scramble

($6.79) of eggs, sausage, onions, cheese and pepper to soak up the booze,

and a stack of buttermilk hot cakes with syrup and butter ($3.99) or a

pecan waffle ($6.29) did the trick almost as well.

But I wasn’t here for coffee, and if I didn’t order soon I’d probably

get booted for loitering. The cold weather made me think about homemade

chili made with plenty of shredded beef. I could get a big bowl ($3.89)

with lots of cheese and onions), or maybe have it served in a hot

sourdough bread bowl ($5.99).

The waitress arrived just as I’d finally settled on a tuna melt

($6.49) and an order of chili fries ($4.29) -- so much for eating light.

She grinned as she took my order, probably relieved that I’d be too busy

eating for a while to leer.

The food came, and I quickly polished off the tuna salad and Swiss

cheese stuffed between thick slices of grilled sourdough and the fries.

Still hungry, I thought about a slice of freshly baked apple pie ($2.99)

or a banana split ($3.99). But I needed to get back to my case, and

settled on a chocolate malted ($3.39) to go instead.

I paid the check as I sipped on the thick, creamy shake, and winked

one more time at the blond as I headed out the door. I knew we’d meet

again. The good food would keep me coming back to Ruby’s, just as sure as

the promise of a fat check and easy living, however faint, would keep me

working the restaurant beat, certain that maybe somehow, someday, I’d

make a difference.

* STEPHEN SANTACROCE’S restaurant reviews appear every other Thursday.

Send him your comments at sdsanta@oc-dining.com.

FYI

* What: Ruby’s Diner

* Where: 2305 E. Coast Highway, Corona del Mar (other locations in

Costa Mesa and Newport Beach)

* When: 6:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday, 6:30 a.m. to 11

p.m. Friday through Saturday

* How much: Inexpensive

* Phone: (949) 673-7829