Dining Review -- Stephen Santacroce

Orange County diners have been known over the years for being not only

conservative in their politics but in their culinary tastes as well.

Chefs migrating from Los Angeles or San Francisco have often been

frustrated as their more exotic creations draw little interest, while

steaks, chops and other traditional dishes fly off the menus. Luckily,

this is slowly changing as chefs such as Pascal Olhats, Scott Brandon and

Tim Goodell push the envelope of Orange County diners’ palates.

Food lovers, restaurant owners and wine buffs have had one Orange

County spot they all come back to, the Golden Truffle in Costa Mesa. It’s

here, behind an unassuming storefront in a strip mall on Newport

Boulevard, that chef and owner Alan Greeley has for years delighted his

loyal customers with his creative dishes.

It might come as a surprise to many that Alan, a Costa Mesa native, is

a self-taught chef with no formal training. This may account for some of

his creativity -- if you don’t learn the rules, you don’t have to worry

about breaking them.

The Golden Truffle is an extension of Alan’s catering business, which

he started 20 years ago. The business needed a kitchen, and combining the

catering business with a restaurant seemed a good idea. Today the

catering business still accounts for most of Alan’s business, and the

restaurant, which is open for lunch and dinner (it’s not unusual for

customers to blend one into the other), has developed the respect of a

loyal legion of customers.

The Golden Truffle is as unassuming inside as it is from the street. A

simple green awning marks the storefront locations. Inside, the main room

consists mostly of a wine bar and the large exposition kitchen. A large

saltwater tank houses lobsters, anchovies and whatever other seafood that

might be on the day’s menu. The walls are adorned with awards and

articles denoting Alan’s many years of success. Another, slightly more

formal dining area runs off the main room, with seating that’s easily

configured for larger groups.

Trying to discuss the menu at the Golden Truffle is somewhat of an

exercise in futility. Many regulars either order the four-course fixed

price menu of the day or call ahead to ask the gregarious Greeley what he

might be able to fix up to suit their tastes.

If you’re not having a special menu created for you, the next level of

choices involves the specials. Greeley does not believe in using frozen

ingredients, and steaks and fish dishes do not appear on the regular

menu, but rather, will be listed based on the choices he finds at his

butcher or fishmonger.

While most restaurants might offer a handful of dishes not offered on

the regular menu, it’s not unusual at the Golden Truffle to be recited a

list of 15 or 20 “specials of the day.” Sometimes they will focus on a

single, seasonal ingredient; porcini mushrooms or truffles in the fall,

for instance. Recently, soft-shell crabs were in season and were featured

in a dozen or so different dishes.

As an appetizer, a friend and I shared one in a buttermilk batter

($12) that was fried and served with a homemade tartar sauce. The crab

was picked perfectly (soft shells are picked as they grow, right after

their hard shell sheds. If they’re picked too long after this happens,

the new shell begins to form and they can be tough), and came out of the

fryer crisp, without any excess grease. The tartar sauce had a Creole

spiciness, perfectly offsetting the shellfish.

Soft-shell crabs made another appearance a week later, this time in a

hand roll of tempura-fried crab and sauteed Asian vegetables ($8).

Instead of a seaweed wrapper, as might be expected of this sushi-style

dish, the crab was wrapped in a thin, flour tortilla, creating an

intriguing combination of flavors. Another special offered that evening

featured tiny zucchini flowers ($18) stuffed with soft brie cheese and

quickly fried with a light batter coating.

One special that is consistently on the menu is the duck du jour

($24), half of a slow-roasted duck served with a variety of sauces. I had

the dish recently with an intense raspberry peppercorn sauce. The duck

featured a crispy skin that peeled away to reveal moist, succulent duck

meat that was well complemented by the fruity sauce. I couldn’t taste

much of the peppercorns, though, nor could a friend who is somewhat

allergic to them.

Alan’s ingenuity is evident in another recent special, Miyagi beef

($24). This dish features a cut of beef resembling a small pork

tenderloin that’s been roasted and served simply with its own juice The

cut has the texture of a filet combined with the flavor of a rib-eye

steak.

Greeley explains that the steak comes from the first cut of the New

York strip, there are only two per animal. If cut as a normal steak, the

result would be a gristly, inedible piece of meat. Greeley figured out a

way to cut the strip without any of the gristle, resulting in a truly

unique dish. As to the name? Well it’s named after the coach in the

“Karate Kid” movie. Any other questions?

Not all of the specials work as planned, such as a recent dish of

angel hair pasta with mixed seafood ($24). The fish and shellfish in the

dish were all fresh and perfectly cooked, and the savory tomato-based

broth was well-flavored. The problem was the pasta itself: Angel hair is

a thin spaghetti that cooks very quickly. In a brothy sauce such as the

one served with this dish, the pasta has a tendency to continue cooking

and become mushy. It’s why the Italians usually use a more substantial

noodle, such as linguine, in this type of dish.

To accompany these creative dishes, Greeley and his catering manager,

Letia Short, have assembled an eclectic and well-priced selection of

wines. I was pleased to see a Gainey Limited Selection Sauvignon Blanc as

a choice; I enjoy this central coast wine’s almost chardonnay-like

characteristics, which result from its oak aging. I was even more pleased

to see it selling for a modest $30, considering that it sells for about

$20 a bottle retail. Corkage is $15 if you’d like to bring your own.

The only disappointment at the Golden Truffle is the service. The

young staff is inexperienced, and as a result the dining process is not

as smooth as it should be. Mostly little things occur, such as cutlery

not being replaced after an appetizer when the entree is served, having

to ask several times for a wine bucket, servers not remembering who

ordered what (for a table of three), or in one case my salad being served

with my entree.

On another night, we ordered a dessert to share with our coffees, and

waited almost 10 minutes before our server came and informed us they were

out of our selection. Some time spent training the staff would go a long

way to improve the overall dining experience at the Golden Truffle.

Service missteps aside, the Golden Truffle is still a wonderful place

to experience some of Orange County’s most innovative and exciting

cuisine. Whether choosing from the myriad specials or sticking to menu

standbys, such as slow-cooked pot roast or the maple-smoked fried

chicken, you won’t walk away bored.

The excitement that comes from creativity is alive in at least one

local restaurant, and anyone who considers himself or herself a “foodie”

owes themselves a visit to the Golden Truffle to experience Alan

Greeley’s inventive offerings.

* STEPHEN SANTACROCE’s dining reviews appear every other Thursday.

FYI

What: The Golden Truffle

Where: 1767 Newport Blvd., Costa Mesa

When: Tuesday through Saturday, lunch 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., dinner

6 to 10 p.m.. Closed Sunday and Monday

How Much: Moderately expensive

Phone: (949) 645-9858