New center caters to the hungry

Paul Clinton

The Irvine Co. has opened its third neighborhood retail center in the

city in less than a year, the latest dominated by an array of

restaurants.

Company officials expect the Bluffs Shopping Center, which

officially opened May 27, to draw customers from surrounding

neighborhoods to its eclectic blend of quick, casual eateries and

retail shops.

Three-fourths of the center, or eight of the 12 new shops, are

eateries.

“We think this will be a terrific and complimentary addition to

our portfolio,” said Jennifer Hieger, a company spokeswoman. “The

center is brand new, and already, we’re seeing a lot of people decide

to go there and enjoy those restaurants.”

The Bluffs, at Bison Avenue and MacArthur Boulevard, just off the

Corona del Mar Freeway, is now halfway open.

Daphne’s Greek Cafe christened the center, opening its doors a day

early, on May 26. On the official opening day, Pei Wei Asian Diner,

Baja Fresh, PastaBravo, Quizno’s Sub and Star Nails & Spa were

operating.

By the end of the month, Celebrity Cleaners and T-Mobile are

expected to open.

Later in the summer, Wasa Sushi will open up. In the fall, three

more eateries will open, including Carl’s Jr., Islands Restaurant and

Panera Bread.

The Bluffs came in across the street from Newport North Center,

which includes only a handful of eateries, including Marco Polo

Restaurante and Champagne’s Market.

Both centers should work in concert, since a handful of housing

communities have sprung up over the past year, said Robert Best, a

Costa Mesa shopping center developer.

“One of the reasons why is that the Irvine Ranch is generally

under-retailed,” Best said. “What they’ve done is concentrated a lot

of restaurants. There’s a lot of demand for that. I think it’s well

thought out and will work.”

The Bluffs should also attract lunchtime crowds from Newport

Center, University Research Park and UC Irvine, Hieger said.

The center comes less than a year after the Irvine Co. opened

Crystal Cove Promenade and Newport Coast Shopping Center, two other

neighborhood centers in Newport Beach, in October.

The company has been revamping Fashion Island since the fall. As

part of the renovations, an old-fashioned carousel will be added.

“We are very pleased with the strong performance of our

portfolio,” Hieger said. “Traffic at our centers is up, and we

continue to welcome new stores. [The new centers] are examples of our

confidence in the market.”

In some ways, the Bluffs represents the latest evolution of

shopping center design from the Irvine Co. Architects built in a

large public courtyard, a grove of 30 olive trees, a circling

fountain and even a fireplace.

The goal is to make the center “a warm and inviting place to sit

and relax,” Hieger wrote in an e-mail.

“The Bluffs was designed to mirror a Mediterranean hilltop town,”

she added.

* PAUL CLINTON covers the environment, business and politics. He

may be reached at (949) 764-4330 or by e-mail at

paul.clinton@latimes.com.