Outdoor dining with flair at Sundried

There are surprisingly few places to eat outdoors in Southern

California where you aren’t tasting fumes from the Pacific Coast

Highway or sipping sterility in a strip mall fast food joint.

In contrast, the Sundried Tomato Cafe is set back from the street

and up a few steps on a pleasant patio, surrounded by potted plants.

Sitting at the tables with their crisp white cloths, you are

serenaded by a murmuring fountain and treated to a view of the

passing parade and “village atmosphere.”

The interior is equally congenial, particularly in the evening

when the soft and flattering lighting can transform your dining

companion into a movie star equal to the black-and-white vintage

Hollywood photos that adorn the walls. The decor is tastefully

contemporary in neutral tones, accented with black. A large,

beautiful fresh flower arrangement adds a nice touch of color. There

is a bar on one side of the room, but mercifully the TV was turned

off and the acoustics in the room allowed for quiet conversation,

something of a rarity these days.

Chef Mark Jacobi’s starter menu had so many appealing and original

dishes that we decided to build our dinner around them and order only

a single entree. As we were making our choices with the help of our

charming server, a basket of excellent whole-grain olive bread

arrived, along with a less-than-interesting squishy white French

bread and a bland sun-dried tomato butter.

We began with the blackened chicken spring rolls in honey cilantro

pesto. They had a nice crispy texture, and the sauce was divine. It

would probably be delicious on old gym socks. The portion was

generous and could easily be shared as an appetizer by four people.

The same thing is true of the rare Cajun albacore wrapped around

Japanese peppers and served with a wasabi soy sauce and sweet pickled

ginger. This was an inspired marriage of flavors. The zesty Cajun

crust on the edges of the thinly sliced albacore added a subtle layer

of interest. The little shishito peppers provided crunch and an

intense green taste with just a o7soupconf7 of spice. The

accompanying wasabi, soy and ginger perked up each mouthful, and all

the elements worked together impeccably. This satisfying starter is

also a dieter’s delight.

The jumbo shrimp with chipotle lime glaze topped with wonton chips

might taste better on another occasion when the four shrimp aren’t

quite so well done (which made them a bit rubbery) and there is more

of the glaze. There was a tiny bit of it hiding under the wonton

chips, but it seemed to have avoided the shrimp entirely. A little

less cooking and a little more sauce, and this would have been a

first-rate dish.

For our entree, we chose the boneless breast of chicken with

mascarpone and spinach, topped off with a champagne cream sauce and

accompanied by roasted potatoes and sauteed vegetables. The chicken

was essentially a wrap for the luscious spinach and mascarpone

filling. The delicate cream sauce that caressed it created the

perfect mouth-feel. It was so good that we didn’t even mind that the

chicken was a bit dry. Equally delicious were the perfectly cooked

batons of carrot, zucchini and yellow squash. We also loved the

roasted rosemary potatoes, but our forks dueled over the plate for

the really crispy ones, which we both liked best.

Among the other inviting entrees are peppered mustard salmon, sea

bass with teriyaki aoli, rib-eye steak with horseradish butter, rack

of lamb, short ribs with a pan Asian glaze and a pork tenderloin with

hoisin chipotle barbecue sauce.

On the lighter side are several sandwiches, including a

mouth-watering lamb burger. There are also entree salads featuring

the same preparation of salmon and pork. The sauteed shrimp salad

combines the delightful honey cilantro pesto, chopped baby greens,

almonds, red bell peppers, grilled carrots, Napa cabbage and pan

Asian dressing.

The only disappointment of the evening was the polenta cake with

fresh berry compote. The cake seemed to be mighty short on polenta,

which lends the traditional Italian version a satisfying crunch and

taste of cornmeal. This pale imitation had the texture of white cake.

The compote (cooked fruit in a syrup) was more like a sweet jam.

Perhaps we should have gone with one of the other two choices: the

chocolate espresso sundae or the warm chocolate decadence cake with

chocolate fudge.

The Sundried Tomato is also open for lunch with an abbreviated

version of the dinner menu and a plowman’s lunch -- in this case,

half of a pesto and brie sandwich and a cup of creamed sun-dried

tomato soup.

In terms of portion size and the quality of the food, Sundried

Tomato Cafe gives excellent value for the money. This is especially

true of the extensive wine list. The markup on wine is far less than

at many comparable restaurants. There is a good selection of wines by

the glass and many quality wines in the $30 range.

IF YOU GO

WHAT: Sundried Tomato Cafe

WHERE: 361 Forest Ave. (949) 493-3312

WHEN: 11:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. Sunday to Thursday. 11:30 a.m. to

10:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday.

COSTS: Starters: $6-$15

Salads: $7-$17

Entrees: $19-$29

Desserts: $17

Wine $18-$250

By the glass: $7-$13

Corkage fee: $15.

* Editor’s note: A previous review of Picayo restaurant contained

two errors. Picayo is open seven days a week and does not offer a

special rate for artists on Thursdays.