The Gossiping Gourmet: Find great authentic Caribbean cuisine at Eva’s

Eva’s back in the kitchen, and the food is better than ever. As the owner of a small restaurant, you have to wear many hats. In her role as hostess, Eva Madray is one of the warmest and most charming women on the planet. In her role as executive chef, she develops the recipes, makes the sauces and desserts, and oversees the kitchen every night. She also drives around a good bit of Southern California in search of the freshest fish and hard-to-find island ingredients for Eva’s Caribbean Kitchen.

Callaloo soup is as common in the Caribbean as onion soup is in France, but this is the only place in Orange County serving this delicious soup. Misnamed perhaps, because Callaloo is a vegetable that is not available here, except in cans. Fresh spinach is considered a good substitute. The other de rigeur ingredients are coconut milk and okra, which thickens the soup a little but virtually disappears so as not to offend okraphobics.

The rest is pure improvisation. Eva’s excellent version is made with clam and lobster broth, garlic, shallots, napa cabbage and just a touch of coconut milk. It is light and flavorful and hard to stop eating. Interesting to note, it is made without any salt. At first we were tempted to ask for salt but by the second taste, we changed our minds and just enjoyed the perfectly balanced flavors.

The crab and sweet corn cakes are mostly Dungeness crab with just a bit of sweet corn for flavor and texture rather than filler. A very crunchy exterior surrounds these very generous-sized patties, which are served with a fabulous mango-pineapple salsa with chunks of fruit, making it like a salsa-flavored fruit cup. The cold, spicy, sweet, fresh fruit provided the perfect enhancement for the mildly flavored crispy cakes. One cake would have been more than adequate as an appetizer. The two would easily make a satisfying entrée with a side such as plantains or mashed potatoes. We liked the new presentation of this and several of the other dishes.

To have your appetizer and salad in one dish, try the punani greens. This combines five coconut-breaded jumbo shrimp, with mango chutney on the side and mixed baby greens in a light passion fruit, raspberry vinaigrette. These are big juicy shrimp in a delicate, crispy crust with just a hint of coconut and nary a hint of grease.

Caribbean conch fritters are also known as Caribbean Viagra — conch is considered to be an aphrodisiac in the Islands. We can’t speak to the latter but this mixture of chopped conch, sweet corn and roasted peppers, perked up with garlic and lime are definitely good to eat.

The aubergine choka is nice for sharing. This smoky chopped eggplant dip with garlic, shallots, chiles and onions is served with toasted pita bread.

Fish is always a good choice at Eva’s because she makes such an effort to find the freshest available and serve it at a reasonable price. We chose the fish of the day — red snapper. If you think this might be a very ordinary offering, think again. Eva’s seared snapper was as sweet, moist and tender as you could hope for. So good that it really didn’t need the thick madras curry that topped it.

Eva is famous for her pan-roasted Chilean sea bass, the only expensive fish on the menu but in a very generous portion.

She is also famous for her generosity of spirit as well as food. If you’re here for the heat, because Caribbean cuisine is spicy, you might try the blackened catfish, which is dredged in Eva’s house-made Cajun spice blend, then seared and served in a black French skillet with grilled pineapple, roasted pepper and passion fruit relish.

Jerk spices are the classic Caribbean seasoning and you’ll find them here on barbecued salmon, half-grilled chicken or Harris Ranch grass fed rib-eye. Jerk seasoning is usually a hot mixture of allspice, Scotch Bonnett pepper, cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg, thyme, garlic and scallions, used to flavor meats, chicken or fish before grilling or roasting. Eva’s makes her own secret recipe with just a touch of heat but she will make it spicier on request.

She also prides herself on her house-made desserts: guava cheesecake, chocolate bread pudding, banana passion fruit flambé and key lime pie. We were forewarned that the key lime pie was very tart. However, for us this was a recommendation, as we find most desserts too sweet. It was, in fact, mouth-puckering, but oh so good, just sweet enough and very refreshing.

In addition to the restaurant, there are also special events throughout the year based around rum tastings. The next will be “For the Love of Chocolate and Rum” at 7:30 p.m. April 22.

If you haven’t been to this colorful spot on Coast Highway in South Laguna with outdoor seating in the warmer months, you may have trouble seeing the sign, so look for the twinkling lights in the foliage, announcing this cozy little Caribbean eatery.

If You Go

What: Eva’s Caribbean Kitchen, (949) 499-6311, evascaribbeankitchen.com

Where: 31732 Coast Hwy.

When: 5 p.m. to closing Tuesday through Sunday

Sunday brunch starting March 28

Prices:

Appetizers: $6.50 to $14

Entrées: $19.50 to $38

Desserts: $8

Wine:

Bottles: $18 to $120

By the glass: $7 to $9

Corkage Fee: No charge during the week. $8 on weekends

ELLE HARROW AND TERRY MARKOWITZ owned a la Carte for 20 years and can be reached at themarkos755@yahoo.com.