Watermarc Restaurant

Earlier this week B asked me out on a date... but he wouldn't tell me where we were going. I made sure not to ask any questions because he can't resist telling me his plans. By Thursday he had already told me that we were going to Laguna Beach. By Friday he told me to wear a dress and save my appetite.


We parked behind the restaurant and walked through this alley. How sweet is that! The lighting dripping from the trees and the smell of the chocolaterie was perfection.

And then we arrived at Watermarc Restaurant. We tend to gravitate to places with extensive and interesting appetizer menus. It also featured a few things we've never had before and we like to share as many dishes as possible so we can try as much as we can.


These little gems are the Warm Blue Cheese Pear Tarts with Red Wine Syrup.


I could eat 45 of these as an appetizer and 22 as dessert. I'm just sayin'. The crust was flaky, the filling was light and creamy. What is that filling? It didn't taste strongly of blue cheese and was smooth and decadent. They were topped off with a pear compote, garnished with a mint leaf and chunks of gorgonzola on the plate.

Can someone please create a recipe for these and send it to me?!

This was so tasty! Pictured here is just the Steak Tartare. You don't see the white truffle potato chips because I couldn't get it in the light without moving everything around. You take a chip and put a little tartare on it and enjoy. It was only the second time I've had steak tartare and this one was sooo flavorful.

By the way, if you ever order this, know that its raw. Try it anyway. Believe me, I'm not the type of girl that normally eats raw beef. It does sound odd. Get over your mental block and try a bite.


The lighting in this pictures are a bit off but there was one light over our 2-top table and I had to work with it. Besides, the table wasn't built for people who order as many plates as we do.

This was the Seafood Sausage with spicy white beans and fluffy mustard melting over the top. I was incredibly impressed by this seafood sausage. I wasn't sure how the texture and flavor would be. I must say it was firm like you would expect of a sausage, perhaps just a tad softer than a chicken sausage. It was juicy, it had your traditional sausage seasonings such as fennel seeds and the beans were perfect with it.

Why is it whenever I say "such as" I think of that poor pageant contestant?


Ah, the Pistachio Crusted Rack of Lamb with brussel sprouts, pancetta and a bing cherry demi glace. The garnish of fried leeks was a bit of a mess as we had already tasted them. This lamb was cooked perfectly and the sauce had just a touch of cherry without being overly sweet.


We must have been on a pistachio kick. The Frozen Gran Marnier and Pistachio Souffle was a must try. Frozen souffle? I'm still unclear about the definition of a souffle but I had thought it required baking. Someone enlighten me please.

This was more like an ice cream with a thicker custard base. Oh and they are serious when they say Gran Marnier, that little bowl of deliciousness had some punch. And the tiny morsel off to the side was the orange chocolate truffle, yum.


This is a shot from below of the upstairs area that we dined in. Yes, I know its blurry. My apologies but what would you expect after a martini, 3 courses and some dessert wine. I can't hold my camera still on a normal day. Well, don't stare at it, just look really quick to get the idea.


To top it all off, I was speaking to our fantastic waiter Kevin who informed me that they've only been open for about 2 months. That just blew me away because there were absolutely no kinks in service or presentation and the place was packed.

I've got to be honest.. B and I can be tough critics. We both previously worked in fine dining as he was in the kitchen and I was managing the front. This place exceeded our expectations.