It's a trend you’ve got to love: the prix fixe fixation. The recession has taken a toll on just about all of us. We’re all trying to cut down on wasteful spending. But, hey, we Orange Countians like to dine out. Give us a deal, and we’re there. And the restaurants you see here have figured out just that, creating a delicious lineup of prix fixe menus to fill our bellies without emptying our wallets. Using this list as a guide, you’re sure to get some of the best meals for your bucks.


Andrei’s Conscious Cuisine & Cocktails
Yves Fournier has created a menu that gives the words “healthful,” “organic” and “sustainable” new, fancier and sophisticated connotations. The restaurant provides a setting to match. And with a Saturday night prix fixe menu priced at $30 to enjoy, you simply can’t go wrong. Choose from starters such as the Baby Beet Salad, with blood oranges, crispy feta and hazelnuts; main courses such as Scottish salmon with eggplant, tomato and Meyer lemon chickpeas, and Currant Basmati Rice; and desserts like the Flourless Chocolate Cake with almond crème anglaise and fresh espresso ice cream.

2607 Main St., Irvine
949.241.7414
andreisrestaurant.com


Chateaux Restaurant and Lounge
It may bill itself as the ultimate nightlife experience, with posh furnishings, dancing and renowned DJs pumping out the sounds. But don’t let all that noise fool you; this is a place for food, too. You’ll find a choice of five eclectic prix fixe menus that are priced from $23.95 to $60, featuring appetizers such as coconut shrimp with an orange-plum sauce, salads like the classic Caprese, entrees such as filet mignon with wild mushrooms and a Gorgonzola demi-glaze, and desserts such as the Chocolate Volcano Cake with vanilla bean ice cream.

18912 MacArthur Blvd., Irvine
949.833.1900
chateauxlounge.com


Five Crowns
This Old English-style eatery offers a three-course seasonal prix fixe menu for $32. For a starter, choose between Balsamic Salad Greens or the Chef’s Season Soup with market-fresh produce. Next, the entrée: Choose from four mouth-watering combinations that are sure to send you into food bliss. Try the Artichoke Gnocchi with applewood-smoked bacon tossed with scallions, green peas, garlic and California extra virgin olive oil, all topped with shaved Asiago cheese. Finish off the meal with dessert: a petite bread pudding with whiskey sauce or C.C. Brown’s Hot Fudge Sundae Sampler. 

3801 E. Coast Hwy., Corona del Mar
949.760.0331
lawrysonline.com


Lucca Café
Located in the Quail Hill Village Center, this Mediterranean-style eatery is Irvine’s best-kept secret. Focused on organic and local ingredients, Lucca’s philosophy on food is artful. The indoor and outdoor seating reveals a Euro-bistro ambience that only adds to the experience. And the Bistro Prix Fixe menu isn’t too shabby, either. The three-course menu gives diners options for a starter, entrée and dessert – and the latter alone is worth the $30. But why settle for one treat when you can have three? So try the Prosciutto di Parma with seasonal fruit or the grilled chicken with sweet potato crisp, chipotle butter, avocado, applewood-smoked bacon and tequila-lime cream. For dessert, there’s Lucca’s signature bread pudding with apples, cinnamon and brandy, served warm with homemade whipped cream.

6507 Quail Hill Pkwy., Irvine
949.725.1773
luccacafe.net  


Marché Moderne
Located at the Penthouse in South Coast Plaza, and right behind the dark French doors, is Marché Moderne – a bistro that has more to offer than just a friendly staff and good food. Inspired by France’s economical bistro, owners Florent and Amelia Marneau have put together a three-course lunch menu called Spontanée, which varies daily and is priced between $20 and $25. The menu offers a first course, usually a salad, a choice between two main courses and one of Amelia’s seasonal-inspired desserts.

3333 Bristol St., Costa Mesa
714.434.7900
marchemoderne.net


Marrakesh
In the mood for something different? Try Marrakesh for a Moroccan dining experience and, occasionally, a few belly dancers providing entertainment. The dining room’s dim lighting and low and comfy couches topped with canopies only add to the exotic ambience. The Marrakesh menu is based off of a prix fixe five-course meal priced between $24 to $35, depending on what type of meal you are interested in. All dinners are served with fresh bread; Harira (a traditional Moroccan soup made with vegetables, lentils, tomatoes and garbanzo beans); three traditional Moroccan salads; and Bastilla filo dough stuffed with chicken, eggs and almonds, then baked and dusted with powdered sugar and cinnamon. And then you get to choose your entrée, with fresh mint tea and homemade baklava for dessert.

1976 Newport Blvd., Costa Mesa
949.645.8384
marrakeshdining.com


The Melting Pot
Another bit of word association: “Fondue.” I think “fun.” All those different tastes and textures – cheese and bread, chocolate and fruit, meat and broth. The savory, the sweet – you can have it all, and it can be tough to choose. And that’s when the Melting Pot’s prix fixe menu comes in handy. New on the prix fixe lineup: The Pacific Islands Big Night Out, featuring four courses, including a Feng Shui Cheese Fondue that’s described as a sweet, spicy and creamy indulgence that’s sure to take you to paradise. Also on the limited-time-only menu: lobster, sirloin and sushi-grade ahi. The menus are priced at $84, $89 and $94 per couple.

• 375 W. Birch St., Suite 1, Brea
  714.671.6000
• 2646 Dupoint Drive, Irvine
  949.955.3242
• 647 Camino de los Mares, San Clemente
  949.661.1966
meltingpot.com


Morton’s The Steakhouse
Take a classic intimate setting, add great service and delicious food, and you just can’t go wrong – especially if you’re talking about Morton’s. Here you’ll find two great prix fixe menus that will satisfy the hungriest diner at lunch or dinner. The $25 Morton’s Prime Lunch Selection features a three-course lunch: a choice of soup or salad, an entrée such as Chicken Christopher with garlic beurre blanc sauce and mashed potatoes, and dessert. Yum. For a perfect date-night dinner, try the Steak and Seafood for Two. It offers a choice of Caesar or Morton’s salad, two single-cut filets, choice of seafood, one signature potato and vegetable to share and choice of dessert for $109.

1641 W. Sunflower Ave., Santa Ana
714.444.4834
mortons.com


Old Vine Café
Variety is the spice of life, and this is especially true at Old Vine Café. Tucked away in the Camp, Old Vine is a petite restaurant with more than enough character to make up for its size – and it’s vegetarian-friendly, too. Old Vine offers a $20 three-course lunch tasting menu that is full of choices. But the real gem is its $65 four-course dinner tasting menu offering three options: Seasonal, Original and Vegetarian. Each course is paired with wine. Try the Vegetarian combination: Baby Spinach Salad, Eggplant Buratta, Pan Fried Polenta with Pomodoro Cream Sauce and Mini Pecan Pie Tartlets garnished with Vanilla Fleur de Sel Butterscotch Sauce and topped with a dollop of whipped cream.

2937 Bristol St., Costa Mesa
714.545.1411
oldvinecafe.com


Ralph Brennan’s Jazz Kitchen
New Orleans dining style meets Downtown Disney at Ralph Brennan’s Jazz Kitchen in Anaheim. You’ll find great jazz and, if the weather permits, balcony dining that makes for one fun experience. Save your calories for the day and enjoy a New Orleans-inspired three-course dinner for $30, with many options to choose from. Try this combination for a true Ralph Brennan’s experience: Louisiana soup of the day, Amazing Cajun Meatloaf with Southern Grits and Barbeque-Baked Red Beans, finished off with New Orleans Bread Pudding.

1590 S. Disneyland Drive, Anaheim
714.776.5200
rbjazzkitchen.com


Royal Khyber
Journey to India via Royal Khyber and its classic cultural cuisine. The restaurant specializes in Tandoori cooking, a method that combines grilling, baking and smoking – and it’s healthful, too. You can choose from four great prix fixe menus that are offered at lunch and dinner. The two-course express lunch menu is priced at $10 and $15, and features a starter and an entrée. The three-course dinner is priced at $20 and $25, and you get a starter, a choice between two entrées and dessert.

1621 W. Sunflower Ave., Santa Ana
714.436.1010
royalkhyber.com


Roy’s Hawaiian Fusion Cuisine
With a spacious dining room and an open kitchen that allows you to watch the artists at work, this hip restaurant is casual and lively. The prix fixe dinner menu highlights Roy’s Hawaiian-fusion style, taking fresh local ingredients and pairing them with a blend of European sauces and bold Asian spices. The menu accentuates the restaurant’s popular seafood selection and offers three courses for $35. Choose the Maine Lobster Bisque for an appetizer, the Lemon-Basted Tiger Shrimp with Macadamia Nut Gremolata and Spiced Coconut Pumpkin Sauce for an entrée, and Roy’s Melting Hot Chocolate Soufflé for dessert. If seafood isn’t your thing, you’ll find steaks and ribs on the prix fixe menu as well.  

• 321 W. Katella Ave., Anaheim
  714.776.7697
• 453 Newport Center Drive, Newport Beach
  949.640.7697
roysrestaurant.com


Ruth’s Chris Steak House
Step into this place, take a deep breath and relax, because you’re in for a treat. Ruth’s Classic prix fixe dinner offers a three-course meal featuring a starter, an entrée, a personal side dish
and dessert. The New Orleans-inspired cuisine is mouthwatering – from the Louisiana Seafood
Gumbo to the Braised Short Ribs with a New Orleans-style barbecue sauce. Dessert is twice the indulgence with the Symphony – a duo of homemade carrot cake and a chocolate cup filled with chocolate mousse.

2041 S. Harbor Blvd., Anaheim
714.750.5466
ruthschris.com


Sage On The Coast
This swanky little restaurant along Newport Coast is both trendy and original – in its décor and its cuisine. Walk into the sage-colored restaurant and sample the cuisine’s mix of Western and Eastern influences. You’ll find an $18 three-course Lunch Tasting Menu featuring smoked salmon, warm spinach and chicken salad or panko-crusted sea scallops, and a lemon chiffon tart. It’s available Tuesday through Sunday. The Dinner Tasting Menu is priced at $35 (you can get wine pairings for an additional cost) and offers three courses: a starter, an entrée and dessert.

862 Pacific Coast Hwy., Newport Beach
949.715.7243
sagerestaurant.com


6ix Park Grill
Located in the Irvine Hyatt, 6ix Park Grill highlights the best of what California has to offer. This restaurant accommodates multiple atmospheres, ranging from a sophisticated and intimate dining room experience to a casual outdoor meal next to a fire pit. The greatest appeal during these tough times, however, is the three-course dinner appropriately dubbed 6ix Fix for $31. Choose between soup du jour or California greens to start; follow it up with a choice from three entrées (8 oz. prime flat-iron steak, Baja sea scallops or Petaluma chicken breast); and finish it up with a wild berry tart.

17900 Jamboree Road, Irvine
949.225.6666
6ixparkgrill.com
 

Spark Woodfire Grill
Contemporary American cuisine can’t get any better than it does at Spark. Named Best Restaurant in Huntington Beach by the Orange County Restaurant Association, Spark offers dining indoors or out on a heated terrace overlooking the ocean and the beach. All meat and seafood selections are prepared on a hickory wood-fire grill or in a 1,600-degree specialty steak broiler. Enjoy an assortment of $30 three-course menus, plus a glass of wine. Try the Fork and Knife Salad to start, then the Shrimp and Lobster Linguini as your entrée. Top it all off with a Chocolate Hazelnut Torte with fresh raspberries.

300 Pacific Coast Hwy., Suite 202
Huntington Beach
714.960.0996
sparkwoodfiregrill.com


Stonehill Tavern
If you haven’t been here yet, go the very next chance you get. It’s a special occasion, made so by a selection of outstanding food served in an über-classy atmosphere that’s comfortable and intimate, yet upscale and sophisticated. You’ll find a seasonal tasting menu that will leave your taste buds tingling and your hunger sated. It better be: This prix fixe menu features five courses for $95. A sampling: Domestic Caviar Parfait, Alaskan Halibut, Berkshire Pig, American Kobe Beef and Pumpkin Donuts.

1 Monarch Beach Resort Dana Point
949.234.3318
michaelmina.net/mm_stonehill


Summit House
Summit House is known for its English Inn ambience, great city view and fabulous prime rib, which just so happens to be an option on its three-course prix fixe dinner menu for $40. Dine in one of the cozy rooms, and choose a soup of the day or salad; prime rib, sautéed John Dory or one of Chef Tim’s special creations; and dessert. Try the Summit English Trifle – cake layers soaked in rum and brandy, cushioned with English custard.

2000 E. Bastanchury Road, Fullerton
714.671.4111
summithouse.net


TAPS Fish House & Brewery
You’re sure to find a vibe that suits your mood at TAPS Fish House & Brewery. Feeling like dining in elegance? Ask to be seated in the main dining room. Maybe you’d like to enjoy a cigar before or after dinner. Then dine outdoors on the heated patio. Enjoy the live music and plan on having a great time. And during lunch and dinner, TAPS offers a $24.95 three-course prix fixe menu that includes an appetizer, main entrée and dessert. Specializing in – but not limited to – seafood, TAPS offers plenty of items to choose from. Not too shabby, especially when you consider that you get a 12-ounce glass of Taps’ Cream Ale when you order from the prix fixe menu.

101 E. Imperial Hwy., Brea
714.257.0101
tapsbrea.com


Tradition by Pascal
Given the fact that Tradition by Pascal has been rated by Zagat as the No. 1 restaurant in Orange County for more than 10 years, you should feel pretty confident you’re in for a great dining experience here. The prix fixe lunch menu offers three courses for $20 and features items such as soup du jour, baked chicken crepes with Gruyere cheese, and the chef’s choice dessert or a glass of house wine. The prix fixe dinner menu turns things up a notch with a three-course selection priced at $40, and two four-course selections priced at $50 and $65.

1000 N. Bristol St., Suite 11, Newport Beach
949.263.9400
pascalnpb.com


Zov’s
Rated by Zagat as a top Mediterranean restaurant, Zov’s serves creative Mediterranean-style dishes in a warm, sophisticated atmosphere. Not sure what to order? The two-course lunch and dinner menus may help you narrow your options. And you can add a third course, dessert, to your plate for an additional charge. Among the featured items: lentil soup, hummus, seafood linguini and a Moroccan chicken bowl.

• 3915 Portola Pkwy., Irvine
  714.734.9687
• 21123 Newport Coast Drive, Newport Coast
   949.760.9687
• 17440 E. 17th St., Tustin
   714.838.8855 
zovs.com