Dining Reviews



If you have even a mildly suspicious nature, you might be one of those diners who anticipate a sub-par meal the second you notice that the restaurant offers a spectacular view. How many times have you said, or heard, “Yeah, it's all right, but you're paying for that view.” Or, worse, “Nice place, but they use that view to take your mind off the food.” 



While on occasion that little bit of cynicism can be distressingly true, you can leave it at home when you visit the Chart House in Dana Point. You're going to be fed very well there indeed, and the views – inside, outside and on the plate in front of you – are a feast for the eyes as well. The combination makes for one of the more memorable dining experiences in the county. 



Like its sibling in Newport Beach, the Dana Point Chart House serves up essentially the same menu as all the other Chart House locations throughout the country, relying on local catches for daily specials. The menu may look familiar to returning diners, but what matters is that the Chart House does these creative dishes surpassingly well. 



First, however, that view. It may help to know that it's easy to spot the Dana Point Chart House on GoogleEarth.com. From above it looks like three flying saucers embedded into the hillside on the promontory above the harbor. Inside, diners are surrounded by rich wood strip paneling, an enveloping low ceiling and warm lighting, and there's hardly a seat in the place that doesn't afford the diner a commanding vista of the entire harbor, the sea beyond, and the beach stretching to the hills miles to the south. The bar is the kind of friendly little nook you could cozy up to for hours, gazing out the window and ignoring the poor bartender. 



The service? Spot on. We were looking at a full, bustling dining room, but our young servers were poised, correct, friendly without false chumminess and confident about recommending dishes and wines. They were there when needed, nearly invisible when not. Professional. 



We began with one of the more enjoyable appetizers I've had in some time, the crab, avocado and mango stack. It's just that: big pieces of lump crab meat in remoulade packed atop a cylinder of diced mango and avocado. Topped by a big garnish of basil leaves, it was spectacular to look at and uncommonly refreshing to eat. The flavors of the three ingredients were almost aggressive, but together they made for a superlative starter, both in weight and ease on the palate. The texture was particularly remarkable.



My friend's pan-seared sea scallops in soy-ginger broth was served with spinach and bok choy over coconut-ginger rice. It was a good-sized helping of very plump scallops, carefully browned and most agreeably tender. The broth was a fine accompaniment to the native flavor of the scallops as were the greens. The coconut and ginger flavors in the rice were a light whisper.



At our waitress' suggestion, I ordered the macadamia-crusted halibut. It's served with a pair of sauces, one on each side of the cut: a peanut sauce with a bit of Frangelico, and a mango coulis. The variety of tastes and textures was nothing less than spectacular. The light maca-damia crust lent a delicate and slightly sweet crunchiness, the coulis provided lovely sweet-and-sour accents, and the peanut sauce filled in with robust richness. The halibut itself was delicate in taste but substantial in texture. Taken together, it was like getting several fine dishes on one plate.



Good? Halfway through dinner it was, “View? What view?” OCM 


The Chart House 
34442 Street of the Green Lantern 
Dana Point; 949.493.1183