Kudos for Some of the County’s Best

Several Orange County restaurants currently shine in the national/international spotlight. The Aug. 31 issue of Wine Spectator, which unveils the worldwide 1990 grand awards for restaurants with great cellars, cites Five Crowns in Corona del Mar and Mr. Stox in Anaheim. Both restaurants have been grand-award winners since 1983.

Also, in the August issue of Bon Appetit, the “Western Insider” column features Kachina restaurant in Laguna Beach. It calls owner David Wilhelm, who recently opened Bistro 201 in Irvine and will debut Barbacoa in Newport Beach this fall, “one busy restaurateur.”

Four Orange County restaurants received top evaluations in the new, second edition of Gault Millau’s “The Best of L.A.,” which reviews 1,300 restaurants in southern California, from Santa Barbara to San Diego.

Rated on a scale of 1 to 20, Antoine at Le Meridien in Newport Beach received a 16.

The Dining Room of the Ritz-Carlton Hotel, Dana Point; Pavilion in the Four Seasons Hotel, Newport Beach, and Pascal, Newport Beach, each rated a 15.

The Millau guides to fine dining have directed connoisseurs abroad for years. Recently the guides expanded to focus on specific areas of the United States.

Pascal Olhats, by the way, will demonstrate his cuisine Sunday, Sept. 9, at the Robert Mondavi Wine & Food Center in Costa Mesa. From 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., he’ll create several different French dishes from a menu for a black-tie dinner at 7 that evening. Cost of the demo is $45; the dinner, $125.

The menu will include poached oysters with spinach and shallot cream, crayfish pastry with lobster bisque, rack of baby lamb with cepes and garlic in white wine sauce, plus a fruit gratin.

Five different reserve wines will complement the courses. The Mondavi center is at 1570 Scenic Ave., Costa Mesa. (714) 979-4510.