Wines and 9 Courses

Chef/co-owner Timothy Plumb will present a winemakers dinner at Mon Chateau in El Toro on Sunday, Sept. 23. Highlighting Beringer wines, his nine courses will include a mille-feuille of smoked fish with dill sauce; duck breasts with balsamic vinaigrette; classical New York loin of beef, peppercorned; chocolate pave with creme anglais and Belgian chocolate. The tab: $65 per person. Reservations: (714) 830-3810.

When Angelo Giudice, owner (with Debbie Marshall) of Cafe Tilt in north Laguna, wearied of muffins (“They just kept getting bigger”), he hit upon the idea of scones. But any old heavy-duty, biscuit-y scone wouldn’t do. His “moister” scones are made with fruit juice, milk and fresh fruit, and come in varieties that include blueberry, peach, nectarine and banana. The little cafe also specializes in a honey-roast turkey breast sandwich on health nut bread, chicken (roasted with orange and lemon juice) salad with feta cheese and balsamic vinegar, and highly popular oatmeal cookies with either golden raisins and pecans or Ghirardelli chocolate. Cafe Tilt is at 638 N. Coast Highway. (Boat Canyon shopping center); (714) 494-5441. They’re open from 6 a.m. to 3 p.m. weekdays, 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. on weekends.

If you love Thai food but can’t fathom how to begin duplicating it at home, the Royal Thai’s cooking classes in Newport Beach will give you hands-on knowledge.

On Oct. 8, you can learn to prepare royal salad (cucumber, onions, tomatoes, lettuce, grilled beef with spicy lime sauce) and chun bu ree treat (pan-fried squid embellished with “a magnificent sauce”), plus crispy flour shells filled with chicken, onion and curry, as well as garlic pork.

On Oct. 15, the highlights will be chan-lam (a cluster of pork, chicken and jelly noodles wrapped around shrimp, then fried) and Thai pepper pork (with bell pepper, onions, mushrooms and ground red chili).

Classes begin at 6:30 p.m., and the enrollment fee of $35 covers a four-course dinner with champagne, tax and tip included.

Send reservation requests to Royal Thai-Newport Cooking Classes, 4001 W. Coast Highway, Newport Beach, Calif. 92663. (714) 645-THAI.