Phillips’ Marlin Moves Inland, but Food Stays on the Coast

In the wake of the recent closing of the Giggling Marlin on Balboa Peninsula, owner Terry Phillips has moved the name and the Marlin’s concept to his Irvine restaurant, formerly called Cabo Coast. The menu in Irvine continues to highlight Baja California coastal foods. Lunch favorites include mesquite grilled fish, and sausage served on homemade salsa bread. Noon specials average about $6, and dinner, with such highlights as filet de puerco (tenderloin of pork pounded thin, stuffed with pine nuts, mint, fresh spinach and feta cheese and finished with mango sauce) averages $9.95. The restaurant is open Monday through Friday 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., Saturday and Sunday till 10 p.m. Entertainment includes Jello’s Gass Band (11 pieces) on Saturdays and the Don Miller band on Sundays. The location: Jamboree Road at Dupont Drive, Irvine. (714) 476-8226.

The Ancient Mariner on Coast Highway in Newport Beach is closed and in the process of remodeling. It is scheduled to reopen this summer with a new decor and concept. Details to follow.

Pascal and Mimi Olhats will pop the corks of five different champagnes to compliment the five courses of Pascal’s fourth-anniversary dinner on Thursday, June 11. The meal will feature such delicacies as veal sweetbreads with sweet garlic strudel and charred rack of lamb with confit of fennel--dishes which will also become part of the restaurant’s new menu. The dinner ($75 plus tax and tip) begins at 7 p.m. at 1000 N. Bristol St., Newport Beach. Reservations: (714) 752-0107.

Mom always said that diploma would pay off, but even she might not have realized how soon. All students graduating this year will find that their diplomas (high school, college--whatever you have) are worth a 15% discount on dinners at both of the Royal Thai restaurants in Orange County. All you have to do is show your sheepskin any time during June at 4001 W. Coast Highway, Newport Beach (714-645-THAI) or 1750 S. Coast Highway, Laguna Beach (714-494-THAI). Lunch is served at both locations from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., Sunday through Friday; dinner, 5 to 10 p.m. daily.

If you’re a foodie who loves to explore new sources for hard- to-find foods and wines, Deborah Fabricant’s “Foodies’ Guide to L.A.,” a daylong tour and shopping blitz of Los Angeles, may be for you. Fabricant is a former food stylist, restaurant and cooking school owner (Panache, in Fullerton). She leads groups from Orange County through a variety of Los Angeles’ ethnic and domestic markets and specialty shops in pursuit of whatever they’re longing for, from caviar to truffles, cookware and flowers. Included in the tour is lunch at a top L.A. restaurant, followed by more shopping on the road back to Orange County. Tours are by reservation only, available for groups of four to 50, Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Cost, including lunch and transportation, is $125 per person. For more information, call Fabricant at (714) 673-5951.

Caffe Looma in Newport Beach now offers a sunset dinner menu, from 5:30 to 7 p.m., Monday through Saturday. Entrees include chicken risotto with spinach, tomatoes and peppers; filet of salmon on a bed of linguine and sweet peppers; and grilled New York steak with green peppercorn sauce, green beans and roasted potatoes. Prices, which include salad, range from $6.25 to $12.95. The full menu is also available during sunset hours, as is the restaurant’s assortment of appetizers and desserts. The address is 2900 Newport Blvd., on the peninsula in Newport Beach. (714) 673- 2900.

Two-pound Maine lobsters grill over mesquite every Saturday evening during the summer lobster cookouts at Le Meridien’s Calypso pool. Scheduled to run through October (from 4 to 8 p.m.), the $32 meal also includes corn on the cob, baked potato, Caesar salad and dessert buffet--and live music of the tropics. Reservations: (714) 476-2001. The address is 4500 MacArthur Blvd., Newport Beach.

For the record: The cost of Single Gourmet offerings mentioned in last week’s column range from $40 for the Cafe Looma dinner on June 10 to $75 for the Five Feet/Pageant of the Masters package on July 12.