The Newport Beach Wine & Food Festival was honestly my first proper Orange County food festival. The inaugural event occurred last year, and the second event was even better. Held at the Newport Beach Civic Center, the space was perfect. All of the vendors did a great job in creating wonderful dishes. Some of my favorites are below.
The short ribs from Salenne Steak Tavern was wonderful. As a matter of fact, they pretty much stole the show with their different offerings.
Their foie gras mousse was stellar. Topped with a huckleberry compote, the cornets were bites of deliciousness.
And their Reese’s Pieces macarons were on point. It tasted just like Reece’s Pieces. It didn’t taste like peanut butter chocolate macarons, nor did it taste like Reese’s peanut butter cup macarons. They were just on point with the candy.
Another favorite was tuna tartare on nori chips from Stonehill Tavern. Their presentation stole the show.
My first bite was the perfectly braised octopus from Studio at Montage Laguna Beach.
Slapfish killed it with these “Clobster” rolls. The part crab, part lobster filling filled on a buttery bun was just delicious.
B Candy got the sweets covered for the event. This sprinkles covered cake with the rainbow goodness inside was ridiculous! They offered cookies, amazing cup cakes and mini ice cream cones. They could basically hold a sweets/dessert fest on their own altogether.
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