Palates pleased at Taste of Newport

Jennifer Kho

NEWPORT BEACH -- The traditional and the exotic each won dedicated

followings at Taste of Newport this weekend as thousands sampled

offerings from about 35 restaurants in Newport Beach and Costa Mesa.

The Newport Harbor Area Chamber of Commerce expected 70,000 people to

attend the annual event at Fashion Island, which also included 15 premium

California wineries, beer, Bacardi cocktails and entertainment, including

the Beach Boys, Berlin, Kool & the Gang and Wang Chung.

“It’s nice to have the chance to taste different things,” said Leeanne

McInerny, a Mission Viejo resident who attended the event Sunday. “It

makes you more aware of the different restaurants around.”

McInerny said her favorite dish at the event was a berry crisp and the

most unique recipe she tried was half-breaded calamari, which McInerny

said she gave away after a few bites.

Kristy Castle, a Corona del Mar resident, is one of several people who

favored the prime rib.

Castle said she thought the prices to sample the food were too high,

but said she is more likely to eat at the restaurants that participated

in the event now that she’s tasted their food.

“If they really want to get us to try new things, they need to lower

the prices,” she said. “We can’t try everything we want to because of the

cost.”

But Umberto Rubelli, a chef at Ristorante Mamma Gino, said the

restaurant’s Filetto Balsamico -- the most expensive dish the restaurant

had available at the event -- was the most popular.

Chicken and lamb shishkabobs, vegetable couscous and baklava were the

big hits at the Marrakesh booth, said hostess Layla Rabban. The Costa

Mesa restaurant has participated in the event since 1991, she said.

David Price, a Mission Viejo resident who attended the event on

Saturday, said he came back Sunday because he couldn’t stay away from the

food, or the Beach Boys, who performed at the event.