Name your top 5 restaurants in Irvine and why?

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ABC123 said:
1. Taleo Grill

Why? Only because I get frequent flyer miles for eating there. Other than the carnitas at Taleo, I find those choices to be somewhat mediocre at best and sometimes not so good.
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Yeah, those carnitas are fantastic and the queso fundido will do some serious damage as well. Get your own - I'll bite your face if you try to bogart mine. Try the fresh lemonade at lunch.

Across the street, Houston's is always nice but maybe a touch over priced. Their Hawaiian rib eye med-well is killer and their wait-staff is generally easy on the eyes.

Chipotle is an outstanding bang-for-the-buck (carnitas tacos are tasty) but I usually only go there after swimming and biking for 5 hours and I would eat a newborn at that point because I'm so famished.
 
Mondays - Kimera Lounge 50% off food dining room only http://www.bistango.com/kimera.shtml(Winter Wonderland)

Pasta Pomodoro 30% off takeout food $30 or morehttp://www.pastapomodoro.com/ (unadvertised special)

Tuesdays - Taco Tuesdays at Chronic Tacos http://www.eatchronictacos.com/

Wednesdays - Black Angus $14.99 prime rib and mudpie, dine in onlyhttp://www.blackangus.com/

Thursdays - Sushi Wazen - regular priced entrees ~ $11 - $20 -http://www.yelp.com/biz/sushi-wazen-lake-forest

or Tuscany Mediteranee Grill regular priced entrees ~ $9 - $20 http://www.yelp.com/biz/tuscany-mediterranee-grill-irvine

Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights - Lucca Café in Irvine offers a special “Economy Stimulator Bundle” featuring regular-sized entrée plates for less than $25. There’s also a selection of wines by the glass priced at 20 percent below the wine list price. Lucca Café, 6507 Quail Hill Pkwy., Irvine, 949-725-1773.
 
AVRenter said:
second on my list only to Bayside's venison medallions.
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I get the venison medallions every time I go to Bayside. Bayside's venison medallions are also quite cheap if you order it as a lunch special: soup/salad, venison, and a glass of wine for 20 bucks.
 
I don't know if I can come up with 5, Irvine restaurants are that bad. I would concur that California Fish Grill has the best fish tacos (Sorry Rubio's) Other than the ones already mentioned I would add:

Javiers at the Spectrum (Mexican)

The Counter at Woodbury Center (Burger joint)

Daphne's several locations (cheap Greek fare)

and just outside Irvine in Costa Mesa, IKKO (Japanese). Just went for the first time the other day and was blown away by how good the Sushi was. Simply the best I've had in SoCal and just as good or maybe better than Nobu in New York. It was that good.
 
went to bistro west in the district last night. it's a good place for fish and steak. my wife had the sole piccata, i had the filet/ahi/salmon combo. hers was excellent, mine was very good. not cheap ($26 or 28 for hers, 37 for mine) but it's a rare place in irvine that serves really good stuff. there's a kid's menu so you should feel comfortable bringing little ones and not lose an arm or a leg.
 
Lucca Cafe off Shady Canyon Drive. The chef shops the local farmers markets for fresh ingredients, she uses organic produce whenever possible. Love the menu, great presentation. We like to eat at the bar where we can try different wines before ordering. This is a place for people who really appreciate good food & wine. Try breakfast on the weekends as well.
 
How come no one mentioned Il Fornaio? I know it is a little pricey, but the food is great, and the service is superb. Although it is located in a business district, it is very kids friendly. My 6 year old son claims its mac-n-cheese is the best:-).

Tri-Village in the Trabuco shopping plaza is a great Chinese restaurant.

I also like the Yard House at the Spectrum.
 
I was going to add my $.02 until I realized I wanted to only include Irvine-only establishments, and not chains. And after looking through my yelp reviews, I couldn't come up with 5 restaurants! Dang.

But here are some of my favs (in no particular order)

1. CA Fish Grill (place is just excellent, though they do have more than this Irvine location)

2. Ray's Pizza (little joint near UCI)

3. India Cook House (great lunchtime buffet)

But, at least I can say that these places are great:

Irvine Farmer's Market (every Saturday morning until about noon, in the shopping center with the In-N-Out @ UCI)

Smith's Farms (corner of Jeffrey and Bryan)
 
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