Located in beautifully enchanted Fashion Island, Roy’s is the best place to take in a great fall cuisine with a Hawaiian twist. Roy’s combines the freshest local ingredients with European sauces and bold Asian spices so each creation leaves you in paradise (or for me, it reminds me of home). They feature the finest seafood, with a focus on delicacies from the oceans surrounding Hawaii.
Roy’s is now offering a 3-course Fall Prix Fixe menu available for $35.95 per person, which includes a fresh and flavorful appetizer, entrée and dessert. You can view the fall menu online at www.roysrestaurant.com. Chef Partner Edgar Agbayani, who has worked at Roy’s for nine years has extensive exposure to varied styles and influences and designed this fall menu from the finest ingredients available. Chef Agbayani has brought refreshing inspiration to the kitchen of Roy's Newport Beach. His family is from Hawaii so he knows his cuisine.
Now, let’s “talk story” about the “ono” food. First up are the appetizers or “pupus”.
Blackened Rock Shrimp Soup with red beans and Portuguese sausage: This soup takes you on a trip to two places – Hawaii and New Orleans. The flavors are bold with a Cajun background, like a spicy gumbo. The rock shrimp and Portuguese sausage are a great combination. This definitely tastes like something my dad would cook.
“Elaine’s” Salad with Kabocha squash (commonly called the Japanese pumpkin), cinnamon spiced pepitas, and cranberry vinaigrette: This salad has an excellent balance of sweet/salty and creamy/starchy. The Kabocha squash was cooked to perfection and has the consistency of a sweet potato and the taste of a squash. The squash, cinnamon, and cranberry mix definitely reminds you of fall.
Shumai Flavored Wagyu Beef Meatloaf with smoked shiitake pan sauce: One word to describe it, amazing! Just the thought of making shumai with Wagyu beef is wonderfully creative itself. You can definitely see the Chinese influence that is now part of Hawaii in this dish – the flavor from the Kobe-style Wagyu beef with the shumai seasoning served with the shiitake pan sauce. This dish “brok da mout” big time.
Next up are the entrees.
Parmesan & Dijon Crusted Chicken with bacon and pepper gravy: If you are bringing your “haole” friends who are not very adventurous, this is the dish for them. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a great tasting dish with awesome parsnip mash, but if you are going to a Hawaiian fusion restaurant, I wouldn’t order it. “Eh, we gotta keep da braddahs and titas happy!”
Cilantro Grilled Tiger Shrimp with curried lentils and fall vegetables: The shrimp was perfectly cooked and crisp. The cilantro pesto really brought out the sweetness of the shrimp. The lentils and fall vegetables made it hearty and fall infused.
Artichoke & Goat Cheese Crusted Salmon with sundried tomato sauce: The salmon was perfectly cooked. The artichoke & goat cheese crust was very creamy and flavorful.
Tender Braised Beef Short Ribs with creamy mashed potatoes and natural braising sauce: This reminded me of Korean Calbi short ribs but with more meat. It was tender and was soft as butter. This meat would go great inside a “lau lau”. The flavor is out of this world - another “broke da mouth” dish.
Finally, let’s look at the desserts.
Pumpkin & Ginger Cheesecake with pumpkin anglaise sauce: It was smooth and creamy, not too heavy. It has the essence of homemade pumpkin pie. It is decorated with a pepitas brittle. The chlorophyll in the pepitas makes the brittle a little green for an interesting effect. It tasted “ono” too.
Roy’s Melting Chocolate Souffle: It’s a flourless chocolate café with a molten center served a la mode. This is the best flourless chocolate cake I have ever had. The soufflé in the name could be misleading as it is way too heavy to be a soufflé. Serving it a la mode is even better. The grated chocolate made it more decadent yet homemade.
If this menu sounds “ono” to you, get your “okole” to Roy’s and have a little bit of paradise without going to Hawaii. The fall menu ends around the middle of December. “Mahalo - Dis review all pau.”
Atmosphere: 5 out of 5 stars
Service: 5 out of 5 stars
Décor: 5 out of 5 stars
Food: 5 out of 5 stars
For more information:
Roy’s
453 Newport Center Dr
Newport Beach, CA 92660
949.640.7697
Hours of Operation:
Sunday - Thursday: 5pm–10pm
Friday & Saturday: 5pm–11pm
Aloha Hour: Sun-Fri 4:30pm
Comments
kobe beef meatloaf and Pumpkin cheesecake I am HUNGRY for the culinary adventure
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