A Restaurant for Everyone, Every Taste, and Every Occasion
By Matt Beardmore
No matter what you’re hungry for, who you’re breaking bread with, or what the occasion might be, Laguna Niguel has a bakery, bistro, bar, cafe, diner or fine dining restaurant to suit your taste. The Laguna Niguel Chamber of Commerce recently had a chance to speak with the owners of four local establishments about the history of their businesses, how they create their menus, and what it means to be part of the Laguna Niguel community.
Romeo Cucina
28241 Crown Valley Parkway
Laguna Niguel, CA 92677
https://romeocucina.com
When Romeo Cucina first welcomed guests at its Laguna Niguel location on August 25, 1995, the staff and owners “felt the warmth of this incredible community right away,” said Ada Romeo, who opened the restaurant with her four brothers and sister Tina.
It is no different today as the appeal of authentic and healthy Italian food, a full bar with great signature cocktails, and a fun, family atmosphere make Romeo Cucina a Laguna Niguel favorite.
“Our recipes are made with our passion for cooking and are a must try,” said Ada, who along with her husband, Chef Michael Waugh, and Tina, own the Romeo Cucina Laguna Niguel location. “Our menu has traditional dishes as well as our own creations. Quality is our main priority.”
To keep Romeo Cucina’s menu fresh and up to date, the Romeo family – Ada, Michael, and Tina, along with brothers Antonio and Vincenzo, who run the Romeo Cucina Laguna Beach location – travel back to Italy nearly every year to research and bring trending recipes back to the restaurants. “Our menu has a fantastic variety of fresh pasta, seafood and meat,” said Ada, who was raised in Calabria, Italy with her six siblings. “We cook to order and make all our sauces fresh. We bake our own Italian bread freshly each day. And don’t forget the authentic Italian pizza in our wood burning oven.”
The restaurant, which is approximately 3,000 square feet and seats about 80, hosts and caters for a variety of events and “we love to customize menus for each event based on our patron’s taste,” Ada Romeo said.
Along with the traditional dishes and made-to-order creations, Romeo Cucina also has a full bar with a wide variety of signature cocktails. “We have a great Happy Hour every night at the bar,” Ada added. “We offer different specials throughout the week, making Romeo Cucina the ideal place for a date night, family dinner or a night out with friends.”
Zesty Olives
30242 Crown Valley Parkway, Suite B4A 4B
Laguna Niguel, CA 92677
https://www.zestyolives.com
At Zesty Olives, Dessi Sarabosing and her brother, Boris Mitrev, have reunited to develop a “next generation health and wellness fast-casual restaurant concept and a life-style brand serving fresh, healthy and craveable dishes inspired by Mediterranean recipes paired with genuine love and care for each customer.”
Years before Zesty Olives opened, Dessi and Boris’ first restaurant jobs were at a formal sit-down restaurant opened by their parents, Eva and Vasil Mitrev in the Bulgarian countryside, after Vasil retired from coal mining due to a medical concern.
“We were their first employees. We worked in the kitchen, did dishes, cleaned, and my brother was even a bartender,” Sarabosing said. “We got so busy, we told ourselves that we would never go back to working in a restaurant, but here we are!”
After seeing each other just a few times over a 20-year period when Sarabosing moved to the U.S. and Mitrev worked in hospitality and resort management throughout the UK, the siblings reconnected in 2019. It was then that they decided to open a restaurant that focused on clean, healthy food and the hospitality aspect where people are cared for, refreshed and energized through the food and overall experience.
The siblings opened their first Zesty Olives locations in Lake Forest and Irvine – which have both been sold – to test the restaurant concept and play with the menu.
Zesty Olives’ menu is inspired by Mediterranean cuisine and features flavor profiles from Spain, Italy, Greece, and the UK, making that European profile relevant to the California consumer. Leveraging Mitrev’s wide network of culinary contacts, Zesty Olives works with chefs from Europe to create different menus for seasonality and different occasions.
Zesty Olives’ outdoor patio has proven to be an ideal spot for live music on Saturdays during the summer, and Sarabosing and Mitrev now have a good idea of what Zesty Olives should look like. The goal now, Sarabosing said, is to sell the concept to franchisees. Sarabosing, Mitrev, and Mitrev’s wife, Yana, who is responsible for Zesty Olives’ quality control, training, and operations, would like to expand to up to 100 Zesty Olives locations throughout California and the rest of the U.S. within the next five years.
Sarabosing and Mitrev also have a passion for helping their community. They partner with the Orange County Rescue Mission, “a faith-based, life-transformation program that provides on-campus housing, basic needs, and comprehensive services for individuals and families experiencing homelessness.” The Zesty Olives team shares meals, prays with, and prepares program participants for interviews. “We also will offer a job to anyone who wants to work with us,” Sarabosing said. “It’s hard to find a job if you have a criminal background, so we found that even if someone comes and works for us for just a couple months before they get an office job or a job in one of the trades, we are their landing place out of the shelter and a path to employment.”
Jack’s Woodside Grille
30065 Alicia Parkway, Suite A
Laguna Niguel, CA 92677
https://jackswoodside.com
Brian Beddingfield has spent many years working inside a restaurant, and a number of his extended family members have decades of restaurant experience on which he can lean for guidance as he embarks on owning his first establishment. But he understands that what matters most in this business is learning how to best serve your guests. He is doing just that at the newly opened Jack’s Woodside Grille.
Beddingfield’s grandparents, Jack and Anne Holder, moved to Santa Clara in 1957 and made a name for themselves in the Bay Area over the years by opening a number of popular restaurants, starting with Uncle John’s Pancake House. Ten years later, they opened the original Holder’s Country Inn in San Jose, a restaurant at which Beddingfield bussed tables starting in 7th grade. That restaurant remained open for more than three decades. Jack and Anne’s seven children all operated or continue to operate restaurants in the Bay Area. That includes Brian’s mother Jacqueline (the lone daughter), who is also the co-owner of Jack’s Woodside Grille
“It’s a big advantage having so many family members in the industry,” Beddingfield said. “I am fortunate to have so many incredible resources to test things with and receive guidance. To be honest, I don’t know how anyone could do this without having a lifeline like this.”
Beddingfield also praises the support he has received from local officials and the Laguna Niguel Chamber of Commerce.
“I’d be lying if I said going through all the permitting processes was easy, but all the government employees I’ve worked with at the city and county have been fantastic,” he said. “The Laguna Niguel City Council has been great and many are now patrons.”
“Scott Alevy at the chamber has also been a great resource,” Beddingfield added. “Anytime I need a vendor, I send him a message asking if he has someone he can recommend, and he comes through.”
Jack’s Woodside Grille is still a work in progress, but “the support from the community has been overwhelming,” Beddingfield said.
“The goal was to open really quietly and not tell anyone we were here,” he said. “We were going to get fully staffed and get the cooks and servers all trained and then start advertising, but the Laguna Niguel community has different plans for us.”
The plan for the foreseeable future is for Jack’s Woodside Grille to remain open daily from 7 a.m.-2 p.m., as the restaurant has a nice variety of breakfast and lunch items such as pancakes and waffles, omelets, classic egg dishes, and Jack’s Benedicts. However, “there has been a ton of customer demand for the restaurant to remain open for dinner, which is not what we anticipated,” Beddingfield said. “We’re still learning from our customers – what do they like and what do they want. What’s funny is a few months ago we started getting requests for Avo Toast. To be honest, I had never heard of that. I was thinking avocado being put in dough to make bread, but we ended up going through about 10 recipes before it became one of our popular items.”
Beddingfield has also been pleased with how his 17-year-old daughter Emma has been connecting with the customers as one of the restaurant’s servers.
“She’s been a bit of a secret weapon,” Beddingfield said. “She’s just very personable and customers really gravitate to her. It’s been great to see. I grew up in the business and I always had the itch to open my own restaurant and have my kids be a part of it, and now I’m chasing that dream.”
Sunny Side Up Doughnuts
30251 Golden Lantern C
Laguna Niguel, CA 92677
https://sunnysideupdoughnuts.com
Sunny Side Up Doughnuts took over from an existing donut shop (Donut Star) in October 2019, but don’t let the restaurant’s name fool you – this spot has as many breakfast and lunch plates as it does doughnuts.
“A lot of people would think just by looking at the name and seeing the word “doughnuts” in it that we don’t have gourmet freshly made breakfast entrées, but once they know us and try us, they will be impressed,” said Jorge Delgado, Sunny Side Up Doughnuts owner.
Guests at Sunny Side Up Doughnuts have a variety of breakfast sandwiches, omelets, Mexican breakfast dishes, croissant, bagel and panini sandwiches and signature burritos to choose from. Delgado takes pride in serving food made from scratch.
“Our only drawback is that we cannot dish out the food in two or three minutes because we literally crack the egg when you order your breakfast,” he said.
The restaurant also serves all-organic coffee.
Sunny Side Up Doughnuts is open 6 a.m-3 p.m. every day (it is only closed on Christmas Day and New Year’s Day) and can seat as many as 30 people inside, along with limited outdoor seating.
Supporting the community that helped the restaurant stay open during the pandemic is a priority for Delgado. Sunny Side Up Doughnuts supports area schools and participates in fundraisers for AYSO (American Youth Soccer Organization) and other youth sports clubs.
“I feel that the community has helped us through tough times, so it’s only natural to want to help the community out whenever we can,” Delgado said. “We are part of the community, and being part of it is not just existing in it.”
