Best of Laguna Beach

By: Diane Armitage
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  • Summary

  • From 25-year Laguna Beach Resident Diane Armitage enjoy fun, engaging interviews of our international chefs and the town's most creative people + my recommendations for THE best places to dine, drink and play in our famous SoCal seaside town.

    Also enjoy the monthly series, "Revenue Recipes: Cooking Up Profits for Restaurants" with me and my special guest, award-winning Restaurant Developer Bruce Russo.

    The Best of Laguna Beach™ podcasts are uploaded on Wednesdays every week by 12 p.m. PST/3 p.m. EST
    2024, Best of Laguna Beach™
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Episodes
  • Against the Tide: Starfish Turns Struggle into Culinary Glory

    Against the Tide: Starfish Turns Struggle into Culinary Glory
    May 7 2025
    It was a particularly meaningful radio show day on Monday at KXFM 104.7 when I greeted my guests and good friends, Archie and Gretchen McConnell, with local (and visitor) favorite, Starfish Asian.

    When Starfish Laguna first opened its doors, it had the name, the vibe and the ambition but what it didn’t have was much of a safety net. The odds were brutal, the bank accounts were near empty, and the early days felt like a losing battle against the tide. But (then) Gretchen Andrews and Archie McConnell – now the husband-and-wife team behind this now-iconic restaurant – didn’t just hold on. They climbed, scraped and reimagined their way into one of Laguna’s most beloved dining experiences.

    This is the story of how they turned near-destitution into dazzling success … and why the name Starfish means more than you think.Here’s a quick recap (below) of the above audio replay:
    • How Gretchen first came to managing Starfish and how Archie arrived in those very early days to “help right the listing boat” - docked in “the far outpost” of South Laguna Beach during major strip mall construction and after the mortgage fallout. (Great timing!)
    • Archie’s memories of leaving his 10,000-square-foot restaurant at the Spectrum and arriving to the new Starfish … “with no humans.”
    • Starfish’s first big decisions and wins that started shifting the winds in its favor and how the dining patron has changed in Starfish’s favor.
    • The Starfish famed Opium Happy Hour and its enormous menu (30 food items + specialty cocktails) - why they went in this direction. (Occurring 7 days a week.)Share
    • The even larger Starfish lunch and dinner menu and what’s changed in the last couple years since bringing on their corporate chef. Because the menu is so stuffed, they’ve resorted to cool seasonal specials that have knocked it out of the park. Gretchen and Archie list a few to ask for. Listen in to the litany of highest selling food items at Starfish ☝️
    • Details on their first expansion, Starfish Newport at 19 Riverside Ave., Newport Beach, and the enormous kitchen that handles most of their off-site catering
    • How their already-healthy take out program became the “800-pound gorilla” during COVID. And how people took to the Starfish cocktails once allowed as to-go items during COVID. 😳
    • Starfish California expansion hopes and plans AND Starfish Outside-of-California expansion plans for this town … soon!
    • Archie and Gretchen talk about life as a married restaurateur couple, their favorite foods in the area and around the world, dinners with their kids, and their first-ever 16-day trip to Thailand.
    • The famed “Lagniappe” - what it means, what it contains and why it placed (once again) as one of the two most popular margaritas in the entire town of Laguna Beach yesterday. If you missed that article, it’s here:
    YOUR Vote: Top 5 Laguna Margaritas
    • They talk about their popular off-site catering and group dining as well as their super popular “Starfish On the Water” program for people cruising on a Duffy in Newport waters (great idea!). They even set up the Duffy rides on their website.
    Starfish Laguna, 30832 S. Coast Highway, Laguna Beach • 949-715-9200
    Starfish Newport, 91 Riverside Dr, Newport Beach •. 949-570-3990
    Both locations:
    Lunch 11 am- 3 pm – Opium Hour daily 3 pm - 6 pm – Dinner 3 pm to close
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    54 mins
  • Hottest Bites, New Restaurants & Events This Weekend in Laguna Beach

    Hottest Bites, New Restaurants & Events This Weekend in Laguna Beach
    May 7 2025
    This week’s Best of Laguna Beach radio show covered the gamut! So much to cover! The full audio replay is above ☝️ with a more detailed descriptive of these quick notes I’ve posted below.Tickets are moving fassst!Newport Beach Wooden Boat Festival - June 13-14I mentioned this one first because tickets are moving really, really fast. It’s a very cool immersive for everyone in your family.Balboa Yacht Club annually hosts this event and it is always open to the public. This year, it’s a Hollywood theme – Stories of the Sea: Wooden Boats in Film & Fiction – with classic wooden yachts and boats arriving from all points of the country that have been owned by Hollywood celebrities or have starred in movies, books and more. This “fest” is mammoth!Close to selling out 👇Friday Night, June 13th’s - VIP Premier party with limited tickets available, $95/person. Red carpet walk and VIP previews of the visiting boats with champagne pouring, high-end food stations, 3 wineries pouring their best, live music, dancing, live auctions and more.Saturday, June 14th All Day Pass, $15/person. Kids under 12 are free.Multiple sea and land events for kids and adults, alike. Check out plein air painters from Laguna Beach. Cruise on John Wayne’s boat. Hang out on Judy Garland’s famous boat. Check out the marine biology research lab on the famous Western Flyer from John Steinbeck’s famous novel (and movie). Plus . . . 30+ other Hollywood storied yachts and classic crafts, live bands, a big ol BBQ, movies and more. Free parking. Discounted lodging at Hyatt Regency. It’s all here:Grab Fri & Sat Tix Before They're GoneFri, May 2nd - Laguna Beach’s history in the moviesRivian South Coast Theater May 2nd, Doors open at 6:30 pmThe Heritage Committee is celebrating Laguna’s cinematic history with an original 1925 film from the city’s founding, along with archival clips and photographs showcasing Laguna Beach’s early – and ongoing – role in film history. Fri, May 2nd - The great Francois Dean & Celebrity Musician BandIvan’z House at Mozambique. Solid advice: Buy tickets in advance at Mozambique website. This will be a sold-out show.Sat, May 3rd - Laguna Beach Annual Gate & Garden TourMeet at downtown Water District building for VIP busses, 10 am - 4 pm.Buy Gate & Garden TixLaguna Beach Garden Club’s longtime major fundraiser for educational school gardens, local scholarships and community projects, this is an annual peek into magnificent private gardens and backyards that you can’t even believe exist in this town. Sun, May 4th - Tomato Plant FestAt the South Laguna Community Garden, pick up fantastic, homegrown tomato starter plants between 10 a.m and noon. (If I were you, I’d arrive early.) $5 per plant or 5 for $20.Big Restaurant Catch Up …The Drake’s Tasting Menu at the Chef’s Bar (this is a coming soon separate article)The Lumberyard’s always'-evolving menu of fresh tastes + tinned fish! I can’t stop ordering the Green Goddess Shrimp Bowl with grilled shrimp and farro or the yummy grilled mushroom yakitori.Wild Strawberry’s super-fresh sandwich and salad comboRecent fabulous tries from Evan’s Gourmet spring menus (OMG, Steak Frites to die for)GG’s Bistro’s as-always incomparable SangriaCoyote Grill’s new battered shrimp street tacos (served on happy hour, too!)And, again as always, 2 stellar experiences at Sapphire with lunch + evening pop-in drinks-and-appsUpdates on the Coming Soons in this town of ours :Piatti (222 Ocean ave. next to Marine Room) - They’ve had to push back their opening to mid June. Bummer.Board and Brew - (former Wild Taco on Ocean and Coast Highway) - Still working on opening day hopes with Mike DeSantis, the new owner.Truly Pizza – They’ve submitted plans for review for the old “3” space (former former Madison Square) … so that’s definitely in the works. And their commissary kitchen/bakery in South Laguna’s former Ti Amo location is also trundling right along. Plans are still for mid- to late June for Solag.Q Terrace - (former Red Dragon) – They’ve also submitted plans and tell me they’re opening in May . . . uhmmm, it may not be May, folks. They’re still in the plan review cycle with the City.Evidence of new sushi place going into former Laguna Sushi - I’ll get scoop on that for you shortly.And last but certainly not least . . . our infamous Seahorse TavernI popped in to talk with father and son of Seahorse - Garry Ledesma and Garry Jr. Garry, Sr. brought in two other investors to help with bringing the dream alive again - they call themselves “The Seahorse Crew.” In my radio show replay, above, I go into a great amount of detail about the delays they’ve been experiencing and what their hopes are for a faster opening process moving forward. As of now, they’ve just opened the Pearl Street General Store section with hopes to revive the Coffee Shop and THEN the Tavern. They’re also ...
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    44 mins
  • From Silver Screen to Shoreline: Newport’s Wooden Boat Fest Is Here!

    From Silver Screen to Shoreline: Newport’s Wooden Boat Fest Is Here!
    May 7 2025
    Step Into Nautical Nostalgia (and a Bit of Old Hollywood Glitz)

    Yesterday, Monday, April 21st at the “Best of Laguna Beach” radio show, I had an especially fun discussion with Balboa Yacht Club’s Steve Paljieg, who’s Co-Chair for the club’s upcoming, always-amazing Newport Beach Wooden Boat Festival on June 13th & 14th.

    Balboa Yacht Club annually hosts this event and it is always open to the public. This year, it’s a Hollywood theme – Stories of the Sea: Wooden Boats in Film & Fiction – with classic wooden boats arriving from all points of the country that have been owned by Hollywood celebrities or have starred in movies, books and more. This “fest” is taking on mammoth proportions and it’s time you scheduled some out-of-Laguna time for this fun.Before I get into all the details of our talk (below) here are the facts you need:

    All online tickets and live and silent auctions: https://NewportBeachWoodenBoatFestival.com


    👉 Where: Balboa Yacht Club, 1801 Bayside Drive, Newport Beach
    👉 Date: Friday & Saturday, June 13th & 14th
    👉 Free Parking: Park at Newport Beach Country Club for free shuttles to and from the event.
    👉 Lodging: The Hyatt Regency Newport Beach is offering special Festival rates with Balboa Yacht Club shuttles taking you to and from the festival. Check out their lodging page at the Wooden Boat Festival website to make reservations.Friday & Saturday in detail:

    💎 Friday Night, June 13th - The Friday Night Premier with limited tickets available at just $95/person. As Steve describes it, this is a “Hollywood-Glam-Meets-Maritime-History Opening Night Event” with red carpet walk, plenty of champagne, high-end food stations, 3 wineries featuring their vintages wines, live music and dancing, live auctions and - most importantly - special previews of the visiting boats with plenty of time to chat with their captains. (Just 300 tickets available and they’re already selling fast.)

    ⛵ Saturday Festival, June 14th 10 am-6 pm - just $15/person (kids under 12 are free). This is a full day pass to multiple sea and land events for kids and adults, alike. Buy tickets online (a better bet) or at the door.

    Classic Boats. Hollywood Legends. One Dazzling Evening & Day in Newport …
    $95/person for the Friday night “Hollywood” premiere evening.
    $15/person for an all-day Saturday pass (kids under 12 are free.)
    Count me in! Let me know you’ll be there, too!

    https://NewportBeachWoodenBoatFestival.com
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    56 mins
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