House of Big Fish and Ice Cold Beer in Laguna Beach

By Rich Manning | OCFOODIES.COM

When one typically thinks of Laguna Beach cuisine, one’s mind immediately starts associating it with adjectives associated with Laguna’s tautly refined, magazine cover image. Yes, it’s a beach town, and it has a gorgeous winding shoreline to prove it, but theirs is always been a scene where the restaurant crowd has always seemed to know of the concept of surfing but have not, in fact, surf. Not that there’s anything wrong with that, of course; some of my favorite places to eat call Laguna home. In fact, that mindset isn’t really the city’s fault. Truth was, there really have not been a lot of places that have opened here to lure in those who wish to have a nice, reasonably priced meal in an atmosphere that you felt at ease in a loud, splashy polo shirt. You know, the kind of place that seems to be abundant in Huntington Beach, or Newport Beach, or Dana Point. However, there is one venue that has emerged along Laguna’s strip of Coast Highway that speaks to loud and clear to the diner that wants to enjoy the distinct charms of Laguna Beach without the compelling feeling that they are actually in the elegant morass long associated here. House of Big Fish provides this ambience long missing from this city’s shoreline, and oh so much more.

Rest assured this is not your executive’s Laguna Beach eatery. Indeed, the vibe that permeates House of Big Fish has much more in common with the fun, laid-back venues that populate Balboa Island and the Main Street area of Huntington Beach. (The fact that the unofficial moniker fashioned on their website is “House of Big Fish + Ice Cold Beer” pretty much hammers this concept home.) That’s not to say that it is completely lacking in some of Laguna’s substance – the view of the sunset from the patio of this second-story venue is quite lovely, thank you – but there is so much going on here that runs completely counter to pretty much anything else going on in the city that doesn’t involve neon signage or a walk-up booth. We’re talking things like a multitude of HD televisions unashamedly beaming various sporting events, a wide open space utterly lacking in frills, and the feeling that I could fearlessly walk in here with a nice pair of shorts. In other words, it’s a classic neighborhood joint; it’s just that the surrounding neighborhoods tend to be lined with chic, multi-million dollar properties with pristine ocean views.

What sets House of Big Fish apart from other places that carry this type of atmosphere is that they proudly stake their reputation on seafood that is extremely fresh, environmentally responsible, and delicious. More importantly, they do a very good job at upholding this high standard. Take the chilled seafood sampler appetizer my wife and I split at our dinner’s outset; an enormous platter of sea grub so large, it practically created its own gravitational pull from within the center of our cozy patio table where it lay. You name it (within reason), and it’s on here – shrimp, oysters, ahi poke, crab legs – at a price point so reasonable, it may very well make it the best value in Orange County, considering what is offered. Their dedication to the seafood is evident all over the plate: The shrimp plump and succulent, the oysters clean, the crab legs meaty (albeit not as sweet as I’m accustomed to), and the show stopping smoked swordfish perfectly woodsy and tender. The contents of the dish are so good, the three dipping sauces that come with it are for all intents and purposes unnecessary, as they tend to interfere with the delightful, natural tastes of the food. The different pokes we tried (octopus for me, himachi for her) was beautifully accented with seaweed, giving the appetizer a subtly crunchy depth that really played well with the main feature, my octopus in particular.

Since House of Big Fish rests its laurels on the eminence of their seafood so heavily, it would stand to reason that they would do clam chowder properly. Suffice to say, if you are a connoisseur of the New England white style of chowder, you are cheating yourself if you do not partake in a bowl here. Heck, you may be cheating the rest of your party as well as the table next to you if you refrain. The first spoonful I indulged in was loaded with more clammy goodness then I suspect you’d find at Dorymann’s Pier on a Saturday morning. The soup was like that throughout, with the partnering potatoes and veggies comfortably and rightfully taking their place as mild enhancements as opposed to the dominant figureheads they tend to be in bad versions of chowder. However, the greatest thing is the ideally thick sauce, its silky goodness getting as decadently creamy as it could without crossing over into overly rich. It’s in the same league as the fantastic chowder being whipped up at Commonwealth Lounge in Fullerton. And I can’t tell you which is better, because the only debate that has been swirling about my head with more mental viscosity is the one that will ultimately determine whether or not l liked the ending of “Lost.”

Obviously, since we were at a venue with the word “Fish” in its name, it seemed foolhardy not to enjoy a fish plate for our main course, particularly given that they proudly tout the freshness and sustainability of their product (which is especially interesting since their sprawling selection of fish spans many different coastal regions around the globe). The way to order the fish here is almost akin to a build a burger place, in which you select your main catch, pick its cooking method (grilled or blackened), and choose its accompanying sauce, naturally opening one up to a slew of potential “if you don’t like it, it’s your fault” cracks from your entourage. Of course, even with this kind of “Choose Your Own Culinary Adventure” styling, the elements themselves have to be spot on if you wish for a truly enjoyable dining experience. And this was certainly the case with my yellowtail and my wife’s opakapaka, which we both ordered simply seasoned and grilled. Both fish were moist, flaky, and perfectly grilled to the point that any overtly fishy notes were eradicated. Yes, you could distinguish that both entrees were indeed fish, but it didn’t smack you upside the head like a poorly prepared piece does. The flavors were much more muted and sly, giving each distinctively flavored cut a slightly smoky complexity that added depth to each bite in the same way that a nice piece of steak would. And unlike the sauces featured with the sampler appetizer, the accoutrements here – a zippy, tangy cilantro lime vinaigrette for the yellowtail, and a lusciously sweet pineapple mango salsa for the opakapaka – were ideal dancing partners with our entrée, succinctly enhancing the flavor of the dish rather than interfering with it. My only quibble was with the sides; nothing against the home style potatoes, grilled veggies and Cajun rice (which all were yummy), but the surprising lack of straight white rice as an option was a slight disappointment, especially given the wide array of Pacific Rim options made available.

However, there was no such nitpicking afoot when dessert rolled around, because I have discovered possibly the most dangerous after-dinner treat in Orange County: The chocolate raspberry beer float. This deliciously wicked concoction requires some assembly, as it begins with two scoops of chocolate ice cream in a frosted beer glass, accompanied by a snifter of Lindeman’s Raspberry Lambic, waiting to be poured over the sweet lumps. The thing that makes this decadent delight such a danger is that it is so otherworldly dark, fruity, and bereft of a beery aftertaste that it is easy to forget that alcohol is involved. But it’s there, along with the possible urge to order a second one if you are coming here for drinks or dessert. My wife’s chocolate macadamia nut bread pudding was an appropriately concentrated square of sweetness that contained a nice flavor balance, and the crunch of the external macadamia crust gave it just that extra amount of texture and character.

And character is exactly what House of Big Fish brings to Laguna Beach. It’s genuinely exciting to have its presence in this city, since it is so refreshingly out of step with the dining motif that is so typically associated here. And while that alone makes the joint worth checking out, the expert way they do fish and other seafood here makes House of Big Fish worth revisiting time and again.