Great food and fantastic service. I would reccomend this restaurant to anybody Top of the line food.read more

Hostess Elijah and waiter Charles made sure our evening was absolutely wonderful…read more My dad is visiting from out of town, and we always make sure to come here at least once when he visits. Highly recommend the sea bass, the petit bistro salad, and the artichoke appetizer. If you plan on visiting on a weekend, make sure to make a reservation!

Delicious, well prepared, elevated Mexican dishes with an artisan's aesthetic flare to put it…read moremildly. From the beef options to the ever so delightful seafood options - your tastebuds will enjoy a night out here. Atmosphere is energetic and most inviting. Excellent for a date night or book a gathering - you'll be well cared for - staff is most welcoming. Views across PCH allow glimpses of the ocean and sunset beyond. Highly recommend / suggest you make a reservation.

I had dinner at South of Nick's in San Clemente for my birthday, and it was my first time dining…read morehere. I had been looking forward to trying it, but unfortunately my experience was a little mixed. First, the parking situation was incredibly disappointing. There's no valet, and finding street parking in the surrounding area was absolutely insane--and this was on a weekday! I actually like to walk and am in good shape, but I finally found a spot several blocks away and couldn't help wondering what everyone else does for parking. My husband got much luckier and happened to snag a spot near the restaurant when he arrived from work. For dinner, I was excited to try the seafood enchiladas, but they were SO spicy. I normally enjoy a little heat, but the level of spice completely overwhelmed the dish for me, especially since I don't remember seeing anything on the menu indicating that they were particularly spicy. I'll take some responsibility here because I didn't say anything to our server, who was actually wonderful. I'm sure they would have happily addressed it or remade the dish had I spoken up. The sides didn't stand out to me, either. Our usual go-to for Mexican food is Calo Kitchen in Laguna Niguel, and based on this particular meal, I didn't think South of Nick's was quite as good. That said, everyone else at our table seemed to really enjoy what they ordered, so I think I may have just had an unfortunate choice with my dish. The service was great, and I'd be willing to give it another try and order something different next time. I'm just not sure I want to deal with that parking again!

Ciana was great! Service was speedy, the food came out great, and Ciana was so kind as to walk me…read morethrough the menu when it came to accommodating my allergies :) I got the Mariposa drink and the chicken Caesar salad, and my dad got the halibut special. In his words "incredible, to die for," and "the wine section was amazing". Ambiance was great, and made even better by the kind service we received! Thank you Ciana for making our evening so special.

I've been here a few times, and this time was no different - the food, service, and ambience was…read moreamazing. Some places sell mediocre food just because there's a view and they think they can get away with it. Everything ties together here. Janelle was our server last night and she was sweet, attentive, and very polite. We were lucky to sit outside, closer to the street, and had a great view of the ocean. Food was great: Duck wings: 10/10, sticky sauce that's so addicting Bone in ribeye: 9/10, not a huge fan of blue cheese but the steak was great! Cioppino: 10/10, the rosemary focaccia paired really well and was perfect to soak up the soup! Overall, we'd definitely come back again. It's also a sister restaurant to Ironwood (Laguna Hills) and Olea (Newport Beach) so there's a similar menu with some apps/entrees/desserts only specifically to that restaurant.

Driftwood Kitchen made our 30th anniversary celebration absolutely unforgettable. From the moment…read morewe arrived, the setting felt special. We were seated at a beautiful balcony table overlooking the ocean, and the view created the perfect atmosphere for such an important milestone in our lives. The evening became even more remarkable when we had the unexpected opportunity to watch a SpaceX rocket launch from our table. Seeing it rise into the sky over the ocean while celebrating three decades of marriage was a once-in-a-lifetime moment that we will always remember. The food was excellent, and the clam chowder deserves special recognition. It was rich, flavorful, and easily the best clam chowder we can remember having. We have enjoyed plenty of chowder in New England over the years, and Driftwood Kitchen's version rivaled any of them. As wonderful as the food, view, and rocket launch were, the true highlight of our evening was Bianca W. She went far beyond what anyone would expect from a server. She was warm, attentive, thoughtful, and genuinely caring. Bianca treated us not simply as customers, but as people celebrating a meaningful chapter in our lives. Her kindness and personal attention made us feel truly valued and turned an already memorable dinner into an extraordinary anniversary experience. Exceptional service is always appreciated, but Bianca brought something even more meaningful: sincerity, warmth, and a genuine desire to make our evening special. Thank you, Driftwood Kitchen, and especially Bianca, for giving us a celebration we will treasure for years to come. We could not recommend this restaurant or Bianca more highly.

I am so profoundly disappointed in my experience at driftwood kitchen. I will start with the…read moreextremely few positives, the view is incredible and the young lady hosting was personable and helpful. She got us sat on the patio with a view promptly and with a smile. Now onto the rest of the experience! The website recommends arriving early to your reservation, which we did. Our reservation was for around 7 and we checked in at a little after 6:35. We were sat at approximately 6:50pm and proceeded to wait to be greeted for over 15 minutes (see timestamped photos below). This was frustrating as there didn't seem to be any reason why we were waiting so long. There were quite a few servers working, plenty of servers assistants helping out, and the restaurant wasn't huge (maybe 30-40 tables). As someone that works in the industry, there was no true reason for us to wait so long to be greeted and if there was, it should've been communicated. Once we were finally greeted, we immediately ordered two appetizers and told our server that we were still deciding on entrees. Our server did not return to check on us or grab entree orders until 5 minutes after our appetizers were delivered. By this point, it has been over 30 minutes since sitting down and our full order still isn't in. It almost felt like we were intentionally being neglected because we are young (gen z age) in a "fancier" restaurant and they assumed we would be difficult/not tip. Not that it matters, but my fellow diner and I make it a point to be especially kind and polite to service workers and almost always tip over 20% as we are service workers as well. The vibes were strange and continued to get worse as our experience continued. Luckily, all the food came out in a timely manner and we were so excited to dig in. I ordered the scallop meal which was delicious, but unfortunately, our other entree was fully inedible. We ordered the salmon and it came out raw!!! At first, we weren't sure if this was normal cook/preparation so we stopped eating it to wait and ask the server, but it took so long for us to be checked on again that we ended up eating the two fingerling potatoes it came with and letting the salmon sit and get cold. Thank goodness we stopped eating it because the server took the plate back to the kitchen and let us know that the chef agreed it was undercooked. Outside of the obvious issue of eating incorrectly prepared fish, their "solution" to the problem was to offer us 50% off the dish. I would understand this sentiment if we reordered a correctly cooked plate, but we sent it back and didn't ask for another. Also this place is advertised as FINE DINING! In what fine dining restaurant would you serve unsafe and improperly prepared food and not fully comp that plate?! I was shocked. I have never in my life done this before, but I asked my server if we could speak with the manager. He obliged, but with an attitude of "oh shocker these people are causing issues just like I assumed they would." Our server was never impolite, but he put no effort into serving us and seemed to expect the worst from us. This sentiment carried through to the manager as well. After briefly explaining the issue with the salmon, and choosing to omit our terrible serving experience, the manager did not even apologize. He quickly smiled and said "we will take it off," and immediately walked off. The interaction was strange and felt almost patronizing. After this, we quickly got the check and just left. My dining partner was stressed about eating the undercooked salmon and I felt incredibly uncomfortable and disappointed. Despite the subpar service and food issues, I still tipped my server over 20% to avoid being perceived as the "problem customer" that was being projected. I will warn any person that comes here that if you're not the target demographic, you will be neglected and left disappointed. MOST of the food here was actually lovely and the views were perfect, but that can't make up for the poor service and improperly prepared food. Dine with caution.

Took my mother-in-law here for her birthday and we all had such a great experience!…read more We got there around 4-4:15pm and had about a 20 minute wait, but we were able to find a high top table that we got to sit at and were able to order drinks from the bar, so that helped to pass our time. We got seated at our table at our table around 4:30p and had the most perfect view of the ocean! *we went on a Friday night and noticed the patio cleared out about 4:45-5pm and I didn't appear to have a lot of people waiting during that time. The main patio was covered with umbrellas, so once you are seated for dinner, there was plenty of umbrellas for shade and heaters for when it got a little cooler. For our food orders, and as recommended by our server, we went with their seafood options and ordered their Pacific Ceviche for an appetizer and for Entrees my husband got the Roasted Halibut and me and my mother-in-law both got the Scallop and Shrimp pasta. We all loved our dishes and were very satisfied with our choices. Their menu does have non-seafood options, but why not to try what they're most prominent for? They don't have a dessert menu, but they heard that we were celebrating mom's birthday so they brought us a little Toffee Cake to share and enjoy...and for a place that doesn't have dessert, the cake was pretty delicious. Such a cute place all around. My husband and I can't wait to go back! Parking - they have valet parking available right in front of the restaurant or theres street metered parking in the surrounding area.

I was really hoping for a great lunch, but unfortunately the experience was disappointing…read more The poke and mussels were actually very good, which makes it even more frustrating that the rest of the meal fell so short. I ordered the scallop and shrimp pasta, and on my very first bite of the scallop, it had a strong ammonia taste--a common sign that seafood has gone bad. After that, I completely lost my appetite and couldn't eat the rest of my meal. My daughter ordered the cioppino, and after checking the seafood in her dish, we noticed the scallop was also very rubbery and didn't seem fresh either. Fresh seafood is something restaurants should never compromise on. Based on this experience, I can't recommend eating here and would suggest trying another restaurant instead.

Great food and ambience! Nice big bar. Nice booths…read more The French Onion soup was excellent, nice and bold. The Lumberyard Planks (fried zucchini) were good. We preferred ranch instead of their lemon aioli. The ribs were hit or miss. One precut section was overcooked and dry. The remaining sections were wonderfully nice and tender and delicious. The BBQ sauce was the molassesy kind I like. They had New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc. The Pizza Port Blonde beer was fine.

While looking at nearby restaurants for Valentine's Day dinner, we decided to book a reservation at…read moreLumberyard. We had never heard of Lumberyard before, but the menu seemed to have balanced selection of land and sea offerings. So this was perfect for both of us. Lumberyard is located in a walkable section of Laguna Beach, in the heart of all of the action. The ocean/beach is a quick walk from the front door, so this is the perfect location for dinner and an evening stroll. Parking is challenging as you have the option of parking in the lot across the street or in the structure down the road. Traffic is also quite heavy as Laguna Canyon is a road that is heavily traveled. Lumberyard is a restaurant that offers an intimate dining experience with more of a laid back vibe. It's kind of dark inside as they keep the lights dimmed. The bar is front and center and takes up a good portion of the restaurant. There's a small section toward the front, just behind the hostess where live bands play a small set for guests. The menu has a nice selection of items that appealed to both of us. I am an incredibly picky eater, often focusing on vegetarian dishes or seafood. I ended up ordering the Parmesan crusted sole with mashed potatoes and lemon butter with a Shirley Temple. My husband ordered chicken pot pie and a creamsicle mocktail. I liked the presentation of the whole meal. My Shirley Temple had little heart candies floating atop of it. So cute! As for our meals, I can say that this was well worth the price. I took a bite of the pie crust on my husband's chicken pot pie and it tasted homemade. It was delicious! My sole was pretty tasty! The lemon butter was super creamy and it added more flavor to an already tasty piece of fish. The potatoes were light and fluffy! The meal was delicious! Our experience at Lumberyard was great. People from all walks of life were there that evening. Some people were dressed in jeans with sneakers while others were dressed to impress. The staff were very professional and our waiter was attentive. Our experience at Lumberyard was quite nice and we would definitely return for another date night in the near future.

***Little Gem in Laguna Beach***…read more A great restaurant located in the heart of Laguna Beach. This was our second time here and it did not disappoint. My husband and I wandered in on a Saturday afternoon. The restaurant has nice indoor and patio seating. Since there was some construction we decided to eat inside. They have a nice drink selection, I had an Espresso martini, which was the perfect pick me up. My husband ordered IPA. My husband ordered the House Cheeseburger, which was the size of a double patty. It comes with the perfect melted white cheddar cheese. I ordered the Chipotle Lime Chicken Sandwich, which was delicious. The havarti and guacamole are the perfect topping. I don't know if they make their own buns but they are so delicious. The service was excellent . Food: 5/5 Service 5/5 Ambiance 5/5 If you find yourself in Laguna Beach, don't sleep on this restaurant.

We were in Laguna Beach on a beautiful Friday afternoon and wanted a quick snack, but mostly wanted…read moreto kick off happy hour. This area just across PCH has always been a convenient place to grab something, but it's even better now that they've closed off the street and turned it into a promenade of sorts. The restaurants have expanded their outdoor seating and during the summer they have live musicians playing later in the day. It felt festive and very summer-in-Laguna. This review is mostly for the vibes. Our waiter was chill and friendly, the food came out quickly and although it's priced for tourists, it was decent. The thin, crispy fries were solid. It's super dog-friendly, close to the ocean and an easy place to settle in for the afternoon. If we didn't have other plans, we would've stayed all night.