For most people, Los Angeles itself is an oasis. New Yorkers (me, for the last five years) and Chicagoans or other Midwest denizens often flock to the city for sunshine during cold winter months. The twin allures of gleaming Hollywood bars and the beaches of Santa Monica or Venice leave guests from other cities slightly starstruck, too. *Cue up “Party In The USA”*
While it’s true that LA is a great place to live, the city itself can get a little… exhausting. It’s still an enormous megalopolis full of noise, light, and traffic, and just like anything else, once you’re in it 24/7 you’re going to need a change.
Which explains why, when the opportunity came to visit the nearby secluded hamlet of Newport Beach after just a month living in LA, I jumped at the chance. Little did I know this brief weekend getaway would intro me to one of my favorite travel destinations ever, Balboa Bay Resort. It was only about an hour away from Los Angeles proper, but Newport felt like a completely different world, and the sumptuous, secluded resort is exactly the semi-staycation I needed.
Imagine the most luxurious, welcoming and spacious hotel you’ve ever set foot in (or at least I’ve ever set foot it), then double it — now you almost have Balboa Bay. My room was spacious, with nice flow, a large hallway funnels into the bedroom, complete with desk for those of us who are constantly combining work and play (hi), a huge TV for late night channel surfing, and, the pièce de résistance, the balcony. If you book a bay view room, a huge, private balcony — complete with a table and chairs for balcony-side-brunch — is available for your use, and is the highlight of the whole place.
Aside from the room itself, the resort is right on the boardwalk, has its own private Yacht aka “floating meeting space,” two restaurants helmed by executive chef Rachel Haggstrom, and a built-in coffee shop in case you’re in a hurry. Being the spoiled New Yorker that I am, I spent most of the trip getting to know the two in-house restaurants. I expected them to be slightly disappointing, surely a secluded town like Newport Beach couldn’t be serving food on the same scale as the Brooklyn hot spots I was used to. I was wrong.
Balboa offers Waterline, the elegant and quiet coursed dining with waterfront views, and A&O, a pub-style restaurant replete with big screens for watching the game, and an outdoor patio area decked out with fire pits. The restaurants are completely different from one another, but dovetail nicely to offer the range of dining and drinking experiences you’d want on a relaxing trip.
The stand-out dish at Waterline for me was the twin Tuna appetizers: Tuna Sashimi, a raw, thinly sliced portion of tuna served with avocado, blood orange, and black rice crisp, and Tuna Tartare, which was dressed up with cucumber, basil, tomato, and a little olive.
Haggstrom knows how to balance the bounty of the sea with pointed, interesting vegetables and seasoning in a way that was on par with my favorite Brooklyn spots. In fact, Waterline was so good I ended up going a second night (I was on spulrge mode!), floored by the Pan-Seared Diver Scallops, accompanied by English peas, baby carrots, and a tangy carrot vinaigrette.
Though I enjoyed some nice wine at Waterline, A&O (short for Anchors & Oceans, natch) was where I did my drinking. Mixologist Ben Carpenter plied me with literally every cocktail on the menu, and it was tough to choose a favorite from so many outstanding choices. Again, the quality was on par with my snobby New York speakeasy palette, something I never expected to find so far from Manhattan (or even Manhattan Beach).
Forced to choose, I think the pair of whiskey cocktails are still the ones that get me. The Northern Trail ($12) has a base of Dickel Rye with Journeyman Cider, fresh ginger, lemon, and bitters. The more potent Old Bull Lee ($13) is simply Buffalo Trace bourbon, Creole shrubb, and Moroccan orange bitters. If you require something non-whiskey, then there’s a good tequila drink, the Ancho Paloma ($13) with Don Julio Blanco, Ancho Reyes, Mojave grapefruit and lime. Smooth, citrusy and bitter enough for any tequila lover.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BLjqDsPgJEh/
At both restaurants, sitting outside along the waterfront feels just as delicious as the food and drinks taste. The row of boats just along the boardwalk offer such an idyllic view, they erased LA beaches from my mind completely. I wanted to be in Newport, now, whenever I could, and an afternoon adventure into the Bay via a Duffy boat only confirmed that.
On the tour, we learned of different celebrities who had made their homes in Newport Beach — John Wayne, Nicholas Cage — and were regaled with stories of the Newport Beach Christmas boat parade. By the time the tour, and my trip were over, I was convinced of one thing — this would be my go-to place to relax and get a break from real life.
Then, I packed up the car for the easy drive back to Los Angeles, which wasn’t such a bad alternative either.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BLkEJ1WAUQn/
