Basilic Restaurant

Located on Balboa Island a block or two away from Newport Beach’s famous dueling banana stands, Basilic is a Swiss-French restaurant serving a handful of Swiss items – notably cheese and charcuterie – mixed with French mainstays and specials taken from Spain and Italy. Everything we tried was at least good and occasionally great, including:

• Gazpacho (tomato and watermelon)
• Blood red, delicious cured Swiss beef: bundnerfleisch
• Prosciutto, fig, goat cheese, cantaloupe
• A superb Swiss onion soup with a hint of wine and cream in the broth
• Zurich Veal, bites of meat mixed with mushrooms, cream, thin sliced potatoes, a baby carrot, and zucchini
• Perfectly cooked rack of lamb with mashed potatoes
• Steak au Poivre, a small but again perfectly grilled portion with peppercorn sauce
• A gorgeous but thoroughly bland tasting Vacherin Glacé, chocolate ice cream sandwiched between two dried meringue cookies, served on liquid berries and cream
• A good caramelized walnut chocolate bar, benefiting from large, fresh fruits of the forest
• A delicious lemon tarte with a lightly caramelized top, again adorned with fruits of the forest.