Taste of Newport

This tour is just starting out so maybe it’s just growing pains that it’s going through right now and it will get better with time… that being said, it starts at a local chain restaurant that served us burnt food and the tour guide was less than receptive to any critique and actually said «well you must have liked it, you ate it all» simply because we did not want to waste the burnt food. My husband and I have been on all the other tours that this company offers and they were all great so maybe we had higher expectations, but it seemed to us that the tour guide was not enthusiastic, barely friendly, not very well informed, and actually challenged people’s trivia knowledge in a manner that was not fun. It should be noted that there is a substantial fast paced walk from the dock on Balboa to the next restaurant stop and also that the many of the samples include seafood and wine… I enjoyed all the samples but many in the group did not eat seafood or drink wine… that left a lot more for me but I was left feeling like the others got cheated.

I was excited to be here seeing I usually love the fair food and sampling from different hidden gem restaurant. Plus we’ve got Blondie headlining for the night we were there, which is why we were there really.
Food was so so, they were mostly big chains and it was about 2 streets full of good. A big excited for ramen but then realized it was to advertize their instant miso soup, at least it was cheap! There were also long lines for the popular Japanese restaurants there.
Blondie concert was great, fantastic time!
–2 stars for high price admission $ 25 for no food included admission and standing space only for the concert. Could’ve been better :\ Not sure if we’ll be back next year…
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1 star — «will be telling everyone to stay away» bad
2 stars — it’s okay, i won’t return
3 stars — it’s okay, i’ll come back
4 stars — it’s pretty good, i’ll come by again!
5 stars — it’s really good, my go-​to places!

What a horrible event! I am so flabbergasted how lame this place was!
When we came here not knowing how much the entrance fee was & I was so surprised to hear it was $ 25/​person. (I thought, this better be good.)
Not only did we have to pay for cover, but we had to pay roughly about $ 3-​$ 7.00 worth of food items, which are pretty much bite-​size.
We went to a couple of food stands & I wish I still had the list of the restaurants that were there so I could name what tasted good and that was a waste of money. From what I can remember:
1. we went to the italian food stand:
–got the spaghetti & meatballs and it tasted SPOILED & it had horrible after taste. The lady to come back and taste their tiramisu but after tasting the spaghetti, no way i was coming back for tiramisu
2. Tapas stand
Banana empanada type thing w/​some hot chocolate drizzled on top (it was okay, but not great)
Chicken empanada was cold and had no taste whatsoever.
3. Pick-​up-​stix stand
was probably the best place we got food. We got the crab wantons & house special chicken. It tasted wonderful.
4. Dessert food stand.
I ordered the hot chocolate sundae $ 3 & it tasted like any other sundae but it was a mini version where I can go somewhere else and get a bigger sized sundae. It didnt impress me in anyway, but it was good.
Overall, the entertainment was pretty bad. All I could remember hearing was the sound of people singing in the karaōke (which most of them were not so great). From what i learned is that I will never come back here ever again. $ 125 went to waste. (sighs)

Umm… BIG FAT WASTE OF MONEY!
I don’t mind dropping beau-​coup bucks for great food and great experiences. The Taste of Newport was neither.
Admission to the event is $ 25. Luckily I paid only $ 12 through the OC Register. On top of that, you need to purchase a script card to pay for all the samples. The portions are hella small. The food isn’t that great. The people are snooty. I would come here to find out what places to avoid in the OC.
Save your money and just go on Unilocal to figure out what places are good in South County. It’s probably more reliable, and the Unilocalers are more personable than the people at these establishments.

I’ve been to lots of food festivals, but I’ve never been to one where everything costs money. $ 25 for a regular priced ticket, then pay more for food, then pay more for booze? Ridiculous.
The food was decent, but I was hoping for a larger selection of restaurants, and didn’t really expect chains like Pick Up Stix, Ruby’s, and Von’s to be selling their wares. A few of the food vendors aren’t even from Newport. It does give me some places to try for lunch in the future.
For what I paid, I could have eaten better going to a food truck.
Entertainment wise, TON’s 2011 Sunday lineup included Taylor Dayne. Although time hasn’t been good to her, she’s still got a damn amazing voice.

I’ve been to Taste of Newport a handful of times in the last decade… and this last one was a huge waste of money… like, I should have just gave the $ 100 I spent to a homeless person and said, «Go get drunk… on me, buddy!»
THE COST:
$ 25 per ticket x2 = $ 50, just to get in.
(BUT, AS THEY POINTED OUT THAT INCLUDED THE ENTERTAINMENT… which I had no desire to check out at all).
$ 50 in food credits, b/​c we wanted to try it all :)
THE FOOD:
The only highlight was Royal Thai’s pad thai and the Italian sausage place. Everything else SUCKED. I mean, Pick Up Stix and Ruby’s at Taste of Newport? Gimme a break. I was super excited to see that one of the Mexican spots had lengua on the tasting menu… so I ordered it and then they said they had no lengua (after they charged me for it)…very confused.
Overall, lame food. Verrry lame food.
THE ENTERTAINMENT:
Joan Jett, ABBA, Taylor Dayne, and some other musical groups that I have ZERO % interest in… Nor was I there while they were performing. So, I couldn’t even enjoy them if I wanted to!
OVERALL:
Clean bathrooms, great people watching, and a nice reminder to never go there again. It’s not like it used to be a few years back with amazing food, an energetic crowd, and cheaper admission :(
SKIP!
xo–
andrea

About two months ago a friend saw the «Screamin’ Deals» … screamin … deal … uhh … yeah … for the Taste of Newport and said, «HURRY HURRY … I want to go!»
I got all excited like a little kid and SIGNED UP! Then, like the idiot I am, I went to Unilocal AFTER we purchased the tickets. I alerted said friend to the reviews and informed him of his lack intellectual acuity. Said friend then had to «bail» … awesome … off to a good start.
We showed up to the event … on Friday … early … with our tickets in hand ready to explore the culinary jungle that is Newport Beach. We stood in the Screamin Deals line for about 30 minutes waiting for the TWO PEOPLE that Screamin Deals sent. Two people? Really? This events been going on for years and, I would assume, Screamin Deals had an idea of the number of people that bought tickets. So … thanks for the foresight.
Anywho, we finally entered and purchased our Scrip cards. The next booth we was was «Shock Top» beer. HOORAY BEER! We LOVED the food and the wine and the beer and the desserts. Our only disappointment was Beachcombers tuna tacos. The tuna was fishy. Now once you are done laughing, I mean it was fishy for tuna. For the life of me I couldn’t figure out if it was the fish or the sauce. C’est la vie. It was poor enough for me to discount the establishment altogether though. Port restaurant won the award for new place to try. Their filet mignon was incredible. Places I was disappoint to miss (but was too stuffed for) were «Espresso One» and «Christopher Michael Chocolates». Now why, in heavens name, would you mention places you DIDN’T go?! By the time we got to desert and coffee, I was ABSOLUTELY STUFFED. All the past posts complaining about the food and restaurants are, in my opinion, probably snobs. If you are an ordinary person that didn’t grow up with a silver spoon in your mouth, or BITTER that you didn’t grow up with a silver spoon in your mouth, will enjoy this event.
Just like ALL the reviews say, the wildlife (cougars and silver foxes) were out en-​masse. (NOTE TO SELF: To death do we part … because the alternative is a train wreck) If that bugs you … don’t go. By the way, you could make this a «dress up» event. We went in jeans and polos and probably will again next year. That said, we are laid back folk. There ISN’T so much walking that you couldn’t just slip on platform heels or wingtips. You won’t go home hating your feet … or me.
The ONLY reason I don’t give this five stars was the money. Cha-​ching. My wifey and I enjoyed 3.5 hours of culinary revelry, but it cost us $ 100. We ate our brains out, but the quality of food wasn’t quite there for that amount (or maybe it was the fact that nobody was serving us). The trade off was that we ate at nearly 20 different places (I was stupid full), and we each drank a beer and glass of wine.
Final note, don’t bring your kids. This isn’t the right atmosphere.
Wrap-​up. If you are an everyday kind of person and don’t mind spending $ 100 for a unique night out. This is the venue for you.

I have to agree with some reviewers here. The cost is ridic. $ 25.00 just to walk in. I bought tickets on Screaming Daily Deals. I think I paid $ 24.00 for two tickets, which is STILL too expensive for this shindig! If I had to pay full price, I would have been P. O’ed beyond belief.
I put $ 25.00 on an escript card for the two of us. Friday night it was so crowded it was hard to walk around. The lines were so long to most of the booths so I went up to a couple of booths with the shortest lines. I was stepping in spilled beer and drinks. My shoes were sticking to the road, kinda like the frat parties in the good old days. Lost of drunk people standing in the middle of the road, yelling and talking, making other people walk around them. Lots of NBPD here, most of whom seemed to be chatting up the skanky drunk girls.
The people watching is highly entertaining. Fashion Island used to have a Summer Concert Series which was free & the same types of peeps showed up. Women with stretched faces, lips pumped full of fillers, bad boob jobs. Lot’s of ladies wearing F me shoes and low cut tops. These ladies were either there to pick up men or they were headed to clubs later in the evening.
Joan Jett played Friday night. Eh… she was good I guess for a 50– something rocker in spandex pants. There was a half azz’d Conga line snaking its way trough the crowd. Not too many people joined these folks; all who held beer in hand while conga-​ing.
I had $ 3.50 left on my card at the end of the evening. I got into the Casey’s Cupcake’s line, which was LONG. The regular cupcakes were $ 5.00 & a mini rinky dink one was $ 2.50. I got the mini which was good & sweet but about the size of my thumb.
A fun but very expensive evening for what you get.

review for the 2011 Taste of Newport in Newport Beach.
Ok, this was nothing more than a more expensive farmer’s market experience, with the exception that most of the participants were the restaurants that were doing well in this recession. And they were doing well for a reason — everything I tried was GOOD!
Across the board, every plate I tried was memorable. Siamese dim sung, Korean BBQ tacos, Italian salchichon, Greek lamb chops with macaroni wuth cheese and truffles, Mexican chinga chicken hard shells. Wines from various local vendors (not local wineries, just vendors) were also fairly decent, and meant to appeal to the masses. Certainly there were no true hidden gems, just crowd pleasers.
What really kept this review from being a 5-​star was this lack of feeling of community that one normally gets from the other Taste Of… events (or even standard street fairs/farmer’s markets). The best way I can describe it was like walking through a commercial of these restaurants, rather than being introduced to the sights, sounds and flavor of Newport Beach.
And on a side note, the ABBA cover band on the Sunday night REALLY knocked it out of the park!

It is pricey and there are a lot of lines to stand in but what can I say, I have been enjoying this event for 4 years now.
The Spreebird $ 11 admission helps ease the burn. We waited in a long line to exchange the voucher for a ticket. Then another line to get some eScrip (food & drink debit card). Silly me I waited in the Cash Only line when I intended to pay with a CC so I had to wait all over again. Meh.
Another fun line for a drink wristband.
Then, the line for wine ($ 6 for the Red Diamond Merlot which was tasty). This is all I drank.
Food choices were good (I avoided all the chains like Ruby’s), Port had a crispy ahi taco and mini lobster pot pie and beignets. One of the restaurants at Pelican Hill offered an arugula salad with tomatoes and watermelon and some fresh vegetable risotto with Parmesan. Topped off with pistachio gelato and tiramisu. Everything we ate was divine though, not including admission or valet parking ($ 6), we each spent $ 40 for a meal consumed while sitting on various curbs, listening to Joan Jett. We also took home some Christopher Michael chocolate goodies with our leftover eScrip but that didn’t go very far for $ 1.75 truffles and mini macarons.
But the people watching is divine.

All I have to say is THANK GOD I had free entry tickets. If I had to spend $ 50 for the hubs and I to just walk into this place, I’d be pissed. Add another $ 30 for food (and we’re talking NO alcohol in this price), it’s a mighty expensive «Taste.» The food was pretty good, but I think in general this event is a rip-​off. I’d rather spend $ 80 on a nice dinner out.
If you eat anything here, you MUST try the crème brûlée from The Ritz. We may or may not have tried to split one and decided that wasn’t good enough and went back and got another for each of us. It’s that good.

SEE SCAN OF OUR «TWO $ 25 SUGGESTED RETAIL» ADMISSION TICKETS! (Un-​retouched… seriously… just as they were handed to me after plunking down $ 20 net each, owing to the $ 5 discount coupons we were given by a friend!)
This is another «parallel universe review.» This event had two faces; food and entertainment… OR … if you’re people watching, maybe three or four faces; depending on how observant you were in spotting cosmetic surgery. We went on Sunday, the 18^th, from 3pm to 8pm. Easy parking in the adjoining med-​clinic parking lot, no huge crowds, no long lines, which translated to a comfortable afternoon and early evening for our group of 5 couples.
Because we were living in the «entertainment-​universe» (see my «parallel universe» comment above)… my 4-​star review went to Taylor Dane and Abba in Concert, and to people watching. If I were zero’ing in on the food…? … it would have been a 1 to 2 star, especially with the super high suggested retail entry fee of $ 25/​person, and the small number of participating «indie» restaurants.
We’d return again… IF… we could score the higher value discounted entry coupons, and the entertainment was as relatable to us as this past Sunday’s. For the early «geezer crowd», Taylor Dane and the sounds of Abba two recognizable sounds from our recent past. And we’d also return if we could again be recipients of free VIP seating for both concerts. I think it’s a $ 125 upgrade… which is absurd, but we were seated as a group for free. I think they did it to «fill out» the section to keep the entertainers from freeking out. (I couldn’t have stood behind the VIP chair area on the open asphalt that long anyway, approximately 1.5 hours per concert.)
Taste events are about the great local food. IMHO, this wasn’t representative. It came off more like each restaurant (including the chains), just pushing their brand. I was thinking it would be like the Santa Monica version, with tons of high end restaurants shareing entrée samplers that we might not try because of their normal menu price. Here it was chain restaurants, mixed with some indies, pushing rather ordinary menu items. And this was, physically, a small event. The San Clemente Sunday Farmer’s Market is bigger. As a first timer, I was expecting «way mo’ bigga’ and betta’.» So yes, I was a bit confused???
Had we not been interested and attended the concerts, then paying even $ 20 to enter would be way to much. But for a total of about $ 60 for two of us, food and entertainment, it was well worth it, and made for a decent late afternoon and early evening with friends. I’m quite sure the economy kept many vendors from exhibiting this year, which could make next year’s event a tough sell for the promoters.
OH… BEST FEATURE of the event??? The «EXECUTIVE PORTA-​POTTIES.» Basically they were full restrooms on wheels, with «stalls» even! Really nice! So with that addendum, this will be the «End» of my review.

Completely overpriced. Fun, good food but most definitely overpriced. Make sure you search for discounted tickets online. $ 25 just to get in!!! Great to check it out once, but not worth going back.
Some restaurants charged the same price if not more for the «tasting dishes.» For example, Casey’s Cupcakes were $ 5.50 here, and you can get them at the store for $ 3.50. UMM? Shouldn’t the prices be discounted so that it attracts you to actually go to the store? Hmm? Triple Chocolate Cupcake was flavorful, moist and pretty, but the Red Velvet was a complete disappointment.
Christopher Michael Chocolates were delicious, but priced the same as their retail store. We enjoyed the sea salt caramel truffle, chocolate macaron, and some of the full bars.
Chakra Indian Cuisine’s Chicken Tikka Masala Combo plate was excellent and only priced at $ 6. Great deal.
Kitayama ‘s Yakitori (Chicken Teriyaki) was my favorite for the night, but was also priced at $ 6.
Port Restaurant and Bar’s Filet Mignon Shish Kabob with Saffrom Basmati Rice was yummy for $ 7. Homemade Hummus with warm Pita
for $ 4 was just okay. Tzatziki (Mediterranean Yogurt Dip) with warm Pita for $ 4 was flavorful.
Sabatino’s Lido Shipyard Sausage Co.‘s World Famous Sausage Sandwich with Peppers, Onions and Marinara Sauce for $ 7.5 was good, but nothing special.
Alcoholic beverages were about $ 7 and up. Bottled waters sold for $ 2.75.
For 4 people (enterance & tasting fees) we spent $ 236. Ouch! And I really don’t feel like we ate all that much food.

I love the music, the food tasting is so yummy and the drinks are effective! This will be our sixth year and we are going on Sunday (better day for kids) to watch ABBA the Musical. Can’t wait…
Oh, and about the cost, remember it is a fundraising for many local charities. Feel good when you spend your money.

SUCH a waste of $$ & time that it wasn’t worth it at all to even be there =(
It was expensive to get in (with Groupon coupon it was better)
Long long wait lines for everything from the tickets to the food lines…
The samples each were expensive $ 7-​$ 11 each SMALL portions of food
Restaurants that were there supplied crappy food that I didn’t even want to finish eating… =(
The GOOD restaurants that were there last year didn’t even show up at this year’s event =(
If I could give negative stars on Unilocal for this event then I would. =(
It seemed like ALL the OC Cougars that were there with their fake boobs & face lifts were trying to find guys/​hook up (great if you’re a guy & into that kind of thing ;)
Don’t waste your time /​$$ on this event… I’ll definitely pass on this for years 2 come… =)

Admission fee to get in, ouch on the wallet,
More money to eat some grub that are more like little niblets, another ouch on the wallet.
Plethora of women rocking out their designer duds, oh yes.
Overall, this was an expensive adventure. If I do come next year, oh how I will jump on that Groupon coupon like no other.

Celebrating its 22^nd spectacular year in 2010, the delicious mix of great food, drink, music and fun will attract over 50,000 people to Newport Center Drive at Fashion Island for the party of the year. The three-​day food, wine and music festival proudly presented by Wells Fargo and hosted by the Newport Beach Chamber of Commerce will be held:
Friday, September 17^th from 6:00pm to 11:00pm
Saturday, September 18^th from 4:00pm to 11:00pm
Sunday, September 19^th from Noon to 8:00pm.
There will be FREE parking in the designated structures at the Santa Rosa entrance, as well as available valet service.
Enjoy samples of over 30 restaurants and 15 wineries at this event. The event will also have live cooking demos and live entertainment. Check out their site for hours and entertainment line ups.
Entrees fee $ 25 (groupon had a deal for $ 11 for one day special)
*samples cost separately. $ 1 – 7 per item*
Few of the places my friends and I decided to sample during the event:
1) Beer truck for some Kirin on tap
2) Tapas — grilled shrimp and sausage on a stick
3) Beachcombers — crab cake, ahi tuna mini taco
4) Ho Sum Bistro — famous combo salad
5) Chakra — what a plate of goodies: rice, lamb, chicken, bread and some rice pudding
6) Clay Oven — lamb chops
7) Von’s soda tasting/​comparing (Free)
8) Commonwealth — cod chowder and spicy chicken strips w/​blue cheese chunks
9) Bacardi stand — Razz mojitos
10) Black Box wine tasting (free)
11) Stella beer garden tent
12) Sabatino’s Lido Shipyard — sausage sandwich
13) Five Crown — crème brûlée (dessert)
SO MANY STOPS… NOT ENOUGH ROOM

COUGARFEST!
There are SO many Newport Beach cougars are on the prowl at this event. It is a fascinating people watching experience. I don’t know how they can maneuver around in their inappropriately-​high heels at this daytime outdoor festival; especially when none are seen without a cocktail in hand. Astonishing.
The BOGO Groupon deal made the entry fee to this event acceptable. However, the regular $ 25pp at the door is WAY too much to spend. Nothing is free/​included once you get in, besides the concert (Pat Benatar performed on the evening I went).
The tastings were just okay in price and quality. For example, it’s great that you can try a crème brûlée from Five Crowns for only 3 bucks. However, it was mushy and obviously had been sitting out for who knows how long.
Taste of Newport is definitely worth going to once, just to say you’ve been.
I’ve gone once. I’ve been.
Done.

$ 25 to get in the door. Times two. So $ 50 gone before starting. Then put $ 50 on a debit card to access food and drinks for two. So we’re in for $ 100. Walked in the door, nothing but wall-​to-​wall botched plastic surgeries. Faces looked shrink-​wrapped, boobs looked engorged with gel. People packed in like sardines. Loud rock music, mediocre soundsystem. Lines of 20 – 30 people for every single food item.
Mood-​o-​meter hit the red within two minutes, as I think of all the things we could have spent $ 75 on (someone paid for my ticket, in all fairness). We walk from one end to the other… had several drinks spilled on us by 45 year old women dressed like 19 year old women. Drunk and obnoxious. We get to the far end of the plaza, do deep breathing for a minute so we don’t start punching people. Finally find a food booth without a line. Get to the front and realize why. Soggy, tiny fish tacos for $ 5.50 each. A chicken burrito, equally soggy, for another $ 6. Blew $ 11.50 now on tiny wet appetizers. I’m no longer starving, so I don’t want to punch everyone in sight… but just blew almost $ 12 for the worst Mexican food I’ve had since moving to California.
My date walks off to grab Thai food. We’re both really irritable now, need something to recover. Grab chicken satay, Thai noodles, and fried shrimp balls. Look for a table, but they’re all taken by drunks. We brush off cigarette butts from the sidewalk by a fence behind a food stand and grab a seat. Tear into the Thai food hoping for redemption. Worst Thai food we’ve had, and it was another $ 18. We’re now out $ 80 and we’ve had two admissions, two tiny wet street tacos, a soggy chicken burrito, two chewy chicken satays, two burned shrimp balls, and about 5 oz. of bland noodles in a little paper tray.
Eye contact. Confirmed. Let’s get the Hell out of here. Conversation for the next hour around how this was the worst food we’ve had in California, the most obnoxious crowd we’ve been in since moving to California, and among the most expensive half hours of our lives.
Drove back to Westminster and had delicious food in a mellow environment. Spent $ 12.
Taste of Newport — You’re the biggest culinary failure of my life. I literally would have had a much better foodie experience sneaking into Costco and doing laps of the aisles with frozen pierogies and mini-​corn-​dogs.

First to review the 2010 Taste of Newport Event!
$ 25.00 is the point of entry fee… BUT if you were in early online you coulda paid $ 22.00 or if you were smart enough to find other ways of getting a discount you coulda paid $ 11.00 like I did!
The music venue for the night was Gin Blossoms and old group I guess they were promoting their new album coming out!!! Crazy I thought they were totally gone by now… Foreigner plays on Saturday (9÷18÷2010) and Pat Benetar on Sunday (9/19/2010)…Talk about BLAST FROM THE PAST!!!
Overall the event started late a huge line of people were waiting to get the heck in there at 6:05 The doors still didn’t open up!!! Come on now… what are we doing here??? To make things worse my friends were all late! I couldn’t wait anymore so I went in on my own… at least I could walk around first and get an Idea of what I wanted to try.
I went to the first Chef Demo, done by Grant MacPherson, who has a restaurant in Newport Beach called Rustica (American)…He made a Tuna Tar Tar… it was pretty good…
Finally my party arrived… we walked around finally grabbing bites here and there…
Some of the food that I tried:
Palm Terrace had this Mac n Cheese w/Truffles…Mmmmmmmm $ 5.50
Kitayama had a Salmon Hand Roll…$ 5.50 (eh just okay)
Port Restaurant ~ Chicken Kabob $ 6.00 (The chicken was real good and sooo tender).
Ritz Restaurant ~ Creamed Corn $ 2.00 (Oh it was so tasty).
Ritz Restuarant ~ Crème Brulee $ 3.00 (Just normal)
Ruby’s Diner ~ Soft Serve Ice Cream Cone $ 1.00 (Couldn’t beat that price and it tastes better than McD soft serve for sure).
Overall the event I would definitely go to again but I wouldn’t want to pay full admission price.
I’m not much of a concert goer… but definitely like to try various foods even with all my eating limitations…