Javier's

Located along Pacific Coast Highway, just North of Laguna Beach with spectacular views of the Pacific Ocean, Javier's  presents a rich heritage of elevated Mexican cuisine in a friendly, captivating ambiance. The Mexican specialties on the menu are created with the highest quality seafood, beef, pork and chicken as well as gourmet vegetarian offerings.

Keith and I flew to Southern California to visit our dear friends Lucinda and James for the weekend.  They picked this restaurant for dinner on our first night.  We ordered a pitcher of House Margarita to share.  The classic drink paired well with all the different Mexican food we ate.

To start, we tried the Trio de Ceviche – with camaron (shrimp), pulpo (octopus), and pescado (Halibut).  It was bright with loads of lime juice and jalapeno.  All the seafood was incredibly fresh and high quality; we knew we were off to a great start.

Next, James suggested the Queso Fundido.  This was my first time trying the melted Monterey Jack cheese with sautéed onions, mushrooms and pasilla chiles, topped with chorizo and chipotle chile.  It was addictive and easy to eat with tortilla chips or corn tortillas.

For our main courses, Keith ordered Chile Negro – tender Angus short ribs braised in chile negro sauce, served with white rice.  The meat was very tender and the mole sauce had nice smoky flavor.  He would have preferred arroz and refritos like the other plates, but otherwise this was very traditional and delicious.

Lucinda ate Costilla de Res – tender and juicy Angus short ribs that were cut and braised Osso Bucco-style in a spicy tomato and serrano chile sauce. Served with roasted potatoes, as well as white rice and refritos on the side, this dish was very comforting.

James was torn between dishes and finally decided on the Carnitas – fresh natural pork prepared Michoacan style, served with refritos, guacamole, salsa quemada, cilantro and warm tortillas.  I did not taste the shredded meat, but could smell it, and others did try the meat and expressed how flavorful it was.  While the carnitas was probably the most homely dish of all that we ordered, it was certainly the most tasty.

I ate Enchiladas de Mariscos.  Two enchiladas were stuffed with shrimp and Dungeness Crab sauteed in butter, garlic, onion and wine, then covered in a tomatillo sauce, melted Monterey Jack cheese and garnished with avocado slices and sour cream. Served with arroz and refritos this dish was generous and full of incredible quality seafood.  The shrimp was plump and the crab meat was plentiful.

All in all we had a very satisfying meal at Javier's.  The restaurant itself had great Old World decor in the lighting fixtures and is quite large with multiple seating areas both inside and outside.  My view of the sunset was blocked, but I could still see the orange-pink glow.  I had a lovely meal with my friends and was just happy to be in sunny California again.

Total Rating: 4.28
Food: 4.5, Price: 3, Service: 5, Ambience: 5, Accessibility: 4