The husband-and-wife team Marín and Noah von Blöm formerly of Restaurant Marin and ARC has opened ARC Butcher & Baker, their new concept located in Newport Beach’s Cannery Village. The focus of the place is ready-to-serve take-home family-style dinners but there’s a dine-in menu as well. 417 30th St., Newport Beach, CA 92663
Taquiero Taco Patio has opened at Campus Plaza in Irvine. The spot was formerly Gatten Sushi. The new restaurant offers tacos, burritos, mulitas, quesadillas, and tostadas. Featured meats include carne asada and conchinita pibil. 4517 Campus Dr, Irvine, CA 92612
Broken Rice Truck has opened a brick-and-mortar location as a new vendor at Trade in Irvine. Broken Rice Restaurant serves bowls built upon a base of broken rice, known to Vietnamese as com tam. Toppings include beef, chicken, and tofu cooked with sauces such as miso curry and peanut sesame. 2222 Michelson Dr, Ste 206, Irvine, CA 92612
A new Indian restaurant specializing in the cuisine of the Chettinad region of Tamil Nadu, a state in South India has opened in Tustin. Anjaparr Orange County, part of a chain that has a location in Artesia, features items including dosas and aappams. 13882 Newport Ave, Tustin, CA 92780
A restaurant called Bistro Provincia that fuses Latin and French has opened in Dana Point. It replaces the space that was formerly The Wine Bistro & Whisky Bar. 34091 La Plaza, Dana Point, CA 92629
Before becoming an award-winning restaurant critic for OC Weekly in 2007, Edwin Goei went by the alias “elmomonster” on his blog Monster Munching, in which he once wrote a whole review in haiku.