We came here for dinner with our best and oldest friends tonight! We had the best time! You will need reservations. I called Tuesday for Sunday night, and had a choice of 5:15 or 7:45. This place is crowded with regulars. There wasn't a seat at the bar when we were seated (on time!). The service was super friendly and as good as you can possibly hope for or expect. Steven was our waiter and (I think) the manager! What a total pro! His service was like he was serving his favorite aunties and uncles. The atmosphere was dark and classy and fun and loud and perfect. The food was scrumptious. I had the hanger steak and it was a flavorful piece of meat perfectly cooked rare, tender and yummy! This is a classy old-fashioned menu with high quality meats butchered on site. The fish was fresh and perfectly cooked. I really didn't think I would like this place but it was terrific. I have a new favorite restaurant, but I will make reservations well in advance next time. read more

I wasn't impressed by the service or the restaurant. I found the restaurant to be incredibly loud. My friend, I sat next to, could barely hear me over the noise. I don't recommend this restaurant to people without decent hearing. Our waiter was impatient and abrupt. We were in and out on a busy night in less than an hour. I would have liked to enjoy my nice evening out by having a more lingering experience, but our waiter had no time for that. My friend ordered the pot pie which she enjoyed. The presentation was impressive with the oversized pastry billowing over the dish. I ordered the 16-ounce rib eye. It was cooked perfectly but had more fat than meat. On the flip side, if you're looking for a hip, vibey place to hang out on a Friday night, their bar appears it would fill that need greatly. Parking is mostly Valet, which takes some patients too at their busy times. read more

come here a lot for industry night and i love the ambiance of this restaurant! everyone is so friendly and the drinks are soo good! definitely have to get the espresso martini and aperol spritz read more

A Restaurant - New American Near Me - Newport Beach, California

Great foods, excellent services We ordered the Charcuterie Board, which was very tasty ,Vegetables dish was clean and good, pork belly with serano chili very good, grill octopus was excellent, cesar salad, steak was very good cooked just right and juicy, seared scallops was OK, my wife didn't like to sauce, halibut was just perfect. Stacey, our waitress was tentative,and the other waiters were very good as well, and the food came out quickly. We'll be back. read more

See all

This place is so fun! We had resos for 6 right at 5 when it opened and found there already to be a line waiting for the restaurant to open. It looked like valet parking only. Service was great, the waiters came by frequently to check in on us. The drinks were good and refilled quickly. Food wise, many of us had the branzino fish which came with a risotto and veggies. Note their menu is seasonal so may change. The meal overall was good, but fish was a bit lacking in flavor. By the end of dinner the restaurant was PACKED with lots of people crowded around the bar. The inside of the restaurant looked very divey, mainly dark with mood lighting. Would be a fun bar to grab drinks at instead of having dinner as well. read more

Fantastic, steakhouse, old school, ambience, red leather booth with the happening bar. Staff's fantastic can't say enough really cool spot.

Had a bad night at another bar? This place is a gem! Amazing customer service. Homey feel and you feel like family from my experience. Food is a bit salty, but they are willing to fix their problems. Love this place. Will definitely recommend. read more

A Restaurant - New American Near Me - Newport Beach, California

This place has the best steak in town Great ambience and great food This is a great place to go and have dinner and especially for special occasions read more

A Restaurant - I love there steak - New American Near Me - Newport Beach, California

OK OK OK... Made a reservation . We got to the restaurant. (20 minutes early.) The place was hopping. We were told they had a table for us already, we were so excited, until, we saw where the table was directly smack dab in front of the kitchen doors swinging back-and-forth. Of course I did my thing and said, can we have that booth over there or can we have that booth over there? No luck all the tables were reserved. OK OK ... Onto our meal . I cannot figure out for the life of me why this restaurant is so crowded. The food is so mediocre. I tried so hard to get behind the tuna and eggplant appetizer, but they smothered the tuna in a cream sauce so unnecessary let the fresh fish speak for itself. Again, I wanted to like the octopus appetizer. Fried charred octopus. ( I'm not sure why they didn't just stop at the charred part, frying it, just devalued it) OK OK... We shared a salmon with couscous sauce on the side, and also the asparagus on the side. I laughed so hard when they brought out this tiny ramekin of cut up asparagus only enough for a child. Again, I was thinking why is this place so crowded. I am definitely the type to always make the best of any given situation. So laughing kept us entertained and the amazing beautiful bottle of red wine our friends so graciously brought for the evening . The demographics on Saturday night were very interesting. It's family friendly, tons of seniors, and then this oddly prevalent 20 something crowd at the bar. This is an incredibly large restaurant. ( reminiscent of an old fashioned Italian restaurant ) I could not figure out how the 20 Something's were finding this so appealing. it's very dark and stuffy, no windows. And everything was completely outdated to the point of nausea. I was still scratching my head in the morning. OK OK ... onto the next restaurant, please read more

See all

We came here for a birthday after passing by so many times and we all thought it was ok. We order the hangar steak, boneless ribeye, and Mary's chicken. The hangar (medium rare) and chicken were actually very good! Tender and full of flavor. However, my rib eye (also cooked medium rare) was tough and overcooked. The sides (broccolini, asparagus, mushrooms) were just ok as well. Drinks were just ok as well, and I felt like they were made generically and didn't really stand out. We also thought the calamari had a nice twist on it with some ginger and tangy tastes, but small portions. Overall just ok. read more

See all

My favorite steakhouse! Unpretentious, laid-back and always excellent food and service. Been coming here since it was Arches. Kim is the best and Steven keeps an excellent wine list and has introduced us to more than a few amazing bottles over the years. You might get lucky and find a better cut at Ocean's 48, but you'll pay double and I'd still rather come to A's. Far better than Selanne's, Mastro's, Morton's or anything else in OC, plus the original is always best. read more

Delicious food and drinks. Staff are always friendly. Comfortable yet refined atmosphere

I do not know where to start. Best cocktails, old school ambiance, and amazing food, period.

I love the vibe and feel of the place. A true classic. This is a great place to people watch as it give a great cross section of the people of Orange County. Sat at the bar and was served by Brandon. He was a gem, so friendly and attentive. A really good bartender too. The food was top notch. Had the brusell sprouts to start. They were delicious. The steak was flavorful and dead on how I ordered it. The whipped potatoes and Mexican corn were the perfect accompaniment to the meal. Don't forget the dessert. Truly a great place to celebrate an accompaniment, a special event or a date. Heck, I would eat there every day. Definitely give it a try; you too will be sold. read more

This place felt like the Great White 2.0. Would NOT recommend coming here if you're a person of color because you will not get good service. Our waiter was extremely dismissive and only checked up on us once, but we saw him going to other tables multiple times read more

Our server was fabulous, she was quick to get out our drinks, she was quick to get us anything we asked for. We had a big group celebrating a birthday party, she did well accommodating everything. The food was good. I got the French toast and everyone at our table, got something different and everyone left with empty plates. This restaurant is decorated beautifully. They have a beautiful bar in the center. Great location. And they have their own parking lot so that was a plus! Would definitely recommend giving this place to try! We went for brunch, but definitely would like to try their dinner menu. read more

See all

we celebrated my birthday at A.. had a great time - be prepared to spend a little $ but worth it. Brian (please forgive me if i got your name wrong- you were fabulous and wore a vest on weds.) started with the carpaccio, then the casear (split portion shown) ; filet, hangar steak, fries and was surprised with a great birthday ice cream to compliment the corn madelines we ordered. Filet is fabulous - tender and perfect at medium rare. (Yes pricey but my health conscious companion even liked it!) the bar area can get loud so if your people watching or in that mood, book that. we were in the back room and were able to have a nice conversation wrapped in great ambiance noise. read more

See all

The server forgot our anniversary!!!! :( My boyfriend and I were very excited to come here and celebrate our one year anniversary + had never dined here before. I had written it in OpenTable reservation that we were celebrating our 1 year anniversary, reiterated to the host, and said it to our server at the beginning/ right when we were seated. I felt like he kind of cut me off when I was mentioning it and said he knew and understood.... But then never mentioned it to us or brought it up throughout the dinner. I was very disappointed on the lack of acknowledgement of our anniversary. No dessert with a candle/bubbles upon arrival or anything. AFTER we paid the bill, the server Bryan came up to us and owned up to forgetting and brought us celebratory champagne AFTER WE PAID lol. I thought that was weird. It just seemed not necessary as we already had two rounds of cocktails each, didn't want more alcohol or food and would've appreciated it wayyyy more when we first got seated. It almost made me more irritated about the whole experience to bring it after we paid but not make us feel special at all throughout the whole evening!! The food was very very good and the restaurant was very nice.... Our server Bryan wasn't a bad server in the aspect of clearing everything and resetting us for each course but we were there to celebrate something very important to us and he just completely missed the mark. read more

A Restaurant - Halibut and Lobster - New American Near Me - Newport Beach, California

Pass by this place all the time and the reviews seem fairly mixed so I couldn't wait to try it. Atmosphere was spot on. It's a little old Hollywood with the colors, the upholstery and the lovely fire. Service was spot on. Our server was attentive and decent. The food was worth 3 stars for sure. Skip the lobster corn bisque. Very corn forward - to the extent that it should be renamed without the lobster. If it was called corn bisque, I could've rated it higher, but lobster- zero. Pork chop - It was good. Just a tad overdone. Honestly, by only a minute. It was so close to perfect. LOVE the grilled peaches and purée with it- that made it so good! Rib eye- cooked to perfection! Diver scallops - super good. Maybe a little lemon to brighten the poblano puree, but it was so good! Excellent cook on the scallops. Filet mignon- perfect! The cook, the compound butter on top- absolutely lovely. Brussel spirit leaves- PASS. FAIL- BIG TIME. Mushy, the sauce had no flavor. It was a $14 mistake. I was a little bummed the server didn't ask why we didn't touch them. Maybe he knew they weren't great. French fires- really good. They are served with a truffle aioli and both were so tasty. Overall a good experience. Nothing memorable or amazing that would draw me back in nor would I make it a place I would invite someone to. read more

A Restaurant - Diver scallops. Nice flavor. Spot in cook. The poblano purée was a nice touch, but could use something to help the flavor pop. - New American Near Me - Newport Beach, California

Everything but the wait was terrible with reservations. We ended up waiting for over an hour but they comped our drinks food was amazing! read more

Came here in May and decided to come back for my wife's 50th. We were sat in the lounge at one of the round tables which was next to the bar rail. People were crowded around the bar and around our table bumping into our chairs while we were trying to eat. Someone spilled some of their drink on one of our guests. The table next to us had a group of guys, one of them was hammered and yelling. I had no idea it was going to be a road house atmosphere. When you spend $700 on dinner you expect it to be in a somewhat respectable environment. The food and service was fine but there are plenty of other options that we will be choosing from next time. read more

Parking: Valet only. Entrance from the side! $7 credit card accepted. Ambiance: dark, overstuffed leather, oak walls with dimmed mood lighting, and lively conversations all ar Good: good. Desert: must try. Drinks: good. read more

A Restaurant - New American Near Me - Newport Beach, California

See all

10/10 experience. Meatballs were amazing. Steaks were delicious with house-made steak sauce. Mac n cheese was crispy on top and great! Mashed potatoes beautifully puréed. The ambience was beautiful and red-light. Even the napkins in the bathroom were such high quality. Now our #1 favorite steak house. Will definitely be back! read more

Stellar service and fine dining ambiance! Food is absolutely top notch, our favorites being the filet mignon and lobster tail. This is definitely the place to celebrate a special occasion with family, friends or on a date! Very classy and opulent. read more

This place is very impressive old school dinning. I was so excited to discover it for a special dinner. But in reality the food did not impress. And between the dinning for two and wine it was a whopping $1500. For that kind of money I should have been blown away. It's mostly ego here. I recommend pick up a good steak and scallops from El Toro gourmet meats and make a nice dinner at home. It will only cost you $150 and you will dine a 1000 times better. read more

Little pricey but didn't mind paying since we had Excellent service and the food was delicious!

If you like CDM restaurant, but don't want to drive, check out A restaurant. Sadly, I was under dressed and quickly realized it as I was being seated. We stopped in for a casual dinner after a relaxing Sunday. Little did I know that this place is for the top 1% elite Newporters. I was wearing black lululemom shorts, vans black-and-white checkerboard flip flops, and a Behind the Lids Healing Collective t-shirt. My kids were also wearing baggy t-shirts. lol oh well. Next time I'll dress up. On to the food and drinks. I started with the lobster bisque and Cesar salad and for a drink I had "life is good at A." Then I had the filet mignon cooked to chef's preference and a side of mashed. The waiters are very attentive and keep your drinks filled within seconds. One daughter had the chicken and the other the fish, they didn't say much about it other than they were full. People kept looking at us because we must have looked like some poor beach bums, but I didn't mind. My date had the steak tartar and it was incredible. We also orders some sides of bread. My second drink (whisky rebellion) helped ease the tension of this one particular Karen eyeballing my poorly behaved kids (they were scuffling in the booth). My date had two drinks: the Bee's knees and a Sunday funday. I love this place! Next time I'm leaving the kids behind and wearing a sports coat and my Rolex. I feel like I need to start dating a sugar baby (21-26 year old) before I come back. After dropping $320 for dinner for 4 I did have a bad experience with the valet; Collin. The spot I parked did not have clear demarcations and when I came out from the restaurant and was entering my car I was accosted by the valet and he said if I parked there again I'd be towed. I asked for his name (Colin Or Collin) and he started to video tape me as I left. My date and I were in utter shock at how the valet thought he was the parking lot gestapo and that it would be chill to video guests in this manner. Anyway, other than the parking lot issue, A Restaurant was deliciously fantastic and I will definitely be back. read more

See all

When you walk into the A it is like entering an era of old school steak houses with dim lighting and plush red booths and impeccable service. We arrived on a Sunday at 5 o'clock. There was a line outside, waiting for them to open. I hadn't been here in over a decade, but since my daughter works at the newer one in Crystal Cove we had to check it out! We decided to sit at the bar since we didn't have reservations, and were pleasantly surprised with our bartender Brandon, who was fabulous. All around all of the staff was fabulous and everyone partook in checking on us. All bar staff, server staff, bussing staff and management alike. Our drinks were fabulous. Our first choice being the salty peach, which I guess is a very popular one around there, and I could see why. For appetizer we started with the ceviche tostadas, which were definitely a win-win for both of us. Next we ordered a fabulous 22 ounce bone in ribeye, accompanied by a roasted head of garlic and the 12 ounce lobster tail. As sides, we ordered the glaze roasted carrots, which are OK. Not my favorite thing of the night. But then let's talk about the risotto! It was definitely the shining star! The glue that held the meal together for me. It was a lemon risotto, full of cheese, and just out of this world. We had after dinner drinks and brought home a double chocolate mousse pie. We had a wonderful time and the place is just beautiful and the service is fantastic. We will be back. read more

See all

I wish I could give a better rating and I wanted to love this place, but since most things I'll be writing about were "just" meh and maybe I'm a tough grader. IDK Making a reservation for a Saturday night was difficult. They do answer the phone before they open at 5 p.m. though. On the first attempt, they tell me they can seat me at 7 p.m. but I might have to go in "the tent". Eating a fancy meal like this "in a tent" was not appealing, so she told me that she could give me 7:30 and have guaranteed inside seating. I decide to consult with my friends and tell her I'll call back in 5 min. Took me about 6 tries to get someone to answer again. This gal tells me that there are NO SEATS at 7 or 7:30 and tells me that I must have previously called the Crystal Cove location. (even though I just hit redial from my cell) She tells me that she can get me in at 5 p.m. (the current time is 4:40), then she says ... "How about 6 p.m.?" What just happened??? I take the 6 p.m. reservation. TY When we arrive, we are taken to the back of the restaurant, past the main dining room and bar.... steps from the restroom. There's one booth that seats 3-4 and another that will seat 6-ish, both empty. We are seated in the small booth. The waiter is attentive and friendly and does check on us back here frequently enough. We order drinks and appetizers and are ready to order our entrees when he comes back with the drinks. We wait OVER an hour for our entrees. He tells us twice that the food will be out shortly. One of my friends orders another cocktail to pass the time and we try not to fill up on bread. Caesar and Hearts of Palm were ok but the Octopus was too spicy. The filets were cooked to perfection and the elote corn was a total hit. My friend said the chicken was good, but we all agree the mushrooms had no taste. The key lime was nice and refreshing and the sundae seemed fine, but I've had better chocolate silk pie. We were there for 2.5 hours and ALL DURING THAT TIME, there are no occupants of the other booth. This may be some kind of restaurant tactic, but if I were the owner, I'd rather have anyone in the booth, than nobody especially when telling customers they have NO room. The ambiance here is VERY old, it's SUPER NOISY and tons of LOUD obnoxious people at the bar, so maybe most people are here to drink. Not sure. Mind you, at $$$, this is not your every day dining experience, so I was hoping for a better "everything". read more

Went here for a birthday dinner and throughly enjoyed the dining experience! Our server was attentive and provided help with guests who had allergies and dietary preferences. All of the steaks were cooked to each person's liking. The environment is intimate and tables were all booked but it didn't not feel crowded. Would definitely return! read more

A Restaurant - New American Near Me - Newport Beach, California

See all

Always a culinary delight with great ambiance and excellent service! My husband and I have had so many wonderful dinners at The A!!

The food here is always top notch. Love the old school feel of the decor. Great crowd bar seats hard to come by but either way amazing food, service and overall atmosphere ... Can't wait to go back! read more

The best food I've ever ate next to some restaurant in Paris I went to. Such a classy restaurant and the food is insanely good, it's my all time fav place in all OC. I always rave about this place and so does my family. It's been in Newport for ages too. Inside is so dark and beautifully lit. Waiters are incredible. Forever will rank as one of the best restaurants ever for me! I don't know how this places isn't more "trendy" or 5 full stars...but honestly good. I don't need it to be crowded and overbooked like every OC spot. read more

A Restaurant - New American Near Me - Newport Beach, California

Always a fan fav! Take my family hear every time they are in town. Cozy and great staff

Love A! It's dark and sexy inside, with great food, delicious drinks, but even better people watching. Go for all of it, and you'll have a great time! read more

First time dining here and heard a lot of good things about it from the locals. Be prepared to adjust your eyes because the atmosphere was dark, cozy and dare I say, romantic. We arrived for an early dinner (5pm-ish) so we were able to get seated right away. The gentleman that seated us was also the manager, it seemed. He was very charismatic, knowledgeable and funny! We ordered food in a family style where we all picked at some appetizers, salads and dishes. Hands down, everything was delicious! I wished I had all the food to myself. My only complaint is that it was difficult to read the menus because of how dark it was but other than that, I cannot wait to come back with my husband and have him try! read more

My wife and I have been talking about coming here for a long time. We had a good reason to celebrate so we decided to finally go. We could not have been happier. The food was excellent. We got the white corn lobster soup, hearts of palm salad, broccolini, filet, and ribeye. Everything was well seasoned and cooked perfectly. The standout though was the service. We had outdoor reservations, but they easily accommodated us by finding a nice table in the main restaurant. All of the staff were amazingly helpful with suggestions, service, etc. Corkage is $35 for reference. We had a great time and will definitely be back. read more

I've had several dishes there but by far the standout with the A5 Miyazaki Wagyu beef. Not cheap but they make it the best. Worth treating yourself to this. read more

Always poppin! Came in for industry night (sunday) and ate a ton. Food was delicious, ambience was lively, server was great!

Yum! This is a great stop for sandwiches and salads. We got the Cubano and three Kale Caesar salads. Good for the body and mind. They have a great wine selection and this is a perfect place to grab some yummy food for a picnic. Happy Yelping! read more

A Restaurant - New American Near Me - Newport Beach, California

See all