Salt Creek Grille

32802 CA-1, Dana Point, CA 92629, USA

About Salt Creek Grille

4.5 / 5

from reviews

    Anthony
    -
    July 10, 2024

    Ted was our server, we had reservations for the dinning room but we were seated in the bar for cocktails before dinner. We decided to stay in the bar for dinner. We ordered fish, lamb chops, steak, and a chopped salad with chicken. Everything was cooked perfectly, very tasty, and enjoyable. It was a Monday night, there was a piano player in the bar area. The bar area was a little noisy because of some people, not the restaurants fault. Great service (Ted) great food. Definitely a place to try.

    john m.
    -
    August 30, 2024

    My first visit. Had the scallops crudo, field greens salad & clam chowder with Heineken 0.0. The salad was fantastic bursting with the natural flavors of the garden. The Chowder was served extremely hot as in boiling hot. Taste was good but the bowl had little stock. The clams crudo were just not my thing. And there wasn't much scallops in each of the 4 total. The atmosphere inside was low key early just after opening time. Plenty of outdoor patio area seating & I parked in adjacent nearby office park. All in all, I felt for over $71 with tip, that it was a lot for the experience, serving portions & stock.

    shawna
    -
    September 07, 2024

    My family and I came to enjoy the beautiful night by hanging out at the beach and then going to Salt Creek Grill for dinner and drinks. We started off by ordering our drinks, one of their Lychee Martini and the a cucumber infused Margarita and one of their signature drinks unfortunately I can’t receiver the name of the drink but it had coffee and Kailua in it. Then we ordered the Ribs and Beef Stroganoff. The ribs tasted good but were too fatty for my taste. The Beef Stroganoff was good but it needed more flavor in my opinion. The atmosphere was wonderful though. I really liked the huge fire pit in front of the restaurant. The food could have been more flavorful and less fatty though. The drinks were good though.

    Miss HD
    -
    September 24, 2024

    Decent brunch spot. The brunch is pretty limited on dishes. The plates were okay, nothing too memorable. I like the ahi tuna tower. The avocado toast was meh. Had a very thin spread of avocado. I make it better at home. The crab benedict was also okay. Food I say is slightly better than mediocre.

    Clara Hazelwood
    -
    June 30, 2024

    Dined on the grand opening night. This review is 5-stars because The Salt Creek Grille’s resurrection story is one that restores faith in humanity and specifically the love and commitment of the Dana Point community. I highly recommend reading the article published yesterday in The Dana Point Times that truly dives into the nitty-gritty of their whirlwind transformation. Regarding the dining experience, this will contain an honest series of points that are all adjustable. Any new restaurant has a learning curve and these are all within reason. Service/attentiveness: Everyone was so attentive and willing to help, regardless of what their role was. The 1 mention is that a little more awareness to silverware would be great- we had to ask for silverware after our entrees arrived and to request a separate steak knife for our filets. Also it’s very nice to see a restaurant properly staffed- didn’t look like any servers were struggling to keep up etc. Ambiance: the remodel is amazing. They did a great job of incorporating modern design trends without it being overwhelmingly “farmhouse/millennial gray.” It has a good balance of modern, resort, and overall eclectic Nouveau California. While it was still early, (4:30-5), they had country music playing very loudly outside in the patio dining area. They switched over to a different *much quieter* more jazz/refined playlist as it became more peak dinner time. Recommendation: turn down the earlier country music too, makes it very difficult to enjoy/relax when sitting outdoors within proximity of the speaker. The later evening quieter volume music was perfect! Also, be mindful of where you request to sit if making a reservation. The property has 3 very different vibes of dining: indoor and outdoor bar area that’s super lively and bubbling with energy; booth dining room that’s a bit more formal and serious/quiet/less “fun”; and the outdoor area that’s really spacious and nice, but definitely feels separate and a little distant from the fun energy by the bar area. The outdoor feels more cafe rather than a restaurant. Food: it is important to highlight that the new owners’ mission was to make great improvement in the overall food quality/culinary caliber. Please see the list of items we ordered below, ordered with priority to the dishes that had the most opportunity for improvement: 1. Heirloom Tomato Salad: this dish had pork belly, basil leaves, balsamic, and avocado mousse. The flavor profiles listed all ~sound~ amazing together. *However,* it was disappointingly underwhelming. Reason being, none of the flavors engaged with each other and there was no cohesion between the different items. They felt like separate ingredients gathered on a plate. The tomato was rather firm and barely ripe. The pork belly was dry/an odd in-between temperature that made me unsure of whether it was supposed to be warm, and whether it was sitting out for a while. The avocado mousse didn’t have enough flavor- missing salt and acidity/herbaceousness. The basil leaves sat separately and could be enjoyed on their own. The way this salad can fixed is by drizzling a basil-infused oil, and chopping up some of the basil so it releases its flavors into the balsamic. Also, charring the tomatoes a little bit would give the dish some flare. They need the flavors to interact with each other more, rather than sitting in a weird dry textural separation. 2. Short Rib Beignets: not much to critique here. They were AMAZING. A surprisingly subtle coating of dough makes these a very light delicious treat. Perfect texture and flavor of the beignet itself. The only thing that could be improved is the horse radish sauce. Needs more punch. Right now it’s a little on the tame side bordering a Mayo vibe. 3. Filet Mignon: delicious. Perfection. Great quality meat is apparent. 10/10 recommend. 4. Green beans: perfect 10/10. Great flavor and a gentle little bit of heat 5. Carrot Cake: best carrot cake ever 10/10

    Salt Creek Grille

    Our Address

    32802 CA-1, Dana Point, CA 92629, USA

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