Mare Culinary Lounge in Laguna Beach

While Joleen and I do love dining in our hometown of Newport Beach, we have to admit that our neighbors directly to the south in Laguna Beach provide a great deal of dining competition. One new addition to OC dining has found a home in both Newport and Laguna, and that is the work of chef Alessandro Pirozzi. His west Newport-based Cucina Alessa is perhaps the only Italian restaurant in Newport we regularly eat at (I am considering Sabatino's a pure sausage heaven, and not an "Italian restaurant" when I say that. Now the genius of Cucina Alessa has come to Laguna Beach in the form of Mare Culinary Cuisine. And I will be going back. A lot.The location may strike some as odd. It is on the mountain side of Coast Highway about 1/4 a mile north of the Surf & Sand Hotel. It is actually set in to the courtyard of a Holiday Inn Hotel, which of course could be a bit odd. It needs to be ignored. The vibe in the place is extremely cool, the bar is beyond chic, and the fact that it is adjacent to a three-star hotel chain is actually super-Laguna ... If you feel like maybe you got duped, that will change when you bite into the house speciality appetizer, the Tacos 'Mai' Way ... Bahn Bao, Braised Oxtail, and Baby Onion couched inside some homemade Saba. I could have died and gone to heaven but I was already there. Frankly, the Calimari with house pickled jalapeno an aurora was just fine too, along with the mini-baked marinara meatballs. The main courses did not let down either. And if you love pizza, you just simply have to have the Crispy Soppressata - a farmer's goat cheese pizza with hot chili peppers and house-made salame ... It was literally the perfect level of salty taste, with an adequate amount of heat (I could have taken more), and just exploding flavors. But for me, the dish I will never ignore is the Limoncello infused Mafaldine - a lobster tail with pasta, shallots, and pinot grigio lemon sauce. I mean, really??? Yes, Mare is now in our rotation list. More Laguna spots to be covered shortly ...