Cuisine > Restaurants > DINING IN OC'S DARYA RESTAURANT BY SHABNAM REZAEI
Review of Famed Iranian Restaurant in Southern California
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Recently my cousin and I went to Darya Restaurant in Orange County. The locals told me that there were two good Iranian restaurants in the neighborhood. One was the Caspian Restaurant and the other was Darya Restaurant. Rumor had it that both restaurants used to have really great Persian food with Darya having a better atmosphere and décor. But recently both restaurants had deteriorated due to management changes and their well known names, which had caused a slip up in quality.
Darya restaurant is nestled in a strip mall called South Coast Plaza, off of South Plaza Drive. The exterior of the building is clean and warm, with a welcoming entrance adorned with a waterfall and decorative lights. The inside of the restaurant is quite upscale when compared to the average Iranian eatery. There are two large eating salons with plush carpets, nice furniture, beautiful Persian paintings, and crystal chandeliers. There is also an upstairs section, which is for private parties and corporate events. The night we visited, there were plenty of customers, eating happily in groups and enjoying themselves.
We were promptly seated and ordered our drinks. The menu was quite extensive and certainly had more choices on it than the average Kabab house. I made my cousin order the standard fair: Chelokabab, consisting of Joojeh Kabab, Barg and Koobideh with plenty of rice, Somagh, tomatoes and onions. We also ordered some Ghormeh Sabzi, despite his warning me not to order the stews. After taking our drink order, the waiter also brought out some Noon Lavash which tasted pretty good.
Undoubtedly the best part of the meal was the Kabab Koobideh and Barg. Both meats were top quality, fresh and made just the right way. The bed of Persian rice, sprinkled with yummy saffron was made the right way, light and fluffy with plenty to go around. The Joojeh Kabab left something to be desired and while making Kabab is not easy, finding the ingredients should be.
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With my special kabab order came a small bowl of Asheh Reshteh. I always think Asheh Reshteh is a very hard dish to make if you don’t have the right reshteh, kasht and the assortments of beans that go into it. So given the circumstances, while it was no Asheh Reshteh at the Isphahan’s Shah Abbas, it was really quite decent. Unfortunately, the Ghormeh Sabzi, which has got to be one of my favorite dishes in the world, lacked any kind of flavoring. It tasted more like spinach soup, without the tangy, tart flavor that is so unique to Persian food. The meat in the stew was quite tasty but the watered down version of the original just didn’t do it for me. When I made my comments to my poor cousin, he suggested that is was the “Americanized” version of Ghormeh Sabzi, catering to local taste buds. I think they just ran out of Limoo Ammanee in the back.
Overall, I recommend Darya restaurant. Their service is excellent. The atmosphere is upscale and the Kababs are really worth the trip.
Darya Restaurant
3800 South Plaza Drive Santa Ana, California 92704-7458 714.557.6600
For more visit www.daryasouthcoastplaza.com
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