Great Food And Views Mike and Barbara Morton's Azul offers fine fare and fair wine prices     Azul, a new "jewel" of a restaurant, opened last month on Prospect Street in La Jolla. It’s the new creative outlet of Mike and Barbara Morton, owners and operators of the Brigantine Restaurants Corp. The company has a group of nine restaurants, which includes the very popular Miguel's Cocinas, as well as the Brigantines.     Azul, which took over the old Grille at La Jolla space, has a captivating and unobstructed view of the Pacific Ocean. The cuisine is a mix of California and Mediterranean with an emphasis on local ingredients and seafood. Executive Chef John Malcolm is a Culinary Institute of the Americas graduate, and until recently was chef de cuisine at Pacifica Del Mar. He also worked with Bradley Odgen at Lark Creek Inn (which is like saying you went to Harvard to those of us for whom cuisine takes the place of academia).     Barbara Morton did a superb job on the interior design. Executive Chef John Malcolm places an emphasis on local ingredients and seafood in his mix of California and Mediterranean cuisine. She not only handles that assignment for all of the company restaurants, she also designs the menus, logos and brochures. Handcrafted ironwork, rustic stone walls and a dramatic seascape ceiling mural painted by artist Rita Runnels remind one of the provincial villages along the Mediterranean coast. An onyx bar and beautifully lit lounge area made the perfect spot for me to enjoy my usual "pre-martini."     We started with the "Artisans Meze Platter" ($12.50). It features chef-selected tapas of the evening and is a nice sampler for two. The evening I visited it had a sampling of imported olives, a "paella croquet," a red pepper Spanish tortilla and oven-roasted shrimp. We also had the "Pan Seared Sea Scallops with Pernod, Kumquat and Shaved Fennel Salad" ($10.50). The scallops were delicious — well-cleaned, plump and perfectly seared. My dining partner talked me out of the "Foie Gras with Local Berry and Balsamic Jus" ($18.50) because he is foie gras-opposed (milksoppy). I will definitely order it on my next visit (without him). The woman at the table next to me ordered it and I found myself salivating for a bite.     The "Roasted Asparagus Soup with Dungeness Crab" ($7.50) is a creamless, robustly flavored soup garnished with crème fraiche and a spring onion flan. It is lightly delicious and makes a wonderful middle course. The other item I am dying to try on my next visit is the "Panzanella Bread Salad" ($8.95). I have learned to balance my hearty appetite with good reason and refrained from ordering it, even though it nearly killed me.     For my guest, I selected the "Whole Striped Bass on a Bed of Julienne Fennel" ($23.95), which our waiter suggested as one of Chef Malcolm's signature dishes. Indeed it was. It was served whole and thank goodness they removed the eyeballs. Milksoppy. The bass was beautifully presented and spattered with green garlic and oven-dried Early Girl tomatoes. I had the "Grilled Breast of Free Range Chicken" ($17.95). It was accented with a sauce of hazelnut soffritto, white port and tarragon. It was complemented by a goat cheese gratin that was creamy, salty and good.     Chef Malcolm sent out a sampling of his favorite desserts for us to share. The "Valrohna Chocolate Torta" and "Housemade Baklava" are two more house signature items that are not to be missed.     I must say one more thing about Azul; it’s about the wine list. It would simply be treasonous not to order a bottle of wine. There are some great values to be sipped, happily knowing you’re not getting fleeced. — Terryl Gavre

Home | Features | Info | Cover Story | About Us | Back Issues | Search