The Alley Restaurant & Bar

The food was so good! They have a variety of options to pick from, and I'm happy with picking the Cajun Chicken Pasta! The sauce was amazing, I cleared my whole plate. My bf enjoyed his steak, medium rare and you have the option to pick two sides. Wednesdays, they offer half off wine bottles-So we took advantage of that! The dining room booths are very quaint, C-shaped. You could be paired with other couple/group depending on how popular the evening is. Definitely will be back!!

The rib eye and house salad were delicious. The server went above and beyond to prepare both for us. I want to return because I heard that they have BBQ ribs and sand dabs on other nights. However two things occurred tonight that made me anxious for clean standards:1. There were three cooks behind the kitchen counter visible to the dining room. Two were wearing the obligatory head covering but the one with the white apron (appeared to be the head cook), wasn't, so that's a violation of the CA State code. 2. The one cook (chunky one on the right facing the dining room), actually had a spoon in his mouth and was eating behind the counter while serving food. I found that to be totally against all health standards. But otherwise, although the server was quite late bringing the check, she was extremely helpful and nice at the beginning and what we ate was very good. Funny thing is that we were told that reservations are hard to get, the place was almost empty while we were there. I want to return but I'm hesitant due to the health items above.

I wasn't impressed by service nor the restaurant. I found the restaurant to incredibly loud and the waiter to be impatient and abrupt. On a busy night we were in and out in les than an hour. I would have liked to enjoy my nice evening out by way of 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 chicken picatta. It was okay but not anything special. The mixed vegetables were steamed, which I always find uninteresting and not flavorful. I would expect steamed vegetables at a lower class restaurant. On the flip side, if you're looking for a hip, vibing place to hang, then their bar looked like it would fill that need greatly. Parking is mostly Valet, which takes some patients too at their busy times.

What a surprise this place is! Old school vibe with continatal cuisine type plates. Also steaks and prime rib at reasonable priced. Great service, great drinks, love this place!

As always, we were warmly greeted and promptly seated for a late lunch. Our server, Kelsey, was outstanding. You'd never know she was covering the entire dining area as she was both attentive and friendly. The calamari almondine was seasoned beautifully and sauteed to perfection. Portions on our sandwiches were very generous. In other words, bring a big appetite. Though the albacore melt was tasty, the prime rib sandwich was one of the best I've ever had. Even though the au jus was excellent, their horseradish sauce was off the chart! Could not stop slathering it on the beef until the ramekin was empty. We try to stop in as often as possible because our experience is always worthy of a 5-star rating. The atmosphere is always warm and welcoming. Cheers!

Average food. But my neighbors love it and keep bringing us. At this point I'm going to keep a running tally of what's good and what's not...EXCELLENT...- Mac n Cheese (super saucy and cheesy, yum!)- Shrimp Tacos (piled high with lots of juicy shrimp and nice Chipotle sauce)- Fries and ranchGOOD...- Blue Cheese Salad- Cajun Chicken Pasta (nicely breaded chicken, but average pink sauce)- Prime Rib sandwich- Twice baked potato- Mixed veggies AVERAGE...- Ahi Tuna appetizer (seems pre-sliced/pre-arranged on plate, tackiness between slices that are touching)- Veal Scaloppini (somewhat tough, but a wonderful sauce)- Steak Diane (fake tasting gravy)- Prime Rib (no seasoning; flavorless)- Bacon Wrapped Filet Mignon (no seasoning; flavorless)- French Onion Soup (average boldness to the broth, lots of nice onions, decent amount of cheese not broiled though, few bread pieces)MEH...- Jeff's Special Pasta (decent blue cheese cream sauce, average filet mignon, maybe substitute breaded chicken next time)- Fried Chicken Sundays (no seasoning; flavorless; not great texture)- Side of mushrooms (no seasoning; flavorless; very thin sliced)

This place is a Newport staple. The ambiance is warm and cozy in the dining area and relaxed and homey in the bar. The food is amazing and consistent. It is more like bar food with some nice pieces added to the menu. I appreciate the service since it's all about how you are. The women are nice, if you are nice, kind of deal. So make sure you treat them right! Overall, a great place for some good food and nice, strong drinks.

The food is always great. The hostess was not very accommodating though. We asked for booth seating and there were open booths but supposedly "reserved". But we had ordered gotten drinks and eaten and booths were never taken. L

We stayed over night in Newport Beach and decided to check out this restaurant near our hotel for dinner. It was pretty dark and noisy inside, so we decided to sit outside. We started with a margarita for him and a mocktail for me. For appetizers, we shared the panko seared ahi and this dish was just okay. The ginger, wasabi, and ahi was not very fresh. The entrees were much better. I chose the rack of lamb and got regular fries and sweet potato fries as my side items. My entree included a full rack of New Zealand lamb and was presented nicely on the plate!Hubby got the New York steak, which comes with mint jelly. He chose mac n cheese and a baked potato for his side items. The steak was a bit overcooked to his liking though.For dessert, we shared the apple dumpling a la mode, which was their signature dessert. This was delightful! Service was a bit slow so I would suggest sitting inside for faster service. We were the only customers dining outside haha.

Our waitress Pam was amazing and so attentive. The food was excellent. This is our second time visiting the restaurant for bottomless brunch mimosas and we look forward to another visit very soon