We had heard several reviews about how sensational the Newport Mastros Ocean Club location is so we chose my husband’s birthday to test it out. It took an hour and 10 minutes from LA to drive to Newport.

We arrived 30 minutes before our reservation and managed to find parking without having to use valet. The restaurant was in a shopping center with Trader Joe’s and a few other stores. We noted that I was parked in a green painted spot which ordinarily means short term parking.  At first glance, the shopping center was reminiscent of Manhattan Village and the exterior of Mastros looked like Tin Roof Bistro. When we entered, the interior appeared to be a mash-up of the rustic farmhouse style with the sleek and neon Miami Beach style of the Malibu location so it felt familiar and bizarre all at once.  We checked in with the hostess desk which had five young women, all in black reminiscent of the Robert Palmer video, minus the slick hair and red lipstick. Much like the video, most of them appeared to have no purpose and were just standing around and not really engaging with guests. I only observed the thin, petite South Asian/Middle Eastern hostess truly working. Upon entering the lobby, she was on the phone. I noticed that of the five hostesses, she was the only one who actually addressed the guests as they entered. Three other parties, a party of 2 and 2 parties of 6 were seated and there was no communication with us whether we could be seated sooner or if our reservation time was to be our seating time. Suffice it to say, at least 3 of the hostesses were a waste of space and uselessly unnecessarily employed. My husband had to ask 3 times whether we needed to move my car when one genius finally said that it was fine to park in the designated Trader Joe’s parking space. Since none of the hostesses appeared to have any intention of giving us an update about our seating time, I decided to be proactive and ask the obvious question on our minds and again, only the worker bee provided the information that tables were not yet available for us to be seated.

We took that opportunity to explore the bar. There appeared to be half a floor to ceiling wall display of all types of liquor. The bar was at full capacity and yet the bartender found us quickly and asked for our order. The service we received from him was exemplary, very much how we are accustomed to being treated at the Beverly Hills and the Malibu establishments. We shared a Chopin martini since I knew the drive was far from home and we would likely be drinking with dinner. Sharing a martini actually equaled 2 full servings of a martini as the typical Mastros martini is supersized. We meandered to the piano bar and noticed that the female singer was quite accomplished. Her range of vocal styles was fairly expansive and somehow suited to many different genres of music, which was perfect for the varied generations of clientele. Sipping our martinis, we listened to a few songs and wondered when we would be seated.

At 6:53 p.m., one of the other hostesses found us and took us though an indoor covered patio dining area and led us to a much quieter heated outdoor area. There were probably 6 tables or so. We could still hear the pianist and singer but without the hustle and bustle of the restaurant.

When we sat down at 6:54 p.m., we realized the hostess had not left us with any menus which was quite different from our experience at the other Mastros locations. However, our server shortly arrived and he brought the menus for our review.  We didn’t waste a moment and placed our order a few minutes later.

Looking around, we realized that we had a view of nothing but the dark skies and that parallel to us was PCH. I was under the false assumption that the Newport Beach location was beachside. Despite being outdoors, our view was only of the patio.After we came to that realization, another thought crossed our mind. We had not received our bread basket.  Sixteen minutes after we were seated, at  7:10 p.m., our bread arrived.

After that, the service rotated back to what we have come to expect from Mastros. Everything was served in a timely manner. The lobster bisque was sheer perfection. It was thick and creamy with just the right amount of saltiness. There appeared to be a bite size piece of lobster with each spoonful. Unlike the other locations, the bisque came with a side accompaniment each of chives and sour cream.  The spicy mambo salad was lightly coated with a very mildly spiced dressing and some sprinklings of parmigiana. The romaine was crisp and fresh. The add-on cracked pepper rounded out the spices.

The 12 ounce filet was cooked medium, tender, pink in the middle but strangely inconsistent with its seasonings. Some bites were salty and others had no flavor. It appeared that the seasonings were only on the perimeter of the steak and omitted completely from the midsection.

Fortunately, some of the side dishes had evenly distributed flavors and seasonings. The garlic mashed potatoes were creamy and each bite had the same consistent garlicy butter flavor. The gnocchi had some crispy, almost toasty bites but had an even portion of cheese which was perfectly melted throughout. The creamed corn had super sweet kernels but otherwise was fairly ordinary in flavor. The green beans were perfectly cooked but had an overly oily glossy exterior.

The happy ending at all Mastros celebration dinners was the butter cake. It was piping hot with the perfect ratio of butter and sugar in each bite. As per usual, it came a la mode so the coldness of the ice cream quickly melted and penetrated into the hot crevices of the cake.

Based on the distance of the location, the confusing and contradictory exterior/interior design of the restaurant and the uselessness, intellectually challenged and lazy hostesses, I would give this location a 2. For the exemplary service of the bartender, our server and his helper and the amazing pianist and singer, all deserve a 5 star rating. The food was fine but some did not hit the mark so for the cost, I would give the quality, taste and flavor of the food a 3.

Overall, for exemplary service, attention, intellect, communication and quality of food, Beverly Hills cannot be beaten. They are in the thick of the entertainment community and have achieved a level of service that is unparalleled. Malibu is a close second though the snobby attitudes of their hostesses could use a serious readjustment. Newport Beach is unfortunately going to be a hard pass for us going forward.

Mastros Ocean Club

8112 East Coast Highway

Newport Beach, CA 92657