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Best of Orange County 2022: Best outdoor dining

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1. The Cliff Restaurant

577 South Coast Highway, Laguna Beach; 949-494-1956; thecliffrestaurant.com

If “location, location, location” is indeed so important when it comes to real estate, then The Cliff Restaurant in Laguna Beach has that in spades. Diners are treated to a breathtaking view of the Pacific Ocean from the restaurant’s patio all day long while they enjoy open-air dining seaside.

The Cliff Restaurant serves breakfast, lunch and dinner seven days a week, with happy hour from 3 p.m.-6 p.m., Monday through Friday. There’s also live entertainment and live music most nights a week, with the entertainment schedule posted on the restaurant’s website.

The restaurant’s owners are grateful to their patrons and their staff for the recognition in the Best of Orange Countyu.

“My sister, Kathy Gibson, and I are always so proud to be recognized by our customers and the community for the delicious food of our chefs, the hard work of our wonderful staff, and our fantastic view,” said Sharon Haron, managing partner of The Cliff Restaurant, which was built in 1981 by Gibson’s and Haron’s father, Ed Olson Jr. “We want to thank you and say how sincerely grateful we are for all the wonderful support from our fantastic customers at The Cliff.”

Breakfast favorites include chicken and waffles, eggs, omelets, French toast or eggs Benedict. Salads, soups, sandwiches, Mexican dishes, burgers, seafood dishes and hot dogs complete the lunch menu. For dinner, pasta joins the lineup with specialties like macadamia chicken, steak and surf and turf.

— Amy Bentley

2. The Fisherman’s Restaurant and Bar, San Clemente

611 Avenida Victoria, San Clemente; 949-498-6390; thefishermansrestaurantsanclemente.com

The Fisherman’s Restaurant and Bar San Clemente opened in 1982 on the San Clemente Pier, a year after a sister restaurant called Pier 57 opened in Seattle.

“I can’t find another restaurant that’s like my restaurant. You get the sea and the seafood,”  said Valarie Daugherty, manager of The Fisherman’s Restaurant and Bar San Clemente.

Fried calamari, crab and shrimp cocktails, clams, mussels, coconut shrimp, clam chowder in a sourdough bowl and oysters Rockefeller … classic favorites featuring fish and seafood from the Pacific northwest pack a full menu. Pair your meal up with a daily happy hour special for drink bargains and on Wine Wednesdays, bottle of wine are half price.

Fresh fish selections also are offered and are sourced daily, Daugherty said. “We stay up on that 100 percent every day, calling around and finding what we can to bring the freshest fish to our customers,” she said. The restaurant serves breakfast, brunch, lunch and dinner.

3. Rancho Capistrano Winery

Ladera Ranch, San Clemente, San Juan Capistrano; ranchocapwinery.com

Rancho Capistrano Winery is Orange County’s largest winery and an award-winning restaurant with three locations: San Juan Capistrano, San Clemente and Ladera Ranch. The winery, which has won many previous “best of” awards, features more than 30 wines from Paso Robles, Napa Valley, and the Walla Walla wine regions. All three locations offer outdoor dining.

Visitors have wine tasting opportunities at the bar or in the wine-tasting room with a reservation. Join the wine club as a member and enjoy two bottles of wine each month as well as other benefits like a complementary glass of wine on each visit.

Winery owner Kyle Franson said the San Juan Capistrano location is extra special, with its big, blazing fireplace on a 3,000-square-foot patio that is dog-friendly.

“It’s the setting,” he said. “It’s a closed patio in old downtown San Juan Capistrano in a historic building. It’s got a lot of the Mission-style architecture and people can see the mission nearby. We’re at the train station so people can take the train and walk across to us.”

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