{"id":1569,"date":"2016-07-04T09:07:28","date_gmt":"2016-07-04T16:07:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/shakennotstirred.us\/?p=1569"},"modified":"2016-07-29T10:34:55","modified_gmt":"2016-07-29T17:34:55","slug":"bar-review-bistango-irvine-ca","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/shakennotstirred.us\/?p=1569","title":{"rendered":"Bar Review: Bistango, Irvine, CA"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Bistango<\/p>\n

I recently found myself at Bistango, a well reviewed Orange County Restaurant serving “New American” cuisine.\u00a0 It has earned ratings of 4.3 on Yelp, 4.4 on both Open Table and Facebook, and 24 on Zagat.\u00a0 Sadly I have only had a limited selection of the food, but what I had was excellent.<\/p>\n

The best way I can describe the decor here is “Modern Neutral”.\u00a0\u00a0 It is open, airy, clean, and crisp.\u00a0 There are contemporary artist’s works decorating the walls which are a mix of oranges, reds, and browns.\u00a0 Sort of a southwest “earthy” scheme.\u00a0 It is not exciting, but not boring; not avant-garde, but certainly not stale. Overall very comfortable, relaxed, and inviting.<\/p>\n

The bar is just to the right as you enter, clearly inviting one to sit and enjoy a beverage of your choice.\u00a0 They have a live entertainment in the evenings and there’s a small dance floor which did get some use.\u00a0 There is also an outside patio if you prefer your meal or drink in the open air.<\/p>\n

Of course, my choice is a Martini which at Bistango are really very good.\u00a0 Mine was ample, nicely prepared, shaken just enough so that the drink was very well chilled but not overly diluted, and served promptly, efficiently, and cheerfully.\u00a0 If you’re not interested in a Martini, the bar overall is well stocked with a nice selection of ports, whiskeys, spirits, and cognacs.<\/p>\n

I do have to point out that on my most recent visit I did have the unfortunate experience that the stem had not been chilled in any manor … not refrigerated and no effort made to chill it with ice and water prior to pouring the drink.\u00a0 I hope this was a simple oversight because on my previous visits the stems were properly prechilled.<\/p>\n

Overall I would highly recommend Bistango and I certainly intend to return.\u00a0 It is also just a few blocks away from John Wayne International Airport which brings one to think it would be a nice stop for a ‘just landed’ or ‘Bon Voyage’ Martini.<\/p>\n

For a final grade I give Bistango one stem:\u00a0 \"Martini<\/a><\/p>\n

For Gin selection Bistango gets an A-.\u00a0 They have a very nice selection with several different styles of Gin including a couple unusual choices.\u00a0 Tru Organic specifically comes to mind, though I didn’t get a chance to sample it.\u00a0 Choices this day were:\u00a0 Bluecoat, Hendricks’, Botanist Islay, Ford’s, Sloane’s, Tru Organic, Bombay, Bombay Sapphire, Tanqueray, Beefeater, No. 3 London, Nolet’s.<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re curious about the nightly entertainment or the menus, you can find them here: www.bistango.com<\/a><\/p>\n

If you like what you\u2019ve read, please subscribe.\u00a0 If not, please post a comment telling us how and why you disagree.<\/em><\/p>\n

*****\u00a0\u00a0 Rating Definitions<\/a>\u00a0\u00a0 ****<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I recently found myself at Bistango, a well reviewed Orange County Restaurant serving “New American” cuisine.\u00a0 It has earned ratings of 4.3 on Yelp, 4.4 on both Open Table and Facebook, and 24 on Zagat.\u00a0 Sadly I have only had … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0},"categories":[11,10,37,12],"tags":[108,13],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_likes_enabled":false,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":418,"url":"http:\/\/shakennotstirred.us\/?p=418","url_meta":{"origin":1569,"position":0},"title":"Bar Review: Cafe Fiore, Ventura, CA","author":"wlmoon58","date":"June 8, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"Cafe Fiore is a small but busy trattoria located just off the 'main drag' in downtown Ventura, CA.\u00a0\u00a0 The decor is rustic modern; very clean and comfortable with a lot of exposed woodwork.\u00a0\u00a0 The bar is front and central in the restaurant, the very first thing you notice upon entering.\u00a0\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Restaurant"","block_context":{"text":"Restaurant","link":"http:\/\/shakennotstirred.us\/?cat=37"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":1595,"url":"http:\/\/shakennotstirred.us\/?p=1595","url_meta":{"origin":1569,"position":1},"title":"Bar Review: Traxx, Los Angeles, CA","author":"wlmoon58","date":"July 15, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"On a recent visit to downtown Los Angeles I found my way into a little bar called Traxx and was pleasantly surprised with the service, decor, and most importantly, the Marini. 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