Best Bites
Catch is fresh at Bluewater
By Greer Wylder, Daily Pilot

It's refreshing -- and increasingly rare -- to walk into a restaurant like the Bluewater Grill.

It's not hip, cocktail-driven or soon to go out of style. It's just a casual and classic American seafood restaurant that will satisfy your craving for sweet Dungeness crab, sand dabs -- California comfort food -- and a cup of steaming clam chowder.

The Bluewater Grill offers another treat that can be in short supply these days: a friendly, upbeat staff that provides great service at its two locations: on the waterfront in Newport Beach and at South Coast Plaza Village in Santa Ana.

On the reasonably priced menu, you'll find more than 100 items: oyster bar favorites, salads, mesquite-grilled entrees, classic seafood fare and even specialties -- including wild king salmon grilled on an individual cedar plank with fresh dill and chive cream, and seasonal vegetables ($19.75); and Romano-crusted Alaskan halibut with olive Provencal sauce served with sauteed spinach and parsley potatoes ($21.95).

And if you're from New England, you'll finally feel at home biting into a hard-to-find fried Ipswich clam ($16 to $18).

There's also a succulent Mexican white prawn cocktail ($8.95), a cup of hearty New England or Manhattan clam chowder ($3.95), or a mesquite grilled catfish dinner with choice of two side dishes ($12.90). If you're in the mood, you can go all out and indulge in a live Maine lobster dinner ($28.90), or Alaskan king crab legs ($34.20).

Lunch is priced fairly too. Fresh swordfish tacos ($7.75), the mouth-watering tuna melt ($7.95), and the grilled mahi mahi sandwich ($7.95) are good choices.

Restaurant veteran Jim Ulcickas and his business partner Rick Staunton -- a native of Australia -- opened the first Bluewater Grill five years ago. Their goal was to start a restaurant that was affordable and family-oriented, and that never sacrificed quality for profit. They chose to concentrate on seafood, because they believe it's healthy and underused in the American diet.

Ulcickas, 44, born in Massachusetts and reared in Maine and Connecticut, is a true-blue New Englander who comes by the restaurant business naturally. His stepfather owned the Friendly Ice Cream Co., and Ulcickas watched that business grow into to a 650-location restaurant operation in New England.

"He had a great influence on my interest in restaurants," Ulcickas said. "It was a logical move for me."

At the tender age of 15, Ulcickas' entrepreneurial spirit took off. With his sister, he started a summer business making Harbor Bars, a chocolate-dipped ice cream sandwich. The first year, they sold 6,000 bars. Five years later, their annual sales topped 600,000 bars.

Ulcickas' stepfather eventually took over the company, but the teen's eagerness and ability to start a successful enterprise helped him get into Dartmouth University.

Ulcickas has worked for large restaurant companies since college, including some chain conglomerates such as Black Angus, Tutto Mare, Prego and Spoons.

He brought all those experiences to the Bluewater Grill, making sure his fish comes from the best sources -- including Santa Monica Seafood -- and directly from oyster and shellfish coves and co-ops where the quality is the core value.

"You've seen those pretty pink shrimp rounds in the stores," Ulcickas said. "If you compare that shrimp to our Mexican prawn cocktail, they don't even look like they're in the same family."

Bluewater Grill gets a kick out of celebrating seasonal seafood throughout the year. Specials are prepared by talented chefs, Guillermo Caceres in Newport and Brian Hirsty at South Coast Village. They roll out the red carpet for soft shell crabs in June, local harpooned swordfish are the "it" fish in August, and local spiny lobster will be the star of the show from Oct. 12 through Dec. 1.

The chefs prepare spiny lobster three ways: split and grilled with garlic and butter ($27.95); served as a surf and turf dinner with mesquite grilled flatiron steak ($28.95); and lobster pasta ($18.95).

And if you visit their website, you'll find a calendar of events for wine and cheese tastings, oyster tastings and a festive lobster feed and clambake. Upcoming events include an East Coast oyster tasting and champagne taste on Oct. 11, and a Pacific Northwest oyster and wine pairing event on Nov. 8.

Lucky for everyone, Bluewater Grill is not just about seafood. Even diners who wouldn't dare touch fish can choose from pastas, cheeseburgers, rib-eye steak, prime rib and lamb chops. And it serves the same quality meats as other high-end steakhouses at lower prices.

Both Bluewater locations share the same menus and traditional seafood restaurant decor, yet each has its individuality and perks. At the waterfront location in Cannery Village, you can enjoy views at an outdoor patio, or dock your boat and take a delicious party platter of seared ahi, smoked fish or any seafood on a cruise. Entertainment comes from a local band, MPG, that plays classic rock, blues and other favorites Friday and Saturday evenings. A brunch menu is available Saturdays and Sundays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Theatergoers and diners at South Coast Village can take advantage of a free air-conditioned shuttle ride to and from the Orange County Performing Arts Center or South Coast Repertory Theater. There's also patio dining and rooms available for private events.

Happy hour is from 3:30 to 6:30 p.m. Monday to Friday. A children's menu is available ($3.95 to $4.95).

IF YOU GO

* WHAT: Bluewater Grill

* WHERE: 630 Lido Park Drive, Newport Beach, and 1621 W. Sunflower Ave., South Coast Plaza Village, Santa Ana

* WHEN: Open 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. Saturday and Sunday

* INFO: (949) 675-3474 for Newport Beach, (714) 546-3474 for Costa Mesa, www.bluewatergrill.com

* BEST BITES runs every Friday. Greer Wylder can be reached at greerwylder@yahoo.com; at 1375 Sunflower Ave., Costa Mesa, CA 92626; or by fax at (714) 966-4679.