Azafran restaurant — Restaurant in Camarillo

Found this place randomly. We were checking out the outdoor missile museum and were hungry after, so we looked to see what was on the map not too far away. This had rave reviews and sounded a bit unusual so we headed over.

So glad we did.

The server was excellent and personable. Both of our entrees and my soup were delicious and my two had a very artistic presentation. Recommend what we had: steak chaufa, rockfish with beet smear and seasonal veggies (the sauce is normally on top but I had asked for it to be on the side), and the spinach-squash soup. The soup was mixed tableside, which we hadn't encountered before. It had a surprise ingredient that I would not have thought of adding to this soup but which worked great.

The decor was nice too, fresh and homey. Lots of windows. Sunset view, more or less. Easy, free parking just around the corner.

Menu was short but had good selections (other than octopus, which is indeed delicious but which we are now avoiding because of their intelligence). Had hoped to try the goat-fig and kimchi items seen online but they were not available (they weren't on the menu). Not sure if they were on a lunch menu or if it's a seasonal rotation; didn't ask. Some menu items we typically would have gone with were coincidentally what we had just had for lunch, making for easier decisions.

Wish we lived closer or that they had a branch in the DC area. We would come here often.

Many thanks for the special dinner. Hope you stick around for a...

Happened to be in Camarillo today. We decided to try Azafran. First time here.

We walked into a very comfortable dining room. It wasn't terribly busy and we were seated immediately.

We started with the shrimp taco appetizer. It was very flavorful and you could immediately tell that the shrimp was extremely fresh!

I ordered the Pomodoro pasta with Mushroom and Shrimp. My wife asked for the Steak Chaufa.

I received the Parpadelle with mushroom and shrimp in. Not exactly what I ordered, but I ate it and loved it.

My wife's fried rice with steak was good too.

We both could not finish our dishes. They were filling.

The topper though was the Trees Leches cake (yes we saved a bit of room for desert). It was moist and had just a touch of sweetness. I prefer it this way, not too sweet.

Overall, it was a great find. The server was very nice. The atmosphere was very comfortable. I bookmarked this for a future trip...

HIGHLY RECOMMEND. Incredible culinary experience. This chef and team are the real deal. This is the kind of food you would wait hours in line for if it was in NYC or LA. And Camarillo has it in its own backyard. You can tell the chef is extremely talented. He has crafted a menu with just the right amount of variety for all palates, and they execute the dishes to perfection. The menu features a fusion of Latin American dishes that are a must try. Everything I’ve tried, from the duck, the octopus, the lamb, ceviche, and even something as “simple” as Chaufa are all prepared with such intention and care. I’ve been here a few times already and have left floating from the incredible experience my taste buds have had every time. On top of that, their service is top quality. They have always been friendly and have gone above and beyond. Take your date, loved one, or family here. It is...