Butcher’s House Brasserie — Restaurant in Costa Mesa

This was my first time to Butchers house. I live in LA and it was my dad's birthday this was the resteraunt he chose based on its strong reviews and recent award as best new resteraunt on the Orange coast. The wine list is entirely French vintages and while my Dad is the wine drinker he seemed pleased. Prices ranged from $30 - $350 and of course my Dad went for one of the pricier options. We chose to sit at the bar which seats 6. It was an excellent choice and I opted to stand for most of the meal which was uncommented upon by the staff. The wait staff is all younger and attentive with Maddie our server gracefully handling my Dad and I overusing her name asking endless questions and ordering half the menu. We shared the main steak offering (ribeye) with shallot,bernaise,peppercorn, and blue cheese sauces. We ordered farm frys and whipped potatoes and one of the butter leaf salads.

For desert we had creme brule and Ice cream with fruit and dough crumble.

The farm frys where incredible. Thick but with bacon if your on a carb cheat go that way. The whipped potatoes good but not distinct. The cut of steak was perfect my Dad ordered it medium rare and in the French style that meant purple. I would have gone medium or medium well.

As with any good French joint you look to the sauces and these where excellent. The Bernanke was really unique making it trickier and yolkier than most but it supported some unusual flavor profiles. The blue cheese was light and whipped and incredible in every way. Peppercorn excellent with the shallot being a little sweet for my taste but a great sauce of you like "French onion tastes" .

The desserts while excellent where not unusual in any way. All told with my dad ordering a $300 dollar of wine and me tipping 22% to accommodate a larger than normal service effort we walked out spending $650. I feel non wine drinkers and people that arnt eating thier one meal a day here could expect Around $100-$150 per person ordering more than one course. If you just went for steak or dessert it would range from $25-75 per person. All told an excellent offering at fair prices for the food and...

This was such an amazing meal! It wasn't too crowded for a Saturday night which I hope changes - this should be a hot spot for dinner.

Service was great; helpful and just attentive enough. They were out of the wine I wanted to order, but the alternative they suggested was delicious. Unfortunately I think this is why my photos were a wee bit blurry :)

We got a couple appetizers, meats, and sides and enjoyed absolutely every bite of the meal. We will definitely be returning.

Burrata: this had delicata squash, pesto and greens and was served with tasty freshly grilled bread. Rustic Carpaccio: this was a thicker cut carpaccio than we were used to which I think was due to it being grilled. So worth it! They achieved just the right amount of smokiness in the beef, and the sauce was absolutely delicious Hanger Steak: our favorite from the night. Super well executed and seasoned. Lamb Rack: I loved how simply they treated this lamb rack; they really let the meat itself shine. Loved it! Butcher's Fries: the bacon was flawlessly executed, just on the cusp of almost burnt - perfect crunch to go with the cheese and fries. If you don't like crunchy bacon, we can't be friends, I'm very sorry. The cheese was delicious and every bite was great. Butter Lettuce: we got this to cut through the richness of the fats from the meats and the fries and we were so glad we did. My only complaint is that some of the leaves were too big, so I wish it was cut smaller.

Everything was nice and hot and fresh from the kitchen, and we really enjoyed the entire meal. We ordered the shallot and the peppercorn sauces along with the meats, and they were fantastic. We enjoyed the meats and the fries dipped into the sauces. The shallot in particular reminded me of a really tasty gravy.

Don't hesitate - check this place out if you like good food...

Our group of four arrived without a reservation and the only available seating was at the bar for a Wednesday! Note to self: try booking something in advanced if you know you're coming here. Thankfully, the bar was L-shaped so it worked out for us to still hold a conversation without having to re-arrange ourselves.

We settled into our seats and the bar area has hooks beneath the table to hang your purse. Really nice to have when the bar seats do not have a backing to secure a purse, especially when your back is toward the door.

The host that seated us also served us and she was an absolute delight! I didn't want anything too heavy, so I decided to go with the Toulouse Sausage (pork sausage served with au jus mashed potatoes). There's one stuffed with bleu cheese for an extra $1. I'm pretty certain I chose the regular version, but I think mine had small portion that had a filling. It was really good, so if you love that funky flavor, it pairs really nicely with the pork!

Friends had the House burger that is comprised of dry-aged beef, nueske bacon, house sauce, confit onions, lettuce and conte cheese served with fries and garlic aioli. If you want spicy mayo, it will be $1 extra! Looked like a solid portion and will have to try that next time.

Overall, good variety of options and very interested in returning to try their Butcher's Choice options. They have a nice meat fridge on display toward the back of the restaurant, or on the way to the restroom, so I will have to check that...