Whitestone Restaurant & Bar — Restaurant in Dana Point

I was expecting more and found it was just a regular restaurant like Applebee's or Olive Garden. The front door had to be manually closed, my reservation had me at one table, and I was shuffled around to accommodate someone else. I expected more from the steak I ordered (meh), not vegetables came with my steak dinner, so the side order was $14 (unbelievable). I was placed in a 2 seater corner booth close to the front door after being moved, and walk-ins received better seats than my reservation. Let's just say, as a high level Google reviewer, this is one of my lowest marks. There is little to No chance I will probably return. And maybe not have the Hostess in a dress and dirty sneakers. I Do Not recommend this establishment for local or visiting patrons.👎🏾

Response from the owner an hour ago Dear Guest Anthony,

We are genuinely sorry to hear that your experience did not meet your expectations. We strive to provide top-notch service and food to all our guests and deeply regret if we fell short. We appreciate your feedback regarding the seating arrangement and our staff's attire and will undoubtedly take these critiques into consideration for improvements. As for the steak dinner, we're saddened to hear it wasn't up to par and will address this with our kitchen team. We want every guest to leave our restaurant satisfied and we're sorry we missed that mark with your visit. We hope you might reconsider and give us another opportunity to turn your experience around in the future.

Sincerely, Whitestone Restaurant & Bar

Though I appreciate your response, but as the owner, your control is limited day to day. I believe it was the General manager who moved me and was less than cordial. As business owners we can become complacent and detached from our original purpose. Undercover Boss became popular for a reason and had heartwarming stories, but there were also some dark stories we don't usually speak about. The only suggestion I have is to pass out review cards for visitors and see if my assessment was accurate and adjust as you see fit. As a retired disabled veteran that has traveled the world and eaten in many countries, I always expect the best when I am at home. I wish you the best on fixing these...

We recently hosted our Wedding Welcome Party at this lovely establishment, and I can't express enough how perfect everything was. From planning, to the actual event, we were treated like family and you could really tell the entire staff cared about making our event perfect.

We visited the restaurant for a happy hour to try the food. We chose the Bang Bang Shrimp, Short Rib Gua Bao, Wild Boar Sausage, and Whitestone Fish Tacos - all absolutely incredible. Guests went CRAZY over the shrimp in particular. We had so many guests reach out afterward to say how much they loved the food which is always so great to hear when you're hosting a large event.

The drinks were equally impressive. The service was amazing, and there was never an empty glass in hand. Our guests were constantly complimenting both the food and drinks throughout the night.

What truly made our experience exceptional, though, was the level of care and attention from the manager (or owner), Nader, and the entire staff. Nader is such a warm and friendly person — he made the night feel incredibly personal and special. We had a much larger group than originally expected (around 95 guests), and the team handled it seamlessly. They managed everything with ease, ensuring our party was comfortable and well taken care of. It genuinely felt like we were hosting our event with family, and that made all the difference.

The atmosphere was perfect for our celebration, and the service was exceptional. We truly couldn’t have asked for a better experience. This restaurant went above and beyond to accommodate us, and we’re so grateful for that.

If you're looking for a place where the food, drinks, service, and atmosphere all come together to create an unforgettable event, this is it. We will definitely be back — I really can’t say enough good things about this place. Everyone absolutely loved it. Thank you team for making our night so...

Food was good, with some improvements needed. We were a bit disappointed that bread and butter (usually complimentary at restaurants) was an extra $5 charge. The lobster ravioli was good, but definitely over salted. I enjoyed the big chunks of lobster that came in the center of the dish. The lemon sole was excellent, and a very generous portion. The fish and chips we were told were cod. However, when it came out it was definitely not cod. Probably sole or halibut as it was a much softer fish than cod. The breading on it was light, which was nice. Wagyu burgers were good and pretty standard. You really couldn't taste a difference with the wagyu meat. The fries were delicious and enjoyed by everyone at the table. For dessert we tried the cookie and cream, cheesecake and butter cake. The cookie was delicious, but it was smashed flat on the dish (intentionally). A thicker cookie where you can enjoy the fudgey-ness of the chocolate cookie would have been better. The butter cake was just ok. It was over baked and dry. Both desserts could have used a bigger scoop of ice cream. The one provided was kind of embarrassingly small. More ice cream would have definitely helped with the dry butter cake. The cheesecake was the best dessert of the 3. Not super dense and rich, but still delicious. Overall, we enjoyed our visit. It was a little hit or miss, but we'd definitely dine here again. Oh, and we were celebrating two anniversaries and aside from a "happy anniversary" from the hostess, our celebration was not acknowledged in any way. So that was a disappointment. Was hoping for something a little more special for my parents who were celebrating their 49th...