MOULIN — Restaurant in Newport Beach

Mon Dieu!! This is some find. Google maps must be wrong mistaken because France is in fact right next to the Santa Anna airport. I couldn’t believe I didn’t need a passport to get in here - it’s that French. French radio playing on the speakers. French staff helping me understand what all the incredible pastries are. And - the food…! Ah, the food. I couldn’t decide and ended up with a Tarte Tatin and a croissanwich with ham and cheese along with a double espresso. The croissant was buttery and flaky, and the egg was freshly prepared and had a decent amount of ham and cheese mixed into the egg which was folded in the shape of the croissant. They even had little packets of Cholula if you wanted to kick things up a bit. Too bad they didn’t have French hot sauce, but not even sure if that exists. The croissant even came with a small side salad with a balsamic vinaigrette. very nice touch and unexpected, but I guess I should’ve read the menu. Tarte tatin was incredibly caramelly with soft apples and a nice dense base sort of graham crackery like a cheesecake. Not sure what the little cream puff was on top, but it was not at all sweet and actually went very nicely with the sweetness of the tart. My only regret was that the croissant and salad were served in paper boxes, even though I said I was eating here. They give you one of those little numbers that you put on your table, and brought me out a paper bag with the boxes inside. Would’ve been much nicer to have everything on plates. The espresso was tasty, but not among the better ones I’ve had. Nice nuttiness and great viscosity and almost tasted like peanut butter very low bitterness as well. Including a few pictures of the myriad pastries they have to offer. I only worked out for an hour this morning, so I (unfortunately) had to limit my intake to one. They have a very nice selection of tables outside with a ton of umbrellas. Chairs are somewhat rickety and uncomfortable, but even that felt very French. Sitting outside by a lovely fountain and enjoying my incredible pastries and espresso felt like I was right off the Champs-Élysées.

Everything was so good that as I was wrapping up my breakfast i decided to get myself some lunch to take on the plane as well. The selection of baguettes and Panini‘s was fantastic. The bread is incredibly soft yet dense. There was a plethora of smoked salmon and delicious avocado, the tartness of the cornichons with the unctuousness of the Saucisson was to die for. Certainly better than anything I would’ve gotten on the plane, and about the same price. That does bring up a good point, however, this place is not cheap. Sandwiches for $14+. My croissant breakfast sandwich $13. The pastries from three to $10 as well.

All in all - This is definitely a must visit spot if you are in the Irvine area -...

I went to Moulin this morning to take my mom out for breakfast. Today is a holiday so we expected the venue would be packed. I have been here several times but this is the worst experience I ever had and made me having doubts to go back. The reason is not because the service is slow, it is because the attitude of this one staff.

I started to get on line from the hot bar but needed order from the menu. The staff friendly told me to order from the other side where there was a register next to the coffee pick up by cheese selection. I went to the other side. A senior black guy who speaks French was taking orders. There was one customer ahead of me. Once he was done with the customer. He went the other side to prepare coffee orders. I thought he would come back after a while but he never did. That was when I realized he will not take more orders. I got a little frustrated and wondered why can't he just told me the register was closed so I could order elsewhere. I went back to the hot bar line and eventually placed the order. Our coffee order took forever. After I saw the lady ahead me picked up her coffee I waited for another 15 mins but still our coffee did not show up. That's when I decided to walk up to the counter and talk to the staff to figure it out. Sure enough it was the black guy preparing coffee. I tried to find a chance to talk to him but he would not acknowledge me, fine, I understand it's busy. However, when there were two french people walked up to the counter, he immediately greeted them and chatted with them in French. That was when I got very frustrated so I asked if he can checked my order. He said " It's probably is on the way. Can you back up and not standing in this area? Wait over there." He was referring to I can not stand by the pick up zone to ask a question but these two French people can walk up and chat with him, no problem. There is another younger male staff who also seems is French saw my frustration. He walked out of counter and check my receipt and told me that my order was probably got lost. He made the coffee for me immediately and was very friendly to me.

This whole situation is not about the waiting was long but it is about communication, attitude and also discrimination. First, he did not tell me the counter was closed. Secondly, he did not acknowledge me, and in contrary showed completely opposite attitude to other customers. Thirdly using the verbiage " back up" is extremely...

AUTHENTIC FRENCH.friendly staff.emaculate and clean.Beautiful location with a fountain outside and small table and chairs that look exactly like the one you find in france at a cafe.The patisserie and sweets are out of this world ( pricey 7-8$ish each ) but the best taste wise.if you are looking for a bday cake i strongly recommend moulin you wont regret it .the baguette are a 10 out of 10.fantastic full cake like the fraisier 10 out 10. The baguette and rustic bread was perfection 12 out of 10.perfect crunch perfect crust perfect bubbles in the bread. I was sadly strongly disapointed by the lunch menu . 19$ for a small salmon and a naked salad with vinegraite what a joke . Same with the croque monsieu with the naked salad . They could at least add veggies to the salad or a small side of cook veggies.instead they charge you for it additional at the counter. If you price yourself like a restaurent might as well offer the same service instead of being tight on the cheappest ingredients .The tiny sandwishes used to be 12$ have now been bumped to 15$ . You are better off buying the baguette and making them at home . The parking lot is small PACKED and design for compact car barely any space to open tje doors . All the french provencal table cover were goin for a 100$ and up / salt 15$ huge rip off . Its sad to see products thst are relatively cheap in france resold at mad prices here . Its a shame that the french excellence isnt made sightly more affortable so people could buy more for themselve or as a gift . These were the only downside . They got umbrella outside great outdoor sitting you can bring your dog . Beautiful fountain very peaceful .the place itself is emaculate sanitary and ultra fresh . Everything is cook on the spot so thats a huge plus . They also got quite a few cheeses avaible for purchase ( around 14 ish for the one i purchased ).This location is much bigger than south cost or costa mesa but also a lot busier . I recommend going straight to the bakery skip the lunch / regular...