.jpg)
When you’re a paper pusher for the IRS, you don’t have an abundance of free time to discover hidden talents, like, say… creating a lemon dill cream sauce that will cloak a salmon fillet like a flavor Snuggie. But if you’re unhappy in that IRS job? If you’re Rich Mead, you quit the white collar gig, move to Mammoth and develop a serious skiing addiction, then learn a vocation that can fund your frequent trips to the slopes.
Mead had supplemented his college education with cooking and catering jobs, so reentering the culinary field seemed like a natural fit. But this time it had a very different effect: awakening a creative passion he didn’t know he possessed.
Mead’s new culinary talents didn’t go unnoticed, and when he received an offer to get into the restaurant business, it was a no-brainer. He developed a menu and concept for Stanley’s, an eatery in Sherman Oaks. Mead had finally found his niche, and three years later he helped launch another Stanley’s. Next up? Mead opened Santa Monica’s 17th Street Café, whose innovative dishes quickly garnered a celebrity following.
Luckily for O.C. foodies, Mead’s next project would be a restaurant in Newport Beach. Sage Restaurant served as the culmination of Mead’s culinary skills, and his inventive take on popular American dishes earned instant praise. Zagat Guide wasn’t stingy with their affection for Sage, proclaiming it a “culinary paradise.” And if you’ve had the roast Dijon-rubbed New Zealand lamb rack, you might dub Zagat’s praise an understatement. One of the reasons “Sage” and “fresh” go together like pork tenderloin and applejack brandy sauce is the fact that Sage Restaurant uses local ingredients. Lunch and dinner menus are updated each day to reflect the produce attained weekly at the Santa Monica Farmers’ Market.
Mead’s latest success is Canyon, a casual dining hotspot in Anaheim Hills with a more casual, laid-back atmosphere than Sage. The stylish, oversized booths and modern bar ensure that Canyon will be your new favorite place to linger from moment one.
Canyon’s emphasis is on “reasonably priced, simple, fresh dishes.” Patrons can choose their plate size based on appetite, and different tasting menus are offered each week. And it’s no accident that Canyon’s herbs and vegetables have a just-plucked freshness: Behind the restaurant are planter boxes with a variety of herbs and veggies that can go from sunwarmed to sautéed all in the same day. Canyon’s unique offerings include tempura-battered green beans, the famous Canyon burger, coconut curry-crusted local halibut, and the always-popular “killer” meatloaf.
If you’d like to add your own praise to the mix (closing your eyes and moaning is perfectly acceptable), then check out:
Canyon Restaurant
5775 E Santa Ana Canyon
Anaheim Hills, CA 92807
or click here to visit the website
Sage Restaurant
2531 Eastbluff Drive
Newport Beach, CA 92660
or click here to visit the website
And check out our exclusive recipe for Chef Mead's roast butternut squash soup!