Restaurant

A woman suspected of dining at a Laguna Beach restaurant without paying is back in custody. Mary Patricia Taggart, 58, is charged with felony second-degree burglary with intent to commit larceny and defraud an innkeeper, according to a complaint filed with the Orange County District Attorney's office. The alleged incident occurred March 14 at Alessá restaurant on Forest Avenue, the complaint said. The D.A. also charged Taggart with felony theft with three prior convictions. She is accused of stealing personal property from Alessá.

Marcel Pitz came to tears when asked to describe the outpouring of support the community has provided for one of his sons, Marc Pitz. Marc Pitz, 48, who helps his family run Dizz's As Is restaurant along Coast Highway, is battling pancreatic cancer. Thursday night marked the third fundraiser in the past week for Pitz. Laguna Beach Mayor Kelly Boyd and former City Manager Ken Frank escorted guests to their tables beginning with the first customers around 5:30 p.m. Dizz's As Is was booked until 9 p.m. Boyd's son, Sean, played youth soccer with Marc 30 years ago. The mayor, who is also battling cancer, came up with the idea for Dizz's to host a special dinner where he and Frank would help seat diners.

Marissa Gerlach is the new restaurant chef for Raya at the Ritz-Carlton, Laguna Niguel, according to a news release. Raya is Chef Richard Sandoval's concept that showcases Pan-Latin coastal cuisine prepared with sustainable seafood, local produce, natural and organic meats, and Sandoval's signature Latin flavors, according to the release. With more than seven years of culinary experience, Gerlach is passionate about the food she serves her guests. "Every product we use has a history, a story behind it. For instance, AquaFarm is a small local sustainable seafood farm in Southern California," Gerlach said in a statement.

Mozambique is ordered to remove extra seats, provide on-site employee parking in keeping with its conditional use permit from city.After listening to a litany of complaints by neighbors of Mozambique restaurant on Oct. 26, the planning commission acted on two documented violations of the restaurant's conditional-use permit. Restaurant owners were ordered to have only the number of seats in the exact location approved in the permit and to provide on-site parking for 10 employees, in keeping with the conditional-use permit.

The owner of Eva's Caribbean Kitchen said she hopes to have the restaurant open by March 2 after a structure fire damaged it Feb. 17. Eva Madray, who has owned the eatery at 31732 S. Coast Hwy. for 11 years, said crews have been hard at work following the fire, which was believed to have been ignited by a light fixture near combustible materials. Firefighters got to the scene shortly around 4:30 a.m. last Friday and both lanes of Coast Highway were shut down for a couple hours.

Despite a barrage of complaints from neighbors, operators of newly opened Mozambique restaurant are hoping to add seating and extend the restaurant's hours of operation. Mozambique will bring its case to the planning commission on Oct. 26. The African-themed establishment, which opened in July, has been accused by some neighbors of being a nightclub with a rowdy and disruptive crowd. "Granted it's an upscale crowd, [but] they're loud and obnoxious," said John Ferrante of the Woods Cove Neighborhood Assn.

A high-end steakhouse planned for the former French 75 site in Laguna Beach by a group that includes Anaheim Ducks' player Teemu Selanne is expected to open later this summer. Jim Shumate, owner along with Selanne and Kevin Pratt, hopes to open the restaurant, now set to be called Selanne's, July 1. The three friends got together five years ago to discuss opening a restaurant, said Shumate, former general manager of the Chart House in Dana Point. The search spanned coastal areas from Laguna Beach to Newport Beach.

Residents opposed to a California Chicken Cafe moving into their neighborhood have filed an appeal protesting the Burbank Planning Board's unanimous approval of parking exceptions and allowing the restaurant's patrons to bring their own alcohol. Neighbors of the proposed restaurant, planned for 2921 W. Magnolia Blvd., will meet Monday to discuss the restaurant's impending arrival. "Since the city Planning [department] staff had recommended not approving the application, we felt we should pursue this further, just to make sure," said Penny Church, who lives along Niagara Street, which intersects Magnolia.

What do you get when you mix fine imported foods and locally grown produce, add a highly regarded chef, early California design, and set it all down in the Old Pottery Place? You get Chef Azmin Ghahreman's dream project, Sapphire Laguna. Ghahreman, who left his last post as executive chef at the St. Regis Monarch Beach Resort & Spa to found Sapphire, opened the restaurant Feb. 21. In less than a month's time, weekend reservations are already filling up. Ghahreman said his goal was to open a restaurant that served the best foods from around the world with local touches that make it a part of the community.

A judge earlier this week granted two motions on behalf of a Laguna Beach restaurant seeking bankruptcy protection. Attorneys for Asada Laguna Beach filed for bankruptcy protection April 8 and then filed two motions - one that allows the company to pay employee wages and another to pay utilities - with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Santa Ana. Judge Erithe A. Smith approved the motions. Filing for Chapter 11 will allow Asada, a Mexican steakhouse and tequila bar at 480 S. Coast Hwy., to remain open, said Jim Bastian, partner with the law firm Shulman Hodges + Bastian.

A high-end steakhouse planned for the former French 75 site in Laguna Beach by a group that includes Anaheim Ducks' player Teemu Selanne is expected to open later this summer. Jim Shumate, owner along with Selanne and Kevin Pratt, hopes to open the restaurant, now set to be called Selanne's, July 1. The three friends got together five years ago to discuss opening a restaurant, said Shumate, former general manager of the Chart House in Dana Point. The search spanned coastal areas from Laguna Beach to Newport Beach.

A woman suspected of dining at a Laguna Beach restaurant without paying is back in custody. Mary Patricia Taggart, 58, is charged with felony second-degree burglary with intent to commit larceny and defraud an innkeeper, according to a complaint filed with the Orange County District Attorney's office. The alleged incident occurred March 14 at Alessá restaurant on Forest Avenue, the complaint said. The D.A. also charged Taggart with felony theft with three prior convictions. She is accused of stealing personal property from Alessá.

Marcel Pitz came to tears when asked to describe the outpouring of support the community has provided for one of his sons, Marc Pitz. Marc Pitz, 48, who helps his family run Dizz's As Is restaurant along Coast Highway, is battling pancreatic cancer. Thursday night marked the third fundraiser in the past week for Pitz. Laguna Beach Mayor Kelly Boyd and former City Manager Ken Frank escorted guests to their tables beginning with the first customers around 5:30 p.m. Dizz's As Is was booked until 9 p.m. Boyd's son, Sean, played youth soccer with Marc 30 years ago. The mayor, who is also battling cancer, came up with the idea for Dizz's to host a special dinner where he and Frank would help seat diners.

More local businesses are set to shutter their doors or already have. Laguna Beach Auto Supply and Hardware will close within the next few months, said Jordan Piper, daughter of the late Jerry Piper, who opened the family business in Laguna Beach 31 years ago. Jerry Piper died last December at age 60. "We love having the business, but it's a time commitment and we don't have the personnel," Jordan Piper said. "It was Jerry's passion. " He opened the original store on Broadway Street and then moved to the current Coast Highway location about 15 years ago, Piper said.

Marc Pitz, one of the owners of Dizz's As Is restaurant in Laguna Beach, is back home and in the midst of a three-month recovery following surgery to combat cancer. Pitz was diagnosed with cancer last fall and had surgery at Keck Hospital of USC in Los Angeles on Jan. 15, according to an e-mail statement from a family spokeswoman. He spent two weeks in the hospital. The family declined an interview request. There are several ways to support the Pitzes: dine at the family-owned restaurant at 2794 S. Coast Hwy., a staple along Coast Highway for more than 30 years; purchase a restaurant gift card; donate to a fund established for Pitz at U.S. Bank to cover expenses; and the family has asked for prayers.

The "we're open" sign still hung in the window, but any customer entering in search of a meal would have been out of luck. The Cottage Restaurant was open for business Friday, but it wasn't serving eggs Benedict, a Cottage California melt or pasta Catalina. Instead, customers strolled around the once-quaint restaurant picking out deals as owner Jennifer McCulley sold everything that wasn't bolted down. "It is [hard], but I think we're at a point now where we're OK with it," said Julie McCulley, Jennifer McCulley's sister, who helped run the restaurant.

Mozambique Steak House has had its ups and downs with the Planning Commission, but an elevator and a rooftop deck have been approved. The commission voted unanimously Oct. 24 for the 1,205-square-foot deck, but split 3-2 on the exterior elevator, after reviewing modifications to the original plan, which lowered the elevator shaft by 30 inches and spiffed up the façade with a tile roof. "I voted for the elevator because I thought the applicant and the architect had done what we requested in reducing the height of the elevator and articulating and incorporating it into the design of the building," Commissioner Linda Dietrich said.

Zpizza is shutting its ovens at its original location in South Laguna on Tuesday, ending a 26-year run there. However, the pizza shop won't be leaving the city where it got its start, Operations Manager Summer Tarango said. Although Zpizza is leaving 30902 Coast Hwy., in seven months it plans to reopen in the same shopping center, where Animal Crackers Pet Rescue is currently located. "We're sorry to see Animal Crackers go, but we're grateful to get the spot," she said. "They do amazing work.

Clemente Heredia is looking to spice things up with a second Carmelita's in Orange County. The restaurant, which combines traditional-style cooking with today's best ingredients, has come to Laguna Beach in the former Crab Zone spot at 217 Broadway. Heredia, 27, is no newbie to the business. His parents have owned the two Carmelita's in the Sacramento area for some 50 years. He's also traveled extensively to various parts of Mexico, mostly the Polanco district in Mexico City, Guadalajara and Rosarito, picking up cooking nuances there.