This week was my second try at the new Laguna Beach restaurant, Asada.

I first visited Asada just days after its opening and, to tell the truth, wondered if it, too, might be taken down by “The Dreadful Javier’s Curse.” It seems that, since Laguna Beach’s beloved Javier’s uprooted from that spot, no restaurant has been able to survive and thrive there.

But I think every restaurant needs a bit of time to get its feet under itself, so I trotted in again this week with high expectations. I exited an hour or so later thinking Asada just might be “the little engine that could.” It was a significant improvement and an enjoyable experience.

Owned by the former CFO of Nick’s Restaurant, Asada’s front room is laid out in very similar style. The horseshoe bar is the centerpiece with bar tables and 2-tops surrounding. The restaurant seats patrons on the patio in front of the bar and, with greater square footage than Nick’s, the host staff has a few more tables to play with at the front of the restaurant and running parallel to the bar on a lower-step level (where Javier’s bar used to be).

Then, of course, there’s the whole back of the house. By Laguna Beach small restaurant standards, this is practically another restaurant’s worth of seating, along with a private dining room that houses about 20 patrons.

When you’ve got this sort of propensity for patrons, you’ve got to do it right every single night. Let’s hope Asada can pull it off.

Thusfar, I’d say they’re on the right track, serving up a full menu page of Mexican appetizers, another full page of Mexican specialty dishes, and additional pages devoted to their take on salads, sandwiches, tortas, steak, chops, and fish and seafood.

To date, I’ve tested 4 dishes and a soup. This most recent visit showed that the cooks are settling in – the food is a much happier experience. It’s no wonder their Carne Asada is already one of their bestsellers, and their Veggie Quesadilla, to which I added steak, was perfectly done.

At this point, it feels that Asada is playing it a bit safe – the food could be more spice-infused or innovative, but it seems built for pleasing a mass audience of tourists, picky locals and pickier kids. (Asada’s kids’ menu is substantial, a nice cross between easy Mexi food and usual American fun kid cuisine). For people grazing from the grown-ups menu, appetizers start at around $6, and most menu dishes range between $13 and $22.

While the food is decent, I think Asada scores bigger points in sheer friendliness of the staff and the makings of another successful cross-mix bar of locals and visitors (much like Nick’s, actually.)

The bar offers a happily sizable menu of tequilas – 11 blancos, 10 reposados and 12 anejos. It also offers a series of tequila flights (very cool) and serves up 8 margaritas, each with a uniquely sizable 1.75 ounce tequila pour. The margarita menu ranges from a beer margarita to an upscale Margarita de Casa and a “Dangerous Margarita.” (After trying the top-top shelf $17 El Jefe Margarita, with Fortaleza Anejo, key lime juice and Grand Marnier, I can’t imagine ANY margarita being more dangerous! Wow.)

If you’re not in a margarita or tequila mood, Asada serves up 24 wines by the glass, 34 draft and bottled beers, and a host of martinis and common well drinks. And, of course, Asada’s full menu is available at the bar.

Asada is a friendly, chatty bar. Learning from example set by Asada Co-Owner Scott McIntosh and GM Dave Bos, the entire restaurant’s staff is making every effort to create repeat customers, an especially-smart navigation when looking ahead to winter months and needed support from locals. The bartenders are engaging and, thus, the entire bar takes on that neighborhood bar kind of energy, much like the new restaurant and “locals bar” in South Laguna, Starfish, I recently reviewed.

All in all, with Asada now on the scene, there’s a good possibility “The Javier’s Curse” has been vanquished at last.

Location: Asada sits at 480 S. Coast Highway.

Hours are: Sun & Mon, open 11 a.m. to 10 p.m., and Tues thru Sat, 11:00 a.m. – 1:00 a.m.  (These may be summer hours, so be sure to call Asada at (949) 715-5533.

© Diane Armitage, 2011, www.LagunaBeachBest.com

Diane Armitage, Laguna Beach, Mexican restaurant Laguna Beach, restaurants Laguna Beach, top restaurants Laguna Beach