By Rich Manning

Whenever I have driven southbound on I-5 and found the need to exit in San Clemente, I always knew to turn right. This instinct was derived solely from my preconception that all commerce and fun occurred within walking distance of the coastline. This thought process was so thoroughly ingrained in my bean that I had grown suspect of any street going east lasting longer than a half-mile it traversed beneath the interstate. So imagine my surprise when our GPS system not only instructed us to head east in order to visit Sundried Tomato American Bistro, but informed us that we’d be on the road for a little while (2.4 miles, to be exact). Surprised yet diligent, we wove our car up the path that jutted through area foothills, surrounded by a growing expanse of new properties and construction that made it perfectly clear that what I had conceived needed to be altered. By the time we reached Sundried Tomato, its building nestled in the confines of a comfortably sized mini-mall, neither the smell of salty beach air nor the laid back populace that has long been associated with San Clemente was around. The absence of these seemingly essential aspects left me with one question as we approached its doors: Is it worth to go to a restaurant in San Clemente that isn’t within a mile of the ocean?

Well, not only is Sundried Tomato worth the trek, it also serves as a welcome venue for South County residents who want a respite from the city’s coastal hijinks. Indeed, Sundried Tomato gives off a completely different vibe than you get in San Clemente; things feel a little more refined in the venue’s dark interior as well as the patio. For being in a strip mall, they do a wonderful job of maximizing the potential that can be had at the restaurant. Outdoor fire pits and lounge seating in the patio does a great job to offset the retail presence that surrounds the space. Of course, the fact that you can peer over the lesser elevated portions of the city both inside and outside does a lot to enhance this vibe.

Since it was obvious that Sundried Tomato invested a lot of care into ensuring their proper ambience superseded their adjacent location, the four of us that sat down to dinner were confident that the meal would naturally follow suit. The lovely duo of ahi poke and crispy blackened chicken spring rolls which kicked off our experience immediately confirmed our collective hunches. In both cases, the accompanying sauces were the undisputed stars; an appropriately potent wasabi cream for the former, and a sweetly decadent honey cilantro sauce for the latter. The wasabi’s power was nicely tempered by the dish’s sweet notes that were provided by the ginger, cilantro, and mango-jicama relish, all of which combined to accent the fish as opposed to masking it. Conversely, the honey cilantro sauce made the solid spring rolls utterly fantastic. So much so, in fact, we wiped the plate bone dry with the copious amounts of bread made available to our table.

Now, with a name like Sun Dried Tomato, we naturally expected some sort of eponymous menu item to arise sometime during the evening, and with that expectation come a rather large caveat that the moniker-sharing selection should be top notch. We were met with the former anticipation during the second course in the form of the sundried tomato soup with gorgonzola, and it led to easily satisfying the latter hope. The first hint you receive that indicates that this is most assuredly not your mothers’ tomato soup is the color that fills the modest cup. Rather than a bright red hue, the soup is a darker, almost murky brownish tint. However, don’t let the soup’s shade confound you; chances are, it’s much better than what your mom ladled out. The soup is amazingly rich and flavorful, and the bite of the cheese is there to prevent the cup to be too intense. You only get a small cup of the stuff, which you may find worthy of scoffing at first. However, the heftiness of the soup makes it so that more than a cup would be overkill.

As we indulged in the magic liquid, we were informed that some of their clientele have been known to escape the freeway and wind their way to Sundried Tomato’s doors just to pick up the stuff. We were also told that people will willingly make the same trek to experience their chopped salad as it was being presented to us. At first, you may be inclined to think of such a claim as dubious – after all, it is quite the detour for a mere course – yet like the soup, one bite of the salad will cause you to drop such potential doubt. The finely shredded chopped salad – indeed, the romaine and frisee were reduced to micro shreds – was loaded with all kinds of lovely surprises: A golden beet here, a cranberry there, an occasional pine nut or red onion snuck about, all topped with a tangy cilantro caper vinaigrette. The combination of the delicate strips, dressing and sweet and nutty surprises helped the salad take on almost candy-like properties. While this is rightfully called a salad, it almost seemed too filled with whimsy to be referred to as a mere salad due to the nuggets of flavor that are hidden so well betwixt the lettuce strands.

By the time the main courses hit our table, it became clear to the quartet that the area where Sundried Tomato achieves its utmost excellence is at the little details that surround the focal point of a dish. For example, we enjoyed a trio of atlantic salmon served in a cipollini onion sauce, a herb marinated rack of lamb prepared in a red-wine raspberry reduction, and a Long Island steak primed with a burgundy demi-glace. All three were quite delicious – the salmon had a surprising sweet tinge, the lamb was succulent and was not the least bit gamy, and the steak was perfectly cooked and beautifully tender. And yet the items that we raved about the most were all of the accompanying goodies that we had with the meal. The bed of smoked gouda risotto that the steak lay atop of was creamy, woodsy and added superb dimension to the meat. The sundried tomato gorgonzola mac ‘n’ cheese was sinfully flavorful. The rice with black currants and peppers was intriguingly dense and complex. And the perfectly crispy roasted red potatoes were amongst the finest I’ve ever had in a restaurant. When you come here, it would most assuredly behoove you to order at least two accompaniments to go with each plate. You would be cheating yourself if you did otherwise.

You would also be conning yourself out of the full experience if you did not save room for a treat. Chocolate lovers will need to order the chocolate decadence cake crowned with chocolate ganache. Naturally, with a build-up like that, one may think the cake would be supremely rich. However, it is not. Rather, the cake is smooth and the chocolate notes are not overtly powerful. Those looking for something a little more refreshing would enjoy the sublimely fruity triple-berry cheesecake, accompanied by chocolate gelato.
So the next time you find yourself in your vehicle, barreling down I-5 toward San Diego, and you feel the urge to stop in San Clemente, keep in mind that it actually pays to turn away from the beach at times. And if you make your way to Sundried Tomato American Bistro, the payoff you will receive is a quite handsome reward.