Red Fish, Green Restaurant (805 Living Taste of the Town)

Balancing a com itment to well-being—yours and the earth's—with a love for sensual food and beautiful design isn't easy. Yet Red Fish, a new restaurant in the Simi Valley Town Center, ambitiously manages to do all three. The socially responsible dining experience begins with the design of the large space. All of the wood used is reclaimed: the Brazilian hardwood on the communal table up front, the long 800-year-old piece of redwood on top of the bar, the burl tabletops in the lounge, and the wood on the floors. Natural materials like stone, copper, and marble cover the floors and walls of the main dining room, which exudes an Asian minimalism with its brown leather booths, sheer white curtains, geometric modern-art light fixtures, and small silver boxes of wheatgrass on every table.


The serene setting of Red Fish restaurant, coupled with its commitment to a socially responsible dining experience, means you can dine guilt-free (except for the calories(.

Just as much thought was put in behind-the-scenes, as well. Red Fish's owners didn't like the carbon imprint of shipping in bottles of water, so they filter the restaurant's water in-house and then hit it with UV light to kill any residual bacteria. No water bottles means less waste, though any glass and plastic the restaurant does use is recycled. Chef Fredy Escobar buys organic products whenever possible and won't purchase any ocean fish in danger of decline.

He treats his fish with great respect, employing not-oft-used combi ovens to cook his filets, which combine dry heat with steam to achieve perfectly cooked, perfectly moist fish. Escobar offers to sauce his fish three ways: Red Fish-style with herb butter and grilled lemon; Mediterranean-style, with a lovely tomato broth; and tasty Peruvian-style with shiitake mushrooms and green onions. You also can't go wrong with any of the daily fish specials here. Some of the composed dishes are less healthy, but full of flavor. The white clam chowder is rich and bacony with hearty pieces of clam. A Florida rock shrimp appetizer is fried tempura-style and comes with a punchy wasabi dipping sauce. The seafood chili tastes so much like beef chili, it's almost a waste of the delicate fish. The filet mignon and prime rib chop are aged for tenderness and a great, strong taste.

Wines from California, Spain, France, Australia, and Italy are stored in a 53-degree wine room. Wines by the glass are set up on a Cruvinet system—sort of a tap system for wine—to keep them fresh and protected from outside air. Desserts are an interesting mix: The caramelapple cheesecake is lighter than you would think and quite good; the flourless chocolate-hazelnut Brazilia cake is wonderful.

The fresh beignets are delicious on their own, so forego the accompanying too-sweet dipping sauces. Unless you're dining with a large party, skip the tasty but ridiculously large napoleon. The long list of afterdinner drinks, dessert wines, and coffee drinks might be the best way to end a socially responsible meal here. Red Fish is located at 1555 Simi Town Center Drive in Simi Valley. Call 805-823-4756 or 866-480-1146 for reservations.

Me fish, you fish (Los Angeles Times)

Simi Valley isn't known as a hotbed of hipness, but the guys behind the Spark Woodfire Grill restaurants are hoping to change that. The new Red Fish features a sizable bar fashioned from an 800-year-old reclaimed redwood tree and an exhibition kitchen with a mesquite grill. Its most notable feature, however, is the refrigerated fish cutting room, where you can watch the day's catch (much of which comes from New York's Fulton Fish Market) getting transformed into dinner. 1555 Simi Town Center Way, No. 595, (805) 823-4756

Red Fish presents unique, 'from scratch' seafood menu (Simi Vally Acorn)


Photos by WENDY PIERRO/Acorn Newspapers APPETIZING- Recipes at new dinner house incorporate flavors from throughout the Americas.

Beyond the porthole windows on the double doors leading into Red Fish restaurant, the hostess stood in front of a wall of sheer white curtains, waiting to greet diners.

To her right, the "community table" designated for sushi bar-style dining was still empty, keeping the servers from offering diners an "amusebouche," a bitesize morsel that amuses the taste buds of those wanting to participate in a social dining experience.

To her left, a lounge with leather seats looked inviting to anyone hoping to enjoy, say, an Italian bubbly or some pomegranate mojito with some friends over appetizers.

It was 5:30 p.m., and dinner had begun a half-hour ago. Much of the restaurant magic was just behind the white curtains, within the lively kitchen and elegant dining room that would later be bustling with patrons savoring the signature flavors of the Red Fish menu.


ON DISPLAY- Red Fish's extensive wine collection can be viewed by passersby outside the restaurant. Tables, at left, are made of reclaimed wood from 800-year-old tree stumps.

"The idea was to take contemporary seafood ideas from both coasts and build our recipes around old styles," said Brad Wood, general manager of Red Fish in Simi Valley and operating partner of the Spark Woodfire Grill team. "What we do here with (old-style recipes) is to bring it up a notch and make it our own."

Red Fish, which officially opened in the Simi Valley Town Center on Dec. 22, incorporates a mid to upscale seafood restaurant concept that was created by the owners of Spark Woodfire Grill in Studio City, Huntington Beach and Beverly Hills- Bill Chait, Jeff Sladicka, Danilo Terribli and Tom Shields.

The unique menu, which includes revamped favorites like macaroni and cheese topped with half of a mesquite-grilled lobster tail, was developed from scratch by Sladicka, Shields and executive chef Fredy Escobar with the idea of offering contemporary flavors found throughout the Americas.

"Basically, we wanted to create a recognizable menu and add our own contemporary spin to it," Wood said.

In the restaurant, the "spin" means preparing fresh fish daily in various styles- for instance, in a Peruvianstyle broth made of garlic, cilantro, lemon and shiitake mushrooms.

The jambalaya with jasmine rice is a clear favorite, with sizable pieces of chicken, andouille sausage, shrimp and clams simmered in a rich but light tomato broth.

Notable appetizers, costing between $10 to $15, include chilled oysters served with green apple jalapeno and grapefruit mint granita topping or the fried calamari, which is served with three different sauces- one of which is a habanero rice vinegar.

The wild prawn cocktail, consisting of three large prawns almost triple the size of a regular shrimp, is served with the house cocktail sauce, kicked up by some fiery horseradish.

Although the menu is certainly not cheap, the portions and the quality of the food make the price well worth it. Dinner for two can cost anywhere between $50 and $100, especially with the tempting selection of 150 wines, and desserts like the flourless chocolate hazelnut brazilia torte or the caramel apple cheesecake.

Still, a customer enjoys not only the fare but also the restaurant's casually elegant ambience, which was carefully designed by the owners and the renowned Osvaldo Maiozzi, who also designed Valentino at the Venetian Hotel in Las Vegas and all three Spark Woodfire Grill locations.

At Red Fish, the tables are made out of reclaimed wood from 800-year-old tree stumps. Each is adorned with small swatches of wheatgrass to help give the dining room a splash of color.

Modern white lamps hang from the ceiling; a single red lamp, seemingly placed at random, accents the general warm earth tones of the floor and walls of the restaurant.

Music, including classic Beatles' songs, streams at a pleasant volume from hidden speakers.

During their dinner, Simi residents Jim Kirby and Sherry Renker sat at the bar enjoying clam chowder. They decided to take an appetizer approach to dinner and were soon served a large dish of chilled oysters.

"We're very excited," Kirby said. "The ambience is nice, and the food is just 'wow.' I think we've found our answer for a really good restaurant in Simi Valley."

Red Fish is in the Simi Valley Town Center and opens for dinner at 5 p.m. every evening.

To make reservations, call (805) 823-4756 or visit sparkredfish.com or opentable.com.

One fish, two fish, Red Fish, new fish (LA.COM)

The new Red Fish in Simi Valley is a surprise.

It's big, spacious, very modern, with an exhibition fish cutting room and raw bar. It has an upscale appearance, looking much like something Wolfgang Puck would do if he decided to open a seafood restaurant.

But that's where the similarity ends. You'll notice that your cutlery is wrapped in a napkin rather than arranged on a table as a place setting. And that your dinner is more likely to total under $50 than over $100 per person.

Especially if you stick to a nice piece of good, fresh fish from the "dailies" box on the menu, like Arctic char ($23), somewhat salmonlike, but more delicate.Absolutely delicious when lightly poached "Peruvian style" with lemon, cilantro, garlic, green onions and mushrooms.

There are 10 daily options. On one occasion, they included bluenose bass, pink snapper from New Zealand, petrale sole and the char, which was served with one side dish (I chose charcoal roasted red and gold beets one night). Preparation choices, in addition to Peruvian poaching, include baking the fish in a tomato broth with sweet garlic and mesquite grilling with herb butter and lemon. Guess there's no frying, except for French fries.

Meanwhile, the skillful Red Fish kitchen cooks a nifty Boston-style white clam chowder (cup $4, bowl $7), boosted with potatoes, onions and bacon; and a conversation-piece rendition of seafood chili ($12). If you shut your eyes and concentrate while you're eating, you'll find little difference between the "ocean meat" or the regular land meat variety. In fact, the former may well be the more tender of the two.

Fried calamari may be the benchmark dish, the one that measures a kitchen's merit. Light in color and weight, fluffy in texture, easy to chew, non-oily, they're what we're looking for.

Here a heap of calamari ($11) meets the challenge and arrives accompanied by three dipping sauces.

However, a sticky crab, shrimp and spinach dip ($13) doesn't make the grade.

From the menu's "fins" offerings, pistachio-crusted halibut ($26) is a worthwhile choice, with this popular fish enhanced with green onion, garlic, charred broccolini and red peppers.

Meat eaters should not feel excluded at Red Fish.

There are chicken, pork chop, babyback rib, prime rib, filet mignon and lamb chop opportunities here. And they do a pretty good job, when you consider this is primarily a seafood house.

But you pay for the quality.

Center-cut filet mignon ($38) is very tender, could be a little juicier. Double lamb chops from Colorado ($41) with a minted cabernet sauce can be over-the-top wonderful or a little too raw, depending on how you like them. Best to specify in advance.

Endings ($7) like the apple walnut cobbler hit the spot even though they might not be the finest versions around.

At its best: Here's a handsome, bona fide fresh fish restaurant that has all the bells and whistles clanging merrily. If it makes it in Simi Valley, it can be a success anywhere.

Could be better: Why not have place settings? Is it that labor intensive?

Larry Lipson co-hosts "What's Cooking?" a restaurant, wine and food talk show that airs 2 p.m. Saturdays on Cable Radio Network (CRN).