Gelson’s, Jensen’s, Whole Foods, Bristol Farms — Southern Californians have always enjoyed shopping at fancy supermarkets. Now it’s about to get even better. On Thursday, March 17, Bristol Farms Newfound Market opened its doors at the Irvine Spectrum. It’s not just a place to grab gourmet groceries, it’s a dining destination with a mini food hall, a full service pizzeria, a European café and craft cocktails. Here’s a first look at a foodie hangout that’s sure to be a talker.
Background: Since 1982, Bristol Farms has been a go-to for discriminating shoppers who want imported cheeses and charcuterie, aged beef, ocean fresh seafood and abundant produce. Now they’re taking it up another notch with special on-premises dining experiences.
“We have three formats,” said Patrick Posey, vice president of non-perishables procurement and merchandising at Bristol Farms. “We have the traditional Bristol Farms format, which we’re calling 1.0. The new formats, like you see in Yorba Linda and Woodland Hills, we call that 2.0, and we’re calling this Bristol Farms 3.0. So the idea behind this is to bring in a bunch of food concepts and when they work here, we’re going to take them to our 2.0 stores.”
The look: The 34,000 square-foot space used to be a gym and a retail store. It was redesigned by two architectural firms, Bishop Pass and Thread.
The look draws its inspiration from two chefs, said Dan Evon, vice president of culinary and general manager of Bristol Farms Newfound Market.
“You’ll see a little bit of Alice Waters and a little bit of Anthony Bourdain. So you’ve got the Northern California farm-to-table atmosphere, all the whitewashed woods, the country farm type look, which is what Bristol Farms has been in the past. Then we brought in a little bit of Bourdain, a little global, a little more gritty, more street food-type atmosphere.”
Grocery store setup: Take in a riot of color as you survey fresh cut flowers in the floral department. Look left and you’ll see that heavenly smell of artisan breads, cakes, cookies and pastries is coming from the bakery. All the produce is stacked and displayed, American style, but it’s as fresh as if you’re in a French country market. There’s a large wine and spirits section, the beverage aisle has everything you could thirst for, from waters to juice drinks, coffee and California craft beers.
Acoustic tile overhead keeps the lively sounds of the food hall tamped down when you’re simply shopping for groceries. Check out the curated end-of-aisle displays. There are trendy new brands such as Huntington Beach-based Truff hot sauce and revered luxury brands such as Hollywood’s John Kelly chocolates.
At the preview event, co-founder John Kelson served free samples and stories about being chocolatier to the stars such as Leonardo DiCaprio, Viola Davis and Steven Tyler. Once, the rocker offered to take a selfie with the whole kitchen crew when he visited the factory, shopping for a charity benefit.
“We’ve won national awards and for the picture I was going to hold one of my statues that looks like an Oscar,” said Kelson. “And Tyler goes, ‘I’ll hold that,’ and I said ‘Don’t you have like 18 Grammys? Let me have my day.’…But that’s OK, he was really cool.”
Mini food hall: Shoppers will find five fast-casual venues. Swell Seafood gives a twist to coastal snack shacks with fare such as Grilled Garlic Shrimp Tacos ($5.99) and Fancy Tater Tots topped with crème fraiche, chives, salmon roe and caviar ($12.99). Horton’s takes its cue from the chicken sandwich craze with a tea-brined Nashville Hot Fried Chicken Sandwich ($11.49) and a Korean Fried Chicken Sandwich ($11.49) with kimchi aioli.
Good Greens has a build-your-own option or choose from signature salads like Giddyup Cowboy ($13.99) with flatiron steak salad and Point Reyes blue cheese dressing. PikaPika has traditional and contemporary sushi in rolls and bowls or graze on nigiri sushi ($2.50 per piece) or the poke bar ($19.99 per pound).
For the vegans there’s Rooted Plant-Based Plates with new-age cuisine like Ocean Bowl Blue ($10.99) with spirulina-laced coconut yogurt and Kimchi Fritters ($8.99).
Viaggio Pizzeria: This full service 2,500-square-foot restaurant with a bar serves wine, beer and craft cocktails ($13-$19). There are 120 seats total for indoor and outdoor dining. The thin-crust pizza dough is fermented in-house for 36 hours using stone-milled flours. Director of Culinary Dennis Horton has assembled a lineup of pastas, pizzas, meatballs and more. Twelve-inch pizzas ($14-$20) are fired in a 650-degree oven to crisp the crust and avoid any soggy middles. Seasonal ingredients top the pies from koshi cherries to lamb prosciutto. For reservations, call 949-749-2366.
Heart & Hand: Don’t miss a European inspired café at the end of the food hall with an outdoor patio and fire pit. Woven French cane chairs and a pastry case give it a touch of Paris. There Jonathan Pacheco, director of coffee and juice, serves La Colombe coffee drinks, smoothies, fresh-pressed organic juices, acai bowls, shake bombs made with Straus Family Creamery dairy products, Oatly soft serve frozen treats and brunch fare.
You can snag your java to go but why not take a seat at this cafe that serves beverages in bar ware such as highball and old fashioned glasses.
“We really wanted to focus on the idea of mixology within our coffee and juice space,” said Pacheco. “You know, take the bar feel and the bar experience and turn that into a coffee experience. Our Heart and Hand Latte ($6.50), we make the vanilla syrup in house and we shake it in a bar mixer. Our California Latte ($6.50), has carbonated water, shots of espresso and then we kiss that with a little bit of lemon.”
The Latte Old Fashioned ($7.75) has black walnut bitters, black cherry, orange and espresso. Pacheco describes it as a date-night scene rather than just a daily trip to Starbucks.
“You’re enjoying the sun setting at the Irvine Spectrum,” he said. “You can come out here and have a beautiful romantic experience with an elevated drink.”
Info: 700 Spectrum Center Drive, 949-620-4010, bristolfarms.com.
Open: The market is open from 7 a.m.-10 p.m. daily. Food hall restaurant hours vary.
