By Collin Breaux
Downtown San Juan Capistrano visitors looking to try a new restaurant now have another option.
Bloom Restaurant & Bar opened on Dec. 2 at 31760 Old Mission Road, across from Mission San Juan Capistrano at the former Starbucks site. Starter menu items include a barbecue Texas ranch quail with celery leaf coleslaw, apple cider and mustard barbecue sauce, and a farmers market vegetable panzanella salad that includes cucumber and goat cheese.
For entrees, customers can order an applewood bacon-wrapped meatloaf, herb-marinated pork porterhouse chop or crispy Pacific Sand Dab po-boy fish sandwich. Bloom patrons can also try the numerous craft cocktails, such as the Procrastinator (gin, Campari and other ingredients) or the Airstream (which includes vodka, grapefruit and basil).
Price ranges are $10 to $25 for appetizers and $19 to $59 for entrees.
The restaurant has a dark interior, though well-lit, with tables and bar seats. Friends, couples and general patrons sampled dishes and drinks during a preview taste held the night before the Dec. 2 opening, during which bartenders mixed drinks and chatted with attendees.
“We feel that Bloom will be a great neighborhood restaurant that is not only in an amazing location but also will have a warm and inviting design with an amazing view of the historic Mission,” owner Russ Bendel said. “I think we will be yet another great restaurant to add to the downtown SJC collection in the community.”
Bendel, who lives with his family in San Juan, is joined in the venture by his business partners: Executive Chef Jared Cook, Beverage Director Gabe Whorley and Operations Vice President Kyle Simpson.
“The 2,400-square-foot space seats 87, which includes 22 in the bar area,” a news release said. “The dinner-only operation will unveil weekend brunch in 2023. The restaurant will employ 40.”
Bendel also owns Vine Restaurant & Bar in San Clemente and Ironwood in Laguna Hills, among other restaurants in Orange County.
During an interview with The Capistrano Dispatch in February, Bendel said he spent more than a year looking around San Juan Capistrano “for the right opportunity” with a new restaurant before coming across the Old Mission Road location. Downtown is gradually becoming a foodie hub with numerous new restaurants, including The Rooftop Kitchen + Bar and Breezy—the latter an island-themed breakfast/brunch spot.
As for where the name Bloom came from, Bendel points out it fits in with the names of his other restaurants.
“We wanted to stick with the plant/tree/flower (theme) as a consistent brand of all the restaurants. When we were going through hundreds of different name opportunities, we were looking at the history of San Juan and trying to incorporate something about San Juan into the name,” Bendel said. “When we were reading, there was a quote about the blooming of all the flowers on all the hillside and the natives using the mustard flowers as a trail to get back to the historic Mission. When I read the word ‘bloom,’ it just kind of popped.”
Current restaurant hours are 5-9 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 4-10 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, and 4-9 p.m. on Sundays. Visit bloomsanjuancapistrano.com for more information.
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