R + D Kitchen

Great place to go to for food and ambience more of a casual spot but still a nice place to have a drink and meal at

Very limited menu for lunch when we went there but the food tasted pretty good. The chips and dip duo was a good starter. The fried chicken sandwich had a great slaw on it that made it taste light.

Someone asked me how enforcing a dress code is discrimination?
I’m a colored, mocha colored, dark skin person. I didn’t choose to look the way I do. God made me this way.
When R + D kitchen makes me change what I’m wearing and as I leave the restaurant I watch a white male wearing a tank top and backwards hat which they allowed to enter and order food because I watched this occur then that is discrimination and racism.
I cooperated and changed my tank top to a t shirt. Then when they asked me to change my hat to face front wards I complied. But when I watch them treat people differently based on skin color then I am justified to leave my reviews and call them.
Everyone has a right to refuse service or make up rules but when these rules only apply to certain people when they pick and choose based on skin color this is a huge problem especially in this country.
My father served for this country. US DOD POW MIA. I am a good citizen. I pay taxes. I respect and thank law enforcing and everyone who serves. I give back. I volunteer. I do what’s right. I try but when R + D and the management company discriminates against people based on skin color that will not be ok with me and I will make it be known to the people.
I have money, my family and friends have money and I will make sure not a cent goes to this company. I hope to influence people to not support this business.
It’s your choice to go here or not. My first time I got sick and threw up the food I got. I gave them a second opportunity and that’s how they treated me.
The white blonde girl hostess agreed with me they discriminate. When an employee who works for this poor company tells me they discriminate, I see it and feel it then I read the reviews and see I’m not the only one who was treated this way I will speak out about this injustice.
Do as you wish but after this person on Unilocal who now I believe works for R + D is on Unilocal harassing me I will contact Unilocal and I will see what government agency can investigate my claims.
Maybe something will happen, maybe nothing will. I’m going to go on with my business living a lifestyle that God will approve.
God would not approve of this restaurant or this managing company.
Once again it’s your choice what you do. Thank you so much and I pray for these ignorant racist discriminating people who mistreat Gods creation because they do not look like them.
God bless and amen

LOVE LOVE LOVE THIS PLACE!
Honestly there is nothing not to like about this place… too much to list!
Only negative, if it can be a negative… lol they are always packed weekends. Very accommodating staff though! Every time down in OC we stop by this place and have some burgers!

The Title R + D stands for Research and Development. Wonderful place to grab a bite with a friend while enjoying sun. Atmosphere is cheerful and smart casual. Choose to a seat by the windows and enjoy the breeze without the sun beaming directly down on you. Yes you do see people in suits and girls who look like they step out of a catalog. But then again this is Fashion Island in Newport so its that kind of place. Needless to say I did not come here in a suit just plain jeans and shirt and was treated just fine. My water was refilled in timely manner and service was top notch. Menu isn’t extensive but covers all bases from burgers to steaks. Starting off with Mojito which was made correctly with fresh mint leaves which wasn’t overly sweet balance with lime/​lemon. I recommend burger and the chicken salad. The burger is classic burger and simple yet exemplifies their main concept which leads to an outstanding burger. HIgh Quality ingredients that doesn’t need sauces to hide any anything. Do come and enjoy and remember to enjoy the ambiance.

I am very disappointed in my experience with R+D Kitchen. I was looking forward to having their French dip after rave reviews from a colleague. While my meal and the service did not meet my expectations, the reason for my review is actually due to the disinterest from the company about my experience. I wrote in to their comment department about the meal I had, a bit more than a week ago. Without getting into specifics I experienced not only a disturbing level of discrimination but also over an hour ticket time for two sandwiches and when we received our food it was cold which only leads me to believe it sat in the window for quite some time. While all those things really upset me, what upsets me even more is the fact that after a very cordial email and almost 10 days of waiting for a response, I have been completely ignored. It is a shame that a restaurant company of this caliber doesn’t show any interest when their clientele has a bad experience. There are many restaurants that value their guests; sadly R+D Kitchen doesn’t seem to be one of them.
Update:
After posting my review on Unilocal the company reached out to me to apologize for my experience. They sent me a very nice email and have attempted to make amends. We will give it another shot and I will post the findings in a future update.

Since my bestie was on a time crunch for work, we decided to have lunch at R+D Kitchen at Fashion Island, in Newport Beach. I walked in and made a reservation before she showed up, for 15 minutes later (so they take reservations). They seated me promptly and were patient as I waited for my friend to show up (they even asked me to pull down the shades for me). She ordered the Greek Style Chicken ($ 18), and I ordered the cheeseburger that includes: lettuce, tomato, onion, cheddar, on a house-​made egg bun ($ 15). Since their sandwiches don’t come with a side we ordered Tabbouleh ($ 4). I have never liked this side dish before until I had it at this restaurant. The quality of their food is great and you can share if you’re not that hungry. I wish that their menu would be a little more extensive or they’d come up with new recipes.
The best part was we had the nicest and most smiley waiter! :)

R+D was always someplace I avoided wen I was at Fashion Island. Too crowded, too expensive and with a small menu. But when I was in Montecito, I came across Honor Bar, and they waitress mentioned that they were part of a restaurant group. Low and behold, they also own R+D, and they have the same awesome friend chicken sandwich we had at Honor Bar.
The chicken sandwich was great. Juicy, with really good slaw that doesn’t make the bread get all soggy. It does not look like a huge sandwich, and there are no sides, but it is plenty of food. So on that front, the place scored.
But I don’t know if I will be back. I loved the drink menu at Honor Bar, and R+D has no drink specials. Maybe they knew what a Jackrabbit was, but if not, I was not in a position to tell them how to make it. They did have fresh squeezed grapefruit juice for the greyhounds, but I would import the house special cocktails from the Honor Bar.
The rest of the experience shares the same reasons I don’t eat at Houstons, another restaurant in the same ownership group. The menu and service is really set up as a single course turn the table place. No, they don’t kick you out and make you feel rushed, but there is not a reason to linger here. There probably are desserts, but no one offered me any. An offer of a second cocktail came when I was already pretty much done eating, and it took a while to get a coffee refill, which came in a new up. The staff does not really have an assigned set of tables, the idea is to get the food out to the table as soon as it pops up, so you don’t really have a dedicated server. I like having one person swing by and check on me.

Came here for a quick lunch and was promptly seated at the mini booths across from the bar. These were so nice because the window was totally open to the outside so it was best of both worlds. I ordered the pine room salad and the chicken meatballs. Not a huge meal but a perfect Lunch at a great price. The salad was soooo tasty! A blend of lettuce with some chopped almonds was so yummy. Then the chicken meatballs… Now the sauce was so incredible so I think you could have put anything in there and it would have tasted great. But the chicken was wonderful!!! Such a fun flavor and a different take on a classic.

This place is quite peachy. The perfect ambience for an afternoon lunch.
Drinks are delicious, and food is on another level.
Ladies — The Pine Room Salad on the ‘Sides/​Extras’ section of the menu, is large enough to make a meal out of, and is only $ 6 :)

R + D Kitchen is a popular restaurant at Fashion Island. It’s known to be very busy at lunch and serves good food.
I ordered the seared tuna salad, which appeared to be one of the more popular menu items based on how many people around me ordered the same. I tried fries as well, since the restaurant featured burgers too.
I would return.

Dings crispy chicken sandwich is the best! The chicken is cooked and flavored to perfection — crispy, salty, peppery, plus the sweetness of the cole slaw adds a whole other flavor dimension.
Plus, we sat at the bar and had the best bartender — Angela! How could we not love her she share my name!
Next time I’m trying the Reuben.

I really enjoyed my experiences here — the food, the service, the atmosphere and everything else!
Came on a Sunday around noon and we knew there would be a wait. Good thing is that they will text you shortly before your table is ready so you can walk around and get your shopping game on! Everyone here is so nice and attentive– I love that there’s no one «assigned» waiter for our table– different individuals brought us our drinks, our food, cleaned up after us and answered all our questions.
Food was delicious as well! I appreciate places with simple menus — even then, we still had a hard time deciding on what to get!!! We ended up getting the Asian chicken noodle salad and ding’s crispy chicken sandwich. I love how there are almonds AND peanuts in the salad. Nom nom nom!
Great relaxing place for brunch or simply catching up with friends. Definitely will be back soon

I was pleasantly surprised with R + D Kitchen! Walking in, their space is absolutely beautiful. Very open, bright, and clean. However I got nervous when I saw the variety of items on their menu. First off, they had Crystal’s Hot Sauce on every table — which made me think the menu would have a Cajun influence. But then I see burgers (American), chicken meatballs (Italian), greek style chicken (Mediterranean), Asian Chicken Noodle Salad (Asian influence), spinach & cheese omelet (brunch) so I thought «What kind of a restaurant is this and why are they trying to serve a diverse menu?» Seeing a menu like this makes me nervous because it means they are trying to be great at cooking every type of cuisine… and that immediately makes me think of The Cheesecake Factory. Trying to be too many things at once. Which means the quality isn’t going to be great.
However, R + D Kitchen crushed it. All of their food was fresh, with quality ingredients and great flavors! We had:
Greek Style Chicken: The portion size was perfect. Not too big but not too small. The chicken was grilled & seasoned to perfection, and was very juicy. The tabbouleh was some of the best I have ever had and tasted so fresh! The dish is served with a creamy avgolemono sauce which had a great lemon flavor.
Ahi Tuna Tartare: Also some of the best tuna tartare I’ve ever had. The raw tuna was tossed in a light soy dressing. The tuna was fresh and served with a deviled egg, sliced avocado & toasted ciabatta. So yummy and perfect for sharing!
I absolutely loved this place and cannot wait to come back and try more of their dishes!

I really wanted to like R + D Kitchen, I really did, given that they are a sister restaurant of one of my favourite restaurant groups, the Hillstone Group. Hillstone owns several top quality seafood and steakhouses (and I rarely dine out for steak) including Houston’s, Bandera, Gulfstream — just to name a few, and I expected the same high class quality in food and experience that I always loved during several dinners occasion at any those establishments listed above. Unfortunately, R & D Kitchen just happened to fall through my expectations.
What we had :
G R E E K S T Y L E C H I C K E N [ $ 19 ]
A half cornish hen roasted avgolemono dressing accompanied with a tabbouleh. The chicken was fresh, which that was a given, but also incredibly d r y. It was not tender, and too difficult to consume. Such a simple dish, how could this be so underwhelming? The tabbouleh however, was exceptional, and I appreciated that bit.
C H I C K E N M E A T B A L L S A N D S P A G H E T T I [ $ 17 ]
Light spaghetti in fresh he tomato sauce, I just thought the sauce was too salty, too tart, and too acidic for my personal taste. The meatballs however were nice and soft, that I enjoyed, and the fresh broccoli balanced out the dish a bit, but again, the sauce was too much, not just for me, but even for my dining companion who also agreed the same.
H A N D C U T F R I E S [ $ 5 ]
The only highlight (and quite possibly the only best item) was the fries. They were thin and piping hot, you really can’t go wrong with them, thank goodness.
It appears to me that R & D Kitchen is more popular for their sandwich choices, not their other entrees. Due to my lack of interest in any of meals here, I think it is better to skip R & D Kitchen, and spend a little more at the tastier and more refined restaurants of Hillstone.

It’s been awhile since I’ve been here, but I quickly remembered why I’m back. I got together with a good friend and we had some great quality time catching up. The restaurant was packed upon my arrival and the place was hopping. The menu is fairly limited, but what they do serve is on point.
Started off with the ahi tuna tartare that comes with ciabatta flatbread, avocado and delicious pieces of lightly seasoned ahi. We brought a few bottles of wine so we sipped on those while we enjoyed our appetizer. For my main entrée I went with the chicken meatballs and spaghetti served with a fresh tomato sauce, broccoli and reggiano cheese. The service was quick, friendly and comfortable. Love the vibe and energy of this restaurant. Always a great dining experience here for sure.

Been meaning to try out this place. Finally got the chance since my hubby let me choose a place for Valentine’s Day. Good thing I manage to book a reservation ahead of time. When we arrived there were a couple of people waiting already. It took them a few minutes to clean up a table and we were set. Yay!
The menu is limited and we tried a bit of everything. Ordered Reubenesque sandwich with fries and Ahi Tuna Tartare that came with a deviled egg. We both enjoyed the sandwich and tuna. I didn’t really think too highly of their deviled egg or fries. Overall solid menu. Would recommend making reservation first. Does get a bit loud inside. It’s more like a bar/​place to go to after work hangout.

We came here for lunch on a Friday at 2pm and it was packed! It was a good sign for things to come. I expected a trendy, over priced place with mediocre food but blown away by the flavors.
Ambience ⁵⁄₅: it’s a good size restaurant but feels cozy due to a large oval bar surrounded by booths. The wood walls and wood ceilings added to the warmth. Chill music if you like that kind of stuff.
Food
Buttermilk chicken sandwich ⁵⁄₅: this is their Friday special and it is a must get! The chicken is moist but still has that crunchy outer skin. The slaw was slightly sweet and the flavors meshed well. The sandwich was huge which made it kind of hard to bite.
Burger ⁵⁄₅: simple but surprisingly delicious. The sauce had a smoky flavor to it and the meat was juicy. One of the best traditional burgers I’ve had.
Greek chicken salad ⁴⁄₅: instead of shredded chicken or cubes, they give you half a chicken. The chicken was super moist and the skin crispy and flavorful. The salad was refreshing.
Service ³⁄₅: it wasn’t bad, it just wasn’t anything special. She never came back for refills. There are two doors/​entry points which makes checking in confusing.

I’m always skeptical of restaurants that are located inside malls but this was a pleasant surprise.
My friend wanted to go to a nice dinner where we could get dressed up and since I’ve passed this numbers times while at Fashion Island I figured we should give it a try.
PARKING: It’s located near Neiman Marcus so either park in the structure or the little lot in front of Neiman.
WAIT: We had reservations at 7 and despite coming a little early they seated us right away. I would suggest reservations as when we were there and leaving there seemed to be a little bit of a wait.
ATMOSPHERE: Definitely good for a date or a nice dinner out as it’s dark with low lighting. Booths and tables, a bar inside and that elevated feel.
FOOD: Their menu isn’t that big so there aren’t a ton of options but sometimes that’s better. They had one special, which my friend got and I got the burger. My other friend got the ruben sandwich.
BURGER — pretty standard, get it medium rare. They cut it in half for you but I was surprised at how good it was. Homemade egg bun which is pretty chewy and soft. Meat was juicy and perfectly medium rare. Overall, tasty for a burger although slightly pricey.
CHICKEN MEATBALLS — got this as a side (3 meatballs). It was… interesting. It almost had an indian type spice to it, was not what I was expecting.
FRIED CHICKEN SANDWICH — SO GOOD. I tried a third of my friends, because they cut it in thirds. The chicken was crispy, the bun was slightly toasted and the kale slaw gave it a bit of refreshing taste. Would definitely get this again.
FRIES — also pretty good, skinny fries that reminded me of in n out.
Overall, impressed with this place. It is on the pricier side but you are paying for a nicer atmosphere.

Today was my second visit to this restaurant within 3 day period. This time, I got the Reuben sandwich and again I was sooo impressed with the flavor of the sandwich. The service was flawless this time as well…
So why the 3 stars? It is because I noticed that one of the managers (the guy with short hair with glasses) did not use the scooper to put chips for a dip dish… Although that was not my dish, but I would not have liked my food to be touched with bare hands…
This actually brings up a good point, since I noticed that some of the chefs use bare hand to put tomatoes and such on sandwiches… I doubt gloves are too expensive so I would suggest the upper management to invest on buying some!