Award-Winning Chef Ross Pangilinan, formerly of Leatherby’s Café Rouge brings his exciting new concept to Santa Ana’s vibrant dining scene. His new restaurant Mix Mix offers a menu of global dishes which see influence from traditional French and Italian to modern Filipino cuisines. Opening winter 2016, Mix Mix will take over the space formerly occupied by Black Box DTSA, which replaced Little Sparrow.
“The inspiration for my menu at Mix Mix comes from both the memories I embrace from childhood and techniques I’ve learned throughout my culinary career,” commented Chef Ross Pangilinan, who has worked in Michelin-starred restaurants across France and California. “At an early age, my father instilled in me an appreciation for diversity in food; together, we explored everything from hole-in-the-wall Chinese eateries to high-end French restaurants.”
Chef Pangilinan’s seasonal menu will feature daily market specials and globally inspired dishes including:
Filipino Ceviche / yellowfin tuna / coconut lime / avocado / pork cracklings / Thai chile
Seared Foie Gras Buenelo / charred pineapple / al pastor spice
Soft Egg Raviolo / herb ricotta / black pepper pasta / guanicale / parmesan / brown butter
Crispy Duck Leg / mushroom risotto / blackberries / Szechuan pepper / cider jus
Market Pasta / handmade pasta inspired by the season’s freshest ingredients from local markets
Kobe Burger / bacon / caramelized shallots / oven-dried tomato / cheese / rosemary aioli
Tropical Verrine / lychee / passion fruit / coconut / macadamia nuts
Dishes like the Filipino Ceviche and Tropical Verrine pay homage to Pangilinan’s Filipino heritage. Among his signature dishes, the Tropical Verrine is a modern interpretation of the restaurant’s namesake dish, Mix Mix, the literal translation from Halo Halo, a traditional Filipino dessert featuring a mixture of sweets.
“The dining adventures I shared with my father sparked my inspiration for cuisine at a young age,” added Pangilinan. “To this day, I draw inspiration from the meals we shared together.”
In addition to its eclectic menu of global cuisine, Mix Mix offers handcrafted libations from its craft cocktail bar. The beverage program focuses on ‘shaken & stirred’ cocktails created with house-made bitters, syrups, and infusions, as well as French wines and craft beer from around the world.
Prominent new features include a succulent garden wall behind the bar and in the dining room, a 6-seat ‘butcher’s block’ chef’s table that peers directly into the restaurant’s open kitchen. The reservation-only chef’s table will offer a five-course “Oui Chef” menu that evokes a dining experience for all the senses.
Together, the dining room and adjacent bar seat a total of 100 guests at hightop tables and custom banquettes. The restaurant’s upscale industrial decor provides a neutrality that allows its vibrant dishes to take center stage. The bar’s succulent garden wall provides a fresh contrast to its concrete bar top, hanging Edison bulbs, and rustic metal wall decor. Mix Mix will also offer catering and private dining. Having prepared multi-course galas for The Emmy’s and The Grammy’s, Pangilinan brings to Mix Mix extensive experience in the hospitality of catering and private dining.
Mix Mix Kitchen Bar is located at 300 N. Main St. in Downtown Santa Ana and will open this winter. The restaurant will be open for dinner Tuesday – Thursday from 5 p.m. – 10 p.m. and Friday and Saturday from 5 p.m. to 11 p.m. Brunch will be offered every Sunday from 11 a.m. – 3 p.m. For more information, please visit www.mixmixkitchenbar.com or connect with Mix Mix on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
About Chef Ross Pangilinan
Ross Pangilinan discovered his passion for cuisine at a young age. Adventurous dining experiences he shared with his father and cooking shows like Frugal Gourmet, have influenced his global palate and helped define his career as a chef.
After high school, Pangilinan enrolled at Le Cordon Bleu in Pasadena. Excelling in his courses, he went on to work at various Southern California restaurants and in France for the two-Michelin-starred Les Trois Marche. At the age of 21, Patina Restaurant Group recognized Pangilinan’s skills and offered him his first sous chef position at Pinot Provence in 2005. After two years, he returned to France to work in the Michelin-starred Regis restaurant where he strengthened his culinary technique and back of the house operations. His sous chef position at the flagship Patina at the Walt Disney Concert Hall helped earn the restaurant its Michelin star in 2007. A year after various successes, including opening the modern Italian restaurant Sinatra within Encore at the Wynn in Las Vegas, Pangilinan returned to Patina Restaurant Group in 2009 as Executive Chef at Leatherby’s Café Rouge, where he led the culinary team for 7 years. Today, he proudly presents, Mix Mix, his global dining concept exemplifying the techniques and traditions formed throughout his culinary journey.
Mix Mix Kitchen Bar is set to open November 17, 2016.
For more information, visit mixmixkitchenbar.com
Find more delicious Orange County Restaurants OPENING SOON
Mix Mix Kitchen Bar – Santa Ana – Now Open!
11.16.16
