James A.
Yelp
Marketed as an Asian fusion restaurant, Jade restaurant provides Chinese, Japanese, Korean inspired dishes in a nice waterfront setting. Located in the Marina Pacifica shopping center, right next to the marina in Alamitos Bay, it has a ton of indoor seating along with a few outdoor seats in a narrow walkway overlooking the moored boats. We found the atmosphere, service and most of the food to be good, and of decent value during its generous Happy Hour times ( 3 - 6 pm S - Mo, W - Sa; All day Tu).
My wife shops and dines at the shops in the Marina Pacifica shopping center, and wanted to dine-in at Jade for the first time after passing by it so often. We were hoping to snag an outdoor table overlooking the water/marina (thus coming before 4 pm) but were told the only open table had non-working umbrellas, so we chose to eat inside. Inside is a 7,000 square foot restaurant (this iteration opening in 2019), that easily could be divided into multiple occupancies, but the current owner has chosen to use it as one space. It's a big space with multiple entrances, a bit winding with a too small, outdated bathroom.
There are many laminated menu sheets: One for Happy Hour, one for sushi, one for lunch buffet (M-F 11 - 3 pm for $19.99), and one for classics. We were celebrating, so ordered a variety of things to sample and enjoy. This meant different cooks were preparing, so it came out at different times, in the following order:
Lychee Martini ($13) - from HH drink menu, it was very sweetly cloying, with a decent amount of alcohol...had to help my wife finish it. Mom ordered a fountain Coke ($4).
Sushi Box ($20) - from the Happy Hour Menu, it's a nice variety (though it didn't exactly match what was said on the menu). The six pieces of sushi (2 each of tuna, snapper, salmon) were generous though the quality of the fish was below average. The 4 piece california roll was OK, with good avocado. The green salad has a variety of ingredients (was more of an Asian salad) and was one of the best I've had in a bento box. The miso soup was flavorful and full of tofu and seafood. For twenty dollars, this is a good deal. Noticed they have an all you can eat sushi special (M - Th, 3 - 8 at the sushi bar)
Lettuce Wraps ($10) - for HH menu, there was a decent amount of good flavored chicken, with a big stab of iceberg lettuce (there were plenty of leaves, but it was old and a bit dried out...many restaurants wouldn't have served it).
Dan Dan Noodles ($19) - chose it with ground pork, instead coming with pork loin pieces. It was more of a soup, with a small amount of lo mein noodles. The flavor was good...just not dandan.
Bento Box ($18 + $2 for fried rice) - From the HH menu. Chose it with sweet and sour chicken and cup of wonton soup. The egg roll was a bit greasy, with small amount of fried rice being quite tasty. The same salad in the sushi box was given, and enjoyed. The chicken was quite good when eaten fresh, and I especially liked the perfectly cooked peppers and pineapple. With the just the right amount of sauce, it was a good dish and would be worth getting again in larger quantities.
Green Beans ($6) - from HH menu, a decent amount of fresh green beans, cooked just enough to wrinkle the skin. It was good.
Service was OK: the place wasn't too crowded and our server provided all that we explicitly asked for, though nothing suggested or noticed. The food came out when prepared, and there wasn't enough space at the table for 4 to hold our entire order (so we had to juggle a bit), and the dish clearing was hit/miss. We paid at the table. With time left over, decided to explore some of the other shops. Parking is shared for the mall and was quite crowded, and because the entrance is so far away, took a bit of a walk from door to door.
Jade has a lot of specials, so if one goes at prescribed times, can actually get good value (especially if during HH and being able to sit outside)....and with the eclectic menu, provide a variety for big parties. Though it is a bit funny that for a restaurant so big on the inside, we were so cramped while eating.