Nationally-Known Chef to Open New Concept in North County

Eater has learned that North County will be the recipient of a new concept from Pascal Lorange, who has worked in Michelin-starred kitchens around the world and is currently the executive chef for the well-known FIG & OLIVE restaurants, which have multiple locations in New York, plus Chicago, D.C. and the Los Angeles area.

Lorange is debuting CRUDO at 5965 Village Way, Suite 107 in The Village at Pacific Highlands Ranch, a new mixed-use center located between Interstate 5 and State Route 56 at the intersection of Old Carmel Valley Road and Del Mar Heights Road, which will also house another dessert shop from The Baked Bear and the incoming Lemongrass & Ginger.

Due in October, CRUDO will focus on raw plates, from sashimi to carpaccio, using local ingredients; the menu, which is almost completely gluten-free, will also feature homemade pasta, meat and seafood cooked in "en papillote" and Lorange's signature sushi-esque rice rolls influenced by Mediterranean flavors; for example, pesto-marinated rice rolled in burrata cheese, stuffed with arugula and wrapped in prosciutto. The approximately 3,500-square-foot restaurant will have over a thousand square foot of citrus tree-filled patio space and an open kitchen; Lorange also plans to offer cooking classes twice a month. The chef says that he hopes to turn CRUDO into a national brand and is currently scouting sites in Santa Monica, Hollywood, Santa Barbara and San Francisco; more locations for San Diego are also a possibility.