Restaurant Review:

Anyone who has been to Puerto Nuevo knows what a treat it is to have lunch or dinner there.

It is definitely worth the drive, about 40 minutes from the U.S.-Mexico border, to get some of the tasty crustaceans.

Fortunately, Rick DiRienzo has that same love of the Baja-style lobster. The founder of Rockin’ Baja Lobster opened his first restaurant in San Diego in 1983 and moved up the coast, opening the cantina-style restaurant all over Southern California.

Though Rockin’ Baja Lobster is a chain, it seems like it was made for the peninsula.

With all the 20- and 30-somethings looking for food in between drinks, the cantina provides nourishment, but it is far better than the usual fare.

The food gives diners a taste of the slipper lobster that is flash-fried and gives it a unique flavor.

Though the menu has a variety of items that I have had before, on this trip I figured that I should stick to lobster.

If you don’t like lobster, there is more than enough to choose from here.

My guest had the Baja sampler platter, and it definitely was more than he could handle.

The large plate comes with carnitas taquitos, cheese quesadilla, fried calamari, Baja-style shrimp, guacamole and three sauces.

The shrimp is the focal point of the appetizer. There are six of them, grilled and basted with butter and paprika. The shrimp is crisp and well flavored. One of the sauces, melted butter, was perfect for dipping the shrimp in, though it didn’t need any more flavor.

The carnitas taquitos were good. I liked the mellow smoky taste of the braised pork. With the fresh guacamole, which was outstanding, it was the second best item on the plate.

My guest’s quesadilla was not just cheese in a tortilla. The chef added red and green bell peppers, black olives, corn and jack and cheddar cheeses. It was a much nicer addition than either of us were expecting.

I liked the calamari that came with it as well. It was lightly breaded and was served in strips rather than rings.

I wish they would add a taco to the dish, because their tacos are really good and I wouldn’t have to order them separately. They have a shrimp and bacon taco that is surprisingly good and the fish tacos — either mahi-mahi or shrimp — are excellent.

My lobster lover’s combo was a crustacean overload, and I loved every bite of it. The plate had a Baja-style lobster taco, lobster enchilada and a cup of lobster corn chowder. It was plenty of food and a pretty good deal at $15.99.

The chowder was probably my favorite of the three. It was so rich in flavor with plenty of corn and bite-sized pieces of lobster. I thought the potatoes were a bit distracting and could have done without them, but overall this was a good item.

The taco was a close second. The grilled Baja style lobster was in a slightly salty butter and in the soft tortilla were slices of avocado, diced tomatoes, red onion, and shredded red cabbage.

The enchilada I found not to have as much of the shellfish in it as the other two items. It was good, but each bite I seemed to wish for more lobster.

The cantina style layout works well, though getting someone to wait on us seemed to be a challenge. We finally had to ask somebody to help us.

It wouldn’t deter me from going back. The food is reasonably priced and distinctive.

There is more than enough on the menu to keep diners happy even if they don’t like lobster.

Rockin’ Baja Lobster

Address: 2104 W. Oceanfront, Newport Beach

Phone: (949) 723-0606

Website: www.rockinbaja.com

Cuisine: Mexican

Specialty dish: Lobster

Alcohol served: Full bar

Entrée price range: $8.99 to $39.99

Family friendly: yes, separate children’s menu and activity book

Credit cards accepted: American Express, MasterCard and Visa

Rating: *** 1/2

JOHN REGER reviews local restaurants and may be contacted at [email protected] or P.O. Box 2984, Seal Beach, CA 90740.