OC's new Kimera, first bite.

Though I don't advocate going to restaurants during their first weeks, I broke my own rule when I joined friends at Kimera near John Wayne (Jamboree/MacArthur).

This spot is from the powers behind proven performers Bistango and Bayside. Maybe because my hopes were low, the evening didn't suck.

But oh, the food! Shockingly tasty, and creative for OC. I know I forgot a couple dishes, but here goe. Good: Hangar steak over roasted fresh corn with manchego fondue... sizzled chili shrimp app under crumbled cashews. Better: summer rolls with yuzu-marinated innards of daikon, apple, melon, with wasabi sorbet... a dessert with delicate brittle, peanut butter mousse, choc ice cream. Best: Beef short ribs with a chewy glaze stacked over soft polenta, the braised chard... and a transcendent risotto carbonara with shards of thick bacon, plenty of Parm and a baked egg on top. My eyes tear up just recalling it.

The Bad: Earnest but clueless service from smiling young'uns so uninformed, well, it was fodder for much comedy later. Telling tidbit-- when our waiter attempted to open our bottles, he was stumped by the foil capsule, until we showed him his opener had a cutter for that purpose. And it only got better after that.

The place is almost hidden in the first floor of sleek glass office building bubble. Inside, the setting is all polish and hard surfaces, lots of red and black, a few comfy booths, wild mural art on one wall, a ceiling of bamboo. The lounge is spacious, the dining room big as well.

I predict (and I've been wrong, FWIW) they will have a crushing lunch biz, given their corporate locale. The dinner crowd was mixed, but skewing younger than the regulars at the other two places.

I'd return, but only after the looky loos recede.