Upon arriving at the Hilton hotel in Costa Mesa, one of the first things you notice is the big open area where the Bristol Palms Bistro is. Walking into the restaurant area, you have a couple of seating options within the restaurant. You have your choice from their Bristol Palms California Bistro, Bristol Palms Bar, or the Bristol Pizza Bar. A friend and I decided to sit down in front of the brick oven pizza bar where there’s a chef that makes the pizzas in front of you. I glanced over their lunch menu and quickly noticed a couple things I wanted to order. I couldn’t decide between their Kobe burger, sandwich, soup, or pizza. I am a sucker for a good pizza, especially when it’s made right in front of you with tons of different toppings to choose from. When my friend said she was ordering a pizza, I quickly crossed that off my list since I could just try hers. I saw that they offered a lunch combo, which was your choice of two from salad, soup, and sandwich. I opted for the seafood chowder and the mango chicken salad sandwich. While we were waiting for our lunch, we enjoyed watching the pizza making and the TV that was right above the pizza oven.
Our food arrived promptly and to my surprise the lunch combo came with a whole sandwich instead of the usual half that restaurants give you when you order a combo. I took a bite of my soup and got a mouth full of seafood in my first bite. That is exactly how I like my seafood chowder, tons of seafood and not just veggies. My chowder had huge pieces of crayfish, shrimp, and clams in it. Next, I moved onto my mango chicken salad sandwich. At first, I was hesitant about the chicken and mango mixture, but it went perfectly together. In the mix were chicken, mango, onions, celery, cilantro, bits of jalapenos, and just enough mayo to hold it all together. I ate half my sandwich and all my soup before realizing I needed to save room to try a slice of pizza. She gave me a slice that was topped with pepperoni, tomatoes, black olives, and red onions. The pizza was delicious and the pizza chef did not hold back on the amount of toppings and cheese either. 
After dining here, I definitely want to come back to try the Kobe burger. Surprisingly the food is not overpriced for being in a nice hotel. The Bistro Bar would be the perfect place to spend happy hour with a couple of friends. The tall palm trees also add such a nice touch to the large open area.--Written/Reviewed by Cindy Wang
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