One of Southern California’s most striking coastal restaurant spaces is returning after a multi-year hiatus as Studio Mediterranean, located inside the upscale Montage resort. Chef Dennis Efthymiou, a Greek native who trained in Athens as well as the U.K.’s three-Michelin-starred the Fat Duck, Central in Lima, and Luce in San Francisco, has come on board to lead the kitchen serving a high-end Greek seafood menu with fish flown in fresh from around the world and locally sourced produce. The restaurant became available to hotel guests on June 26, but will open to the public beginning October 10.
Expect Studio Mediterranean to serve spreads with house-baked pita, keftedes (beef and pork meatballs) with smoked tzatziki, charred octopus with saganaki sauce, and tableside tossed Greek salad. Whole seafood like Greek branzino, Spanish Dover sole, Maine lobster, dorade, and rainbow trout comes deboned, grilled, and dressed simply with lemon, olive oil, and sea salt (priced between $52 and $88 per pound). There’s salt-baked branzino in a coffee-salt crust for $165 while rarefied Spanish carabinero prawns are $95 apiece. More inventive fish dishes include black cod with turmeric butter or grilled steelhead with dill-butter sauce. Roasted chicken, bone-in rib-eye for two, and grilled lamb chops round out the proteins, while sides include lemon-roasted potatoes, charred broccoli, and Rancho Gordo gigante beans. To finish, a baklava ice cream sundae comes laced with honey in a copper pan while a medjool date tart gets a drizzle of chocolate, olive oil, caramel, and crème fraiche.
Sommelier Gary Sullivan will continue Studio’s lauded wine program, one that Virbila held in high regard, while cocktails such as the Odyssey will feature Ouzo 12 with kumquat-cello and elderflower ice. The interior gets a sleek upgrade from its somewhat stodgier look from before, with patterns carpets giving way to ecru stone tiling, off-white seating, and dainty potted olive trees. The wide windows afford glorious views of the Pacific, amplified further with long sunsets and crashing waves. It’s giving HBO’s The White Lotus in Mykonos, Santorini, or (a fictional season if the series ever reaches that many); for those of us living in Southern California, it’s certainly a welcome retreat from urban hustle.
Studio Mediterranean is currently open to hotel guests of the Montage Laguna Beach and will open to the public on October 10, 2025. It’s open Wednesday to Sunday from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. and is located at 30801 South Coast Highway, Laguna Beach, CA, 92651.
Dining and Cooking