When Chef Charbel Hayek first slipped behind the wood-fire line at ILYA, the newest restaurant to join San Clemente’s culinary landscape, he felt something familiar — not from Los Angeles, where he built his name, nor from Beirut, where his earliest flavors took shape. It was the rhythm. The air. The light bouncing off the coastline. A warmth that reminded him, he said, of the Mediterranean geography that shaped him long before television audiences knew him from the Bravo network’s Top Chef.
“This area was already on my radar,” Hayek said, settling into a corner table between pre-service walkthroughs. “We have a lot of customers that come from Orange County to LA to try my food. People message me saying, ‘We’d love to have your food here.’ When the opportunity presented itself in San Clemente, I checked the area and thought — it’s the best place to start. I’m excited to meet the locals and cook the best food I can cook.”
ILYA opened on Dec. 3 on South El Camino Real and marks Hayek’s first Orange County restaurant and his first full embrace of Western Mediterranean cooking. Known for Ladyhawk and Laya, his celebrated Los Angeles concepts rooted in Eastern Mediterranean and Lebanese flavors, Hayek wanted this next chapter to return him to the cuisines that first shaped him.
“One of the first cuisines I learned when I was a kid was French and Italian,” he said. “I even lived in France for a couple years. After doing two Lebanese concepts in L.A., I think the third one is time to change a bit and cook what I first learned.”
Even so, he didn’t step away from his roots entirely. Dishes such as hummus, muhammara and baba ghanoush —also known as baba ganouj — still anchor the mezze platter.
“We put the menu in a way that everything goes well together,” he said. “It’s Western Mediterranean focus, but with pieces of my childhood.”
When describing this cuisine, Hayek often calls it a “rhythm of fire, sea and simplicity” — a phrase that appears poetic until he explains how much discipline it requires.
“Simplicity and respecting the product — respecting the season, too,” he said. “The Mediterranean region is very similar to California when it comes to weather and beaches. We stay true to ourselves by picking dishes that are famous. I’m not inventing the wheel. I’m just trying to execute them in the best way possible and cook with love.”
That approach shapes dishes such as wood-fired tiger prawns brushed with black lime butter, dry-aged king salmon in sauce vierge, lobster spaghetti, patata bravas, escargot with herb butter, and a mezze platter that blends the Mediterranean basin with his Beirut upbringing. Seasonality is non-negotiable.
“Chefs in California are spoiled,” he said, laughing. “We have great produce. I go every Sunday to the farmers market and try to pick the best ingredients possible. California is my home now, so I’m blessed to cook my food here.”
Even the restaurant’s name carries meaning. In Greek, elia means “olive tree,” a symbol of resilience, peace and abundance — qualities Hayek sees reflected in both his cooking and the region he now calls home.
“In a successful restaurant, you have to nail every puzzle,” he said. “The name is very important. Olive, in general, is one of the best ingredients in the Mediterranean region, and my favorite — olive oil — is in everything, even dessert now. To be inspired by that takes you to a place where you’re rooted, like an olive tree.”
The design reinforces that grounding. Cycladic whites, sea-washed blues, natural textures and an open kitchen place the fire at the center of the dining room. Hayek insisted the cooking be visible.
“Most restaurants, you don’t get to see the chef cooking,” he said. “We designed it this way on purpose. It’s for the guest to see the action, and for us to watch guests enjoy the food. There’s nothing better for me than watching someone take a bite, nod their head, smile and encourage their friends to try it.”
Though Hayek has grown his career into a hospitality group, he says expansion has never been about stepping back. “It’s all about the team,” he said. “You cannot grow without people around you. It’s not a one-man show. It’s a group of people trying their best every day. I like challenge. That’s why I founded Hayek Hospitality — to grow, take on new projects and cook my way around the world.”
As San Clemente diners step through ILYA’s door during its first days of operation, Hayek hopes the reaction is instant and unmistakable.
“About time,” he said, smiling. “I want them to say it’s about time to have an amazing experience — not only about food, but overall. We’ve worked so hard and trained so much. We’re going to keep pushing to provide the best experience. I want guests to leave thinking, ‘I can’t wait to come back.’ ”
Dining and Cooking