Roy's Hawaiian Fusion Cuisine - Newport Beach

While I'm on the subject of disappointed expectations... I've had these photos from a dinner at Roy's Hawaiian Fusion Cuisine sitting around from last summer. I've heard mixed reviews about Roy's so I wasn't sure what to expect. But the occasion was my lil' sis's birthday so my brother wanted to take her somewhere nice. Roy's gets top marks for decor and service. Warm lighting, intimate atmosphere without being too dark. Water glasses were constantly refilled. But the food? Not worth the price for me. If I'm gonna spend money on food, I want it to be worth my while. We started off with a $17 crunchy California roll with sirloin. The sirloin was so thin the flavor was overshadowed by the crab and rice. We all opted for the prix fixe menu. For $33 you get an appetizer sampler, choice of meat or fish, and dessert. Oops, I bit the shrimp before I remembered to take a photo. It was just basic grilled shrimp with a dollop of wasabi cocktail sauce. Was the wasabi mention supposed to make it special? Because it just tasted like basic cocktail sauce to me. The rib was OK. But the dumpling. The dumpling hinted at what the entrees would taste like. Salty! My mahi mahi was dry and salty. The lobster sauce on it was heavy and salty. The vegetables were limp. Lil' sis's salmon was dry and salty. My brother's short ribs were tender, but salty. For all the rave reviews that Roy's often gets, I was expecting much more than salty, salty, salty. No wonder the waiter was so good about refilling our water glasses! Dessert helped redeem the experience. My caramel almond macadamia nut tart was wonderfully nutty. And the molten chocolate souffle was scrumptious. So perfect with the ice cream. Since it was little sis's birthday she also got a free really tiny pineapple cake. Will I be back? Only if they take the salt shaker away from the chef. Roy's Hawaiian Fusion Cuisine (Various locations) 453 Newport Center Dr. Newport Beach, CA 92660 949-640-7697 Sunday to Thursday 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday 5 p.m. to 11 p.m. Aloha Hour: Sunday to Friday 4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.