Most restaurants count their longevity in years. Five Crowns counts it in decades.
One of Orange County’s oldest and most beloved dining landmarks, Five Crowns in Corona del Mar is celebrating its 60th anniversary this month with a limited-time historical menu and special community initiatives.
Five Crowns is housed in a charming structure built in 1936 as a replica of Ye Olde Bell, England’s oldest inn founded in 1135.
Five Crowns opened its doors in 1965 as the fifth concept from Lawry’s Restaurants Inc. The restaurant earned its moniker as the crown jewel of the portfolio, but it’s not the company’s oldest restaurant—the Tam O’Shanter in Los Angeles is more than 100 years old.
Over the decades, Five Crowns has hosted distinguished guests from presidents to movie stars to noted names in the business world. Chuck Jones, the beloved animator behind Bugs Bunny, Road Runner and other classic characters, lived nearby and often frequented Five Crowns.
One of the longest serving staff members was Tommy Martin, the Five Crowns ambassador and wine steward who was employed by Five Crowns for more than 50 years. He retired several years ago. As a tribute to his longevity and loyalty, Five Crowns renamed the main dining room the Tommy Martin Room.
Martin and Jones became friends when Martin confided that his nickname was Tommy Road Runner.
“When I was a tennis player, I did not have a backhand, so I would run around to hit the ball, and I was so fast that they nicknamed me roadrunner,” explained Martin. “One day I told him my story, and he drew a roadrunner with a tennis racket on it for me and signed it. I thought it was the greatest thing ever.”
Among the many amenities at Five Crowns: fireplaces, antique-filled dining rooms, period paintings, English garden, sunlit greenhouse and knowledgeable staff that have been working at Five Crowns for many years.
Through July 30, guests can savor what’s being billed as a “historical prix fixe menu” that starts with a continental Louie cocktail with little gems, crab and shrimp, Louie dressing, breakfast radish, chopped egg and hot toast.
Diners can then select a choice of Jidori chicken milanese-style, crème fraîche, soft herbs, caviar beurre blanc and grilled lemon ($81), dry-aged roast duck with roasted plum, braised fennel and citrus duck jus ($101), Dover sole Veronika with a verjus-fines herbs beurre blanc and rock shrimp finished tableside ($113), or English rib chop: a 22 oz. 45-day dry-aged bone-in ribeye with crisply fried onions and beef fat hollandaise ($129).
Included with the prix fixe menu is a choice of desserts: Banoffee pie—a British classic made with a biscuit base layered with sliced banana, toffee, whipped cream and topped with cocoa, or Eton Mess with Harry’s berries, whipped cream and meringue cookies. Guests can also add sides to the menu for an additional $12 each, including green beans with toasted almonds, or potatoes O’Brien made with crispy hashbrown potatoes, onions, bell peppers and Lawry’s seasoned salt.
“It was a fun exercise to dig into our archives a bit and bring some of those old recipes forward,” said Ryan Wilson, CEO of Lawry’s Restaurants and a fourth-generation member of restaurant’s owners and operators.
Want a keepsake of your 60th anniversary experience? Order a Jubilee Cocktail made with Balvenie 16 French Oak, Brambuie and Cuvée Louis-Alexandre Grand Marnier, perfectly paired with housemade Queen Ann tea syrup and bitters for $60. This elegant cocktail is served tableside over a diamond-cut ice cube in a limited-edition 60th anniversary glass that guests can take home.
In honor of its ties to the community, Five Crowns is partnering with the Orange County School of the Arts for its anniversary. Five Crowns will unveil a new exterior mural celebrating the restaurant’s history and cultural legacy. Selected high school artists will create the design, with two student teams receiving a $500 scholarship and dinner for two at the restaurant.
Five Crowns, 3801 E Coast Highway, Corona del Mar, (949) 760-0331, Lawrysonline.com/five-crowns.