New Chef Stirs Up Five Crowns

A new wave of talent has swept into the kitchen at Corona del Mar's Five Crowns Restaurant. 

Chef Greg Harrison comes to the CDM restaurant after spending time in the kitchens of Morimoto Napa and the MGM Grand Hotel in Las Vegas. Taking over the cooking reigns of Ryan Wilson, who is moving on to become executive chef of the Lawry's chain, Harrison will keep the tradition of the Five Crowns alive, but has plans to push the creative cuisine to a higher level. 

"I want to add value to this restaurant, I don't want to change anything. I just want to make it better than what it is," Harrison said. "The foundation of it makes me very proud."

Harrison and barman Koire Rogers say they will put a spin on traditional English dishes and add life to old cocktail standards. Some of the dishes Harrison has already created include Octopus Carpaccio, which is made up of citrus, frisee and cilantro, a lobster bisque with a vidalia onion foam and Salmon Tartar with hazelnuts and nettle pesto. 

"I just get chills sometimes talking about it because I'm so passionate about what I do," Harrison told Patch.

As of for the drinks, an English Punch that is a hybrid of Pimm's Punch -- includes an eclectic blend of Pimms #1, orange bitters, house made lemon-lime soda and cucumber ribbons -- is just one of the many drinks Rogers is serving at the bar.

The changes in the kitchen accompany last year's of Five Crowns which features the familiar traditional cuisine with the modern twist. Fresh produce from the Farmer's Market is now the staple of each of the dishes including crispy squash blossom, pork belly with candied cauliflower, and gazpacho with cucumber and tomato.

The produce pairings bring a casual and simple element to the restaurant, a change from the suit and tie type cuisine that took generations to break from.

"It's not your grandmother's Five Crowns anymore," said Jim Columbo, the restaurant's general manager.

And the addition of Side Door, the hip English pub attached to Five Crowns, has helped attract a much younger clientele. 

Wilson is the fourth generation of the Lawry's Family. His grandparents bought the Five Crowns restaurant back in 1964. 

"They passed it onto me to guide it," Wilson said. "It's been an exciting and challenging year running Side Door and Five Crowns, but I think this restaurant is in a fantastic place and we have built a great foundation and continue to grow for the next generation."

Wilson says Harrison is the perfect chef to keep the restaurant growing. He worked in some of the most inspiring kitchens in the country - with Chef Michael Mina at Nob Hill in Las Vegas, Aqua at the St. Regis, in Hawaii with Chef Roy Yamaguchi and most recently with Chef Morimoto in Napa Valley. A Los Angeles native, Harrison is a graduate of the highly regarded Le Cordon Bleu.