A couple of restaurants are set to shutter this spring: one a seaside family favorite, the other a popular chain known for its fried-onion spectacle.
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The Brig (Dana Point)
The nautically themed Brig at the Dana Point Harbor will soon pull up anchor for good. Opening sometime in 1980, the longtime restaurant — known for its burgers, clam chowder, steaks — will close its doors after 44 years at the end of April, as Erika J. Ritchie reported this week.
For some, the nostalgia runs deep: a front-counter stash of glistening Andes Creme de Menth Things once held a certain magic (especially for this reporter).
The restaurant’s name nods to The Pilgrim, a two-masted, square-rigged brig carrying Dana Point’s namesake founder, Richard Henry Dana Jr., back in the 1800s.
The Brig joins a list of harbor departures, including Beach Harbor Pizza. Other harbor restaurants, like Harpoon Henry’s, El Torito and Gemmell’s, have already closed to make way for the harbor’s sweeping, multimillion-dollar redevelopment.
Outback Steakhouse (Brea)
Another longtime player is also bowing out. Australian-themed chain Outback Steakhouse will close its Brea location at 30 Pointe Drive, which opened in the mid-1990s. It will serve its final Bloomin’ Onion, the fried dish for which it’s best known, on Sunday, March 22, according to a restaurant employee.
Despite the closure, the chain has shown recent signs of life. Parent company Bloomin’ Brands reported its first notable traffic growth in four years, dating back to late 2021, according to Restaurant Business. The company plans to invest $75 million to further revitalize efforts the brand.
No word yet on what, if anything, will replace the Brea location.