Ravioli Gwen Stefani... this ravioli is bananas... B-A-N-A-N-A-S.
To the outsider, Anaheim is known for Angels and mouse ears. But, after a recent visit to Disney country, I found another thing the California city should be regularly associated with (it probably already is, but I digress). The Anaheim White House Restaurant is an amazing, elegant dining experience in the heart of Orange County that makes my mouth water by just typing about it.
Located in a 1909 historical landmark, the restaurant offers a variety of spectacular dining rooms fit for kings (or more aptly presidents -- hence the name), and elaborate, sublime food to match the classy décor. Right from the get-go, the restaurant will make your mouth and eyes dance. You're greeted by a kind host, well-intentioned staff, and placed at a table that sets the right tone right away with napkins folded in a small tuxedo jacket with a bowtie info card. Nice touch.
Bruno Serato, proprietor of the restaurant since 1987, is a wonderful host and provides a menu of unique Northern Italian cuisine. I could go on and tell you about the amazing dishes (two standouts: the Rotolo di Calamari -- a calamari steak rolled and stuffed with crab and the to-die-for Ravioli Arragosta aka Ravioli Gwen Stefani which is lobster and basil filled with a sauce of Japanese ginger and citrus) but I'd rather focus on Serato. Watch below as I interview him about his establishment, food in general, and his amazing charity work. For every meal served, Serato, who has been featured in People magazine and CBS Evening News -- among other outlets -- donates one to a needy child. The latter focuses on the not-for-profit Motel Children in which he helps feeds the motel kids of the Anaheim Boys and Girls Clubs. A talented guy and a class act indeed.