Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/807384
70 / the tasting panel / april 2017 + BEHIND THE SCENES WITH FRED DAME, MS A Conversation with Fred Dame: Vaca has to be one of the coolest restaurants in SoCal. And for a steak lover like me, it's pure heaven. This is a bit of hidden location; how did you figure it out? Amar Santana: We opened our first restaurant, Broadway Laguna Beach, and it has been a great success. Three years later we decided to try something new and Vaca was born. Ahmed and I began asking, what was Orange County missing? Tapas, so tapas it was. We also liked steak, so steak it was. This doesn't look anything like the traditional steakhouse. It has windows! Amar: Exactly. Open kitchen, steaks aging right in front of you and a great selection of tapas. Ahmed created a great wine list, and we have outstand- ing cocktails. But we aren't a celebra- tion location. You can come any day and try something different. Amar Santana CHEF/OWNER Ahmed Labbate CEO & OWNER VACA RESTAURANT, COSTA MESA, CA photos by Margaret Soss Fred Dame, MS, VP/Prestige Accounts for American Wine & Spirits (a division of Southern Glazer's of CA), with Ahmed Labbate, CEO and owner, and Amar Santana, chef/owner, of Vaca Restaurant, located in Costa Mesa, CA.