RESTAURANT ROUNDUP:New restaurant, lounge in town

An upscale restaurant and lounge has opened at 725 Baker St. at the former site of Shooters Tequila Bar and Café.

The restaurant, which is simply called Mesa, features an eclectic seasonal menu, with appetizers ranging in price from $9 to $14 and entrees ranging between $24 and $27.

Among the restaurant’s features are a centrally located bar with booths on one side and a lounge area on the other, and an ambience that features, among other things, candles on the tabletops.

Shooters, which was a popular local hangout and even hosted monthly meetings for a Harley-Davidson motorcycle club, closed its doors in April of 2004.

For more information, call Mesa at (714) 557-6700.

Restaurant Week

planning to begin

The Newport Beach Restaurant Assn. voted Wednesday to officially start preparations on its second-annual Restaurant Week, which is slated for Jan. 20 through 24 of next year.

The five-day event is intended to bring together restaurants around the city to offer special fixed-price packages on breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Fifty-nine restaurants participated in this year’s event, and association spokeswoman Peggy Fort said she hoped to expand the number for next year’s event.

“Our goal is to bring together close to 100 restaurants in Newport Beach to participate,” she said.

The city voted to approve the event last month.

Restaurant association

picks president

Sheri Drewry, the general manager of Wilma’s Patio on Balboa Island, has been named the new president of the Newport Beach Restaurant Assn.

Drewry, who runs the eatery with her mother, Wilma Staudinger, and family, served as vice president of the association under former President Dan Marcheano. She has been a board member since 2001 and also serves on the Marine Avenue Business Improvement District Board of Directors.

The association, which provides support and publicity for restaurants throughout the city, plans to hold its regular meeting at 9:30 a.m. today at the Newport Dunes Waterfront Resort’s Bayview Room. The meeting is open to the public.

— Michael Miller