If you want to try a restaurant that is entirely unique to Newport Beach – something only the locals know about – head to Sabatino’s.  Tucked away in the Lido Peninsula Marine Center at 251 Shipyard Way is this tiny little restaurant with Italy oozing from its building. They are famous for their sausage started by the Sabatino Family in Sicily in 1864. The sausage is blended with a special goats milk cheese from Sicily which makes the meat juicy and flavorful. The menu has every kind of sausage dish you can imagine including Sizzling Sausage Platters, sausage pate, Rigatoni and Sausage, and Italian Sausage Sicilian Sandwiches.

My guests had the sausage sizzling platter which they raved about for days. They even took home fresh sausage! Since I am not necessarily a “meat” eater, I went for the Eggplant Parmesan which was wonderful!!!

I love the quote from Sabatino Ognibene, 1864 which is printed on their menu “Knowing you can’t believe what you hear, read and sometimes even see, you can believe what you taste.” Ahhhh how true!