GOOD OLD DAYS:

Ask any longtime Newport-Mesa residents where they used to go for their most special occasions, and it’s likely that the Riviera would be near the top of the list.

The Riviera Restaurant at South Coast Plaza served classic continental cuisine for more than 30 years before its closure in 1998; at the time, it was one of the mall’s last original tenants.

It was known for tableside service, where impeccable, tuxedo-clad waiters would prepare steak tartare, pepper steak flambé au cognac and crepes suzette in front of their watching patrons, who included John Wayne, Ernest Borgnine and other luminaries.

“We were one of the first gourmet establishments in a shopping center,” restaurant manager Perry Jehangiri said. “At the time, South Coast Plaza was almost nothing.”

One story has it that Henry Segerstrom, trying to impress unconvinced Nordstrom owners into opening a store there, took them to the Riviera for further discussions.

They were so impressed by the restaurant that they signed to open a department store at the nascent Plaza.

Others say he did the same thing with Tiffany & Co., with the same results.

Following the retirement of its original owners, the restaurant’s staff got together afterward to open another Riviera at the site of another classic institution, the Fireside in Westminster.

The Rivera at the Fireside promises the same consistency — and many of the same faces, including Jehangiri — of the old location. The low lighting and plush booths are still there, and they are likely to produce flashbacks.

“We’re doing better here than we’re doing at South Coast Plaza,” Jehangiri said. “When this location was first presented to us, I didn’t think it would work. But over 90% of our customers are the regulars; it’s a good meeting place between South Orange County and Los Angeles.”

Back at South Coast Plaza, the Clubhouse restaurant has sat atop the site of the Riviera since its closure, Jehangiri said; underneath it, the shell of the Riviera now serves as a seasonal satellite store for Macy’s.

Longtime chef Richard Bergsten retired a few years ago, and was replaced by his assistant, who prepares all of the original recipes, Jehangiri said.

“The menu is still the same since almost day one,” he said.

Jehangiri added that he still receives telephone calls from people who see the Riviera sign along the 405 Freeway, and are pleased to learn that it’s the same Riviera they knew and loved.

“We’ve just gotten a little older, that’s all,” Jehangiri said, smiling.

For more information on the Riviera at the Fireside, 13950 Springdale St., Westminster, call (714) 897-0477 or visit rivierarestaurant.net.

CANDICE BAKER can be reached at (949) 494-5480 or at [email protected].