Reviews for Iva Lee's Restaurant & Lounge in San Clemente, CA

A southern cuisine institution in south Orange County, the atmosphere with live music is fairly entertaining.   We tried a... couple of paloma's and sazerac's which were very good.  As for food,  the fried green tomatoes with a spicy remoulade werequite memorable as was the Caesars salad with seared ahi.  Finally while the jambalaya was good,  it could be improved withbetter shrimp, andouille and rice.   Overall a great experience and a reminder of 80s.  The live music (which I alreadyposted) was very reminiscent of classic and British rock songs.   I would go back just for the music, but of course the restwas also good. Read more

Lots of Southern charm. If you like fried green tomatoes this is the place. Gumbo also available. Decent fried chicken but very... small portion. Nice addition to San Clemente dining scene. Read more

Our large party of 20+ experience was sub-par. There was only one server at a time working the table and there was a decent lag... between courses. The environment, the live music, and the food were amazing. The personalized menus for the event also set thebar high right at the beginning... Just fell short on the service. Will definitely come back with a smaller party. Pleaseimprove large party service and experience so I can bring more friends here!! Read more

Rounding up from a 3.8. Decent meal at a reasonable price, but i wonder how long they can survive without more traffic. The menu... is promising, but the kitchen misses a bit. See photo captions for details. Ambience - dark in spots, light in spots and justnot quite pulled together. We wanted to love it as we like the concept. Please get your kitchen to expedite and work on therecipes just a little more. ???????? Read more

Not my first time here, been coming in for years. Ordered some take out tonight. Got the fried chicken some fried tomatoes and... the chocolate cake. It was all delicious. If you’re looking for inside catering for an event or wedding they can take care ofthose needs as well. Read more

I'll admit, I was sceptical. Buttt their hush puppies so yummy! Forgot to take a pic lol I had their mac n cheese with a side a... grilled shrimp.. bomb! Lol We also had their catfish, that I like but never had it before, my partner didn't care for it anddidn't like the bacon mashed potatoes. I didn't try the mashed potatoes. But loved the coleslaw lol Nice staff, clean. Plenty ofparking. Read more

Most Excellant service and Delicious Southern Comfort Food. I tried the Grilled Porkchop with Goat Cheese Polenta cake and... grilled corn. The chop was Extremely moist and cooked to perfection, the grilled veggies and Polenta cake complemented the meatnicely. My husband had their signature Fried Chicken with smokey gravy, garlic mashed potatoes and green beans. He enjoyed it somuch, he cleaned his plate. Just make sure to save room for their delicious Bread pudding!! Read more

Just randomly stopped here on my way up north and I'm quite glad I ended up here. The food was very good and the service was... quick. Staff were very kind and the food was great, overall great experience. Also stop by here on Tuesdays they have a greatdinner menu with food on special. Read more