Blanca is to Solana Beach what Modus Supper Club used to be to Mission Hills before its former chef and co-owner Nathan Coulon bailed, taking with him an array of pretty-tasting dishes and a smart eye for service that has waned ever since.

Instead of fretting over what was, I’m wishing for something that never existed at all – a second Blanca in metro San Diego, where the artfully inventive dishes of Chef Wade Hageman would reside only a few forks away from our urban dwellings. With a stylish motif sporting clean lines, soft lighting and wispy draperies, Blanca’s reserved grooviness is nonetheless worth the extra gallon of gas it takes for getting here.

Preliminary nibbles are unique, as my companion and I found with heirloom black popcorn from Wisconsin. Served in either small or large “diaper bowls,” the kernels are skillet-popped in coconut oil and pointed up with a little truffle salt and finely grated Parmesan Reggiano. Patrons of the nearby Flower Hill movie theaters have apparently caught on to it as well. Blanca owner Seth Baas revealed that people smuggle the popcorn into the theaters all the time.

We also began with Hageman’s modern-day take on deviled eggs, in which the whites sit atop their pureed yolks, and the cavities are instead filled with crab, shallots and a smidgen of breadcrumbs. Lemon aioli plays into the scheme, resulting in a crafty resurrection of America’s most common picnic dish.

Sweet, melt-in-your-mouth table rolls containing figs called for restraint, as we could’ve easily filled up on them before delving further into the menu. They’re made by wholesaler Sadie Rose, the king of bread makers located in San Diego’s East Village.

Our other starters included delicious fried baby artichokes served in a nest of fresh fennel and punctuated by sea salt. Yet it was a couple of raw items that really blew us away. Filet mignon tartare was arranged on its serving plate tableside, which involved the waitperson pushing around the fresh meat to form a large-shaped cupcake before cracking open a quail’s egg that rested on top. Toasted peanut oil, diced chilies and basil laced into the tartare resulted in a divine Thai flair. And the egg, no doubt, added a welcome hyper richness.

Hawaiian kona kampachi yellowtail, sustainably raised in the open ocean off the Big Island, was served two ways: raw with pickled radishes and ginger vinaigrette; and grilled to form the cap on a rice cake drizzled with fermented black bean vinaigrette. So fresh and exquisite, I would’ve guessed we were eating at Nobu.

From a middle section of the menu called “traditional,” which includes corn soufflé and a swooped-up oyster “cob salad,” we gravitated to seared Hudson Valley foie gras brushed with nectarine gastrique. The goose liver sucked in a good deal of sugar from the fruit, augmented with even more sweetness from a dessert-y tasting peach brioche that sat underneath. My companion wasn’t nuts about the “savory” being invaded by the “sweet,” feeling that the sauterne our waiter paired with the dish was good enough.

Hageman, a graduate of the Scottsdale Culinary Institute who opened Aqua at the Bellagio in Vegas, professes that he doesn’t “take shortcuts” in the kitchen, especially when it comes to sauce making. That creed became especially evident in his dreamy Bermuda onion reduction that accompanies a Merlot braised short rib. Of all the slow-cooked short ribs I’ve eaten this past winter, this was the most delectable and non-cliché – the meat not only falling off the bone by simply poking it, but also maintaining its deep beefy flavor in the face of robust liquid components. Served alongside were lemon-mascarpone ravioli. Those were too lemony for our liking, the citrus killing the gentle soul of the cheese.

More fine sauces came into the picture with my companion’s “eye” of rib eye steak, originating from Nebraska corn-fed cattle. This fine piece of meat really needed nothing to pep it up, but you’ll be hard pressed in resisting Hageman’s luscious lemon-chive beurre blanc or three-mustard compound butter or several other steak-friendly sauces available for the choosing.

The same can be said for the menu’s short list of a la carte side dishes. As my companion commented about the mac-n-cheese, for instance, “It’s what so many other restaurants are trying to make.” The pasta tubes stand upright in an oval ramekin; their tops baked crispy and their bottoms soft and wet from sitting in a trio of melted cheeses – Asiago, Fontina and Point Reyes bleu. Corn-bacon risotto with chanterelle mushrooms was also fantastic, and needless to say, we weren’t about to leave behind our leftovers.

The restaurant’s detailed service standard provides a “coat-check” system for doggie bags. Patrons are given numbered tickets used for claiming their packages at the host stand upon exiting. In addition, our waiter displayed expert knowledge about the wine list and possessed a firm understanding about the food. Without question, Blanca raises the dining bar in many respects, and Solana Beach should count itself lucky.