I was in Anaheim this week for Expo West, a trade show for the natural foods industry that drew 50,000 to the Anaheim Convention Center. While I enjoy the bustle and seeing old friends on a busy show floor, in the back of mind was a special treat awaiting me before taking a red-eye flight to Florida last night. I’m talking about a fabulous meal at Turner New Zealand. Joining me were two friends and colleagues: Brian Ray, the President of Garden of Life, and Jason Dewberry, Vice President of Marketing and Media.

I’m telling you, this was a dinner to remember, and I don’t say that lightly because we learned that Turner New Zealand is closing its doors next weekend. Our waiter said something about the restaurant losing its lease, but that sounded like an excuse to me. I heard that since announcing the closure, Turner New Zealand has been inundated with calls from customers begging them to stay open. Some are even flying in next Saturday for their last night.

I’m thinking about taking a last-minute flight . . . no, I’m not serious, but in the last five years, I’ve eaten at Turner New Zealand several times, and I make it a point to reserve at least one night at the eatery whenever I’m in Southern California. The restaurant serves antibiotic-free fish, venison, beef, and lamb flown in from New Zealand. All of the restaurant’s dairy products are organic. Ditto for the salads and vegetables. And it’s very expensive, I’m afraid.

So I indulged, but I made sure I was good and hungry when we arrived last night. I started with their classic seafood chowder, sans the “sea filth.” Since I don’t eat shellfish (or pork), I asked the waiter if they could make me a seafood chowder without the mussels, calamari, and oysters. What was set before me was a delicious seafood soup brimming with wild-caught salmon and orange roughy from New Zealand, and cooked in an organic cream sauce brimming with organic potatoes, carrots, celery, and onions.

Next came the organic Caesar’s salad, sans the croutons. Then we had another appetizer for the table: the Turner Meat Sampler, which was a sampling of beef filet mignon, lamb chops, and venison medallions. My main course was a miso-glazed orange roughy, pan-seared with stir-fried organic mushrooms, peppers, red onions, carrots, cabbage, sugar peas with cilantro-infused jasmine rice, and crispy wontons. I took my time savoring every bite.

I don’t normally eat dessert, but with a long, cross-country plane flight coming up . . . I ordered organic toffee ice cream with fresh berries. We had such an enjoyable meal. When I told the waiter that it was a shame that Turner New Zealand was closing, he joked with us and said that if we took any silverware, he would look the other way. Brian and Jason agreed that taking a huge steak knife on a plane wouldn’t be the smartest thing to do.

I suppose on future trips to Orange County that I can find one of those vegetarian holes-in-the-wall for a good meal, but fine dining like at Turner New Zealand? If anyone has any ideas for organic restaurants in Southern California, please let me know. (Or elsewhere, for that matter.)