samgiovese

I agree with mroybal. Aside from the occasional special, he has changed very little on the menu. One of the best-kept secrets at Redd is to eat in the bar, where you can chose from BOTH the bar menu (fish tacos are always good) and the full lunch or dinner menu.

When you say "Napa", do you mean downtown Napa itself, or are you encompassing the entire valley? I can help if you can be more specific.

Here's one that might fill the bill: Beau Wine Tours. You could save $$ by calling some of the smaller wineries and making appointments yourself, unless the limo is a must. If you'd like to do the self-directed route, I could recommend some of the smaller, boutique wineries that accept guests.

That's not always true. We requested the Abalone with pig trotters, but was not served that dish. Manresa photos from GFC ← Wow...that's interesting. Were you given a reason when you brought it to their attention? Perhaps they ran out? (just guessing)

Just a tip...if there is something on the a la carte menu that you really want to try, please inform your server, and Chef will make sure it is part of your tasting menu.

Shows you what I know!

El Bonita Motel just south of St. Helena on Hwy 29 should fill the bill for you. Try to get a room back from the hwy. If you don't mind a short drive (9 miles), the Best Western Stevenson Manor Inn in Calilstoga also would be a good, modest choice. FYI, the type of lodging you are looking for is VERY hard to come by north of Napa itself, but I think either of these would be good choices. Enjoy your classes!

Thanks for clarifying. I wasn't insinuating tricks, just curious if they might have cut you some slack on the 2 month rule because you're coming from out of the country. Hope you enjoy your time in the wine country and "TK-Town"(Yountville). Please PM me if you'd like any recs on wineries or restaurants...I live in Yountville part-time. Also, Carolyn Tillie who posts on this board often is extremely knowledgeable, as she used to live in Napa and worked at a winery near St. Helena.

Very curious, as the restaurant is ADAMANT (unless you are somehow connected) that reservations are 2 months TO THE DAY prior to dining. I've done the "dialing for dollars" bit from Silicon Valley and from Yountville, and I failed in Silicon Valley, and succeeded from Yountville (same exchange). I'd be VERY interested to know how this reservation really came about. Perhaps they cut him (her?) a break because they are from out of the country?

In Yountville, the only place that serves a full, sit-down breakfast is Pacific Blues Cafe. Hurley's does Sunday brunch, as well as Redd, as pointed out earlier. In St. Helena, Gillwoods Cafe on Main St. is VERY popular, and about the only place in town for a full, sit-down breakfast. Most people seem to opt for something from the artisan bakeries in either town (Bouchon in Yountville, and The Model Bakery in St. Helena), as opposed to a full breakfast. For dinner, I think Hurley's would meet your criteria in Yountville, as well as Bistro Jeanty. Brix and Mustard's Grill are out on Hwy 29 just north of Yountville, and are both very popular. Brix gets knocked as being a place for the tourist crowd, but I just ate there on Thursday night, and it was quite good. In St. Helena, there's Market, Cindy's Backstreet Kitchen, or Cook that should fit what you're looking for. 4 miles south of Yountville is Bistro Don Giovanni, which serves up regional Italian fare and is very, very popular. Hope these help!

I have it on good authority that contrary to the speculation in the article in my prior post, the closure is temporary and being done for earthquake retrofit. They are supposed to reopen this summer.

Sadly, I must report the following from Paul Franson's January 28th edition of NapaLife: "Pilar closed “for a few months” There’s a sign on the door at Pilar Restaurant saying that it is closed for vacation until Feb. 5, but a call to the number indicated says the restaurant is closed "for a few months" for seismic retrofitting. I’ve heard rumors that the closure may be permanent. One rumor was that Pilar Sanchez has taken a position as chef at the new restaurant going into Fagiani’s bar space nearby, which was recently bought by Steve and Johanna Hasty but Steve denies that he’s talked to Pilar about this possibility. At any rate, that project is also awaiting retrofitting. Calls and emails to Pilar were not returned by the time I transmitted this. At any rate, Pilar's is shut now, and we’ll have time to find out more in the future. Maria del Pilar Sanchez and her husband Didier Lenders are great cooks, but don’t seem very comfortable with the marketing needed to make a restaurant succeed, including schmoozing with customers as do Greg Cole, Bob Hurley and Cindy Pawlcyn and other top local chef-owners." Great food and nice, nice people, but the poor location coupled with all the construction by the river made it hard to get to. Couple that with the Downtown Napa Friday night fiasco, and you have a recipe for disaster. We'll miss them terribly!

California Wine Tours is the grandaddy of all the limo and tour services in Northern California wine country. Been in business for 25 years+. I've never used them, but see them all the time in Napa and Sonoma.

This article from the Wall Street Journal Weekend Edition (12/1/07) should be of interest.

I think much of the difference is that Chef Kinch is obviously experimenting with various forms of Molecular Gastronomy (our soy sauce powder, for example, and occasional foams) where there is none of that at TFL. And, as often occurs with experimentation, missteps and mishaps occur. Considering I have dined at Manresa -- what? -- three or four times now? I have been through dozens and dozens of different courses, some perfection and others that quite simply did not work. I get the feeling that Chef Kinch is enjoying playing in his kitchen and is not afraid to show his short-comings in those occasional missteps. At TFL, there is no possibility of that, but there is also not an elemental of playfulness that Chef Kinch portrays. TFL quite simply *knows* what works and what is successful and they are very careful to not stray from that tried-and-true formula. Hence there is no need for any form of the Molecular Gastronomic tricks that many other chefs utilize in order to Wow the customer. They don't need to. They are the Obi-Wan to all the other Jedi Knights who know and comprehend the Force, but are still working on attaining its perfection. ← This is an interesting post. I think the lack of playfulness at TFL is the very thing that leads some people to characterize the restaurant as not having "soul." While I very much enjoy the food at TFL and Per Se, I also very much enjoy the very playfulness that is lacking there. To me that is the very thing that elevates a well prepared and delicious meal to a sublime meal. I like to have all my senses and my intellect tickled during a high end meal. Playfulness and gimmicks are certainly not sufficient in themselves to make a meal great, but they are what can really put a meal over the top. ← I couldn't agree more. I'll have to take exception with my table-mate. While the meal was really quite sublime (as was the service), one cannot help but feel one has wandered into "Stepford, CA", instead of Yountville. Is there such a thing as being too perfect? In my opinion, yes. I'm not as well-travelled as many posters here, but I think I have done enough fine dining that I can have an opinion. I'm not saying Manresa or the Dining Room are the Holy Grail, but Doc's observation is truly how I feel. I think there is room for both styles in the gastronomic world, without making an empirical judgement as to which is best. That's why they make chocolate and vanilla...different strokes for different folks. For me, the food and and entire dining experience, although VERY expensive, provide a sublime gastronomic adventure found in few other places; however, the formality and "Stepfordness" of the experience leaves me cold. I will dine there again (this is my 4th experience), but let's just say it won't be next month...more like next year.

WOW!! We have lived in Yountville part-time since '03, and you've given us some new stops along the wine trail! Great report!

Heading up today for the weekend. Had a chocolate donut, pain raisin and chocolate almond croissant last week that were more like the old days. Truthfully, they could serve Sara Lee, and the'd still be swamped, just because of who and where they are. I'll let you all know what we try this weekend and how the quality was.

The List MICHELIN STARS Total number One star (*) Two stars (**) Three stars (***) of restaurants 384 27 6 1 DINING: 384 Restaurants 58 Establishments offering a simple menu at less than $25 50 "Our inspectors' favorites," establishments offering a menu with two dishes and a glass of wine or a dessert at less than $40 Cuisines included in Guide: 36 American Chinese Japanese Seafood Asian Contemporary Latin American Southwestern Bakery French Mediterranean Spanish Barbeque Fusion Mexican Steakhouse Basque Gastropub Moroccan Thai Brazilian Greek Persian Turkish Burmese Indian Peruvian Vegan Californian International Pizza Vegetarian Caribbean Italian Portuguese Vietnamese ONE STAR (*) (by neighborhood) ESTABLISHMENT CITY NEIGHBORHOOD Acquerello San Francisco Nob Hill Ame (new) San Francisco SoMa Auberge du Soleil Rutherford Napa Valley Bistro Jeanty Yountville Napa Valley Bouchon Yountville Napa Valley Boulevard San Francisco SoMa Chez Panisse Berkeley East of San Francisco Coi (new) San Francisco North Beach Area Cortez (new) San Francisco Financial District Dining Room at the Ritz- San Francisco Nob Hill Carlton Farmhouse Inn & Forestville Sonoma County Restaurant Fifth Floor San Francisco SoMa Fleur de Lys San Francisco Financial District Gary Danko San Francisco North Beach K & L Bistro Sebastopol Sonoma County La Folie San Francisco Nob Hill La Toque Rutherford Napa Valley Madrona Manor (new) Healdsburg Sonoma County Martini House (new) St. Helena Napa Valley Masa's San Francisco Nob Hill One Market (new) San Francisco SoMa Quince San Francisco Marina District Range San Francisco Mission District Redd (new) Yountville Napa Valley Rubicon San Francisco Financial District Sushi-Ran Sausalito North of San Francisco Terra St. Helena Napa Valley TWO STARS (**) (by neighborhood) ESTABLISHMENT CITY NEIGHBORHOOD Aqua San Francisco Financial District Chez TJ (new) Mountain View South of San Francisco Cyrus Healdsburg Sonoma County Manresa Los Gatos South of San Francisco Meadowood, The Restaurant St. Helena Napa Valley (new) Michael Mina San Francisco Financial District THREE STARS (***) ESTABLISHMENT CITY NEIGHBORHOOD The French Laundry Yountville Napa Valley BIB GOURMAND (Under $40) ESTABLISHMENT CITY NEIGHBORHOOD A 16 San Francisco Marina District Annalien Napa Napa Valley Bar Tartine San Francisco Mission District BarBersQ Napa Napa Valley Bay Wolf Oakland East of San Francisco Betelnut Pejiu Wu San Francisco Marina District Cafe Gibraltar El Granada South of San Francisco Celadon Napa Napa Valley Clementine San Francisco Richmond and Sunset Cook St. Helena St. Helena Napa Valley Cucina Paradiso Petaluma Sonoma County Delfina San Francisco Mission District Gaylord Sausalito North of San Francisco Hong Kong Flower Lounge Millbrae South of San Francisco Insalata's San Anselmo North of San Francisco Junnoon Palo Alto South of San Francisco Kokkari Estiatorio San Francisco North Beach Area Koo San Francisco Richmond and Sunset Le Charm San Francisco SoMa Mamacita San Francisco Marina District Mirepoix Windsor Sonoma County Namu San Francisco Richmond and Sunset Nopa San Francisco Civic Center Olivia Berkeley East of San Francisco Osake Santa Rosa Sonoma County Perbacco San Francisco Financial District Poleng San Francisco Civic Center Pres A Vi San Francisco Marina District Rin's Thai Sonoma Sonoma County Risibisi Petaluma Sonoma County rnm San Francisco Civic Center Sauce San Francisco Civic Center Scott Howard San Francisco North Beach Area Slanted Door (The) San Francisco Financial District Slow Club San Francisco Mission District Sociale San Francisco Marina District South Park Cafe San Francisco SoMa Tablespoon San Francisco Nob Hill Tamarindo Oakland East of San Francisco Tokyo Go Go San Francisco Mission District Tommaso's San Francisco North Beach Area TWO San Francisco SoMa 2223 San Francisco Castro District Universal Cafe San Francisco Mission District Vanessa's Bistro Berkeley East of San Francisco Venticello San Francisco Nob Hill Willi's Seafood & Raw Bar Healdsburg Sonoma County Willi's Wine Bar Santa Rosa Sonoma County Yank Sing San Francisco SoMa Zuzu Napa Napa Valley

Not that I care, but on O/A, you said you spent $400. per couple! ← PLease ,note that i corrected the error immediately. What amaze's me is the # of people coming to the defense of Bin 8945. Trying to say something negative about my opinion. I just shared my experince as i have done with many other restaurants all over the world. ← I did not see your correction, and I'm sorry you thought I was being negative about your review. I was merely pointing out an inconsistency, which I would have done no matter what your review reflected. Perhaps you were overly-sensitive because so many others were critical of your post. I was not one of them.

Wonderful report, Aaron. It's definitely on our list to try in the next few weeks. The natural light you wrote of really served your photography well!

Not that I care, but on O/A, you said you spent $400. per couple!

Casey: I believe it was the Masters of Food & Wine at Highlands Inn in Carmel.

I'll jump in, as I was at the dinner on Wednesday night, also. The "green stuff" is sheep's milk ricotta. And, Aaron...GREAT pictures!!!

I'm not going to make a recommendation...I only want to point out that Manresa, unlike the Laundry, does offer a 4 course menu in addition to the tasting menu. This will also include 3-5 amuse bouche prior to the 4 course meal.

No.