syrah girl

Let us know what you decided on! We were in Carmel on Sun. and had a wonderful breakfast at Katy's and a very nice dinner at Tarpey's Roadhouse. It's too late for you, but for others reading this and looking for a fantastic restaurant in Carmel, consider Pacific's Edge at the Highland's Inn. We dined there last Dec. and the new chef is doing amazing things. It was right up there with our meal at Sierra Mar @ the Post Ranch Inn. Highly recommend Pacific's Edge for a true gourmet experience with outstanding views of the coastline. This is a place on the coast where you will get that WOW factor with the food and the views.

Yes, we did love Bouchee! I'll also second Casanova. Very intimate place, great local wines and doting service. We like to sit out on the back patio. I haven't been to Marinus, but we really enjoyed our lunch at Wickets which is their casual restaurant at Bernardus. BTW, Bernardus is a beautiful resort, we enjoyed walking around and admiring the place!

I forgot to comment on some service issues. The Generals' Daughter service was professional, attentive and a perfect 10. Our waitress was excellent, water glasses were always full and really can't think of anything that needed improving at all. The newly painted walls and the black table cloths provided a very elegant, classy-feel to the place. El Dorado Kitchen does need improving on their Sunday Brunch service. The place was almost full which is great, but our waiter was a bit overwhelmed and dazed. I waited about ten minutes for the wine to come out and when I asked him for some ailoi dipping sauce for the pommes frites, he said he would bring it out but never did. We waited about twenty minutes for desserts to come out. Maybe it was an off-day, but they appeared to be understaffed for the crowds they had. We will definitely return again, tho. Dinner would be wonderful, to the left of the lobby there is a fireplace and very, very pretty area for dinner. The Duck a l'Orange Two Ways sounds very interesting. The starters are about the same as the lunch menu.

We just missed each other! We started out our Sonoma adventure with another great lunch at the girl and the fig. I was disappointed to see that the crabcakes were no longer on the menu which was really a fave of mine. We had previously been wine tasting at Domaine Carneros, but still wanted a Viognier to share with lunch. We started by sharing the fig salad which is always wonderful. I opted for the Vegetarian pasta dish which was full of flavor and very nicely prepared. My husband had the Croques Monsier (sp) sandwich was he said was very good, served with a small green salad. The Viognier was from Stags Leap. No lavendar-infused creme brulle on the menu, but we enjoyed the chocolate pot de creme for dessert. Dinner at General's Daughter exceeded our expectations. I started with the Yellowfish Tuna in Takati & Spicy Tartar, green apple cucumber salad which was truly amazing. Reminded me of of Sierra Mar at the Post Ranch Inn when we dined there. The food here is of excellent quality. My entree was the pan-seared Diver Scallops with roasted cauliflower hash and chorizo butter. Quite a large portion, very rich and very, very good. I tasted my husband's Hand-Cut Pasta, Parmesan Cream, Pancetta quail egg and wanted to dance around the table. I will be ordering this next time!! For dessert we shared a very good Meyer Lemon Pudding type dessert that was the perfect ending to a great meal. We will definitely return here. Breakfast at the Big 3 Diner was again, great. The Lemon Cottage Cheese pancakes and the Chicken Fennel sausage is a great way to start the day. After doing the Spa stuff at the SMI, we headed to the El Dorado Kitchen for lunch. First of all I must say that the decor in the restaurant is gorgeous, reminded me of the Hotel Healdsburg, beautifully done. I had the Mixed Lettuces with shallots, carrots, citrus vinaigrette which was very good. My entree was the Steamed Prince Edward Island Mussels with garlic, white wine saron broth and Pommes Frites. Loved this dish!!! For dessert I had the Pineapple Upside Down Cake with Coconut Ice Cream. My husband had some chocolate dessert that was beautiully presented. The desserts were the shining stars of the meal! It was great to be back in the Sonoma area again. We picked up some really great Pinot Noir, Zins and Sauv Blanc this trip. Oh, my wine with lunch was the Kunde Sauv Blanc which was excellent!

I think Wolf House sounds wonderful, thanks so much for the tip. We haven't dined around Glen Ellen and I would love to see this property. I think it's just about five minutes from the SMI where we will be having those yummy lemon pancakes for an early breakfast before doing the spa stuff! I'll let you know how it goes!

Can't wait for our special dinner there this month! Will report back when we return. Now, Meritage, Della Santina or El Dorado Kitchen for a second lunch? We changed our reservations from the Hotel El Dorado to the Sonoma Mission Inn where I found a great price on Orbitz!

Trying to decide between Meritage (we've never been) or General's Daughter for one great meal in Sonoma the end of the month. Would love to try General's Daughter with the new chef and all. We have only been once, about three years ago. Foodie opinions, please! We will also be dining at girl and the fig and the El Dorado Kitchen for lunch, anyone with recent experience there, I'd love to hear from you! TIA

Sierra Mar is amazing! If you want some really great food in a casual atmosphere, check out the Schooner's Bistro at the Monterey Plaza Hotel & Spa. They have really great fish and chips here. On the wharf, your best bet would be Domenico's. Carmel has some nice options. The Mission Ranch. Bouchee or Casanova are all really good. Mission Ranch has views that are gorgeous!

We had a very romantic and fine dining experience at Chateaulin in Ashland, Oregon last week. It was rainy and we were seated at the a table in the front of the restaurant. I had the fixed price menu for $35/pp which included two glasses of very nice white wines. The three courses were the butterleaf salad with champagne viniagrette dressing, a very excellent prawn dish and pineapple sorbet with fresh raspberries and strawberries. As always, the service was outstanding, making this one of my favorite restaurants in Ashland for fine dining in a romantic setting.

We just returned from another visit to the Oregon Coast! We had many fine meals which included the Ship Inn in Astoria, Bigfoot Pub n Grub in Seaside and the Pacific Way Bakery & Cafe in Gearhart. All three of these places remain consistent and are great choices to dine while on the Oregon Coast. We also had some award-winning clam chowder from Norma's Ocean Diner. The atmosphere here is very casual, we like to take the chowder back to our beach cottage. Gower St. Bistro is the place to go in Cannon Beach. We had a very nice dinner there which included the Pacific Northwest Salad, the crab cakes and creme brulee for dessert. A not to miss dessert here is the chocolate pot de creme which they were unfortunately out of when we dined there. (They have recently opened Everett St. Bistro in Portland.) We really enjoy our culinary experiences in this area. There are lots of great options for casual and fine dining on the Oregon Coast. Cheers!

We had an amazing dinner at the Waterboy in Sac on Sun. night. I had heard great things about this place. A big RAVE! We had been in the car for over 11 hours and we needed a break from traveling. I started with the Mixed Baby Lettuces with House Vinaigrete and Croutons with Baked Goat Cheese and Hazelnuts. This salad was split for two us and it was wonderful and full of flavor. I had the Fish & Shellfish Risotto wiht Saffron, Leeks, Fennel and Maine Lobster Butter. This was an outstanding entree, the clams were full of flavor. This entree was light and fun to eat. My husband opted for the Chicken Breast Au Poivre with Artichokes, Glazed Brussells Sprouts, Potato-Parsnip Puree, Fried Shallotts & Herb Jus. He loved it! (Picky eater, too!) Our teenage daughter had the Pizzetta which had olives, feta cheese and roma tomatoes. The crust was light and homemade tasting. Our service was amazing, we left a nice tip. Our server knew we had been traveling and got our food out quickly. We loved our experience at the Waterboy and will definitely be making this one of our culinary stops when we frequently travel north to the Oregon Coast. Would love other opinions on Waterboy. Cheers!

In Cannon Beach, check out the Stephanie Inn for an elegant, fixed price meal. Bistor and Gower St. Bistro are also two of my favorites in Cannon Beach. If you go to Nehalem, The Nehalem River Inn is a destination-restaurant on the Oregon Coast. Excellent food, service and ambiance here. In Astoria, the Cannery Cafe, Fulio's (Italian) and Silver Salmon Grille are all great. Cannery Cafe has gorgeous views of the Columbia River. Any specific questions, just ask! I'd also check out the Pacific Way Bakery & Cafe in Gearhart for eclectic cuisine in a homey setting. We dined here about once a week while we were on the coast the majority of the summer last year. Cheers!

We were there in Nov., right before Thanksgiving. The Bengal BBQ serves some pretty good BBQ chicken on a skewer with asparagus spears. The Dole Whips are a really great, in front of the Tiki Room. We did dine at Blue Bayou and had a waterfront table. It's really all about the ambiance here, but one of the better places to dine in the park. Make ressies by calling Dine Disney well in advance for this place. I would recommend the Storyteller's Cafe at the Grand Californian for their breakfast buffet. It's great food and a few of the characters walk around for photo shoots, lots of fun. I really want to try Napa Rose at the Grand Californian and will plan for a dinner there next time we visit the park. Have fun!

The White House in PG is very nice. We just returned from a four day visit to the area last month. Bouchee is very good, but if you would like some outstanding views with excellent gourmet food, go to Pacific's Edge at the Highland's Inn. Very elegant, first-class place. We celebrated our anniversary at the Sardine Factory. The abalone bisque was very good as were the grilled sand dabs. They offer a fixed price deal here for about $30/pp. Casanova in Carmel is also very quaint with excellent food and wine. The Georis wines are served here, they make a really great Sauv Blanc that I never miss while dining here. We also enjoy Wickets, the casual restaurant at the Bernardus Lodge in Carmel Valley. Marinus if their formal place that we would like to try sometime also. Cheers!

Monday night we celebrated a birthday with eight in our party at the Tokoyo Steakhouse on Fowler & Herndon. We enjoy dining off of the regular menu, but thistime did the Tappan-Yaki. I much preferred it to Edo-Ya. Less expensive, and the chef did his thing with humor and enthusiasm. He was a much better entertainer than Edo-Ya, IMO. I had the fillet mignon and the lobster which was excellent. Meals come with miso soup, fried veggies and bean sprouts and a small green salad. We had the goyza appetizer which was steamed and very good. They also brought out our birthday cake and sang, we did the cutting and serving ourselves. This was a delightful evening and we will definitely return again to Toyoko Steakhouse for the Tappan-Yaki dining here.

All Seasons Cafe is good, right in downtown Calistoga. We were huge fans of Catahoula's when Jan was the chef there, I'm anxious to try STOMP on our next visit to the area. Also a huge fan of Wappo and recommend it every chance I get. Have a great trip! BTW, Indian Springs Resort is great for a place to stay and have a mud bath.

Thanks, we'll probably just stay around South Shore this time. 19 Kitchen sounds really nice and the kids could go to Hard Rock Cafe for their dinner. Where is Llewyn's (sp) located and is it recommended?

Going over to Lake Tahoe soon for some snowboarding at Heavenly, we will be staying at the Inn by the Lake. We have dined at the Dory's Oar next door a few times, and enjoyed it. Anywhere else in this area not to miss? Which places at the casinos have the best food? Anywhere to get some really great lobster? TIA

Another hit in the same shopping center as Echo and Five is Sequoia Brewing Co. for a casual, fun meal with great food. We went on the "all you can eat" rib night, place was packed with football fans and VERY loud which was great since we had four of our teens with us for dinner. A few of us had the ribs which were great, served with your choice of pasta salad, mashers or cole slaw. Smoked pork ribs, slow cooked for maximum tenderness and basted with Sequoia BBQ sauce for 12.99 A couple of has had the homemade root beer floats that were made with Producers ice cream, very good. Other entrees were the Cobb salad and the brick oven cheese pizza which everyone enjoyed. They are also in the Entertainment Book which is makes it nice on the pocketbook, especially when dining with a larger group. Highly recommend this place and it's a gorgeous dining room with the river rock fireplace roaring. This entire shopping center has got to be just about the best thing to happen to this area in a long, long time. The Monaco Gourmet Bakery & Cafe a couple of doors down has some amazing pasteries and baked goods and beautiful to look at. They also serve salads and sandwiches at lunch. We'll be back here again and again. Of course, we had to stop at the Ben & Jerry's for some Chunky Monkey ice cream before venturing home.

Megan, did you get over to Campagnia across the street? It's also a hoppin place with excellent food. When you're back in the area again, you may want to plan for a dining "experience" at Erna's Elderberry House in Oakhurst. www.chateaudusureau.com It's about a 45 minute drive from Fresno and oh so wonderful! I gave my husband a certificate for a cooking class there in the Spring as a Christmas present. Glad you enjoyed eating your way around our area!

I'll keep this Fresno thread going since we've tried some new places that I would like to report on. First of all Sakanaya on NYE was a bit of a disappointment. Granted, the decor is gorgeous and it is a very upscale area of Fresno, I found the food to be just ordinary. Nothing really stood out as great. The small salad had a couple of brown pieces of lettuce and the dressing was nothing to write home about. The bento box was huge consisting of a couple of fried chicken wings, potato salad, tempura which was very good and sliced beef. Service was OK and the green tea ice cream just didn't cut it. I prefer the green tea ice cream over at Miyuko's where we've been regulars for over twenty years. We'll probably go back, but no big hurry. We'll keep going to KOI on Herndon for our weekly Japanese fix. Now to a BIG rave on the Fresno dining scene: FIVE We were lucky to get in here on a Fri. night, the place is hard to book so make a reservation, especially on the weekends. We opted for a meal out on the back patio. It is rather smallish, but cozy with nice heat lamps outside. Our waiter was very friendly and service was professional and attentive. We started with the bruschetta which was very good, tho not as great as the one they serve over at Campagnia. We shared the Spinach salad wtih hot bacon dressing which consisted of baby spinach leaves, hard boiled egg and a warm bacon dressing that was really good. My entree was the linguine with clams which was outstanding and the cheapest item on the menu for $18. Linguine pasta with whole clams, pancetta roasted jalapenos in a garlic and wine broth. Some of the best clams I've had in a long, long time. This entree was a big hit. My husband had the roasted chicken which was a 12 oz. bone in chicken breast, braised collard greens, with rosemary roasted russett potatoes and a rich chicken glaze. He loved it and we decided we will definitely return here to try some other menu items that sounded wonderful. Dinner also came with fresh baked bread and hummus which was really good. They don't have a website yet, hopefully in the near future. This is a great addition to the Fresno dining scene and I highly recommend a visit to FIVE, they also serve lunch. This week we will also be trying the new Sequoia Brewing Co. which has also recently re-located to this area from the Tower District. Will report back on that after our visit. Cheers!

Wildwood is closed and recovering from a small fire or I would suggest it. I'm a big fan of Paley's Place, right across from Wildwood. We have also enjoyed great meals at Park Kitchen, Bluehour, Gotham Bulding Tavern, clarklewis and Hurley's. Fenoil and Olea are a couple of new places in the Pearl that I've heard great things about. Anyone been to either of these recently? Higgins in downtown Portland is another great place.

If it's Japanese food you're after, Sakanaya is the BIG rave around here lately. We will be trying it on NYE, so I'll let you know how it goes. It is located on N. Fort Washington Road. KOI is our new weekly favorite Japanese restaurant, located in Clovis at Herndon and Clovis Ave. A new place with lovely ambiance and great food, service issues will be worked out after it's been open awhile longer, I'm sure. I love their Bento boxes, I would recommend the Salmon Teriyaki here served wtih a cucumber salad, goyza, tempura, rice and miso soup. Happy New Year!

We also dined at Echo this fall. The new decor is very striking, like something out San Francisco or New York City. Tho the food was excellent and service very attentive, it is VERY pricey for this area. Our favorite restaurant in our area is Campagnia. You can make reservations on Open Table. We have dined here several times, at least once a month and are never disappointed. We hosted our son's wedding rehearsal dinner here in October and it was a smashing success. We like to dine out in the atrium room. They have a website menus, etc. Also in the same shopping center is La Paella for fantastic Spanish food. Five has just opened across the street, but we haven't been there yet. Another considerations is Slates over in First St. and if you go to Old Town Clovis, don't miss Trelio. It is another one of our favorites and we just gave some clients a gift certificate there with a bottle of Archery Summit Pinot Noir. They were happy campers! Any questions, feel free to ask, we live in the area and dine out quite frequently. Cheers and Happy New Year!

Indian Springs in Calistoga is great, go to the Wappo Bar & Bistro for a great meal in this area. We just returned from four days of dining in the Carmel area. Bouchee is very good, for food on the same level with gorgeous views, check out Pacific's Edge, located at the Highland's Inn. We had an amazing dinner there, I'll post a full report later. Also in Carmel, Casanova and Little Napoli are both excellent places with lots of charm and great service. If you go to Pebble Beach, Roy's is really good and there's a casual little place upon the entrance to 17 Mile Drive called the Fishwife were we had some excellent crab tostadito appetizers. Carmel Mission Ranch was great. We did the Jazz Brunch there on our trip which had gorgeous views of the pastures and ocean with a very nice varied menu selection for Sunday Brunch. Highly recommend. In Monterey, we enjoyed a nice anniversary dinner at the Sardine Factory in the Captain's Room. Very cozy, intimate and the fixed price deal for three courses was only $29/pp. They waived our corkage fee (18) for our anniversary since we brought in a local Bernardus wine. Have fun and bon appetit!