Napa and SF - Looking for help

[1skydive]

Hi Egulleteers,

I'm on a short trip to Napa (honeymoon) and we have a reservation at Bouchon tonight and Bistro Jeanty on Saturday. For the most part for the rest of the time I don't want my wallet to hurt too much but would like some nice meals.

I'm looking for suggestions for places to eat. There is a ton of restaurants and some seem kinda pricey, but pretty much any type of food is ok from pizza to Mexican. Also, I see there is an Indian, Bombay Bistro. I love Indian food, is it any good?

My wife (kind of strange calling her that after 10 years) is fairly picky. So wherever we go needs to have some unfancy foods (I can't think of a better way to describe it at the moment). What I mean by unfancy is burgers, pasta with tomato sauce, plain salads etc (I'm amazed she'll eat Indian food).

We're also spending two days in San Fransisco and have no idea on where to eat or even what do to. There are the obvious tourist traps, but I'd like a meal in Chinatown and to find some fun stuff to do during the day.

Any thoughts or suggestions appreciated.

Thanks,

Rob

[1skydive]

Ok, Forget Bombay Bistro. I looked them up and found out they are closed. I guess they have been closed for quite some time. I'm assuming that the restaurant guides aren't updated all that often.

It looks like there is a recent thread about Indian places in SF so I'll check that out.

Thanks again,

Rob.

[Shel_B]

Bistro Don Giovani in St Helena has been a long time favorite for very good food, relaxed atmosphere, and reasonable prices, A lot of locals eat there. Indoor and outdoor dining. Nice herb garden with some interesting art pieces scattered around. Plenty of parking. Reservations a good idea. Most ingredients are locally grown and raised, seafood can sometimes be local, but always very fresh.

Also take a look at this thread, which covers a lot of the same territory:

http://www.cheftalk.com/forums/late-night-...-francisco.html

shel

Edited November 16, 2007 by Shel_B (log)

[jmhayes]

I've had great meals at Mustard's for as long as they've been around, including a typically-good lunch about 3 months ago.

[annachan]

Palmetto in San Francisco. Casual place with a Kobe burger to die for!

Something to do in San Francisco: check out the Ferry Building. Taylor's Automatic Refresher there have great burgers as well. Other than the traditional beef, it has a really good ahi tuna burger. You'll find the best chocolate around at Recchiuti Confections.

[ChefJohnny]

El Dorado Kitchen in Sonoma. Just a quick 10 minute drive from Napa. The food is awesome. The entire place is awesome. I used to cook there. But the Chef, along with myself and 4 others, left The French Laundry to open it a couple years ago. Basically is the same food from TFL, but cheaper.

www.eldoradosonoma.com

-Chef Johnny

[tupac17616]

I've got to put in a good word for Ubuntu, which would be a nice lunch or dinner option in Napa

[1skydive]

Brilliant. Thank you all for the great responses. We have plenty to look at and choose from. It's always better to go to a place that has good recommendations.

We ate at Bouchon last night. The food was fantastic. The service was ok too. A bit too aloof for my taste. You don't have to be snotty just because you work at a nice restaurant. But it didn't detract from a good time and great food.

Thanks again for all the great suggestions and links.

Rob.

[Risi e Bisi]

For casual, fun, informal and less expensive.

Try- Zuzu- Downtown Napa

-Bounty Hunter- DownTown Napa

-Uva- (Italian)Downtown Napa

You will find these places are a bit more local.