Looking for an awesome porkchop

ill ditto the fatted calf pork chop; insane good...better than the berkshire chops ive ordered from lobels. and its a great local biz with really great people; i brined them for a few hours in apple cider and salt, grilled, and all the guests thought them among the best they ever tasted. highly recommended. and very reasonable price wise, especially if you consider restaurant food.

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Diner breakfasts in Napa/Yountville area?

My personal fav is Boonefly, already mentioned, but Id also add that if you want old school diner, the real deal is the Buttercream Bakery - they have of course full blown bakery, but also a diner with all the traditional breakfast things you note. Quite a way old school locals hang ouit. Its on Jefferson and Lincoln...pink and white stripes cover the exterior; cant be missed.

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Can't get res. at Redd...second choice?

I would add La Toque. Ive had pretty good lunches at Redd, and pretty bad ones (sometimes exactly same dishes...very inconsistant). Terra is nice. Farm is fun..great entrees, most everything else to me has been disappointing over many visits, but lovely room. The restaurant at Solage might warrant a visit...even lunch; Ive head good things.

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Where can I find Kurobuta Chops in the Bay Area?

If all else fails locally, Lobels online has them. Ive ordered a few times...definately quite expensive, but they really are quite spectacular; We did a side by side test against Neiman chops, and there was no comparison - not that one was 'better' they are just quite different in both taste and texture. Most preferred the Lobels Kurobata - blind tested.

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BBQ and is the La Playita taco truck -Napa

FYI. the La Playita truck is usually always on Soscol, near Vallejo St - parked -- Since contruction etc is across the road for the Westin. The truck at Salvador (across from the Chevron) is a Michocacan truck, but its schedule seems a bit erratic. There seems to be another Michocacan truck (or maybe its the same one) on Imola - across from Riverpark. Yes, there is an influx of new trucks up and down Soscol...interesting to see if anybody has any reports.

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Moving to Napa: need food purveyor recommendations

1. farmers market: the one at Copia is good, as is the one up in St Helena (I think those are the only two options), also the one in the square in Sonoma is OK (but more street fair sort of thing)

2. bakery: for old school (especialy great dutch crunch bread) buttercream on Jefferson/Lincoln is great. For anything else, Vallergas - they get basque, artisan and acme daily. Bouchon bakery some people like, I think its OK, but nothing special, especially for the money. For pastries and old school cakes and pies, Sweetiepies in the Hatt building downtown is quite good, also they have a slew of morning pastries, none too sweet, that are nice...very reasonable too.

3. meat/fish etc -- whole foods when it arrives, otherwise, vallergas again, sunshine market if you want to drive up to st helena. Prime good dry aged beef: let me know if you find any . Fish etc, the fishmarket (osprey i think) is on Soscol at Wine Country

4. overall grocery - Vallergas - I actually prefer the smaller one on Silverado vs the big one on Redwood, but both are quite good. In Sonoma, the Sonoma market is great too on Napa @ 5th west., and the aformentioned Sunshine Market in St Helena, but it can be a zoo in there, and its tiny...but they do have great meat and deli items.

5. olive oil - for day to day stuff, the napa valley olive oil manufactury up in oakville (the white shed on the end of the block of tra vigne/whitting nursery) is great - they also have a great selection of dried beans, italian stuff etc., Olive oil is fresh, fruity, deep green and inexpensive.

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Farm Restaurant in Napa

Ill elaborate on my POV of the place after two meals...one lunch, one dinner. Yes, the room is great... they have a great very large indoor/outdoor bar area, that when the spring and summer months come, it will be "the" place to see and be seen (if thats your thing!). I think its significantly more "chic" than "agri-chic", as the rest of the resort is. It feels a bit like Las Vegas meets Miami dropped in napa on a smaller scale.

Lunch was great. the room was nearly empty though, as they just started doing lunch a few days prior. Service at lunch was smooth, but not polished at all yet - clear staff still trying to find their way. White linnens, nice silver and glassware, and very pleasant views of the room, fireplace and outdoor area (reminds me a bit of a larger, more chic version of Foreign Cinema). A amuse (for lack of better description) of julienne celery root with lemon/creme and baby marinated vegitables came out. Description was nice, and the idea is nice, but the dish is wrong. Its a bit messy to eat, and very messy to share. Foccicia accompanied, with very small ammounts of butter. Entrees are the highlight by far - I had braised shortrib with tangerine gremolata, friend had roast pork shoulder, winter veg, some rancho gordo beans etc,., Both were very hearty, perfect for the season, soulful, rustic, intensley flavored and very satisfying (we though a bargain price for lunch). The wine list is quite nice, very large, concentrating on local(ish) wines, at just a bit above retail prices - no 3x markup here, with many very good wines under $30. Dessert was a letdown in presentation and style - we opted for simple sampling of sorbets with two biscotti - nice, but they needed something else to make them more special. Vibrant colors (the booths are deep purple), great architecture and very comfortable booth made for a nice, relaxing, very special lunch.

So much so, I brought friends the following weekend night; for a very different, yet familiar, experience.

We arrived to find the outdoor bar (really very large outdoor "tented" room) fully light with dozens of very urban outdoor lamps, a large glass firepit was roaring, and several very self-important folks lounging at the fire, enjoying a bottle of bubbly (not minding, or concerned that they were completely blocking entry from anyone wanting to pass to get inside!. At night, the room is very low lit, very dramatic, and we were greeted by a lovely hostess, tattooed fully on arms, down onto here hands (I'm thinking kudos for her!...she turned out to be the most pleasant person, entry and exit!). She was 100% lacking any normal attutude commonly found in urban restaurants of this style and price, warmly welcoming us all with a huge smile. We sat at a 4 top, with, to me, very very uncomfortable seats (all my guests also agreed). Our server was competent, but more of the level of a casual establishment, than fine dining. The same odd amume arrived (this time described as cole slaw!); While it marginally wored at lunch, it in no way worked at dinner..the room begs of decadence, or at least a bit of formailty - not a plate of shards of slaw to share and make a mess. Bread was non descript baugette with two very thin slices of plain butter. We had to ask for more butter 3 times, and given these prices, we should have very good butter and plenty of it. We got a great, very hard to find wine, that was only $10 above retail, so we settled in for a nice evening. Appetizers were OK., we simply shared a crab sandwich salad...competent, but nothing unexpected.

As with lunch, the entrees shows the kitchens strongpoint. Two had pork chops - essentially the same pork shoulder dish served at lunch, but with a chop instead of roast shoulder, and one had a skirt steak (non adventourous one.) The chops were prefectly pink, insanely flavorful, luciouis hunks of meat. The ranch gordo bean/cabbage underneath was pretty overcooked and mushy (not fresh and vibrant as with lunch), but still very flavorful and satisfying. The unadventourous eaters steak, potatoes and green beans, were the standard that this all too common comfort meal should be. Rich, meaty, insantly flavorful piece of meat, perfectly cooked, with potatoes holding just as much butter as potatoe. We were all very satisfied and impressed. We opted to share a single dessert, and while there are 5-6 items on the dessert menu, it looked like they may not have a pastry chef per se -- most were pretty simple, rustic but not at the level one would expect for this sort of resturant. We had a chocolate fondant, that looked, and tasted like hotel banquet food: grainy, milk chocolate mousse on a plate with a few dots of hersheys syrup - we ate it of course - even bad chocolate is good - but it was a clear letdown of the evening.

The big difference however is the sort of guest between lunch and dinner - typical of the valley, lunch brings locals, some older folks, people just out for a nice time. The dinner crowd here, weighted heavily on the "look at me" sort - as somewhat expected by its location as part of the inn - but it had the vibe of a place full of "guys who golf and their trophy wives" - ergo, we prefered lunch. Also, a bit of a decor thing - the room at dinner, looks very muted, all grays and browns...big dramatic lights lend a lounge feelling - the daytime purple banquets look black, the celedon green walls look gray and the myriad of brown woods all go black.

Love the place, great room, service needs a bit of polish, hire a pastry chef, and bring the rest of the experience up the level of the entrees and it will be a hit. Im pretty confident by spring, when the season is in full swing, this place will have all its ducks in a row.

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ISO lunch and dinner recommendations in Napa

Myself and many others have written volumes on Napa and the surrounds, as this topic comes up on (at least) a weekely basis. Do yourself a favor and "search" for napa, and youll get a pretty through assesment of the valley these days. Enjoy your trip!

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Napa on a budget?

i think most people know that rutherford grill is a houstons. having said that, their cornbread is absolutely to die for...and ive never, ever had less than a very good meal there. the food is a bit tweaked for the location, the vibe good, lots of locals, and one can eat (and drink) very well for not too much cash. Alternately, many rave about the burritos from the market across the street, though i find them pretty heavy. Since your up on Soscol, you may want to skip the Oakville grocery and hit Vallergas on Silverado trail by your hotel. They have great to-go food as well, and tons of condiments.

Also, for your budget, without a shadow of a doubt to me, Farm at the Carneros Inn offers the best bang for the buck...especialy at lunch (entrees around $16). The room is **insane** uber chic, sort of a mix of las vegas scale and miami design vibe. It just opened a few weeks ago, and ive already been a few times. The food is really great, woudl stand up to, or beat, most places anywhere near its price and well beyond. Its only about 5 min from your hotel.

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Napa on a budget?

Not sure what you mean by 'budget", but living here, I can throw you some really good, and really cheap places and thoughts. Also, not knowing where in the vally you are staying (would make a difference drive time); most of these are Napa city reccos. For breakfast, the Boonfly at Carneros Inn is the best bang for the buck. Nothing is more than $10 or so, pretty chic, rustic environment, classic Kimbal Jones wine country food. A truly locals place is Soscal Cafe..but its really a hole in the wall. Also, Sweetiepies in Napa is great for coffee/pastry sort of thing. I really like Taquiza on Redwood at 29 - cheap fish tacos, but sort of gourmet. The General Store downtown napa has great cal/winecountry/asian food...again, really cheap, but quite good. If you want to do a mid/spurge, not too expensive lunch, Farm at Carneros Inn is insane good...I just wrote about that in another post (entrees $16-20 at lunch). Market in St Helena is really quite nice, mellow, chic space, they do a prix fix menu for I think $12 at lunch...3 courses. really yummy. Search and youll find a bunch of reccos on this subject my myself and a host of others. Zare has a nice bar menu, and i think a $8 burger deal at the bar I see mentioned in the newspaper..not been myself, but thought it a nice deal. Ive also had some pretty good food, at a very chic place...the bar at Auberge du Soleil...no reservations, and the bar has its own menu...again, at lunch, nothing more than $15 or so, huge portions and great environment, great view etc.

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Farm, new restaurant at The Carneros Inn, Napa

I had lunch there today. in short, really spectacular. There is nothing in wine country, or even really SF, that compares to the space itself. Its almost if one took a restaurant, along with the poolside vibe and furniture (minus the pool) and dropped it right into Carneros. Very very hip, urban vibe; much much more tailored, sophisticated than Boonefly (not to mention, easily 20x its size), but at the same time similar. Super friendly staff, and the food was really great. both had braised dishes, one pork shoulder with cabbage/bacon/vegi/rancho gordo bean mix, mine a braised beef shortrib with tangerine gremolata over mashed potatos, vegi chip topped. Rustic and heaty, perfect for rainy day. The wine list is pretty big, and not too high on markups - but the space is really the grand part. Nearly 35' or more ceiling, uber urban vibe with furniture and lighting, massive overscale elements as mentioned, usually only found in places like Miami. The outdoor covered lounge area is really great, or will be in spring when the weather is nicer..loads of cushy furniture, gerat lighting, fire pits, bocce ball court, fountains all surrounded by flowing fabric panels. Only a few other tables for lunch today when we were there, but Im certain once the word is out, this place will be the IT spot for many. The feel and vibe arn't for everybody, but if its your thing, this is a very very welcome addition to the valley. Food prices for lunch are a bit more than the boonefly, but not drastically more...and much less than other choices like Martini House etc. There is a photo in the Chronicle not that log ago of one tiny corner of the bar, but it only hints at what its really like.

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best superautomatic espresso maker?

I just gave up my Rancillo grinder and Pasquini machine...which are both pretty well regarded among the espresso fanatics for a Jura Capresso F7 - and its been everything I expected and a lot more --- ill never go back to manual again. While I could pull good shots with the pasquini, it was hit or miss...its messy to grind, tamp etc., and not something i wanted to do first thing in the morning. The Jura does everything, exactly, perfectly the same time, over and over. It takes up less counter space, is significantly quieter than the Pasquini, and in the end, less expensive. I get really great crema coffees in 2 minutes from turn on - To me, so far, well worth it. I think purists would agrue that the manuals will pull a superior shot, but for me, just an avid coffee lover, the Jura is better than I could ever myself get out of my other machine. HOpe that helps.

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La Taquiza in Napa?

I think comparing Taquiza to the taco trucks is not so accurate (though i love them both), they are quite different. I actually hit Taquiza a lot - and have found the food to be really good. Its not cheap by any means, the carne asada is really good..super moist, chunky and slightly smokey, their tomatillo sauce is quite nice, service is great, the room is nice, but the thing overall is that their food has a very fresh, very "clean" flavor - rice seasoned with lots of cilantro etc., No taste of lard or off flavors common with most mexican in the valley. Note, they are as of a week ago, open on sundays too. In short, I think its more of an upscale "chipolte" or "high tech burrito" than a "authentic" mexican place. But Im there at least once a week for my fix

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Napa Area

I dont go out too much in the evenings, but a few places come to mind...not sure what sort of bar (dive or nice). The bar at NV downtown is nice...especially early. Also downtown Joes is a brewpup...the bar at BountyHunter downtown is nice too...mostly wine oriented. The etoile lounge at Chandon is open till late, and they have been advertising a "hip" sort of campaign on the radio a lot here. not been so cant comment. There are also a myriad of dive bars all over..and some great places up in Calistoga - but thats a haul from your hotel. Be warned, wiht the exception of restaurants, its sleeeepy here after the sun goes down! One more place i would highly highly recommend chowing - breakfast through dinner - is the Boonfly Cafe at the Carneros Inn...its down off 121 - about 7-8 min from your hotel...Chef Kimball Jones went over there a while ago - he was at Wente Vineyards, and has written a few great cookbooks - food is great, very hip, cool urban meets barn vibe, and crowd. Breakfast is also really cheap! You might want to hit some of the hotel bars that are unusual for later night things - Id suggest the bar at Auberge definately if you want a fancy luxe evening.

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Napa Area

if you search, there are volumes and volumes of info on the valley here - but your post is a bit different than the "what cant i miss" posts, so ill throw my 2cents in as somone who lives here and makes the cheap/fun/good places my mainstays.

for snacks, etc, the Vallergas markets in Napa are the best. they have everything oakville grocery has and 20x more, minus the hoards of tourists. Sunshine market in St Helena, same.
Buttercream bakery downtown napa is truly old school diner/bakery. Also, Sweetiepies downtown in the Hatt building rocks for breakfasts sorts of things..huge pastries, not too sweet. There is of course, trader joes in napa (but the soon to open huge whole foods isnt here yet)., The napa olive oil manufactury up the road from Tra Vigne is really a treat...dont miss it (not the one on hwy 29!), very old school italian market, deli etc...its in an old white shed.

not sure where youll be in the valley, but some of my favorites casual restaurants proper are:

in napa proper:
genreal store - downtown in the hatt building. great wine country meets pan asian. cheap.
angelie - same building - very french...lots of locals
pilar - downtown too...may friends favorite - sort of euro/hispanic/wine country
nv - downtown, great bar in particular. not eaten there, but its the "swankyest" most urban thing in napa
zinsvalley - very locals only, mellow, nice good food
fume bistro - again, really locals only, very good "global" cuisine...super warm environment

upvalley,
Taylors refresher, already mentioned, is pretty good...fun place.
Rutherford Grill is houstons in drag, but a lot better
Gordons in Yountville - great sandwhiches, salads, breakfast, inexpensive, sort of gourmet casual country store.
Martini House - go for a drink in the bar downstairs...but dont eat upstairs.
Market - really good, casual american in st. helena...same guys who own cyrus in healdsburg

i could go on...but. enjoy your trip!

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Wine Country Recommendations

In sonoma, I think the Breakaway Cafe has a nice, very "locals" breakfast. Personally I love the breakfast at the Boonefly Cafe at Carneros Inn...especially the donuts. Ive yet to take friend there who didnt really enjoy it, and its very resonable. "Brunch" as in buffet etc doesnt exist here. For totally locals "hold in the wall" breakfast, the Soscol Cafe is it. On the other end of the spectrum, I think breakfast at Auberge du Soleil is great too. The view doesnt hurt. For a quick pastry and coffee, Sweetie Pies downtown Napa is great and cheap. Enjoy your trip!

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Dry Creek Kitchen or Redd

I agree on Hess Collection..its around the corner from my house, an amazing art collection of museum quality...and some nice wines. Jarvis is great if you make reservations, I also really like Franciscan (for a big name touristy place). Search here, tons of reccos. Regarding dinner, if you are staying in the valley, its at least an hour...more 1.5 hours to get over to healdsburg to Cyrus...just fyi...people dont realize how far it is. Redd is great. You might also like NV downtown, Terra, La Toque, Auberge for nicer higher end places as well. Enjoy the weekend!

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El Dorado Kitchen on a lazy Saturday in Sonoma

IM glad to hear you had a good time. Maybe they got their act together...the last several times there, the food was good to very good, but the service from the front hostes to the wait staff was beyond bad...really really amateur. Its a great room inside and out, so maybe its time for another try. Im curious on how hospitable the staff was...as on many a visit it was anything but welcoming or professional

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New resident of Napa Valley

how do. Welcome. Im somewhat new-ish here...lived in Sonoma for the last year or so, moved to Napa this year. Ill add a few places Ive found. I really like the mexican at Taquiza in the Redwood center on Redwood and 29...is "neuvo" sort of mexican, but super fresh, great burritos, nice cilantro rice and great salsas. Someone already mentioned the General Store downtown, which I personally really really like...never had a not good meal there, and its pretty reasonable. Nationsl hamburgers is, well, an experience. More divey diner sans table service...their pies dont look bad but I dont think there many natural ingredients in them! I also love Sweetie Pies in the same building where Genreal Store is. Im dying to hit the La Luna up in Rutherford, as ive never heard of it until this week, and ive seen it mentioned time and time again recently. But sounds like you, I find myself cooking at home nearly always, and just this eve am craving thai...and really, even bad thai food is good!

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Long Napa Weekend

forgot about Gordons...yumm.
Martini house, great room. First experience a few years ago was one of the best ever...anywhere. amazing wine program and director...great service, all wine was decanted..no bottles on tables. nice touch. food was simple, but really amazing. The last few times, service has been much less "slick", decanting no more, food has been OK, but nothing memorable (except mushrooms which seem to pervade every single thing there). Borderline rude service in the bar downstairs on a few occasions. Its still the prettiest place here to me...but I wish the service level matched the price level. The food is admittedly more my issue, as Chef Humphries menu and taste doesnt give with mine. If you go, go at night...there is a magic to the place that is completely missing at lunch. my POV anyway.

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Long Napa Weekend

I live in Napa, and would never consider driving to Healdsburg for dinner...at minimum 1 hour, likely more like 1.5-2 depending on how you go...also, frankly, there is really no reason to make a special trip when so much in napa local. Ill add a few more "local" spots. Zinsvalley, Angele, Uva Trattoria, General store for lunch (actually one of my favs for cheap good food), Boonefly Cafe at the carneros inn (again, a huge personal favorite..especially for breakfast), Rutherford grille (yeah, its houstons, but you cant beat it in the area for the $). Cindys is not bad as mentioned, recently though ive been diasppointed on several visits to Martini House, Tra Vigne is pretty much only for tourists these days...though their pizzaria a block down is quite good. Id also suggest the bar patio at Auberge...its a lot cheaper then the restaurant proper, has a nice lunch menu and killer views.

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