Stowe/Waterbury bars and restaurants

All 3 that were on her menu that evening.

lebdog in Northern New England

Stowe/Waterbury bars and restaurants

Suzanne gave our group a great deal of personal attention at our dinner on October 11. The food was tasty and innovative. Suzanne told us they try to serve food that most people would not or could not make on their own. Hence, the homemade pasta and braised meats. I had the pork/celeriac "pot pie" and a small portion of the day's pasta selection. Everything was prepared under the watchful eye of a former professional food critic which means everyone involved sweated the details. I think the deserts fell a bit short of the savory items but I found this place well worth worth the short trip from town center. BTW, Morganna, Suzanne correctly guessed that you were the one who recommended the place when I told her I was there b/c of a review on a "foodie board."

Thanks.

lebdog in Northern New England

Stowe/Waterbury bars and restaurants

Thanks. We have reservations at Salt for Tuesday based on your recommendation I saw on another thread. Appreciate the help. Will post my thoughts on Salt.

lebdog in Northern New England

Stowe/Waterbury bars and restaurants

Morganna - You seem to be the most knowledgeable 'hound in the area. Any advice for a California hound coming to VT next week. We are going to be on an organized trip so will only have a couple of meals on our own. Can you recommend a place or two in/near Montpelier, Woodstock Inn and Okimo (sp?) Thanks.

lebdog in Northern New England

Top Chef Misses the Mark

I have not read any other reviews of The Gorbals on this Board before writing this but will do so after posting so I can see whether I'm the one that's off the reservation or whether other hounds have been as disappointed as I in this place. I am a devoted Top Chef watcher and have eaten at Mike Isabella's place in D.C. and sampled Voltaggio's food when he was at the Langham. I am also a fairly accomplished amateur cook.
To me the entire experience at Ilan Hall's restaurant was a major disappointment. Let's start with the location. I'm all for revitalizing downtown LA but calling the Alexandria Hotel a dump does dumps a disservice. Walking through that lobby trying to even find The Gorbals is neither hip, nor cool. It's just unpleasant. We walked in the door and were "greeted" by the hostess. Although we were the first ones in the place (arriving at 6 because we had 8 p.m. theater tickets) we were, nevertheless, kept waiting for 5 minutes because, I guess, whoever was supposed to seat us was not yet ready to do so. Don't take 6 p.m. reservations if you are not ready for guests to arrive at 6. The place was still being set up as we stood at the door waiting to be seated. And, we had to hear how tired the hostess was because she had just come from her first job that day. Okay, call me a grouch (I am) but that's not how I want to be greeted when I go out for a nice (or so I thought) dinner. Then, we had to endure a soundtrack that was too loud and better suited for a club than any restaurant - hipster wanna' be or not.
The interior is actually pretty cool - albeit in the window-less basement. - except for the fact that it's so dark the wait staff actually had to provide us flash lights as they saw us trying to read the menu by the light of our I-phones. Again, too hip by half.
The food is just not worthy of anyone with Hall's obvious talent and experience. I do not mind "unusual" animal parts being the focus of the menu but the combinations are gimmicky and the preparations are just not that good. We had popcorn chicken gizzards, bacon-wrapped matzoh balls, latkes, squid ink fish and chips, cucumbers, broccoli, and grilled corn. The last of these we were served "gratis" because the cucumbers were not prepared as advertised. (They are too be served with garbanzo beans and we were told that the chickpeas were "too hard to serve." Really? A prep cook not doing the job or what?) In any event, the sesame cucumbers are basically the same as those served in every Chinese place in the San Gabriel Valley. Big deal. The grilled corn was off the cob and served with "pimenton butter." Very tasty but nothing anyone can't do at home. I do a version every week during sweet corn season. Big deal. The broccoli with ginger, chilies (if I recall correctly) and vinegar was unpleasant (although my wife liked it). I am not sure how the floret was prepared (fried?) but I did not care for the texture and the vinegar was overpowering. The bacon-wrapped matzoh balls are just cute. The matzoh balls need to be really good to make this dish special. They were not. So, it was just a lump of dough wrapped in bacon. To me, a dog treat wrapped in bacon would be yummy so the fact that this tasted good means nothing. The latkes were served with "smoked applesauce." The applesauce was tasty but "smoked." Nah. The latkes were ordinary and way, way, way oversalted. (N.B. I have 5 different types of salt in my pantry so I am not salt-shy). The fish and chips also suffered from excessive salination. (Yes, a made-up word for this review). The squid ink batter on the fish was just silly, although the fish was moist and flavorful. The chips (fries) were horrible. Oversalted and undercooked. McDonalds' are better. The chicken gizzards were actually pretty tasty but, again, isn't anything deep fried usually tasty. The batter tasted fairly light but eat too much of it and the grease factor become quite noticeable. Did we just order wrong? Maybe, but we tried 7 dishes on a menu that only has about 20, one of which is a half-pig's head which my wife and I were not going to order for the 2 of us. All in all, this place was a major disappointment. If Hall cooked like this on Top Chef, he would not have made it to the second episode. My recommendation for Chef Hall, bag the Battali-esque desire to use offal and other not-commonly eaten body parts until you earn your stripes like Mario has. Return to what got you this gig in the first place and open a first-class Spanish restaurant and/or tapas bar. The LA area has only a couple and they suck. Lose the attitude and the faux hipster vibe and just cook us some good food. Otherwise, I'm going to start wishing Marcel had won.

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The Gorbals
501 S Spring St, Los Angeles, CA 90013

lebdog in Los Angeles Area

Ojai

Amen. If I wanted to eat at Spago, I would do that (haven't in 20 years). Based on your original post, I checked out the menu at Azu and Suzanne's and put both of them on my list. I figure I also have to try Maravilla because we are staying at the Inn. We are going in April. I will post my thoughts when we return. Thanks for replying.

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Spago
176 North Canon Drive, Beverly Hills, CA 90210

Azu
457 E Ojai Ave, Ojai, CA 93023

lebdog in Los Angeles Area

Ojai

Interested in where you ate and how your experience as my wife and i are going to Ojai Valley Inn for anniversary next month. Thanks.

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Valley Inn Restaurant
4557 Sherman Oaks Ave., Sherman Oaks, CA 91403

lebdog in Los Angeles Area

Suggestions for 50th Birthday Celebration Please

We had a 50th birthday party for my wife based on a suggestion I received on this Board. Thank you so much for the suggestion. The party was fantastic and the staff at Perbacco were, obviously, responsible for how well things went. We had 16 people in the Barolo room which is a great space for that size party. Although it was a little tight during the cocktail reception, it was perfect for dinner. For the cocktail hour we had three hors d'oeuvres - shrimp with salsa verde, crudo (hamachi) and the suppli (wild mushroom risotto croquettes with truffle aioli). Each portion was beautifully presented on a single, square glass plate. They were perfect bites to eat with our prosecco. For dinner we had the spinach ravioli with egg. This was perfectly sauced and cooked with the egg running out from the center and flavoring every bite. Second course was either the fish of the day (sea bass) or shortribs. I did not see a morsel of food left on anyone's plate. We had the warm gianduca (like nutella) for dessert. It was a really yummy version of the ubiquitous molten chocolate cake. We had Emer as our designated server. She was the model of professionalism, overseeing everything with skill and a sense of humor. I also met Davide (from Venice) who seemed to be overseeing events in other parts of the restaurant and (Mauro - I think) who seemed to be in charge downstairs. I was told the owners were not in the restaurant that evening. Ordinarily, especially because one of them is the chef, that would have been a disappointment but the kitchen did not miss a beat either. Final thanks and kudos for a job well done to Nicole Bautista, private event planner. Nicole was responsive to my every request and always in an extraordinarily timely fashion. I had never heard of this restaurant before. My wife and I came up from LA and hosted the party for former friends from the Bay Area whom we had become close to during our 10 years in Orinda. I am sorry I had not heard of Perbacco during our time there. What a great event! Thanks again for the recommendation and once more to the Perbacoo staff who made my wife's birthday party a truly special event indeed.

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Perbacco
230 California St, San Francisco, CA 94111

Barolo Restaurant
404 San Pedro Ave, Pacifica, CA 94044

lebdog in San Francisco Bay Area

Steelers Fan Club in Los Angeles

I went to the Steel Pit for this year's game. In addition to the fact that the Steeler's lost, I was very disappointed with the Pit. (Eric do you read these posts?) 1. Did not open until noon. We showed up at 10:30 ready to have a breakfast burrito and start drinking 2. Charged a $10 cover. What an insult to the regulars! 3. Served the beers in plastic cups instead of the nice chilled schooners they usually use. Plus, the crowd was fairly lame especially compared to 2009 at the Starting Gate.

lebdog in Pennsylvania

Suggestions for 50th Birthday Celebration Please

Looks Like it's Perbacco. Acquerello is booked and Quince is "over the top" expensive for the party I want to throw. The minimum spend for the private dining room is $3300 including tax and gratuity. Perbacco, as you know, is less than 1/2 that amount. I will have to try Quince and/or Acquerello when I'm not buying dinner for 20+ people.

Thanks again for the recommendations. Would never have found Perbacco on my own. I'll write up a review of our event.

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Perbacco
230 California St, San Francisco, CA 94111

Acquerello Restaurant
1722 Sacramento St., San Francisco, CA 94109

lebdog in San Francisco Bay Area

Suggestions for 50th Birthday Celebration Please

You may be thinking of Commis in Oakland. Thanks for your responses.

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Commis
3859 Piedmont Avenue, Oakland, CA 94611

lebdog in San Francisco Bay Area

Suggestions for 50th Birthday Celebration Please

Thanks. I'm still trying to decide. How does Acquerello compare in terms of food and atmosphere. I know it's pricey too but I may just have to splurge. By the way, Boulette's, for those who don't know, is $175 per person.

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Acquerello Restaurant
1722 Sacramento St., San Francisco, CA 94109

lebdog in San Francisco Bay Area

Suggestions for 50th Birthday Celebration Please

These are great suggestions. Unfortunately, Boulette's is booked already. Do you know anything about Quince. I like the looks of the regular menu. Thanks for your help. Looking forward to getting some more suggestions!

lebdog in San Francisco Bay Area

Suggestions for 50th Birthday Celebration Please

My wife and I are coming to SF from LA in March for her 50th. I am the Chow Hound in the couple. I am looking for a place where I could host a dinner of 10-20 people (depending on RSVPs). I am interested in places that are at least one $ below the likes of Coi, Manresa, Benu, Saison etc. We lived in the Bay Area for 10 years (until 2005) and I've lost track of the restaurant scene there. We want to stay in the SF itself. I'd appreciate the help of my fellow 'hounds. Thanks.

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Manresa Restaurant
320 Village Lane, Los Gatos, CA 95030

Saison
2124 Folsom St., San Francisco, CA 94110

Benu
22 Hawthorne St, San Francisco, CA 94103

lebdog in San Francisco Bay Area

Please comment on these Vegas choices for New Year's and my 40th bday dinner

This is old information and probably best on the California board but I found Fleur de Lys a top-notch place. If you are in the area thought, I'd opt for La Folie. Again, it's a matter of what you get at a high end place for the price.

lebdog in Las Vegas

Please comment on these Vegas choices for New Year's and my 40th bday dinner

I went to Guy Savoy and Restaurant Charlie for dinner in January. I thought RC blew away Guy Savoy for value, taste, presentation, creativity etc. The menu items at Guy Savoy, I thought, were fairly ordinary. The "off the menu" stuff, however, was really good (bread cart, dessert cart, amuse). Don't get me wrong, Guy Savoy was great but, you will spend a mint. We spent over $1000 (even though my wife barely drinks and a friend had bought us a bottle of Champagne for that dinner). I had the 14-course dinner with wine at Restaurant Charlie. Everything was fabulous and it was nowhere near the price of the GS dinner. I've done a lot of high-end places and I'm finding it difficult to be "blown away" when the final tab is considered. Restaurant Charlie did it though. Have fun!!!

lebdog in Las Vegas

Santa Fe trip report

Would you do the Opera buffet again? We have two performances and I'm debating among huge lunch/no dinner, early dinner, picnic and buffet. Would appreciate any advice in this regard. Thanks. Also, I don't see much about Pink Adobe on this Board. We will be staying at the Inn of the Five Graces and I'd appreciate any intelligence about that place.

lebdog in Southwest

Tre Venezie -- worth it?

I haven't been in a few years either but have always had good to really good food. I have a hard time believing the quality of the food has fallen as far as some of the savage posts below indicate. As for service, I've had everything from outstanding to mediocre there. I speak a bit of Italian and my best experiences there have always come when I am waited on by an Italian speaker who appreciates my efforts.

lebdog in Los Angeles Area

Santa Barbara Review

Well, we just returned from spending one night at SYR. Unfortunately, the Stonehouse continues to serve truly average food. We sat outside on the patio (lovely) and had a good waiter but this restaurant is just not "up to snuff" for a hotel that was just voted "American's Best" by Forbes readers (perhaps they do not care about the food). I had lobster fritters, vichycoisse (sp?) - with an addition of cauliflower and served hot - and the filet. My wife had a special ono and a salad. We had the platter of "minis" for dessert (essentially bite-sized pieces of every dessert on the menu). We started with a glass of champagne and I had a glass of Pinot with my steak. Bill w/tip was $310. Way out of line of the quality of the food. Nothing was bad but that certainly should not be the standard. Once again, we loved the property but, if we eat there again we will just order room service or eat at the Plow and Angel. Oh yeah, we went back to Tupelo junction for Saturday "brunch" and loved it again.

lebdog in California

Santa Barbara Review

My post was not clear. I would pack a sack lunch and eat it in my room to stay at SYR. When I said, "go somewhere else," I meant for our special birthday dinner. Like I said in my original post, we thought Epiphany was really good. No one, however, has mentioned it. The room service idea sounds like a winner. Either that or go to Plow and Angel or Stonehouse (with diminished expectations). After all, its the difference between expectations (and past performance) and the current reality that I was really bemoaning in my OP.

lebdog in California

Santa Barbara Review

Well, it's 2 years later. We love the property but, if I can't get any good current intel, i might go somewhere else. Only there for 1 night and don't want to be disappointed again.

lebdog in California

Santa Barbara Review

Chowhounders. I wrote this review two years ago. Am going back to SB for the first time since then. Can anyone chime in with more recent opinions of Stonehouse. I don't want to be disappointed again and am counting on you 'hounds for some informed advice. The reviews I've read on other sites don't cut it with me. Thanks for the help.

lebdog in California

Long Weekend in Carolinas

Bizzell's is the place I misspelled Bozell's.

lebdog in General South Archive

Long Weekend in Carolinas

We ended up doing most of our eating in Raleigh. I tried Bojangles for fried chicken and biscuits. Clyde Coopers for Barbecue (b/c they had hushpuppies and the Pit did not), 42nd Street Oyster Bar for dinner. The winner was Vin Enoteca for Sunday brunch. Aside from the silly blue laws in this state preventing the bar from serving alcohol before noon, this place was really good. Also very popular. It opens at 11:00. They take no reservations for parties of less than 7 people. Our group of 4 arrived at 11:40, stood for 10 minutes and then sat at the bar drinking water and a coffee until noon when we ordered some Bloody Marys. We were seated at about 12:15. I had the chicken-fried steak with red-eye mushroom gravy over a biscuit with sunny-side up eggs (and a side of bacon). Others had the eggs benedict and shrimp and grits. Everything was quite good and the CFS and shrimp dish were certainly not the type of offerings we usually see in LA. Only criticism of the food was runniness of grits. We like ours a bit firmer. We also ate at a place in the heart of Hartsville. I will get the name wrong but it's some like Bozell's. There the shrimp and grits were perfect as was the shrimp and crab casserole I had. Thanks again for the help. I am going to save the other recommendations for a trip to Charlotte/Savannah later this year.

lebdog in General South Archive

Steelers Fan Club in Los Angeles

We had the party at the "Starting Gate" in Los Alamitos. Awesome and crowded. I also like the Steel Pit in Tujunga. If you Steeler 'hounds are interested in getting together for the Superbowl, we will be at Starting Gate. This thread is getting a bit off topic, though so the site police will likely come down on it soon.

lebdog in Pennsylvania

Long Weekend in Carolinas

Thanks, Tom. Our "base" has turned out to be Raleigh area so we will probably try all your recommendations. Thanks to others too. We've got a trip planned to Charleston later this year and will save those recommendations., too.

lebdog in General South Archive

Long Weekend in Carolinas

We are a couple of LA 'hounds in the Carolinas (Raleigh, Pinehurst, Hartsville, SC etc.) for about 5 days. Would appreciate any insight into "can't miss" places in the area. We are most interested in good, regional cuisine. We've got all the high-end places we can handle in LA but, if there is a top notch place around, money is not really an issue for us.

Thanks for your help, Y'all..

lebdog in General South Archive

Vegas Birthday Dinner

Thank you climberdoc. You are my new hero. I just returned from the Las Vegas extravaganza. We ate at Guy Savoy and Restaurant Charlie (and some others touched on below). I enjoyed Guy Savoy and was prepared to write a glowing review until, two nights later, we ate at Restaurant Charlie. I will likely post a more detailed review of one or both when I have more time. Bottom line is this.

GS - Service was top notch (except for a glitch involving the men's toilet which I won't described and would not, ordinarily merit a comment but for the fact that Guy Savoy employs someone whose sole job is to open the doors and tidy up the one-unit bathrooms after each use). As for the food, I had the tasting menu and, despite some fabulous dishes, the best parts of the meal were the "off menu" items (amuse, bread cart, cheeses, dessert cart). Plus, my wife had the bass off the menu that was embarrassingly undercooked. We should have, but did not, send it back. Attitude smacked of the typical high end french place - what a surprise? - in that dinners at such place always seem to be designed to intimidate the patrons.

Charlie Trotter - One of the best experiences of my eating career. I share the concern of those who fear for the survival of this place. We ate there on Monday night at 8:00. No one was at Bar Charlie. I think there were 5 tables occupied in the restaurant. I had the 14-course tasting menu with wine pairing. I could not think of a negative comment for about 10 of the 14 dishes. That's saying something for me. I will describe in a subsequent post. We had Aaron was our wine expert (and Mark as our waiter). Aaron was a great guy, took lots of time with us, allowed us to sample and his pairings were spot on. Again, I'll provide more details later.

We stayed at Caesar's so ate at Mesa and Beijing Noodle House (or whatever that place is now called). I"ll review those too.

Thanks again climber. I'm now a trotterite.

lebdog in Southwest

Steelers Fan Club in Los Angeles

I am trying to get this moved to Pennsylvania Board.

lebdog in Pennsylvania