Livermore, CA - Wente Vineyards - 2006 (MOVED)

TYPE OF FOOD: Californian

RATING (* for Poor to ***** for Excellent)

Food: ***
Service: *****
Ambience: ****
Value: **

OVERALL: ***

Wente Website


GENERAL

I practically saw the cuisine at this restaurant "grew up" in the last 15 years - from traditional continental to nouveau Californian. Given its offbeat yet beautiful location (well, relative to rest of East Bay and TriValley), Wente is a pretty good place to enjoy some nice but not outstanding dishes and sip a glass of their proprietary reserve wine.

FOOD

The cuisine here has gone ALL THE WAY Californian - It's like a hybrid Mexican-French-Italian-American. Good ingredients for sure, and the creativity sometime (not all the time) enhances the taste and surprise factor. The appetizers were tasty - they sound like old dishes, but they all incorporated some nouveau twist. Like the aragula in ceviche - I wonder what the Mexicans would think.

The entrees were somewhat disappointing. They were nicely garnished and, again, ingredients were superb, but the pork chop that the waiter HIGHLY recommended was highly disappointing. I tried the seafood and rice stew and it was downright strange - I still can't figure out what made it taste funny.... Maybe it was the almonds.

SERVICE

I was extremely impressed with the service - as impressed as going to a 5-star hotel's signature restaurant. The waiters were courteous, friendly and efficient. They work under very tough conditions (having some rather energetic children at the table) but they performed without a glitch. When a SECOND (that's right, sigh) glass flute was broken by a kid, our waiter STILL cleaned up the shattered glass with absolutely no sign of going mad (I would have). They are even knowledgeable, equipped with understanding of the wine and food they were serving.

AMBIENCE

If this restaurant was located in Napa Valley, I would have given it 5 stars. It's really that good. It's very well situated a valley surrounded by grapevines, and the room we were in had wall-to-wall windows, ie very nice view of the winery setting and nearby hills. Decoration theme is a mix of typical Californian (sunny and bright) with elements of traditional bar and grill scene. The whole interior was designed to be comfortable and welcoming, a particularly pleasant place for lunch or summer dinner.

VALUE

This is not the most expensive winery restaurant you can find - in fact most of the Napa Valley winery restaurants will set you back more severely. Nevertheless, one would expect less of a "location premium" given that it's really in the middle of nowhere. Granted that top-quality ingredients are used, most dishes are simply too pricey. If I want to spend $60 for an appetizer and entree alone and sit in a winery, I'd go to Domaine Chandon!

BOTTOMLINE

When I lived in the East Bay 13 years ago, I frequented Wente because there's really not a whole lot of appealing alternatives around. It's still overall a decent restaurant - but it's probably not worth the gas money if you live in SF or even San Jose. I would still be back here for sentimental value - I just won't order the pork chop again.

LAST WORD

They know they are too pricey - so they have sunset and Wed night specials. Never tried them - send me a comment if you have.

Palo Alto, CA - Cafe Fino - 2006 [MOVED]

RATING ( * poor to ***** excellent)

Type of Food: Continental-American
Food: ***
Service: ****
Atmosphere: ****
Value: ***

Cafe Fino Website

General: Maddelena's and Cafe Fino are two restaurant in one - sharing the same wall and kitchen but have different looks. Cafe Fino, the one I'm more familiar with, is one of my favorite downtown Palo Alto hangouts because of the combination of decent food, ambience, intimate service, and great music. If you don't want to feel like you're in the East Coast back in the 60s, this is probably not the place for you.

Food: Maddalena's and Cafe Fino share the same kitchen and offer the same menu. The selections are decent, and you will seldom find them really screwing up anything; however, you won't find any pleasant surprises either. The food is "solid" (don't worry, not describing the texture here), with some traditional continental dishes mixed with some Californian nouveau cuisine creations.

The surprise is the dessert. Forget tiramisu or green ice cream - this is you're creme brulee, banana foster or grand marnier souffle kind of place! We order the souffle everytime we go, and it never failed (or falled) us.

Service: Waking into Cafe Fino is like going back to your parents' place - only that you don't know where the utensils are. The wait staff is professional yet friendly, constantly smiling and even swinging to the jazz tune when they are serving - and miraculously none of our dishes or drinks ended up on my head. Maybe because of the owner is right behind the bar? For some reason everyone seems happy working there - even on a weeknight when it's not so busy (= less tips). Overall, service was impressive.

Ambience: This is where Maddalena's & Cafe Fino sets itself apart. I believe there are no more than five restaurants in the entire Silicon Valley that can guarantee you an East Coast dining experience like they can. It's truly a matter of personal taste though - it is obvious that not everyone appreciate dining with jazz in a dark mohageny, leather-upholstered, supper club-style dining room as much as I do. I wouldn't do it everyday, but it's sure a pleasant reminder of the old days - well, maybe my grandparents' old days. Have I mentioned romantic? Ladies beware - this is the kind of place that your boyfriend may propose to you.

Value: The restaurants seem to be on the pricey side at first glance, but when you realize that you are getting pretty decent food at a very comfortable setting with live music, the package is not bad. They are getting three stars here because to those who likes quantity as well as quality, they might feel a bit short-changed on the quantity side - the portions are not generous there.

Bottomline: I don't want to fool you - Maddalena's & Cafe Fino are not for everyone. Some people will hate their bland menu selection and old-time decoration, but if you appreciate a classic dining experience with great jazz, check it out and you won't be too disappointed. If you only care about good food and nothing else, I'd recommend that you go elsewhere - there are plenty of good restaurants in downtown Palo Alto!

Last Word: If you want to try to souffle I mentioned, you must ask for it at least 1/2 hr before you want it - the waiters there don't seem to consider it a treat so they don't typically bother to remind you, but I do recommend it HIGHLY.