We walked in the door of Napa Rose five minutes before our allotted reservation and were immediately taken to our spot which was the Chef's table on the right hand side of the kitchen. There were four stools, so it looks like you could have a nice couple's dinner there. With just three of us, it was a good excuse to stretch out a bit and watch the show. We were quickly greeted by our Waiter/Sommelier, Mickey (yeah, how awesome was that name).
From what I've read, Mickey is one of the regular waiters for the Chef's table and one of the best. At Napa, all waiters in the restaurant are sommeliers. More on that in a bit. Mickey asked us the customary on whether we had dined here before, and when we said no, went into explaining how we could order. We could either order off the regular menu, the Vintner’s Menu (which is a prix fixe menu), or go with the Vintner, but place our selections in the hands of the chef. As this was probably the only time we'd get to do Napa Rose anytime in the near future, we all opted for Vintner with the Chef selecting our dishes. This option is only available when dining at the Chef's counter, so obviously we had to opt for that over the other two options. I added the Vintner’s wine pairing to mine as good food is enhanced by good wine. For the evening, we'd be expertly attended to by Mickey along with Sous Chef, Daniel Perry, and the Chef de Cuisine, Gloria Tae.
Before I begin, a few comments and observations. Firstly, while I'm usually all about pictures, when it comes to fine-dining I try to focus on enjoying the company and experience as opposed to taking pictures, so I refrain from my usual level of photography in such dining situations. Some haute cuisine chefs take extreme insult to photographing the food as well, so it’s best to show respect to the artist for the creation they have made you buy refraining from photographing the food. If you've read my other trip reports, you'll see very little along the way of photographs from my times at Club 33, and this dining experience at Napa will be similarly devoid of pictures. You'll have to take the two pics of the food I did sneak, and my descriptions and use your imagination.
Second observations, the Vintner’s menu as the Chef's Choice. I must admit when I actually learned how it was to go (when the food started coming out), I was a bit disappointed. It had always been billed to me as an Omakase style offering, which is a Japanese phrase that means "I'll leave it to you" derived from the Japanese word "to entrust". You'll find this offering at many a sushi establishment, and the chef truly creates something not on the menu. In the case of Napa Rose Chef's Counter, it's just the chef picking each course of your meal off the menu for a fixed overall price. I must admit I expected more from such a lofty dining destination.
OK on to the meal.
After Mickey had taken our orders, he asked whether we would like sparkling or purified water to drink. I didn't inquire but I assume the sparkling to be either San Pellegrino (which I do enjoy) or Perrier. We opted for the purified, which is nothing other than Anaheim’s finest tap water put through an RO filter. Given that I find the tap water at the resort to be just fine, purified it was for our group. We were promptly served our drinks and provided with some bountiful bread baskets of all manner of bread and some heavenly soft butter. A significant amount of will power was needed to not fill up on the bread given what we had before us. While we were enjoying the bread, Chef Perry came over and asked us if there was anything we didn't like and if there were any food allergies. We are all pretty wide open when it comes to food, with me having a few things I'll eat by prefer to avoid, which are sour cream and fennel/anise. They both have their places, but I prefer my dishes not to be overwhelmed by either. In addition, Lindsey is not a fan of tomatoes.
As if on cue, we were brought our amuse bouche. I believe we all received the same item for this, which was a duck pate with huckleberries. While not usually a fan of pate, I enjoyed this one immensely. I had never had huckleberries before either. Very tart little fruit. While I was consuming the amuse bouche, my wine pairing for my first course was presented. It was a Brut Sparkling wine from California (sorry, didn't get much of the vineyard info for the wines, but they were all great).
Up next was the first course plates for the group. I was selected a Carpaccio of American Buffalo with Fava Bean Tapenade Bresaola, White Truffle Oil, and Shaved Carmody Cheese. YUM!!! The buttery cheese the perfect complement to the strong flavored meat. For Amy, she was presented with a plate containing a Curried Crab and Avocado Taco, Shrimp in Cucumber Wrap with Lemon Dill Creme, and Seared Ahi Nacho. I didn't get to try any of it, but it looked remarkable and was completely consumed. Lastly, Lindsey was presented with a Crab and Pear Salad. That one intrigued me. I've never seen pear paired (see what I did there?) with crab. It must have worked because it was completely gone in the blink of an eye.
Before I knew it, Mickey had popped up with a glass, and was promptly filing it with Sauvignon Blanc. This was a good sign as what immediately appeared before me, but the Orange Basil Grilled Swordfish with Tender Spanish Octopus, Potatoes, Capers and Heirloom Tomatoes. Double YUM!!! I'm a huge swordfish fan, and also love both Octopus and Squid. The saltiness of the capers and citrus/basil bite made for a thoroughly great dish. Amy was presented with the Pan Roasted Diver Scallop on a sauce of Lobster and Lemon accented with Tahitian Vanilla. She still talks about it to this day. Marvelous dish. Lindsey was presented with the Blackened Grouper and Tempura Fried Lobster. It looked GOOOOD. I'll have to let her chime in on some of these as well, as I could only feast with my eyes on their initial selections.
For the Third course, a glass of 2007 Williams Selyem Russian River Valley Pinot Noir was poured, and the bottle left as there wasn't another full glass left in it. I must say this was a pretty darn good for a Pinot given my palate. I actually had to finish my glass from the previous course as I was too busy eating and being in pure culinary ecstasy to keep up with the generous pours of wine I was getting. My plate for this course was to be the Maple Leaf Farms Duck Breast with Spitzenberg Apple Coulis, Almond Gnocchi and Pomegranate. The duck was served as all duck should be, med-rare, and the apple coulis sauce provided a nice bit of acid to the plate. The pomegranate brought the sweet and it rounded out nicely with the nuttiness of the gnocchi. Another glowing compliment to the chef from me. Amy was presented with Hand Crafted Pappardelle Pasta tossed with Sautéed Golden Chanterelle Mushrooms, Applewood Bacon, Poached Petit Egg and Roma Tomato Sage Sauce. She left me with a few bites, and it was pure heaven. It almost presented as a carbonara to me. Delicious. You can tell the ladies were getting full, which was a boon to me as I started to get to sample some of their dishes. Lindsey was presented with a Braised Rabbit Fricassee of Sonoma Rabbit and Bacon Cheddar Dumplings. I don't think I got any of it. It looked and smelled great though.
Sitting at the kitchen, we did get to observe quite a bit of the goings on. I must say it was a VERY efficient operation. One question we had was the 90/10 container of oil. The chef commented that it was 90% canola, 10% olive oil. Reason behind it was the taste of the olive oil with the high smoke point of the canola. I've never seen that before which given some of my teen vocations is a bit surprising.
As the Fourth course rolled around, I was presented with a glass of Amarone della Valpolicella. I'm still out on the pairing with the dish I was presented as the raisin sweetness was extremely forward, and somewhat contrasted vs. complimented the plate I was presented, which was the Provenal Herb Roasted Colorado Rack of Lamb with Artichoke Bottoms, Poached Radish, Sugar Snaps and Cabernet Jus. The lamb, perfectly cooked (the flash in the photo makes it look a bit over into the medium range, when in fact it was medium rare).. The Jus... heaven. The root veggies added a good earthiness to it all with a bit of caramelized sugar sweetness. Loved it. The wine pairing... I could have done with the Pinot from the previous course over the Amarone. Just didn't fit my palate. Amy was presented with the Grilled Angus Beef Filet Mignon with Parsley Root, Black Kale and Red Pumpkin Essence. It was exactly what you'd expect in a steak, and cooked to perfection. I got about 1/3 of the plate to try, and while I know she struggled to fit more into her stomach, she had to relent and I was able to savor such a wonderfully cooked piece of meat.
For Lindsey's Fourth Course, she had Thanksgiving Dinner. I had watched them make these while we were eating, wishing I could sample them. Basically they had cut turkey up into pieces, packed it into a tall ring mold, and filled it with a sauce or thick stock and roasted it in the oven. Watching them get the rings off the roasting pan, out of the ring mold, and onto the plate was very interesting. The turkey was paired with a cranberry relish, a bread and vegetable stuffing/dressing, and some roasted root vegetables all with some delectable turkey gravy drizzled across the plate and setting on a bed of a pumpkin reduction sauce. Lindsey was suffering from the same state as Amy, which was the mind wanting to continue to eat and the body refusing due to fullness. Thankfully for me, this meant I got to experience the dish I had been salivating over watching the chefs make. Whew... I was in seventh heaven.
We needed a break between the last course and the dessert course. When it was time, I opted for the Scharffen Berger Chocolate Paté with Hazelnut Crème Anglaise, which when selected, triggered Mickey to present me with a delicious Ruby Port to emphasize the fruit and chocolate of the dish.
Both Lindsey and Amy decided on the Pumpkin Caramel Crunch Whoopie Cakes with Pumpkin Soda. Plates came with some more of those tart huckleberries which when combined with the sweet cakes make for a very good combination. They weren't able to finish these plates either, but Lindsey took them for breakfast the next day as I was completely stuffed too. Both said the pumpkin soda while "interesting" wasn't their thing after about half the glass. I tried some and tended to agree with their assessment. Interesting, but not something I'd really seek out.
I must say, that had to be one of the best meals of my life. I really only had one regret, and that was not getting some truffled mac & cheese as one of our dishes. I really love this place and can't wait to get back for another dining destination experience. My pocketbook is still reeling though at about $450 after tip for the three of us.
