Indigio, San Francisco 3/18/11

Indigio is a small neighborhood restaurant in the Hayes Valley District. An excellent choice for those on a budget and a great value on the food and service of this place. It has definitely seen better days but still holds up to a good restaurant for the price. Serves well for those looking to find a reasonable and quiet place before the symphony or ballet.


Atmosphere: Large restaurant with upwards of 40 tables. Very quiet and romantic setting which is fit for any type of group large or small. Open kitchen opens up the restaurant and the bar area provides a limited view of the kitchen.

Service: 3 out of 5 spoons
Service was good and straight forward. The waiter didn't seem to have any sense of urgency when it came to providing service. I find this a fault in this places armor and wish that a more experienced waitstaff worked throughout as another service we were not being serviced he stepped in to provide it to us.

Food: 4 out of 5 forks
Food Comments: Good food at exceptional prices. The pricing throughout the menu encourages a three course or larger setting at a reasonable price. Their prix fixe at 35 dollars in San Francisco is an excellent value and will be on a short list of great affordable restaurants.

Appetizers:

(Mr. and Mrs.)

Creamy Roasted Mushroom Soup,
croutons, white truffle drizzle $8.95

Entree:

(Mr. and Mrs.)
Grilled Free Range Chicken Breast over White Beans, Zucchini Squash,
And a Basil Pesto with Toasted Almonds and Reggiano $19.95

Wine Paring: 2007 Thomas Fogarty, Chardonnay

The wine has a green/straw colored wine and loads of minerals, fresh apples and clean earthy -finish. This un-oaked chardonnay really stands out from many others because of its natural occurring carbonation and the slight mushroom aroma that the blend provides makes this wine a special dish with creamy dishes, fish and chicken.

5 out of 5 corks for no corkage fees on your bottle of wine and for having a good arrangements of wines on the list. Our recommendation is Bring your own bottle and save on the mark-up.

Favorite dish (of Mr.): Creamy Roasted Mushroom Soup,
croutons, white truffle drizzle

Favorite dish (of Mrs.):Creamy Roasted Mushroom Soup,
croutons, white truffle drizzle

Cost: 60 per person with wine (Tax and Tip Included)

About: Thomas Fogarty Vineyards

ABOUT THOMAS FOGARTY WINERY & VINEYARDS
What began as a pastime is today the Thomas Fogarty Winery and Vineyard, one of the San Francisco Peninsula's most respected wineries. A Stanford Cardiovascular Surgeon and world-renowned inventor, Thomas Fogarty took up home winemaking in the early 1970's in a small cabin on the current winery site. He planted his first grapes in 1978, and in 1981 established a commercial winery in the historic grape growing region of the Santa Cruz Mountains.

Twenty five acres of Burgundian-style varietals are planted on the 325 acre estate, focusing on Chardonnay and Pinot Noir and small lots of Merlot and Sangiovese. The winery property, located directly west of Palo Alto and Stanford University, sits on Skyline Blvd. at a 2000 foot elevation. The long, cool growing season and excellent sun exposure provide an ideal climate for these grape varieties. Dr. Fogarty's vision is to produce high quality, character-filled wines which take full advantage of the unique soil and climate of this appellation.

The mountain top setting has sweeping views of the San Francisco Bay Area. Accommodating up to 220 guests, Thomas Fogarty Winery is an intimate, elegant, and relaxing setting for memorable events. Surrounded by vineyards and a beautifully landscaped lawn, the handsome redwood reception facility flows down the mountainside on three separate levels, each exposed to stunning views.

The 4,000 square foot Pavilion overlooks the pampered Chardonnay vineyard. The unique copper roof and open air feel makes the structure a Bay Area "one of a kind." The Hill House and it's adjoining terrace, hand crafted with Redwood panels, tile, and hardwood floors is an area used all year around. The terrace has glass panels lined on runners, allowing it to be closed off on cooler days without sacrificing the famous view. The Fogarty Board Room, a popular getaway for Silicon Valley companies, is a welcome retreat from the daily office grind. This room comfortably accommodates up to 20 guests and is equipped with most AV needs. The river rock fireplace is a welcome sight on a cool winter's day and a custom made pool table could be considered "Team Building."

Thomas Fogarty Winery invites you to experience "the flavors of the fruit" from our beautiful Santa Cruz Mountains winery. The Visitor Center is open for wine tasting every Wednesday through Sunday between the hours of 11 a.m. and 5 p.m.

Fleur de Lys San Francisco 3/11/11

Fluer de Lys is a San Francisco standard with lots to offer including one of the most intimate eating experiences in San Francisco. The service staff is one of the most attentive and responsive that I have ever encountered and really make this place special. Hubert Kellar, the renowned French taught chef is to thank for the menu offering although mostly executed by another chef.

Atmosphere: The main room seats about 15-20 tables but the restaurant can hold upwards of 40. Yet you would not expect it from the room setup. A large vase holding a large flower arrangement holds your attention and separates both sides very well.

Service: 5 out of 5 spoons
Service was exceptional and perfectly balanced. They had just the right amount of waiters and support service staff to be very attentive to each table. They also didn't pass the the caffe corretto quiz but made up for it by asking about the term and rewarding with a shot of Remy.

Food: 3 out of 5 forks

Food Comments: Impress at the creativity a lot gets lost in translation. Maybe its like surrealist artwork that you just can't understand or relate to but I felt some of the elements hid the flavors of the main ingredient. My example would be the coffee and curry grilled buffalo which lost all the natural flavor due to the overwhelming intrusion of the curry. Mrs Cancino had the filet with lobster truffle mac and cheese. Sounds like my perfect meal, yet the cheese used was too overpowering and didn't let the other flavors (especially the truffle) stand a chance. While the ingredients were extremely fresh & delicious, the small portion left me wanting more...and not full at all.

Amouse Bouche
Milkshake of gazpacho with pepper cream along side a spoonful of a overtly mustard based potato salad with caviar.
Appetizer
(Mr.) (Foie Gras Tourchon) Foie Gras with black truffles in a beef and onion au jus in a pot pie presentation with truffled popcorn . Second a foie gras burger on mini butter top toasted bun with burger fixings and fingerling potatoes.

(Mrs.) Roasted Maine Lobster on artichoke puree, citrus salad & porcini oil

Entree 1

(Mr.) Petrale sole topped with caviar and uni

(Mrs.) Maine scallops with toasted pine nuts, sliced potato marbles, sun dried tomatoes, olive sauce & reduction

Entree 2

(Mr.) Seared Buffalo Strip Steak in coffee curry crust with thinly sliced with rustic vegetables on top of a parsnip puree and red wine demi-glace.

(Mrs.) Seared filet mignon with a lobster truffle mac and cheese "en brioche"; Accented with a red wine, shallot and thyme sauce


Dessert
(Mr.)
Grand Mariner Souffle w/ cardamon ice cream~ 14 Additional

(Mrs) Chocolate Souflee ~14 Additional


Wine Paring: 2006 Shafer Vineyards, Merlot 105.00 Pricing (Please see prior post for introduction to Shafer Vineyards cost for this bottle should be around 40.00 retail).Vibrant rich and light amount of oak worked well with our red meat centered meal and helped cut the acidity of our fish course with cream accents. We recommend this wine as the deal on the menu but suggest you are better off bring your own.
3 out of 5 corks for the expansive list but not much value found throughout. Will be beneficial to bring your own wine.

Favorite dish (of Mr.): Foie Gras and black truffle soup not worth the burger ~ 8 additional dollars
Favorite dish (of Mrs.):

Cost: Everything is a surcharge at this place. 72 dollars for 3 courses 82 dollars for 4 courses and a scaled back 5 course offering for 92 dollars. Surcharges for meals are throughout the menu and include sparking water. We only did the 4 courses and had a couple of surcharges so it can easily go higher.

250 per person (Tax and Tip w/wine)

Meadowood, Napa Valley March 7th 2011

This was our first dinner of our honeymoon in the Napa Valley. Ray had been raving about this place and I was along for the ride. I definitely love food but usually am turned off by restaurants with too much "fancy food". However by the end of the night, I was calling it one of the best meals I have ever had!


Atmosphere: 8 intimate tables fit into this restaurant with dinner times of 2 hours or more depending on your menu options. Do spent the money and do the chef's tasting menu. The atmosphere was quiet on a Monday night but everyone around us seemed to have some serious issues. Next time I am bringing my friends who are MFT's to help some of these couples out!

Service: 5 out of 5 spoons
Our server was amazing! He was gracious, respectful, attentive and made an effort to make us feel very special during the evening. Ray mentioned when he made the reservation that it was our honeymoon and they made us feel great, with everyone from the bread server to the sommelier wishing us congratulations...and when the staff did not know what a caffe correcto is, they brought Ray and I a free tasting of Marolo Chamomile Grappa (an Italian dessert wine).
Food: 5 out of 5 forks
Food Comments: White wine focused menu with lots of mushrooms, fish throughout the menu. The tasting menu consisted of 9 mini courses, 2-3 bite servings of each. You may think that that many small courses would not fill you up, but we both will agree that it was the perfect amount of food, not to little and not too much.
Wine Paring: Not worth the money; The value is in the wine menu. Try the Shafer Red Shoulder Chardonnay. Bone dry, oak forward and can hold up to many red wine designed dished. Retail is around 48.00 dollars so for a restaurant to charge $100.00 is a steal. 5 out of 5 corks.
 
Favorite dish (of both Mr & Mrs):
 Glazed Sweetbread "Black & White"
Black Truffle, Parsnip, Black Trumpet Mushroom


Cost: 300 per person with wine (Tax and Tip Included)

Chef's Tasting Menu

$195; Wine Pairings $145
(Canapés, First Bites, eight courses, Last Bites)

About Shafer Wines:

Shafer Vineyards traces its beginnings to 1972 when John Shafer left a 23-year career in the publishing industry and, with his family, moved to the Napa Valley to pursue a second career in wine. After purchasing a 210-acre estate in Napa Valley's Stags Leap District, the Shafer family faced the arduous task of replanting the existing vineyards, which dated to the 1920s, and terracing the steep and rocky hillsides, eventually expanding vineyard acreage to its current 50 acres.
Evolving from grape growers to vintners, the Shafers crushed their first Cabernet grapes in 1978 and began construction on their winery a year later.
The first Shafer Cabernet became a benchmark, winning the acclaimed San Francisco Vintners Club taste-off upon release and, over a decade later taking first place in an international blind tasting held in Germany, where it outranked such wines as Chateau Margaux, Chateau Latour and Chateau Palmer.
Doug Shafer became winemaker in 1983 after graduating from the University of California at Davis with a degree in enology and viticulture. A year later Elias Fernandez joined the winery as assistant winemaker. Together Doug and Elias have worked closely to forge the Shafer style of quality, consistency and elegance.