Napa 2012: Dining

This area is serious about good food and you can have some great dining experiences here.  Nothing about it will be cheap, but you'll definitely have some great grub.

Goose and Gander- We hit Goose & Gander after we went to Sullivan Vineyards for a quick and casual dinner.  They have a number of different areas that you can dine at the restaurant: outside patio area, inside cozy feel and downstairs grotto bar.  The food was such a pleasant surprise.  We started with the Cheviche of Halibut with Avocado and Taro Chips; extremely fresh and taro chips were a different twist.  I had the Seared Day Boat Sea Scallops which were excellent and BK had The G&G Burger which has gruyere cheese, house smoked bacon and is served with duck fat fries (YUM!).  It was exactly what we needed after a day of traveling and wine.

Inside Ad Hoc

Ad Hoc Restaurant- Ad Hoc is one of Thomas Keller's restaurants; he also does The French Laundry, per se and Bouchon.  We haven't been to any of the other restaurants, but we had mixed reviews on Ad Hoc.  We were really looking forward to this, and I had to make reservations about six months ago.  It's a unique place because there is a set menu every night, as in, there's only one choice- what the chef chooses to craft that night.  

The food was very well done...it was the atmosphere that was surprisingly lacking.  Our menu that night was spinach salad with apples and blue cheese, NY strip (ordered rare), au gratin potatoes with mushroom cream, and fresh onions and tomatoes from The French Laundry garden.  The steak was cooked exactly the way we wanted and was full of flavor.  I also appreciate that they don't put salt and pepper on the table, as to say, "don't mess with the flavors, we have them the way we want them."  For desert we had peanut butter and chocolate panna cotta, which was decadent and delicious.  Back to the atmosphere, the problem was we were seated at a table for two and were practically on top of the tables next to us.  We could hear their conversations and I'm sure they could hear ours.  I'm sure no one was talking about anything groundbreaking, but they couldn't even if they tried.  It just wasn't the intimate atmosphere that you usually get in high end restaurants.  I honestly can't decide if I would recommend it or not...BK wouldn't, I might. 

Famous Pork Chop

Mustards Grill-  Best. Pork Chop. Ever.  That's pretty much all I need to say about Mustards.  We went last year and were wowed by the pork chop.  We learned that we had been overcooking pork chops and they should actually be a little pink when cooked.  This year was just as good, if not better.  The atmosphere is cozy and even if you're sitting at a table for two you still have privacy and can enjoy dinner together.  We started with Ahi Tuna Crackers with wasabi creme fraiche and soy vinaigrette, then I had the Mongolian Pork Chop and BK had the Grilled Rabbit with vegetable succotash. We also added the 3-cheese macaroni and cheese, which was also great.  For dessert we topped it off with creme brulee for me and a scoop of ice cream for BK.  It was all delicious and I'm sure we'll go back as soon as possible.  

Gott's Roadside- We started Saturday out by watching the Frogs take on UVA. After driving around Napa trying to find something, I cam upon Oxbow Public Market on First Street in Napa.  We had passed it the day before wandering around Napa, and I was pleased to see they were open for breakfast.  I don't know about anything else on the menu, but the breakfast was awesome!  We had a potato and egg taco, which is much more than it sounds and includes jalapeño scrambled eggs, crispy potatoes, sour cream, cheese, pico de gallo and avocado.  The other one was a smoked chicken taco with scrambled eggs, smoked chicken, cheese, crispy potatoes and pico de gallo.  They went great with the watching the frogs and held us over almost all day.  The rest of their menu looks great as well. 

Silverado Brewing Company- This was also a repeat from last year, but is a good casual place to grab a bite at the end of the day.  It's a little out of the element in Napa, with lots of beers on tap and sports on every TV in the place (last year it was the World Series).  If you want something a little different from the usual upscale restaurant or wine bar and are up past St. Helena this is a good place to make a stop.

Brix Restaurant and Gardens- This was our very last place to eat in Napa and we headed there for Sunday brunch before going back to San Francisco.  They have a buffet for brunch, which I am typically leery of.  This is not because of anything having to do with sanitation, but mostly because BK and I NEVER get the value from them.  We typically split dishes when we eat out, so when you consider that you're paying to have multiple dishes, we just don't get there.  We came pretty close to getting the $40/per person out of it, mostly because of the gourmet food offered.  The spread included a seafood bar with raw oysters, grilled shrimp, smoked salmon and fire-roasted mussels; a bread, fruit and cheese bar; main dishes such as flatbread pizza, beef tenderloin and lots of fresh salads; breakfast dishes such as eggs benedict, the best breakfast potatoes I've ever had, pancakes and french toast; and best of all a dessert bar with lots of miniature sweets.  The restaurant had a great view of gardens and vineyards  and was a great way to end our culinary journey in Napa.