- Image by ChrissyMorin via Flickr
We’re taking advantage of a trip to VMworld in San Francisco to spend some time in the California wine country. It’s really beautiful out here but the temperatures have been really, really hot. We did the usual wine tours and had a nice time but the real highlight so far has been the restaurants. We’re capping the trip off with a visit to the French Laundry this evening, which should be great but every where we’ve eaten in and around Yountville has been superb.
Meal number one was lunch at Bistro Jeanty, a really nice little French Restaurant right up the street from our hotel. We liked it so much we had dinner there the next night as well. We also had a very enjoyable meal at Ad Hoc, another of Thomas Kellers wonderful restaurants. He has at least three different places in Yountville and we ate at two of them. The value of Ad Hoc was amazing, a very nice Pre-Fix dinner for around $50 per person.
One of the great finds of the trip was in St. Helena, just north of Yountville. We had been out touring Vineyards and were looking for a place to grab lunch. The entire town was packed so we parked 2 blocks off the main drag, in a spot that said “Parking for Cindy’s Backstreet Kitchen Only”. We were starved so we decided to eat there, only because there was a parking lot. It was a magical lunch and it turns out that the owner has multiple well regarded restaurants in the area. The following information is from their website:
Located in charming downtown St. Helena, in the heart of the Napa Valley, Cindy’s Backstreet Kitchen combines the sophistication of a supper club with the flair of a speakeasy to create the perfect upscale eatery and neighborhood hang-out.
Created by Cindy Pawlcyn, the James Beard Award-winning cookbook author, chef-owner of Napa Valley’s Mustards Grill and Go Fish and co-creator of many renowned Bay Area restaurants (including Fog City Diner, Bix, Roti, Tra Vigne and Buckeye Roadhouse), Cindy’s Backstreet Kitchen first opened its doors in 2003. Since then, the restaurant has become a beloved destination for locals and visitors alike, featuring a menu where the food is delicious, heartfelt and cooked from scratch with authentic highest quality ingredients. The service is unpretentious and warm, and the atmosphere is festive and comfortable.
You’ve got to love being in place where every restaurant you walk out of leaves you with fond memories and a smile on your face. Can’t wait to get to the French Laundry tonight.
