Monthly Archives: November 2016

Stonehouse Restaurant

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Hamachi and Uni

Steak Diane

Interior

Exterior

Entry

***** (5 stars)

The Stonehouse is a magical setting for dinner, one of the most romantic restaurants around, and the food is good, too.

After winding your way up to the resort, then winding your way to the valet, and finally winding your way up the stairs to the restaurant, you feel you are truly transported to another land. The original stone building serves as a lounge, and an adjoining added-on room with huge wood beams and a giant fireplace forms the romantic dining area. It’s a wonderful spot to sit near the fire on a cool evening. On warmer evenings, and outside area is canopied by thousands of tiny lights, and offers quieter acoustics.

The Hamachi and Uni appetizer is a wonderfully refreshing way to start. The house specialty is a classic Steak Diane, flamed tableside with brandy. The prime filet did not disappoint, and the reduction and sauteed mushrooms that accompanied it were sublime.

The extensive wine list offers both high-end local wines and international selections.

Service is professional without being stiff.

Stonehouse Restaurant
San Ysidro Ranch
900 San Ysidro Ln
Santa Barbara, CA 93108
(805) 565-1720
https://www.yelp.com/biz/stonehouse-restaurant-santa-barbara-2

The Mex Authentic

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Nachos Al pastor

Exterior

Interior

**** (4 stars)

Excellent service is the highlight of this nice sit down Mexican restaurant at the base of State Street.

The tortilla chips are authentic and obviously homemade, and the salsa is fresh and not terribly spicy.

We started with the Nachos Pastor, a loaded version of nachos the included beans, cheese, guacamole, sour cream, seeded raw jalapenos and pork pastor. It was delicious, however the two of us could only make our way halfway through it! So when I say “we started with” I also mean “we finished with”!

I’m looking forward to returnign and trying some of their other offerings.

The Mex Authentic
413 State St
Santa Barbara, CA 93101
(805) 845-6364
https://www.yelp.com/biz/the-mex-authentic-santa-barbara

Bella Vista

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Exterior

**** (4 stars)

Excellent outside dining setting amid the lush gardens of the Four Seasons Biltmore. The menu has a short but well thought out selection of Italian items. The Caesar salad was a bit weird, with broccoli and cauliflower, but the pastas were obviously homemade.

The inside dining is very noisy, with all hard surfaces and fairly bright lighting.

The wine list has a medium size selection of local wines, and more from other regions, but markups are very high.

Service was friendly and efficient.

Bella Vista
Four Seasons Resort
1260 Channel Dr
Santa Barbara, CA 93108
(805) 565-8237
https://www.yelp.com/biz/bella-vista-santa-barbara-4

Los Olivos Wine Merchant & Cafe

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Bacon cheeseburger

Flatbread

Interior

**** (4 stars)

This combination wine shop and cafe is where one of the best scenes in Sideways was filmed. They have an excellent selection of retail wines, focused on the surrounding area, at reasonable prices. Wine tastings are also available, and the central wine bar is a good place to have a glass of your favorite.

The cafe has excellent food. The hamburger is particularly good, especially loaded up with bacon, sauteed onions and your choice of cheese.

I’ve been a member of the wine club for many years, which I particularly like because every quarter you receive high-end wines from completely different wineries, so there is much more variety than in most clubs.

Los Olivos Wine Merchant & Cafe
2879 Grand Ave
Los Olivos, CA 93441
(805) 688-7265
https://www.yelp.com/biz/los-olivos-wine-merchant-and-cafe-los-olivos-4

Cask & Larder

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CL burger with cheddar

Crispy cauliflower

Grilled fish

Drinks

Menu

Exterior

Interior

*** (3 stars)

This is certainly a step up in the food available in the D terminal at MCO. Fans who remember the food at the Cask and Larder in Winter Park may be disappointed, but the food her is certainly above average for an airport.

The open atmosphere is sunny and pleasant, and spacious enough to feel like a bit of an oasis from the bustle of the gates. The menu focuses on Southern and barbecue, which means the only healthy choices are three salads and the grilled fish. I chose the latter. The fish was a nice piece of swordfish, which was a bit well done, but good. The accompanying rice was delicious. Zucchini and tomatoes were very overcooked.

We also tried the CL Burger. It was a generous two patties, and we opted for cheddar rather than blue cheese. The best thing were the crispy fries, well worth the extra three bucks.

Speaking of crispy, the Crispy Cauliflower wasn’t. It also wasn’t very good: a small, overpriced portion served in an oddly sweet sauce.

Service was friendly. The kitchen was pretty slow, considering there were few customers at 10:30 am, but it’s more a place to relax than somewhere for a quick bite.

I’ll go back, but I’ll stick with the burgers and BBQ.

Cask & Larder
1 Jeff Fuqua Blvd
Gates 100-129
Orlando, FL 32827
(321) 280-4200
https://www.yelp.com/biz/cask-and-larder-orlando