Category Napa

TraVigne- St. Helena, CA

On our last trip to Napa, we stopped in for a late dinner at TraVigne. It had been a long day of travel, tastings, and negotiations. Italian sounded like a good food choice…some comfort food and good glass a wine that you can actually enjoy instead of spitting out. The surroundings are gorgeous and while the entrees didn’t quite live up to my expectation of Italian comfort food, the desserts definitely helped all of us unwind from our work-mode funk.

TraVigne has the most amazing outdoor space, but it was a bit chilly the evening we were there, so we opted for indoor seating. The stone patio softly glows with the warm round hanging bulbs...

Press- St. Helena, California

As far as distinct Napa scenery, it doesn’t get any better than Press. The long line of open windows on the back wall let in the most amazing breeze and really give an outdoor feel to the plush inside setting. I really got the feeling of being on “vacation” while sitting at my table. We have been fans of Brian Flannery for some time now. Press just happens to feature Flannery Beef in their menu. Everyone likes their meat cooked a different way, but Flannery Beef is melt-in-your-mouth worthy at any temp.

As you may have read in previous postings, we have staple dishes that we enjoy at steakhouses. The chopped salad definitely made our order...

The French Laundry- Yountville, California

Anthony Bourdain calls it, “The best restaurant in the world, period.” But this is the man that also despises Alinea. This is also a man that can get into the place with just his name. Others, however, may have a more difficult time. We were planning a trip to Napa in May. We started calling in February. Of course, we couldn’t get it in. Thankfully, the week before our trip, a friend of a very good friend was able to get us in. It was the first time for our entire group of five and enthusiastic wouldn’t even begin to describe us. We were telling everyone we knew that we were finally going to experience the elusive and notorious French Laundry!

The 1900 historic building is completely unassuming, but we still took twenty pictures in front...

Mustard’s Grill – Napa, California

Napa was the most surprising of all wine trips. We are so accustomed to being enveloped in warm hospitality when visiting other countries that the coolness of Napa was a bit off-putting at first. Everyone here is the in wine business. Everyone here makes wine. And everyone wants you to pay big time for that wine…even when it isn’t very good.

The food is no different. However, just as there are exceptional people with outstanding product that Timeless Wines proudly features in their portfolio, there are restaurants that rise above the dim in the Napa Valley. Mustard’s represents everything that Napa should be: fresh product, quality production, layers of flavors, and all wrapped up in a comfortable, down-to-earth vibe.

Our waitress was born and...