Looking for the best bang for my buck in Napa. Favorable corkage policy a plus. Not looking for French Laundry, etc. but a more affordable option with fantastic food. Not cheap, but not rich.
I think Ciccio and Bistro Jeanty in Yountville are worth looking into. Really enjoyed both places about a year ago and preferred both to Bouchon. Not sure on their corkage policies though.
http://www.trancassteakhouse.com
http://www.gracestable.net
http://www.ilpostonapa.com
http://pastapregonapa.com/
http://www.normanrosenapa.com/restaurant.html
Rutherford Grill
Cindy’s Backstreet Kitchen
Randy, is this according to you?
Redd and it’s more informal sibling Redd Wood in Yountville.
Farmstead in St Helena- great food, reasonable prices, nice bustling ambiance, decent wine list and good craft cocktails if your palate is in need of a rest from the vino…
^ ^ ^ This.
Corkage is $5/bottle, money donated to charity. Food is very good.
Rule of thumb: City of Napa medium prices. Yountville, add 30%, St. Helena 40%, Calistoga 30%.
Jeanty for the holy grail of tomato bisque with puff pastry top.
Bank Bar for the Duck burger with foie to die and go to heaven.
Two of the best things ever.
Cook.
And I will 3rd Farmstead.
Thanks for all of the feedback. We are going with Farmstead, and bring a couple of bottles to drink with dinner (1996 Bryant Family and 1990 Opus One).
We plan to cook the other two nights, but I promised the family we would eat out the first and last night!
The biscuits and crispy potatoes are my favorites, definitely try those.
I don’t care for the biscuit sandwiches, just straight up.
Also booked Jeanty for lunch…couldn’t help myself!
- 1 on Farmstead.
Another corkage friendly spot for people worth checking out is Two Birds / One Stone
Free corkage on your first bottle of Napa wine (I think Sonoma, too). I’m not sure what the 2nd bottle is. They also have some reasonably priced wines on the list. Kevin Reilly, MS, works the floor and Doug Keane (Cyrus) is in the kitchen.
Really enjoyed Farmstead in November. Almost always hit Jeanty. Good calls both…
JD
Have eaten there (Redd) 3 times now. Two were pretty good, but the last time was a disappointment. That, and the kind of cold, stark, dark interior have me taking it off my list of Napa valley restaurants.
Another vote for Bistro Jeanty.