Meadowood

Amuse Buche - Potato Puree

The 2011 Michelin Guide recently upgraded Chef Christopher Kostow's Restaurant at Meadowood to a three star establishment, joining the likes of The French Laundry. It has been eight months since we dined there, but from my memory did it meet the caliber of TFL? I pulled our the menu and started to think back about out meal. My first impression of the dining room was that it was tiny, especially compared to the other upper echelon restaurants in Northern CA (TFL, Manresa, Coi and Cyrus) but their kitchen was surprisingly large. Another note was the interior was extremely dim, making picture taking a bit difficult. 

We started off with three amuse buche offerings, starting with a small puff cracker, 'pretty ordinary,' fresh baby radishes from the garden, 'crunchy and fresh,' and the potato puree (shown above) with a small teaspoon of caviar, exquisite and superb. In fact, this dish was one of my fav of the entire meal, an appealing texture combined with a distinctive, creamy, rich flavor.

Waygu Beef Cured in Meadowood Pine, Hamachi, Scandinavian Flavors

The waygu carpaccio with hamachi was a combination of two of my favorite items so I was pretty excited when I saw it on the menu. However, I'm not sure if it was the combination of the surf and turf that was off or the Scandinavian flavors, still not sure what that is, but I just didn't like the flavor profile of this offering. It was just one of those misses in my mind.

Black Truffle Broth, Sweetbread Cannelloni, Puffed Farro, Miaitake Mushroom

The next dish was more successful, a rich mixture of sweetbreads delivered in cannelloni form with a luscious black truffle broth. Opposite to the last dish, I wasn't very excited about seeing this item on the menu, but was pleasantly surprised.  

Lobster Roasted in Lime Salt, Squash, Apple, Vaduvan

Unfortunately I felt that the curry like flavors overpowered the sweetness of the lobster. Not a bad dish, but was hoping for more on this one.

Goat Poached in Whey, Vineyard Greens, Barley, Olio Nuovo

Again, the goat was not something I was excited about initially, but ended up being the crown jewel of the entire evening. Later I'd learn that this is a signature dish of chef Kostow. Delicate and tender, it tasted natural, as if we were sitting in the middle of a hillside goat-inhabited field and integrating each of those flavors of that environment, simply unlike any goat I've had in my life. 

Slow Cooked Squab, Carrot

In all honesty, I don't remember the flavors of the slow cook squab with carrot too well, but it was beautifully presented.

Fois Gras, Cocoa Nib

The Fois Gras with cocoa nib was fine, but not up to the caliber to that of TFL. 

Stilton Cheesecake, White Port, Dried Cherries, Hazelnut

The Stinton Cheesecake was one of the best cheese courses I've ever had. I just really appreciated the unique approach to this course and the cheesecake itself was rich, creamy with depths of flavor.

Green Apple and Ginger Sherbert,, Mint Snow

White Chocolate and Fois Gras Ganache

The two desserts were solid, but again nothing memorable or earth shattering that we haven't had before.

Truffles

In the kitchen

We finished the night with a pair of truffles and a trip to the kitchen. We did not meet chef Kostow that night and might be the reason things were good but not great. Out of the entire meal, I came across 3 really good dishes (potato amuse, goat, cheesecake), and a handful of solid ones. To me, that wasn't enough to make it one of my top five most memorable meals. Truth be told, I was expecting a lot more, which could also be a reason for my disappointment. It was a good meal all around, but for a restaurant that just got placed into the same category as TFL, I don't think it met expectations. The Michelin folks said they dined at Meadowood 6 times in 2010 before making the decision to move it up to three stars which in my mind means they probably were there within the same month I was. Maybe I got unlucky with chef Kostow absence that night and a new waitress who was still learning the menu (she had multiple follies throughout the night). I would give Meadowood another try, but with the additional publicity, it might be tougher to snag a reservation. For the time being, I hope others who are enjoying a meal from chef Kostow feel like its up to caliber as one the best restaurants in California.


Rating 7.5/10
February 6, 2010