The Restaurant At Meadowood

An elegant and incredible dining experience. The creativity, presentation, hospitality, and overall atmosphere was an absolute delight and left a memorable impression. I can’t wait to return!

We had dinner inside the kitchen and got to see the disciplined team work and skilled chefs working side-by-side. The best part was perhaps actually engaging with the waiters and cooks as they were all stellar people with interesting backgrounds. We had fun conversations alongside excellent food. The atmosphere of having dinner inside the kitchen is special and I've only done this at Alexander Steakhouse before in the past when they were still doing it. Head and sous are also very involved with their craft, was totally involved the whole time with perfecting each dish... Would definitely recommend due to fine dining and service.

The definition of a 3-star Michelin is "exceptional cuisine that is worth a special journey". Unfortunately the Spring '19 menu did not meet this high bar, and it is with some consternation that I write this less-than-perfect review, because our experience here was quite wonderful. So let's begin with all that the Restaurant had done right -- the ambiance, the location, and especially the SERVICE. The Restaurant at Meadowood is itself nestled within the resort, up a short but scenic tree-lined drive. The gate man, the valet, the host were all very friendly and attentive, and we were promptly ushered into a calming and serene location -- exposed wood, solid stone, leather chairs, perfectly placed lighting, Zalto glasses, and even a faux tree. The service staff was superb, wonderful (but also appropriate) wine recommendations by the Somm, followed by a consistent and delicate dance of 6 plates hitting the table within 10 seconds during each of the 16+ times they were served and subsequently cleared -- mesmerizing to watch. Also important, taxes and gratuity are included (and the staff helpfully mentioned this again at the end of the meal), saves one from the anxiety and mental gymnastics of calculating a living wage subsidy, guilty of not doing it properly, or the regret of overdoing it. TL;DR: this place was fancy a-f, and tasteful at it. But alas, the crux of Michelin's guide (which navigated us here), is one based in cuisine, and the majority of the dishes left something to be desired. The theme, for the Spring '19 menu, is likely one rooted in ingredients, farm-to-table, hyper-local, [insert buzzword], there is no presentation, no flair, no frills, no pizzazz -- which is something we have grown accustomed to with Michelin "destinations" -- a Disneyland for your mouth; a Broadway play for your palate. This ... was much more simple. Perhaps zen? Prior to the meal, a basket of fresh vegetables was brought out -- perhaps the same that went into our dishes? We were not sure. On asking why the asparagus is white, the presenter just rehearsed the same line (but I Googled it -- it was because it was sun/chlorophyll deprived -- by growing completely submerged in soil or covering with a tarp, the result is a more fibrous and milder ... asparagus). The dishes were brought out one by one, properly spaced, interjected with the few bottles of aptly paired wines we had ordered. However, few were particularly memorable: 1. the salad roll tasted... green; 2. the baby potatoes tasted... like my garden potatoes; 3. the beignet chestnut had a good texture; 4. the miso oyster nasturtium (a perennial weed) was fresh; 5. the white asparagus was cooked and chilled to perfection, the pacific rock crab and wild onion flavorful; 6. the escabeche of broccoli clams tasted of al dente broccoli, and fine textured clams; 7. the caviar smoked tendon cultured butter sabayon was DELICIOUS, like a perfectly integrated red wine it just all melded together -- this was the single dish we probably came for; 8. abalone and cabbage, meh; 9. local sole cover crop, meh; 10. duck tea followed by pekin duck, had much better in Beijing, the risotto (specifically noted that it was made with CA rice! i.e. Cal-rose which accounts for more than 90% of rice consumed in the US?) was on the salty side and did not quite showcase the duck; 11. the slow cooked pork collar, interesting kohlrabi texture but taste was lacking; 12. black truffle veined blue cheese with beeswax pear and charter oak bread -- this screamed "lazy chef", the blue cheese completely overpowered any truffle aroma, olfactory or taste; 13. yogurt cultured with almond blossoms rhubarb sorrels - not sure what the almond flowers did for this dish, but the presentation was somewhat pretty, tasted like yogurt; 14. bay leaf ice cream with a chocolate ball over a bay leaf sprig - good and unique ice cream flavor, perfect texture; 15. last bites - cute box, but snacks were reminiscent of Asian grocery store knick knacks. In sum... good food? Yes. "Exceptional cuisine that is worth a special journey?" No.

For our 20th anniversary we chose 20 of the best restaurants in the Bay Area. Meadowood is clearly one of the best, but not 5 stars for both of us. Meadowood is definitely at the top end of high-end restaurants, and the man at the gate assumed we were heading to the grill when we pulled up in our 15-year-old Minivan for dinner. Certainly that was a safe assumption considering the cost of a meal here. Meadowood is exactly what you expect from a top quality restaurant. Everything about the experience is polished. After the meal we were even invited to tour the amazing kitchen and found out that you can have a special meal in there! We had a huge variety of dishes, many of which were the best of their kind among all the great restaurants we have been to. Like others have mentioned in their reviews the desserts are not quite up to par with the rest of the meal. The Oil Oil Pudding we had was great, but the candied garden was not special. Why not 5 stars? Certainly the meal and experience at the restaurant were 5 star quality, however my wife had severe stomach issues after the meal. She often had stomach issues after these large tasting menus, but this was beyond that. I had no issues at all, and the meal had so many different items that impossible to know what the problem was.

Attended their 12 Days of Christmas dinner on Day 7 with Chef Yoshi Takazawa from Japan. A fabulous Christmas gift to myself. Must try dinner experience if you are a foodie. Will definitely return to try their tasting menu. Some highlights below.