Sunday, February 16, 2020
Vacation day 1 of 3. Ran about half of Hoover Reservoir Virtual Run via Treadmill TV on YouTube. Breakfast: toasted sesame bagel with cream cheese, water. Packed for a short trip. Lunch at home with Patrick: leftover orecchiette with marinara sauce, leftover soup. Patrick also had brioche toast with butter. Patrick got a rental car from Turo and we drove to Glen Ellen. Checked in to room 15 at Gaige House + Ryokan for two nights. We enjoyed delicious complimentary cookies with hot tea, then rested in the room, unpacked, and explored the property. Drove to Yountville, arriving a bit early for our dinner reservation at Bistro Jeanty (707-944-0103, 6510 Washington St, Yountville). We walked in the area a bit then attempted and failed to get a drink nearby. (We arrived without enough time, and service was also too slow.) The line at Bouchon (or was it Bouchon Bakery?) was out the door—crazy. Bistro Jeanty was full and lively. Bottle of Evian ($7.5), Lumiere cocktail for Patrick ($14), Hemingway daiquiri for me ($13). We shared: quenelles de brochet (pike dumplings with lobster sauce, $16.50) and salade Lyonnaise (escarole with a soft-boiled egg and a warm apple-smoked-bacon vinaigrette). Patrick had filet au poivre (8 ounces of tournedos with a black pepper crust, mashed potatoes, haricots verts, and a creamy mushroom sauce, $48) with a glass of 2018 Paradigm rosé of merlot ($19). I had entrecote frites (12-ounce prime rib-eye steak with french fries and berneaise, $39.00) with a glass of (off-menu?) Hall cabernet ($25). For dessert we shared a chocolate mousse brulée ($10.50). Patrick had a double espresso with dessert ($4.50). $228.16 before a $40 tip for Josh, whose service was very good. We enjoyed our meal very much. Neither of us had had anything like the pike dumplings before, and we enjoyed them. We found the warm vinaigrette on the salad was an atypical and perfect dressing. We both enjoyed our entrees. For both dishes the meat temperatures we requested were exactly correct. I was unable to finish my entrecote. The fries are about 3/8" cut and were served with ketchup and a horseradishy-mayoey dipping sauce. For the drive to and from Yountville, Waze failed us because it required an internet connection, which was very weak in these parts. Google Maps took us along the route with the shortest time which was also through very windy roads—Trinity Road, Dry Creek Road, Oakville Grade Road—which we regretted by the end of the night because it was more effort as well as more risk, especially at night.