Restaurant Recipes
Porcini Chestnut Soup
Restaurant: A.R. Valentien | San Diego
This delicious soup provides a brilliant harmony of the rich, timeless flavors of chestnuts, sherry and porcini. As always, this dish works best with fresh ingredients. A lighter bodied pinot noir would make an ideal wine pairing for this ambrosial treat.Chicken Ranch Wrap
Restaurant: Redfield's Sports Bar | San Diego
Ordinarily served with potato chips and a pickle spear, the Chicken Ranch Wrap is light yet tasty dish and a great lunch choice for hungry patrons. The chicken is matched with crispy bacon, sliced avocado, a medley of vegetables, and topped with ranch dressing. Easy to make and to devour, the Chicken Ranch Wrap is an ideal candidate for people that want to make a quick yet delicious bit to eat.Tuna Tartare Tower
Restaurant: Truluck's | San Diego
Standing proud with five colorful layers, the Tuna Tartare Tower makes for an impressive spectacle, and an even more delicious appetizer. With Asian undertones and light, fruity notes, the fresh crab and tuna mingle together in a blissful fusion of the senses. To top it off, use some crackly shrimp chips for dipping and sit back and enjoy your masterpiece!Cauliflower Salad with Olives and Capers
Restaurant: Chez Panisse | San Francisco Bay Area
This recipe comes from Alice Waters' cookbook, The Art of Simple Food and, as it says there, makes an exciting salad for the middle of winter when more typical salad ingredients might be hard to find.Spicy Ahi Tower
Restaurant: Lido di Manhattan | Los Angeles
Perfect for summer, this appetizer is extremely easy to make, but is nonetheless bound to impress your dinner guests with its attractive presentation. Featuring Californian, Asian, French, and Italian influences, it's a firm favorite on the Lido menu.Maine Lobster Two Ways
Restaurant: Arterra | San Diego
Maine Lobster Two Ways presents a unique duo of lobster dishes on the same plate. The presentation is stunningly elegant: hot Poached Lobster with Satsuma Orange Essence on a bed of fennel puree with caramelized pearl onions, edamame, and baby carrots sits alongside a cold Salad of Lobster with creamy ginger dressing, petit arugula and fennel, with Satsuma orange segments. Quality ingredients, careful presentation, and close attention to detail—the fennel and Satsuma orange both appear in each dish, tying them together—make this dish an impressive feat. While an ambitious dish for a home cook, it is certainly doable, and more than rewarding when served.Steamed Mussels with Salsa Verde
Restaurant: Roseville | San Diego
This refreshing appetizer activates the palate, combining fresh herbs and a zesty salsa with the salty oceanic flavors of mussels to make a dish that is hard to resist. Add a crusty baguette and a side salad and this dish is transformed into an amply filling main course for two.Coriander Crusted Mahi-Mahi