The Hobbit

Wednesday, September 25, 2013

Tonight 7 of us went to the Hobbit in the city of Orange for dinner. This place has been around for a long time. A converted old two story house with prixe fixe dinning. Today was one of the few days that they have no corkage. Normally it is $25 for the first bottle and $35 for the second with a 2 bottle maximum at the table. The Hobbit has a extensive wine cellars with high prices to match.

I rode with CJ and we made it from my house to the restaurant in 25 minutes by taking the carpool lane. We passed at least 3 miles of stopped cars on the freeway. This was a 6:00 pm in work traffic.

Upon arrival they took our wines to open and chill while we went upstairs to the bar / lounge area. The bedrooms have been converted for this. I will say that my cocktail was made very well. I ordered a Sidecar and CJ had a single malt scotch The rest of our party showed up and we saw an acquaintance from the Wine Country who unfortunately did not know it was no corkage night,

At 7:00 we were ushered downstairs into the wine cellar for champagne and appetizers. Had to be careful not to over indulge on the goodies. They were all excellent. People were picking out their wines for dinner. I really have a hard time paying $110 for a bottle of wine that I have in my cellar that cost me $48. Maybe I am getting "frugal" in my old age.

After 30 minutes or so we were ushered back to the dining areas. We had a table in front of the fireplace with all our wines lined up on the mantle. Service was impeccable. Terry was asked what wine he wanted poured with each course. We started out with the Robert Moncuit Champagne I brought and the Roar Chadonnay. 

First course was a Cornmeal Encrusted Smoked Catfish with sauteed Mustard Greens & Creole Sauce. This was very good but personally I like the catfish at Nayada better.

Second course was a Roasted Duck Leg w/Braised Leek Risotto & Maderia Reduction. Excellent dish. Wines paired with this dish was a 07 Testarossa Gray's Vineyard Pinot Noir which I think was the wine of the night and 07 Paul Hobbs Cabernet Sauvignon.  A 87 Cedon Segur was opened but the bottle was corked.

Next came a Watermelon & Baby Mache with Peach Balsamic Vinaigrette. Helped clean the palate

We had a short intermission where we went outside for approximately 15 minutes with any glass of wine we had on the table. When we returned we sat down to a dish of sorbet and then the main course arrive.

 Cote de Boeuf with fresh horseradish. Excellent cut of meat, cooked perfectly, A 2003 Moncoenqut St Emilion Grand Cru  and a 1997 Domaine Lo Piphon, Clos Ves Bonnes Bunche

Dessert was outstanding. A Double Chocolate Lava Cake with Sea Salt & Bourbon Caramel & fresh berries. A Chateau de Leon, St. Lesdad, Loire, Chenin Blanc was paired with the dish. Both are excellent but I am not a sweet on sweet person. My take is serve a dessert wine with a cheese plate.

As for the spelling of the wines, I had a hard time writing with the pen I had, It kept skipping so the spelling may be a little off. But I think you can get the picture that we had had some excellent wines tonight.

Had a tour of the kitchen. The owner/chef is very accommodating. One of our party did not eat seafood so they had a substitute dish for her.  Like I indicated before service was impeccable. Delius's service is excellent but the Hobbit was over the top. My only complaint is the stairs. I take them one at a time and go down sideways. Going up is no problem but down is a killer on my knees.

Looking forward to the next time the Hobbit does no corkage. I noticed on the tables with 2 & 3 people they only had one bottle. Deep cellar, priced to high. But excellent food and service.