Epicurean Wine Dinner at Arte Cafe

Tuesday, October 9, 2018

This was the first "Epicurean" wine dinner that Arte Cafe in Cerritos has done.  Wines came out of the owner/chefs private cellar. It was priced at $140 plus tax & tip which made it very price. The wines were the deciding factor to do this dinner.  Dinner was limited to 30 people. Festival seating. I was the first in my group to get there so I picked seats on the end of the table. Good choice.

We started out with  appetizers, cantaloupe wrapped with prosciutto , Ahi tuna with aoili on a crisp and grilled shrimp.  Served with a Caymus sparkling Conundrum. They very very generous in the pours. My glass was filled at least 4 times. So far the start of dinner is good.

First course is a Stuffed Cabbage Wrap with garlic noodles and lobster. Unusual dish, very good flavor, loads of lobster. There was a white sauce over it but it could have been a bit thicker. Looked a little on the very thin side.  Paired with a 2106 Starmont Sauvignon Blanc. Nice well balanced wine and not to acidic. A good pairing.

Second course is a Pan Seared Diver Scallop  Buckwheat Blini . Scallops were cut in thin slices and stacked with the buckwheat blini. A dollop of caviar on top. Scallops were cooked perfectly. Richard has a way with seafood.  Wine is a 2013 Kistler, Sonoma Coast, Chardonnay.  Kistler is known for oaky chardonnays and this was right in there. A few sips with the scallop and the rest went into Doug's glass.

Third dish of the night is a Seared Duck Breast with Foie Gras Butter. Duck was cooked correctly and the butter was an excellent touch to the meat.Dinner so far has been excellent. A 2013 Kistler, Russian River, Pinot Noir was the wine.  A good wine and showing well for 5 years old.

Fourth Course is a Trio of Mixed Grill Ribeye with a trio of Cabernets.  USDA Certified Prime, Wagyu and 30 Day Prime Aged Dry.  I was so looking forward to this dish and I was so disappointed. The 30 day aged had the best flavor. But to take such beautiful beef and overcook them is a sin. Not only were the pieces thin but hardly any color except gray on the inside.  They meat was on one long plate and the second long plate was for the accompaniments. First they came around with mashed potatoes, then a second trip for the creamed spinach and a third trip for green beans. By time the beef came everything else was luke warm.  This dish and presentation were so far off. But the wines were good. A 1999 Napanook,  second label of Dominus, 2004 Stags Leap, Fay Vineyard and a 1996 Far Niente.  All quite good but the Far Niente was a show stopper.

Dessert is a House made fresh berry crepe with Grand Marnier cream. Light and a nice touch to a heavy meal.  Big mistake was serving it with a "Epicurean" Lowland Blended Scotch.  They picked this because of the name to go with the dinners name. Was not a good scotch. It was rough.

Pros and cons on this dinner. Wine was great. most of the dishes were also. Beef was not to my liking at all. Not sure if it was worth the money  compared to other wine dinners I do. Will have to really think about it if they do another. Richard is a genius with seafood, duck and lamb but he falls way short when it comes to beef.