Napa Food Adventure: Cindy's Backstreet Kitchen, SolBar, Bouchon Bakery

Cindy's Backstreet Kitchen

I saw a bloomspot deal for $50 dinner at Cindy's for $25. Since we've never been and I had heard good things about this place, I decided to buy the coupon to use for our trip. I called in to make a reservation and we were able to secure a spot for an early dinner.

Cindy's Backstreet Kitchen is one of several restaurants owned by Cindy Pawlcyn, who also owns the famous Mustard's Grill in Napa. We've been to Mustard's Grill and enjoyed the food there, so we were hoping that we would also like Cindy's Backstreet Kitchen.

The restaurant was located in downtown St. Helena, a short drive from our inn in Calistoga. We were seated inside, although it would have been nice to get a table in the outside courtyard area.

We started off with the Papaya & Avocado salad which seemed to be one of their more popular items. This salad was so refreshing! I loved the combination of the sweet papaya with avocado, and the crunchy toasted hazelnuts. 

Papaya & Avocado Salad

We also ordered their famous polenta fries, which was also amazing. It's a bit more grainy than Frances' restaurant's version, but this was also delicious.

Polenta Fries

I ordered the special of the day which was the lobster carbonara. The spaghetti was cooked perfectly al dente, and the creamy sauce was surprisingly not too heavy.

Lobster Carbonara

Dan ordered the mushroom tamales and he enjoyed it. The tomato-based sauce worked well with the corn tamale and mushroom topping.

Mushroom Tamale

For dessert, we had to do the famous Campfire Pie. It was an oreo crust pie with chocolate and marshmallow. Yum! We surprisingly almost finished this huge dessert.. My friend told me she shared this with 7 other people...haha. I guess Dan & I can finish what a group of 8 can.

Campfire Pie

SolBar

I had heard a lot of great things about SolBar, especially their ricotta pancake for breakfast! However, since we had breakfast included with our B&B stay, we came during lunch time.

 Since the weather was so nice, we asked to be seated outside in the patio area which was shaded.

We started with Vietnamese lettuce wraps which was simple and refreshing for a hot day!

Lettuce Wrap

For our main, we ordered the fish tacos. It was good but nothing out-of-this-world.

Fish Taco

Overall the food was good, but we were a bit disappointed. Maybe because we knew that SolBar was a 1 Michelin star restaurant, we were expecting more. It could very well be that lunch was not their specialty; maybe their breakfast or dinner would have been a better choice.

Bouchon Bakery

To finish off our day full of eating, we made a quick stop at Bouchon bakery in Yountville for their famous macaroons and iced cappuccino which was perfect for the hot day!!

Bouchon

Castello di Amorosa

I had heard a lot about Castello di Amorosa and was really looking forward to finally visiting the "Castle of Love". The castle happens to be in Calistoga, which was where we were staying. We went on a Monday, so it wasn't really crowded. As soon as we walk passed the entrance, we were directed to the ticketing booth.

General admission was $18 which included wine tasting and self tour of the castle. If you're not drinking, they have a "children's" admission which was $10 and included grape juice and self tour. There's also guided tour which was $33 per person. We decided to do the general admission for Dan and the children's admission for me since I wasn't planning on drinking.

We went up the stairs towards this viewing tower and saw this beautiful view from the top!

We then came back down and passed by the main courtyard.

The next area was the Great Room, which was beautifully painted with murals. I heard that sometimes they use this room for parties.

There's also a small theater where we could watch how they make their wines, etc. The last part of our self tour was the wine tasting, located down in the basement. I actually really enjoyed the grape juice & chocolate tasting, and was thankful that they had options for people who don't want to taste their wine. :)

Overall we're glad we went and finally got a chance to check out this beautiful property!

3 Year Anniversary Getaway: Chanric Inn

We have been to Napa many times, but have actually never stayed in the Calistoga area. Calistoga, which is known for its hot springs, has many resorts around that offer mud baths as well as hot springs access. For this particular trip, we were specifically looking for a B&B and were so happy to have found the perfect place for us: The Chanric Inn.

Chanric Inn - Calistoga

The Chanric Inn is a 3 story house located on the main road that runs through Calistoga. However, the house is located up the hill so we didn't really hear the street noise that much. We arrived at the Inn around 2PM and the check in area was at the main kitchen. I immediately loved the ambiance of the Inn and the gorgeous marble kitchen counter tops. Joel, the innkeeper/owner, introduced himself and gave us a quick tour.

There was a small fridge with complimentary drinks which included cold bottled water, sparking water, sodas, etc. He also offered us champagne to welcome us. He showed us the Nespresso machine which we could use at any time.

There was a small seating area to relax in, which then took us to the beautiful patio area.

Afterwards he showed us the pool area. Too bad we didn't bring our swimsuits, but it would have been nice to lounge around the pool.


We booked the Superior King with Shower C room and was assigned room #4, which was located up the stairs from the main floor. The room was a bit small but it was really nicely decorated. There was a king size bed and a small chair, closet, and a beautiful marble bathroom.


I told Dan when we buy our next house, I want our shower to be exactly like this one!

There were 4 rooms upstairs and a couple rooms downstairs from the main floor. I didn't mind the upstairs room although from what I could tell, all the upstairs rooms had slanted ceilings. So if you're very very tall, you might want to ask for one of the first floor rooms since I don't think those would have the slanted ceilings.

Overall we loved the look/feel/style of our room and knew we were in for a great time. We went to the patio area on the main floor and read books for a little bit.

At around 5:30 PM, there was complimentary wines and cheese hors d'oeuvres offered on the main floor. During our stay, the bites included bread with different "toppings" such as squash, broccoli, duck pate, etc. There was also cheese and walnuts, as well as red & white wine. It was definitely a nice snack to hold us over until dinner.

Afterwards we decided to head out and check out downtown Calistoga, since neither of us have been. The downtown area was pretty small, and looked a bit older compared to Napa/Sonoma downtowns. A lot of the stores were already closed by the time we got there, so we ended up just browsing through before we headed out for dinner at Cindy's Backstreet Kitchen.

Breakfast at the Inn was served from 8:30 AM-10:30 AM. We were not forced to eat in a big table with other guests, so we had a choice to only eat with our spouse/significant other. We were given a choice to sit inside or outside, and since the weather was really nice, we sat outside.



Joel served us and started with fresh honeydew & orange juice, a glass of water, and a choice of coffee/tea. Then we were served warm croissant rolls. Yum!

The first course was an apricot gelle, which tasted like dessert to us. It was pretty good although very very sweet.


The second course was a toast with gruyere cheese, fresh tomatoes, and pesto. It tasted like a breakfast pizza to me. Pretty good but a bit on the salty side.


The last course was berries crumble, which again felt like a dessert dish.


All the food was presented beautifully and it was a nice & relaxing breakfast.

I think a really big draw of staying in a B&B is how relaxing it is compared to staying in a hotel. Dan & I felt a lot more relaxed than when we stay at a regular hotel. The only "downside" was that there's no TV in the room, so if that's important for you, that's something to consider. The breakfast is also a very big draw, as it does make a big part of staying in a B&B. We only stayed for one night but we both felt very refreshed and relaxed, and would highly recommend this Inn.

3 Year Anniversary Getaway: Introduction

We wanted to do a quick one night getaway to celebrate our anniversary, and I had been researching some possible options in the Napa/Sonoma area. I originally wanted to try out the Solage Calistoga resort after hearing about it from a friend of mine. However, I couldn't justify the hefty price tag since they currently didn't have any specials. Dan suggested staying at a Bed and Breakfast (B&B) instead, so I started looking around.

We had stayed at a B&B before during our trip to Mendocino, as well as South Africa, and loved the experience. I wanted to stay at a nicer one though this time around, and preferred not to stay at an older Victorian style house which are what most B&B's look like.

I went to my usual research tool, Trip Advisor, started looking around, and came across a B&B called the Chanric Inn. The reviews looked great, and what sold me was that the place was just recently renovated and had just reopened in April 2013. I looked at some of the renovation pictures and the Inn fit exactly what I was looking for. It was a bit pricier than a typical B&B, but I guess you do get what you pay for. We ended up booking directly with the Inn.

Beautiful Castello di Amorosa

We didn't plan any activities per se since the purpose of the trip was to "relax", but I told Dan that I really wanted to visit the castle in Calistoga: "Castello di Amorosa" since I've heard about it so much. So that was our only "activity" during our getaway.

For food, we didn't want to do the typical fine dining and wanted something more casual and somewhere we both had never been before. I had a Bloomspot coupon for Cindy's Backstreet Kitchen which worked out perfectly, and for lunch the next day, we went to SolBar, which was at the Solage resort.

Here's the breakdown of our trip:
Introduction
Chanric Inn
Castello di Amorosa
Food Adventure: Cindy's Backstreet Kitchen, SolBar, Model Bakery, Bouchon Bakery

Fried Chicken at Addendum

I have always wanted to try the fried chicken dish at Ad Hoc, which is one of Thomas Keller's restaurants in the Napa Valley. However, they only serve the fried chicken every other Monday, and reservations are quite hard to get. My friend told me about this fried chicken shack behind Ad Hoc called Addendum, also owned by Thomas Keller. It seemed like a really good alternative, especially considering the more affordable price and that I would not need to make any reservations.

Dan's parents live pretty close to Napa, so on our last visit to their place we took a day trip to Napa and finally made our way to Addendum. The shack only opens from Thursday to Saturday, 11 AM to 2 PM. We were a bit worried about the long lines, so we came a little bit after 11--there was a short line already, but not too bad and it moved pretty quickly.

The shack was located behind Ad Hoc's parking lot. There's a mini-garden area surrounded by picnic benches and trees; it's actually quite a cute area. I also really appreciated the shade! Napa weather can be quite hot during the summer, and even though I like to be outside, I can't be out in the sun for too long. It was nice to be able to sit in the shade.



There's only two items on the menu: BBQ pork or the famous fried chicken. We knew that the fried chicken is what people would recommend getting, which we did, but we didn't know if we could eat two orders of fried chicken. So we ordered one of each. Each dish cost $16.50 and comes with two sides that change periodically. During our visit the side dishes were boiled potato salad and corn succotash. We also ordered the Hoc Pop for dessert. Our total bill was about $40 (not including drinks - since we brought our own), which was quite pricey for a picnic lunch. But considering the fried chicken dinner at Ad Hoc is $52 per person before tip and tax, this was definitely a great and (relatively) more affordable alternative.



We sat at one of the shaded picnic benches and waited for our food to come. There's a runner who brings out the order in recyclable bag and containers. I think it took around 20 minutes for the food to come. You can also call in advance if you are in a hurry and they can have the food ready for you.

We were really looking forward to finally trying the famous fried chicken, and I was a bit worried that it would not meet my high expectation. After all, it's just fried chicken. I took one bite, and I understood what they hype was all about. The skin was breaded perfectly and was crunchy, but the inside was very juicy and moist. I didn't even notice that it was actually white meat because it was very very moist. There was also a slight saltiness from the skin, which balanced out perfectly with the yummy cornbread.

 

While I was monopolizing the fried chicken, Dan started to eat the BBQ dish--pork short ribs, which was also served with corn bread. He really enjoyed the ribs. I liked it too; the meat was definitely very moist, but I prefer my rib with wet BBQ sauce. This particular one was a dry rub, so I didn't feel it was super tasty and a bit mild for my taste.

  

Both the side dishes were quite good. They were very simple but good dishes and the perfect accompaniment for our picnic lunch.

 

The portion size was quite generous. I think ordering one of each was a tad too much for us (although we still managed to finish).

We picked up our hoc pop dessert, which was their homemade push pop. I think it was pineapple coconut. It was very mild and actually not too sweet. We both felt the hoc pop was just ok and for $5, quite pricey. But again, this is Napa. :)

  

Overall we had a really enjoyable picnic lunch at Addendum and would highly recommend it. Be prepared to spend about $50 for a two person meal. We were there in the summer and the lines were not bad at all. If you have always wanted to try Ad Hoc's fried chicken but haven't been able to get reservations, come here instead!

My 30th Birthday Celebration

For my 30th birthday, Dan and I went to Napa for a short weekend birthday trip.  Our plan was to have dinner on Friday, stay for 1 night, and then have a spa day on Saturday.

30 is the new 20! :)

The first thing we did was to book a table for dinner at French Laundry. Once we were able to confirm the date, we booked our stay at the Hyatt Avia Napa.

When I was researching for spas, I saw a deal on Travelzoo for a spa package at the Napa Valley Marriott-- the deal was pretty good and that was the last missing piece I needed for our trip :)

After booking and confirming, we were set to go!

This Trip Report is broken into three separate separate sections:

1. Our accommodation: Hyatt Avia Napa
2. French Laundry Dinner
3. Spa Day at the Napa Valley Marriott

Enjoy and feel free to drop a note if you have any questions!

Hyatt Avia Napa

Hotel sign

I heard about this hotel from a friend of mine who stayed there and raved about it. As usual,  I checked out the pictures and reviews on Trip Advisor, and this hotel got really good ratings! The price was quite reasonable (around $160-$250) for the Napa area, and I LOVED the modern style of the hotel. This hotel had just recently been acquired by Hyatt, previously the name was just "Avia Napa." Even though this hotel was now technically a Hyatt hotel, we didn't really feel like we were staying in a chain hotel. The hotel still retained a lot of its "boutique" feel which we liked.

Avia Hotel - Napa

The hotel is located in downtown Napa. We have been to Napa a number of times, but surprisingly haven't been to this area of town. The hotel is on a quiet street area, across shops and restaurants. It was nice to be able to walk around and check out downtown Napa from our hotel.

Quiet street in downtown Napa, across from the hotel

One thing to note, we thought that the parking was valet only ($15/night). We had a lot of luggage for our 1 night stay :p so decided to valet. On the second day did we realize that we could have actually self parked at the parking garage in the back for free.

The lobby area was quite small but the design was very nice: rustic and modern.

Hotel Lobby

Hallway

Breakfast area

We booked the hotel via hotels.com and after reading many reviews on Trip Advisor, we splurged and booked the Master Tub Suite. The Master Tub Suite had a separate living room area, as well as a HUGE tub. :) The room was quite spacious, and there were actually 2 flat screen TVs (one in the living room and another one in the bedroom).

Living Room seating area

Second flatscreen TV and the fireplace

The bedroom area was beautiful! There was a HUGE tub to the side of the room, which was very unique and so lovely!

Beautiful bedroom with HUGE tub

The tub was GIGANTIC! If we ever build our own house, I would want a tub like that! The bathroom area was also really spacious, with a separate shower area and dual his/her sinks.

 

Clean, modern bathroom

There wasn't a swimming pool in this hotel, which I thought was a little surprising. But we didn't mind since we only stayed for one night. Their evening turndown service was a nice touch, which included 2 free bottled waters and mini chocolates.

The hotel also provided free drinks/appetizers in the lobby area from 5:30-7:00 PM nightly as well as free chair massages. How awesome is that? Unfortunately, we were not able to participate since we had early dinner reservations at 5:30 PM.

Overall we LOVED this hotel and would definitely consider staying here again in the future.