bouchon

for our second wedding anniversary, my wife and i aren’t getting each other presents. instead, we’re channeling our resources into a series of “fancy” dinners in both yountville and los angeles. as “mildly” obsessed fans ofthomaskeller’s ad hoc, we thou

since we could not find reservations at french laundry, we wanted to eat atleast at bouchon bistro when we were in napa. for years i had watched videos of chefthomaskeller make the roast chicken. we made reservations to go there and have the roast chicken and more delicacies we had read in the cookbook. some we had tried making ourselves and some we wanted to try since they seemed daunting.

bouchon bistro
july 31, 2016

yountville, california

chef & ownerthomaskeller
chef de cuisine ross melling
pastry chef nicholas bonamico
general manager romuald crist
asst. general manager jared love
beverage director sean dawson

accolades:

-1 star, michelin guide
-3 stars, sf chronicle
-3.5 stars, santa rosa press democrat
-wine spectator award of excellence
-top 100 bay area restaurants, sf chronicle

review:
*shortened due to vacation*

pros:
-loved the fun and bustling atmosphere
-excellent service both from front to back of the house
-servers and managers make you feel very special
-gnudi had outstanding flavor and the australian black truffles were clear to be fresh and pungent
-loved the croquet madame and the truffle fries served alongside
-lemon tart had great flavor as well

cons:
-noisy

3/4 stars

⭐️ good
⭐️⭐️ very good
⭐️⭐️⭐️ excellent
⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️⭐️ world class

wonderful dining experience. outstanding food! i had high expectations for athomaskeller establishment, and bouchon did not disappoint. had bone marrow for the first time in my life and it was delicious; boyfriend and i had to use our bread to get all the sauce off the plate... steak and frites were fantastic (best fries ever), and dessert was a crowning glory to the meal. the ambience and scenery were added bonuses. the only reason i am not giving bouchon 5 stars is that i think our service could have been a little better for the quality level of the restaurant. still, the overall experience was excellent, and i will definitely be back.

bouchon is perhaps becoming a victim of its own success. the career defining french laundry has elevatedthomaskeller to such an elite status in the eyes of food enthusiasts that anything but perfection is viewed as a letdown. bouchon is everything it was meant to be, a casual restaurant that takes full advantage of its location and surroundings. this wasn't meant as a life altering restaurant, simply enjoy the food, it's pretty darn good.

after a full day of wine tasting all over napa, we settled in to dinner at bouchon, athomaskeller restaurant that i love. there’s a bouchon bakery in new york that ken and i go to all of the time, but their menu is limited compared to what this bouchon offers. we started off with their signature bread with a white bean dip and butter: my side of the table decided to share everything and order family style, so we started out with some beef tartare: and whitefish with a melange of vegetables: we shared some filet with fried onions: and the seasonal gnocchi: everything was delicious, so much so that we ordered another side of french fries, even though we had some with another dish:

very disappointing- we reserved bouchon for our last night in napa (saving the best for last..or so thought). our party of six left very disappointed. my boyfriend ordered the steak and frites, which i will admit, was amazing. as for everything else, extremely underwhelming. i was not impressed with the menu selections, but i thought, "this isthomaskeller's place! i'm sure anything i order will be unforgettable!" well it wasn't. i've had better meals from run-of-the-mill french restaurants not run by superstar chefs. i really regret not going back to tra vigne for my final meal (that place is phenomenal).

simply fantastic!. this was our first visit to the napa valley region and bouchon was at the top our list for places to eat. i made reservations a month ahead of time to make sure we had a table and i definitely expected a lot fromthomaskeller's world famous restaurant. luckily we were not disappointed!

the service was perfect... attentive, friendly, informative, but not over-bearing. the drinks were expertly prepared and refreshing. the food was amazingly delicious and certainly the highlight of the experience. the surroundings were not pretentious, but refined and inviting. we had the salmon rillette for an appetizer and it was lovely. our entree was the steak dijonnaise, which was the best cut of meat we have had in ages with a creamy and velvety sauce.

i'm not sure i will ever make it back to napa, but if i do bouchon will be my first stop before the wineries!

i was super excited to have the opportunity to eat at athomaskeller restaurant. i picked bouchon for the casual feel that it seemed to have. the 2 michelin stars was also very appealing. pistachio starters the pistachios were salty. just enough to get the palette geared up. it also came out with this unique braided bread, it was unique because it was thinly braided whereas most of the ones i've eaten are chunky thick breads. bread the bread was quite crunchy and tough to chew. but it was pretty good. duck confit the duck confit was tender on the inside and crispy on the outside. the texture was juicy and the dish had its innate duck taste. it came out on a celery puree. the celery actually enhanced the duck flavor. crispy soft shell crab the crispy soft shell crab was alright. we had heard it was a signature appetizer and so we had ordered it but was very similar to other soft shell crab dishes that i've had. lamb shan

ahhhh, let's be honest. bouchon is a little slice ofthomaskeller heaven, isn't it? i mean, could the place be any cuter? a little parisian bistro in the middle of idyllic yountville with a festive, welcoming atmosphere, none of the snootiness of the fr

following the micheline guide for san francisco bay area & wine country, we visited the recipient for 2011, bouchon restaurant in yountville.thomaskeller created bouchon as a traditional parisian bistro, a more casual version from the french laundry. wi

loved it!. went here with my husband on our honeymoon after a beautiful day in napa! this was the perfect ending for it. we sat outside on a perfect napa summer afternoon. we are both huge fans ofthomaskeller and had heard that bouchon wasn't amazing and we were better off going to chez panisse (which we also did- not so good service). this blew it out of the water for me. everything was delicious- get the charcuterie plate- and the service was fantastic. the only disappointment was that bouchon bakery was closed when we finished our meal. i was so looking forward to snagging some goodies for the drive home.

paris in yountville. with the same obsessive attention to detail as his nearby french laundry, chefthomaskeller has recreated the perfect parisian brasserie in the middle of napa valley. the dining room is vibrant, energetic and beautiful with shiny brass fixtures and tall vases of flowers. the oyster bar displays the freshest oysters, mussels and lobster which is served artfully on huge platters of ice and seaweed. as expected with all things keller, the food goes far beyond standard fare. old favorites as onion soup and lamb chops are elevated with finer nuances and elegant presentation. and be sure to stop by the bouchon bakery next door for some to-die-for french macaroons better than anything in paris.

the pf changs of french bistros.. if you go to bouchon, just know you can get the same stuff in vegas, beverly hills, and new york. it's a beautiful interior, and the food is okay, but there's nothing personal about it. the lamb shank was dry, and its sauce was fatty. the wine selection is conventional, and the staff felt like it was made up of culinary students trying to let you know at every turn they work forthomaskeller. i kept wanting to tell them that it's a little silly to get snobby about trout amandine.


-----20 nov, 2009-----

refined classics. the trout with almonds is buttery and light. the oysters were fresh with a bright mignonette. didn't like lamb shank as they left the silver skin on and so it was bitter and the braising liquid was watery. the desserts are fine, but they're all just custards and things you could get anywhere. it's clearly a popular place as we waited almost an hour past our reservation time.

bouchon bistro is a restaurant started by chefthomaskeller who is behind the french laundry. they serve classic french bistro dishes such as croque madame (pictured above), mussels, steak tartare, and more. on the day i visited bouchon, i was absolutely