better food for cheaper. ok, i'm not really going along with the majority and i have to explain why. when i give reviews i do it on a price/goodness ratio. as the price climbs, the food also has to match. while themealwas pretty darn tasty, i think i've had better food for cheaper and i've certainly had better food at this price level. so the ambiance is great. picture this: you park on this quaint little side street (that happens to be part of the oldest city in the us) right next to a tree lined plaza. so you wrap your arm around your date and stroll over to the casa monica, wherein lies the 95 cordova restaurant. old spanish and middle eastern decor makes the place dark, warm and inviting. the restaurant itself is quite cozy. the candlelight level brightness makes it that much more romatic. great setting. service is smooth, but not 5 star polished. they are a little too friendly and a little to slow. the menus are unique in that they are backlit so you can read them. it's an extensive list of just about whatever you could want. mostly, it's heavy european with a dash of some middle eastern flaovrs.
my choice started with the caesar salad which let me down. i use the caesar as a measuring stick. this chef, i could tell, was into heaviness and creams. the romaine was barely crisp (though not soggy) and warm. i believe it should be super crisp and chilled. the dressing was overdone (like they took newman's own) and dumped it on. there was no hint of anchovies or any cheese but parmesean. not a fantastic start. for entrees i started with the sea bass and the ginger and black pepper sea scallops. the sea bass was done well. it was crisply grilled with a light amount of caramelization across the top. they let the fish hold it's own with only light amounts of salt as the major flavor. it was moist, soft and flaky, as a sea bass should be. it's easy to make, so i would have really been surprised had it not been cooked well. it was plated over something, mashed potatoes and asparagus, but it's mundaneness makes it not memorable to me. the scallops were excellent. they were of large size, perfectly cooked and seasoned well. they were served with a fried vegetable eggroll which had seaweed, carrots and cabbage in it. an interesting pairing. as an additional side also tried the mac n' cheese. this was extrememely heavy and rich, with a light flavoring of truffle oil. one of the better creamy pasta dishes i've had anywhere. so definately a thumbs up for locale and ambiance. i do have to take off for the price though, considering the service was only average and the food while pretty good, had some hits and misses. to consider, i've had sea bass that was just as, if not better for $12 or less at other palces. not sure i'd return if visiting again.