Enjoying downtown Napa

We spent the evening enjoying two fine Napa restaurants. Usually I’m perfectly satisfied with one meal but on this one evening we opted for two full course dinners at two different restaurants! First we popped into the new restaurant Charlie Palmer Steak at the Archer hotel but didn’t eat anything.

We then hit up Eiko’s on 1st Street, downtown Napa. This is a restaurant that specializes in authentic Japanese cuisine including seasonal dishes and fresh fish. There’s a nice vibe here that feels more like a big city – somewhere in Los Angeles or San Francisco rather than Napa. That’s not a bad thing.

A specialty are their liquid nitrogen hand crafted cocktails. We enjoyed one of the best Capiranhas outside of Brazil – it was blended rather than on the rocks. Piles of sashimi made their way to our table.

After filling up on sushi and sashimi we walked across the street to Oenotri. Again a good vibe. The large open kitchen takes up the entire back of the restaurant. Oenotri specializes in inspired Italian and fusion cuisine that changes daily (up to 40% of the menu changes every day or two). It is Napa after all and wine is never far from a meal. In this case we were joined by Samantha Sheehan who started Poe Wines in 2009. Her food friendly Chardonnay and Pinot Noir went well with the meal. While the main meal was outstanding the deserts took it to the next level. The highlight of this culinary experience was the Ricotta Panna Cotta with Mandarins and Napa Honeycomb. Check out a few mouth watering pictures below!

www.eikosnapa.com
www.oenotri.com
www.poewines.com