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Overall Ratings: *****

Overall Review:  Outstanding! Even as we were led through the many courses of the 3 hour meal, nothing ever felt harried or rushed.  The atmosphere was ever calm and soothing. Service at The French Laundry was superb. Staff members were professional, friendly, and well rounded.

Wine and water glasses, empty plates and cutlery were flawlessly added and removed by the wait staff. Spacing in between courses was well orchestrated, including a brief break.

Review Date:  November 28, 2006

Cuisine: The food is mainly contemporary American with French influences.

Alcohol:  Large wine list with wines ranging from $25 to $2500.

Corkage:  $50.00

Attire:  Dressy Business to Formal Dress

Location: The restaurant is located at Yountville just north of Napa and about a one and a half hour drive north of San Francisco. Located in the Napa Valley wine area of California.

Open Hours: 
Lunch: Saturday-Sunday
Dinner: Wednesday-Sunday

Handicapped access:  The first floor of the restaurant is handicapped accessible.

Parking:  Street parking

Price Range:  Very expensive - This meal was clearly the most I had ever spent on a meal in my life.

Reservations: Reservations required - A minimum of two months in advance. Securing reservations are difficult and frustrating, but the service and meal made up for it.


Rating Key Explanations:
* Bad (will never go back)

** Fair (below average - will not go back)

*** Good (would consider dining there again)

**** Very Good (will definitely go back)

***** Extraordinary (will be back as soon as possible)

I make every attempt to remain anonymous while reviewing each restaurant.  All meals are paid for by myself.  This way, I can report the most honest and trustworthy restaurant reviews possible. Other recognizable critics frequently get special food and service. I forgo any perks so that my restaurant experience will be similar to yours.

If you would like to add a review of this restaurant, email Linda Stradley. Also feel free to send me suggestions of restaurants for review.
 

 


The French Laundry
Owner and Executive Chef Thomas Keller


6640 Washington Street
Yountville, California, 94599

Map & Directions

Web Site: http://www.frenchlaundry.com/

Phone: 1-707-944-2380

 

 

The French Laundry restaurant has become an icon in the United States, and has spawned an empire for Thomas Keller. This restaurant is a legendary destination that people plan trips to California around, and that is just what we did. 


 Reservations:

This was my birthday dinner. When my husband asked what I wanted for my birthday, I said "Dinner at the French Laundry."

So, two months to the date, he got on the telephone and began the waiting saga. As we were still in the last stages of our grape harvest in Oregon, my husband called  me from our winery. He had gotten tired of holding and had other things to do. He handed the telephone to me and said, "take care of this if you want to go there."

Once I got a "live person," she was very nice and patient, as I didn't have my credit card with me. I told her it was in the house and that I was in the winery. She said that she would hold while I went and got it. She probably held on the telephone for approximately 5 to 7 minutes while I literally ran to the house and back. This was very nice as I didn't want to be put back in the waiting que again.

The Jacket That Went To Dinner:

A side note to this review is the saga of the jacket. Our dining partners, Ed and Roxanne Sienkiewicz arrived the day of the dinner reservations. Ed didn't think to bring a jacket (I actually forget to tell him about the jacket requirement). One of the guests, Kevin Baldwin of Jacksonville, FL, at the Inn in St. Helena we were staying at, generously loaned Ed his sports jacket. He was bigger than Ed, and the jacket looked like Ed was wearing his father's coat!

The dress code for the French Laundry says jackets required and ties optional. This requirement sounds like dressy casual and not formal wear for the men. As our men had on sports coats, they looked a little out of place, as the other men in the restaurant had on dark business suits. We were seated in the back corner of the restaurant. We felt we were hidden from site!

Kevin Baldwin, the gentlemen who loaned his sports jacket to Ed said, "At least my jacket dined at the French Laundry."
  

A simple, modest building stands on a quaint, unassuming Yountville block. If you didn't know about the French Laundry, you would have no idea that world-class food and dining was taking place inside. You enter through a little front courtyard area that is quiet and serene. The restaurant is divided into two floors with several adjoining rooms. We sat in the back corner of the downstairs dining room with 7 to 8 tables. The flower arrangements inside The French Laundry are fantastic.

Photos: I really did not find it appropriate to take photos; although I have a small camera. There were other tables near us, and servers everywhere, and I just couldn't take the photos. Besides, I was too busy enjoying this fabulous meal to take the time and patience to take photos. 

The signature "clothes pin" tribute to the restaurant's past as a French laundry house is on our napkins.

The menu was explained by our very knowledgeable waiter. There were two menus to choose from. One is the chef's tasting menu of nine (9) courses for a fixed price (prix fixe) of $210.00, and the other one was a vegetarian menu. The chef's tasting menu also has additional supplemental options involving foie gras or truffles that incur extra costs, from $30 to $60.

What we had for dinner:

Black Sesame Cornets of Atlantic Salmon Tartar with Red Onion Crème Fraiche - Soon after being seated, the first of two amuse bouche dishes appeared. A small cornmeal cone (looking just like a miniature ice cream cone) filled with a light red onion cream and topped with tiny scoops finely chopped salmon tartare (about the size of a melon ball). This was wonderful and was a perfect marriage of flavor (from the salmon), texture (the crunchy cone) and balance (the harmony between the salmon and the cream).

Gruyère Cheese Gougères - Our second amuse bouche were simple, traditional gougères. These were little bite-sized crisp pastries, filled with a creamy, warm, melted gruyère cheese. A simple and tasty opener.

Exquisite Oysters & Pearls, "Sabayon" of Parl Tapioca with Beau Soleil Oysters and White Sturgeon Caviar - A Nova Scotia oyster and Iranian Osetra caviar with creamy tapioca. It is hard to describe this wonderful dish, as it must be experienced to be believed. This dish consisted of a small bowl with a bed of pearl tapioca at the bottom, a few pieces of poached oyster meat resting on that, and caviar on top, surrounded by a pool of some kind of cream sauce. A complimentary glass of champagne is graciously offered.

Breads - The selection of breads first appeared with two kinds of butter: a house-salted European style in a round container and a sweet butter in a square. This was very tasty.

K & J Orchard Chestnut Soup, Glazed Celery Root, Pomegranate "Kernels" and Perigord Truffles - Roxanne said this was wonderful! As she had never tasted a soup with chestnuts, was was wondering how to make at home.

Carnaroli Risotto Biologico with Castellmagno Cheese and shaved White Truffles from Alba ($60 supplement for the truffles) - The ceremory surrounding the arrival of the while truffles was exquisite.  A waiter arrived with a large wooden box, which was ceremonially opened and shown to everyone at the table. The aroma was heavenly! Then a very generous amount of white truffles was shaved over the risotto. This dish was outstanding and well worth the extra price of the white truffles.

Tartare of Japanese Hamachi, Red Radishes, Young Cilantro, Haas Avocado Sorbet and Kendall Farm Creme Fraiche - The presentation was beautiful and the tartare was fantastic. Much detail is given to the presentation of every dish during this meal.

Sweet Butter-Poached Maine Lobster Mitts, Navel Orange Supremes, Toasted almonds, Fennel Bulb and Noilly Pratt Broth - The poached lobster was so tender that it "melted" in your mouth. Again presentation was spectacular.

Remainder of the meal.  I was too busy enjoying the presentation and the wonderful aromas and taste of the meal to have time to write anything more:

Sirloin of Devil's Gulch Ranch Rabbit, Wrapped in Applewood-Smoked Bacon with Sierra Beauty Apple "Pont Neuf." Sunchoke Coulis and Bearnaise Reduction.

Slow-Braised Roulelle De Tete De Cochon, Cassoulet of Autumn Pole Beans and Grain Mustard Sauce.

Snake River Farm Calotte De Boeuf Grillee, Yukon Gold Potato "Risolee," Wilted Pea Tendrils, Nantes, Carrots and Bordelaise Mignonette.

Mrs. Kirkham's Lancashire, Marinated Forest Mushrooms, Grilled Swiss Chard Ribs and Pedro Ximenez Essence.

Gros Michel Banana and Cranberry Sorbet, "Boule de Neige" Muscovado Cake and Roasted Banana Coulis.

Calice De Chocolate A LA Noisette, White Chocolate Granite, Hazelnut Sable and Praline Semifreddo.

An assortment of truffles and candies were presented at the end of the meal. They also send you home with a package of their shortbread cookies.

In spite of course after course of rich tasting dishes, I never felt overfull. The portions are fairly small, and some courses only amount to a couple of bites. The meat and fish courses are the larger. The meal worked nicely as it heightened the anticipation of the next course. By the end of the meal I was very full.