Hope you enjoyed my adventures in Napa part 1, now on to our dinner at Ad Hoc! This is the first time that I’ve stayed in Napa for dinner, my friends and I normally just do a day trip and head back into the city around dinner time. But this time we were thinking ahead and we managed to score a reservation at Ad Hoc! We had already been there earlier in the day to have the fried chicken at Addendum so we were all eager to go back again for dinner.
So after a nice day of wine tasting, we headed back to Ad Hoc.
The menu at Ad Hoc changes daily, based upon what is in season and what the chef decides would make the best menu! When you call to make your reservations they ask if anyone in your party has allergies, since the menu is pre fixe and it is served family style.
The menu comes to the table in a filing folder with a list of what you will be dining on as well as a good selection of wines chose by Thomas Keller himself. Here is the menu we dined on, the item in red was an additional add on of Steamed Clams that we decided to get as well.
I chose to get a soft Italian Red wine, which our waiter enthusiastically endorsed especially with what was on the menu for that night. We started with some bread from Bouchon (well I don’t know that for sure, but I’m assuming since he owns that bakery and it’s a block away that the bread came from there). You know you are heaven when the bread and butter make you swoon. The butter- sooooo good!
Then on to the salad course! Yummy arugula, fennel, endives, fennel, fried capers, pistachios and a creamy tarragon dressing. So refreshing and the fried capers in the salad were such a nice accent!
We of course opted in to get the clams, one of my most favorite dishes!
Then our main came, prosciutto wrapped chicken and shrimp that was served with grilled zucchini and a creamy polenta with roasted tomatoes. Such a simple dish but executed to perfection. The chicken was so moist and flavorful and I could not get enough of the polenta!
So yummy! One of the nice things about Ad Hoc is that they really take their time and let you enjoy each course as well as the company that you are in. Then they brought us out our cheese course was a nice mild white cheese that they served with honey, pulots and pumpkin seeds. Such a wonderful combination, I loved that cheese!
We finished the meal off with some tea and some really really well brewed coffee. One of the best things about this meal is that Ad Hoc knows that when it comes to certain dishes, it’s best not to share… Even though the rest of the meal is served family style, desserts are served individual! Yay!
A griddled piece of cornbread (amazing) that was served with a caramel sauce and blackberry compote and topped off with a vanilla scoop of ice cream and candied cashews! So good, I need to figure out how to do the griddled cornbread!
This meal was great! I can’t wait to go back to Napa and try another great place. On my list to try is Bottega, Morimoto and another one that my friend mentioned. I’m thinking of creating a specific restaurant section for my blog, what do you guys think?
