Last night in Napa and we picked a lovely restaurant around the corner in Downtown Napa. La Toque has been a Napa institution and comes highly recommended by the concierge.
An early pioneer of seasonally driven fine dining, Chef Ken Frank has been in relentless pursuit of deliciousness since his teenage years living in France. He founded La Toque in 1979 to be the kind of restaurant he wanted to work at – authentic, creative, welcoming and delicious.
In 1998, he finally heeded the call of wine country and moved to Napa Valley, where he opened a new La Toque in Rutherford. Ten successful years later, Ken moved La Toque to its current home in downtown Napa’s Oxbow District, at the Westin Verasa hotel.
Today La Toque is one of the best restaurants in Napa and the Bay Area, and a 14-time recipient of a coveted Michelin star. Unfortunately, he lost the star in 2022, but the restaurant remained on the Recommend list.
Chef’s Tasting Menu
Chef’s Tasting is La Toque’s crown jewel, a prix-fixe menu that invites you to experience Napa Valley at its best. Typically, the Chef’s Tasting includes four savoury courses, one cheese course, and a dessert.
La Toque is one of only 93 restaurants in the world to receive The Wine Spectator’s highest honour, The Grand Award. We ordered the chef’s tasting menu as it was a good selection of the a la carte, and had the wine pairing as well.
Before we started with the amuse bouche, we ordered a couple of cocktails to kick off the night.
Porn Star Martini
House-infused Vanilla Vodka, Passion Fruit Purée, House-made Vanilla Sugar, Giffard Fruit de la Passion Liqueur. Served with a shot of Cavicchioli U. & Figli Prosecco
Passionfruit Refresher
Passionfruit Purée, Passionfruit Tea, Simple Syrup.
Amuse Bouches
Croustade With Sweet Potato
Fried Brussels Sprout With Date Molasses And Country Ham
The first two amuse bouche came without any fanfare and we were taken by surprised that the meal had already started. The first was a potato croustade, which is a French culinary term meaning a crust of any type, filled with sweet potato mousse. The second was a popsicle of deep fried Brussel sprout that had been glazed with date molasses and topped with specks of crispy country ham.
Kimchi Beef Tartare On A Prawn Cracker
The third piece of amuse bouche looked something we would eat at home – a piece of keropok (prawn cracker) with beef tartare that has been dressed using kimchi juice with bits of kimchi.
And right after we polished off these amuse bouche in single bites, a basket of warm sourdough was served. The bread was very well made by Acme Bread Company from Berkeley and served with imported, small-batch French butter.
The butter was not so good, so we asked for some locally sourced EVOO and balsamic vinegar.
Chilean Red King Crab, Turnip And Matsutake In A Savory Kombu Broth
The first of the savoury courses was a soup that would not be out of place in any kaiseki restaurant in Japan. The ingredients in the broth were familiar with the Japanese cuisine too – king crab, turnip and Matsutake mushroom. And to round up the soup, the ingredients were boiled in a kombu broth.
I loved the taste of the sea in the soup, and after two weeks in the US, this soup was so welcomed. It reminded me of home and having a Chinese/Japanese style soup as it was kept quite warm. Darling and I finished every last drop.
2021 Riesling, Trittenheimer Apotheke, Grosses Gewachs, Rosch
Founded in 1825 with 22 acres of vines, Rosch is considered one of the blue-chip wine estates from the Mosel. The vineyard is situated in Trittenheim, about 30 km downwards the river Mosel from Trier, the old Roman city. Very rich, intense wine, high sugar but well balanced with a good acidity structure. On the palate: tropical fruit like mango, pineapple, lemon, a hint of petroleum. Complex and long.
New Zealand Ora King Salmon “Sous-Vide”, Spaetzle, Regiis Ova Caviar Sabayon
I am always cautious of farmed salmon as there were many reports of abuse of antibiotics as well as artificial colouring added to get those reddish-orange colour that looked so appetising. I was told later that these colours can be obtained by altering the farmed salmon’s diet to include food rich in carotenoids, namely astaxanthin. If you really want some farmed salmon, I would only recommend the Norwegian and New Zealand salmons.
Ōra King is to salmon as wagyu is to beef. The naturally high oil content in Ōra King salmon can be seen in the striking marbled fat lines within the bright orange flesh, instantly drawing comparison to Wagyu. The piece of salmon was sous vide and served with a caviar sabayon on top of a bed of spätzle.
The fish was cooked to perfect doneness, not raw where many American friends wouldn’t like yet just right that Japanese would agree upon. If there was more sabayon, the dish would be perfect.
2021 Marine Layer, Chardonnay, Hawk Hill Vineyard, Sonoma Coast
The 2021 Hawk Hill Vineyard Chardonnay comes from a vineyard planted with the Montrachet clone. It needs a little coaxing to bring out notes of fresh grapefruit, lemon curd, and lime blossom with hints of sea spray and coriander seed. The medium-bodied palate is tightly knit with fantastic grace and precision, delivering loads of mineral and fragrant nuances, finishing with great length.
Ravioli Doppio With Smoked Ricotta And Porcini Jam, Reggiano Espuma, Butternut Passata, Fresh White Truffle
Doppio ravioli is a fun modern shape for pasta with two fillings. One side was filled with smoked ricotta and the other with porcini jam (basically a chopped up mushroom filling). The pastas were placed on a butternut passata in line with the autumn mood and topped with a parmigiano reggiano cream. I would not called that dollop of deliciousness an espuma.
And of course with a hefty supplement, you can top the pasta with the most prized and expensive truffle on earth. Tuber magnatum or white truffle has never been successfully cultivated, and must be foraged in the wild. And therefore it was often sought after for its rarity.
Either you love it or hated it, but gasoline it did not smell like in this instance. I love truffles, but the black ones are good enough for me. The pasta was delicious on its own, even for one that did not like pumpkin. The whole taste of savoury and umami from the cheese worked wonderfully with the mushroom and truffle. Nothing was out of place except for the price of the truffle.
2021 Vivier, Pinot Noir, Gap’s Crown Vineyard, Sonoma Coast
Gap’s Crown Vineyard, tucked on the western hillside of Sonoma Mountain, is fanned by the cool ocean breezes that push through the Petaluma Gap. This wine is complex and stylish. On the nose is an interplay of violet and mineral notes accented by intense red fruit. Elegant upon entry with a light earthiness and spice this wine opens on the palate fully balanced by juicy red fruit. Adequate acidity and minerality tame the of succulence of fruit leading to a satisfyingly complete finish.
Veal Tenderloin “Marengo”, Celery Root Puree, Chanterelles And Pearl Onions
And the final savoury course for the evening, the chef took a wonderful piece of veal tenderloin from a local farmer and created a Marengo-style sauce to go with the medium rare veal. The meat was really tender and juicy.
What I really enjoyed besides the sauce was the chanterelles mushrooms. Although not in season, the dried mushrooms were rehydrated and crispy on the outside and served with celery root puree and boiled pearl onions and blooms of broccoli Romanesco.
2015 Cabernet Sauvignon, Le Chanceux, Belles Filles Vineyard, Coombsville
Belles Filles Vineyard is located in Napa Valley in the rolling benchlands of the Coombsville AVA. Le Chanceux is family owned and operated with a small production of approximately 200 cases annually.
Aromas are floral, red fruit, vanilla, slightly thin, but very pleasing. Deep ruby in colour. Tannins are still leaving a slight bitterness.
Tomme De Savoie Fermière – Joseph Paccard, Pumpernickel Crisps, Tigertail Quince Condiment
The cheese course featured the artisanal cheese from Savoie, France by Joseph Paccard. Joseph Paccard is a relatively new affineur. Located in the village of Manigod in the Savoie region of France, Paccard and his sons carefully select the farms they work with, developing close relationships with cheesemakers. Tomme de Savoie Fermier is a farmhouse cheese, hence its name. This means that it is made from start to finish by one farm, from the milk of the animals who live there. Made using raw cow’s milk, the cheese has a pliant and creamy texture and has flavours of milk, hay, earth, and nuts. Served with a crisped up slice of pumpernickel and tigertail quince to cut through the saltiness.
2020 Altesse, Prieuré Saint-Christophe, Savoie
With just 6 hectares of vines shared between Mondeuse (red varietal) and Altesse (white varietal), biodynamic Savoie pioneer Michel Grissard produced around 20,000 bottles a year. In 2015, he decided to retire from his iconic domaine Prieure Saint-Christophe and handed the baton off to the Giachino clan. The Mondeuse and Altesse from this vineyard is exceptional. Pale amber dress. Dried apricot, tangerine, quince, wax, saffron aromas. Light truffle. Rich yet dry and lingering with elegant bitter notes in the finish. Still very youthful and vibrant. Memorable.
Warm Warren Pear Galette, Walnut Cremeux, Honeycomb Crunch Ice Cream
Warm dessert was the Warren pear galette, very traditional French technique, served with a generous quenelle of honeycomb crunch ice cream and walnut cremeux (fancy word for mousse). I loved the ice cream, with its bits of honeycomb and very strong taste of honey. The slice of pear on the plating was to show what was in the galette. I wished that the galette was puffier and more buttery.
2010 Hétszôlo, Tokaji Aszú, 5 Puttonyos
The first time I tasted this type of dessert wine from Hungary was at an embassy tasting event in Singapore. Didn’t enjoy it then, didn’t enjoy in now.
The wine shows a deep amber colour. On the nose there are complex notes of buckwheat honey, dried apricots, a touch of varnish, old wood, a touch of black tea, candied orange, ginger and spices. The palate is dense and concentrated. A very vertical and linear wine which feels almost off-dry despite the high sugar content.
The night we were there, five of the six tables were Asian. Obviously, there was a kind of nostalgia for us to be wining and dining in a white table cloth environment which is not as appealing to the woke generation. The sommelier was a disappointment given that it was the wine country. He simply introduced the wine (just the name, nothing about the terrior or winemaker), poured and left before I can ask more.
Overall a very classic French restaurant that has seen better times, and trying to find a new direction due the shifting tastes of the diners in California.
La Toque
1314 McKinstry Street, Napa, CA 94559
Tel : +1 (707) 257 5157
Visited Oct 2023
Michelin Bay Area Guide 1 Star 2008-2021 Recommend 2022-2023
@latoquerestaurant #LaToque #NapaValley #KenFrank #visitnapavalley #winecountry #michelin #finedining #tastingmenu @latoque @chefkenfrank
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