Go Restaurants

Michael:

Celedon restaurant is located in downtown Napa California and as many times as we have been to Napa, this was our first time visiting this restaurant. It is a sister company to Cole’s chop house (which is awesome by the way) also located in Napa.  It is a nice place but a little unusual looking initially. It is kinda like a remodeled warehouse when you first walk in, but it appears that there is a more traditional style eating area toward the rear of the building. We were seated in the warehouse section and never really sought out the opportunity to look at the other section.

The staff were kind and professional and we actually moved our reservation up by two hours wanting to get the evening started. They had no problem with that and upon arrival we were seated immediately. Menus were provided as we were seated and bread and olive oil were on the table within 5 minutes. Having visited a couple of wineries early that day, we both passed on the wine list and went straight for the jugular…..entrees! Even though Rib Eye steak is pretty much a given on many restaurant menus, and as my wife commented “you can get a steak anywhere”, it isn’t something that usually is on Celedon’s menu, so I went for it.

The steak was prepared medium rare and done exactly the way I like it. The quality of the meat was not the best I have had and I would personally rate it at about a 6 on a scale of 1 -10 (10 being the best). Last year I had rib eye at Cole and it was about an 8, very good. Anyway my steak at Celedon was served with asparagus, onion rings and mash potatoes and was a very filling meal. I can’t say that I left super impressed, but it was a good meal.

Freida:

After much research, I finally settled on making reservations at Celadon for our anniversary dinner in Napa. There are several big name restaurants in the Napa Valley, but this one was close to our bed and breakfast and had a nice variety on their menu. We had dined at their sister restaurant, Cole’s Chop House, a few months earlier and really enjoyed the food. Our original reservations were for 8:15pm, but after a full day of wine tasting, we decided we needed sustenance, and we needed it soon. I called and asked if there was any way to move our reservations up, and they were able to accommodate us no problem. We sat in the atrium like seating area that housed a fireplace and glass ceiling. It was nice, although I wish I would have peeked inside to see what it looked like there. We ordered the calamari to start with. We love calamari, but find that few can live up to the calamari we had a Chart House in Monterey, which was really fresh and perfectly breaded and fried. This calamari was also good. The chili sauce on it was a nice twist, although towards the end I thought it overpowered the taste of the calamari.

For my main course, I ordered the moroccan inspired lamb shank. This was a thing of beauty and oh man was it tasty. The almonds and the golden raisins with the couscous added nicely to the richness of the lamb. I really enjoyed this dish. The portion they gave was plentiful and I could not finish it all…but don’t you know I was happy to box it up and take it home!

Well, coming from someone who travels a lot I have a few things that may just help you with your traveling plans this year. Whenever I get ready to go vacationing, I usually start with outlining a budget I plan to spend on my trip. After I know how much I want to spend, I get a tourist guide from whatever state I plan to visit. The easiest way to get a guide is to visit that state’s website or Google “(State) Travel Guide” with dashes (-) on both sides of the keywords or you will end up with information about just the state, airplane travel, guides for hedgehog watching or other silly, crazy things that pop up when we look around on the Web for things. After I get the state guide I wish, I flip the pages checking out what interests me; I’m an outside person so I look for places to fish, nature walks, parks, or museums. Now, I know not everyone is an outside person; the guides have things for every person or family.

After I find all the things I like in the guide, I make a list of what I want to see working my way down until I run out of numbers; sometimes I have to bypass some things to stay within my budget. I go through the guide to find a hotel close to where I plan on going since some of the exciting plans can be pretty spread out; I make sure that I will not have to go too far if I have a long day of fun in the sun. I look for garages or local mechanics in the area since my car may break down; I can continue without too much of an interruption if I have my car fixed right away. Restaurants are also located in the guide from quick meals to romantic dinners depending on what is your style. I try to pick places not too far out of the way that are new and not astronomical in price.

When I have all my plans mapped out, I see how many days I am planning on spending in that state, I try to plan my trips to have quite a bit of extra money left in my budget to pay for the accidental breakdowns or to get gifts for family and friends who were not able to go with me. Once I know where I’m going, eating, and staying I give them a call to reserve rooms, tickets, etc. for an hour or so after my directions say I am supposed to arrive; that way I am prepared for weather and traffic in case either one gets bad. I pack enough clothes for those days along with a day or two extra just in case, pack my phone charger and car charger, make sure I have a first aid kit packed, have a full spare tire, have my jack with my lug nut tools, and have snacks in my car for the long hauls. Just about ready to leave now, I do a once around my car to make sure all my tires are good and that my lights are working. Remember, safety first on all trips; even if it is just to the grocery store. Now that my car is packed up to go, I check that my house is locked up tight. Time to go on vacation! Sunglasses, Check. Money, Check. Mirrors, Check. Purse, Check. Gas, Check. Road trip! I hope my way of planning travels helps you out the way it does me.