Why go to Cambria? Black Cat Bistro...

Few places do a worthy Riesling. This is one of them. Who knew that in Cambria, the lovely coastal town on one of the many central coasts in California there was to be had a couple of worth the visit Rieslings. Now this is not to say that there are not a host of other great reasons to visit here, but when we get invited to try wine and its in a place we are enjoy visiting, there is no stopping us.
But then there is the question of where to eat? This time there was no question as the good people at Cutruzzola Vineyards (the reason for the visit, remember great Rieslings) hooked us up with lunch at their friends bistro.

So first off it was to be lunch at The Black Cat Bistro. The name of the Bistro comes from the poster hanging in the hallway. The story is it was won at a charity auction one evening after much Champagne was consumed. We like it already!
We have been to Cambria a few times and somehow not been here. We found the bistro to be warm, inviting and with a cozy euro feel in an intimate setting. We were in the front main room but there is a similar feel in each of the four spaces. We were immediately greeted by Marco upon arrival and settled into the corner of the front room by the fire place. The perfect spot to cozy up and observe the room.

The Black Cat Bistro opened in 2002 on July 4th in a building that was built in about the 1930's. The Black Cat Bistro is known for serving  local farm fresh food. The menu changes fairly often we were told as Black Cat Bistro consistently strives to provide seasonal, local produce and organically raised or sustainable dishes. The wine list was geared for pairing to that fresh food and the Black Cat has received the Wine Spectator Award of Excellence for nine years in a row. Not surprising as it has a great collection of local and imported beverages to please almost all who choose to indulge in a tasty tipple (can't please everyone they say). Don't be mistaken in thinking that this means one of those long and overwhelming lists that you need a sommelier to guide you thru. No this list is a testament to being carefully selected and keeping it simple and precise. No War and Peace here.

Seating was comfortable and the service was seemingly telepathic. One of the things about restaurants that we believe, is that while many can do fancy, it is often how well they do normal that sets them apart. For lunch we had the lovely fish and chips paired with a local Tolosa Winery unoaked Chardonnay and a brilliant French Dip that set a new standard for beef sandwiches.

We were given a preview of the new dinner menu and given our wonderful lunch experience will be making an effort to have dinner here in the near future.

There are a lot of nice restaurants but few that have that lovely combination of warmth, great food, wine list, service and intimate romantic setting that the Black Cat Bistro does.

Thanks to Karen at Cutrozzola for making the arrangements to have lunch at this wonderful place. We give the Black Cat Bistro a hearty 'recommend'.


 Happy Wine / Food Adventures,

Cheers,

WineWalkabout