Manresa

Manresa is possibly the best fine dining restaurant in the South Bay Area. Executive Chef David Kinch uses European Tradition blended with modern techniques and some of best local produce from the restaurants own biodynamic garden. I always try tasting menus when I visit places that offer them because I think they are a great way to see how the Chef prepares a menu full of different items that complement each other throughout the meal. Also, being the wine lover I am I like to see what direction they go with their wine pairings and see how well they match the items.

Most recently I visited Manresa with my family and a few friends. We ordered the tasting menu for the entire table with one of my guests being a vegetarian they catered to her for the entire tasting menu as well as my sister's dislike of pork. This is one of the areas that Manresa has always done well; the ability to cater to their guests tastes while providing the same experience of the tasting menu and the quality you expect.



During my next visit I will take notes on the course and provide a full analysis of meal. For now however I will reveal my ratings for the restaurant.

Food: The food is always amazing. Each time I go there I learn about new items and discover new flavors I only wish I could repeat more frequently.

Wine: The wine list is quite nice. They have a good sampling of many great areas of the world and several very hard to find wines. Though their prices are on the moderate to high side. They also have a great selection of local wines.

Service: The service is pretty good, but it could be better. Several of the staff are extremely good, but several times I asked questions about ingredients that were listed as part of a course only to get a mediocre answer with less knowledge shown than I would prefer. Also, having a large party I was able to see how well they did the course presentation for eight, and overall it was well done with four servers doing the reveal for the eight of us, while I would have liked a full 8 to do the reveal I was thoroughly satisfied by the four.

Atmosphere: The restaurant is inside of a converted house and it is a quiet place in otherwise sometimes loud area that is downtown Los Gatos. The restaurant has a fireplace that has many candles lit inside, a wine rack that separates the two dining areas, and wood floors with carpets over most of the areas. The carpeting is great as this provide a nice sound environment where things don't get too loud, but while still showing the gorgeous wood floors beneath.

Experience: My experience here is always excellent and for the full experience I do highly recommend the tasting menu if you can afford it and truly want to experience Manresa at its best.


The Numbers

Food............... 10/10
Wine................ 8/10
Service............. 9/10
Atmosphere ...... 9/10
Experience ...... 10/10

Total............... 46/50


Price: $$$$
Time: 2-3 Hours (Tasting menu is 3-5 Hours)

Manresa's Website