Berry Hill Bistro - Paso Robles, CA

While in town for the PCCHA Derby and Horse Show I knew I would make it into downtown Paso Robles to sample one of the many fantastic restaurants. We walked past Basil, which was packed! Really didn't feel like Thai so we ventured on to find Berry Hill Bistro.

Located just down from the movie theater it is a bit tough to find parking but just go around the block a few times and you'll be just fine.

The wine menu made us kind of chuckle - it had a lot of out of state wines! We are in prime wine country, give it to us! Usually Pinot fans we settled on a J.Lohr Merlot. It came in the cutest little half bottle! Ha. The picture is almost to size ;)

The Crab Wontons were ordered as an appetizer and they were not exactly what wethought they were going to be! They were very crunchy! They did have this wonderful blackberry-szechwan sauce, pretty tasty.

Artichoke Bisque very creamy, very delicious.

Scott ordered the Penne Pasta with seared seasonal vegetables in a garlic cream sauce. It looked wonderful, a large portion.


You better believe I ordered fish - Halibut. Protein power! It also had the same garlic sauce that Scott's pasta dish did. Did I love it? No. Did I like it? Yes, it was ok.

The bistro itself was so cute! The waitresses were really hustling too, working away - always on the move. We got a great table that allowed us to people watch, downtown Paso is fun. There are so many restaurants to try, I am glad I had an opportunity to check this one of the list. What is your favorite restaurant in Paso Robles? I had a recommendation by a loyal reader to try Artisan. Thoughts?

Flap Jack's - Tres Pinos, CA

It seems like I have been spending quite a bit of time in Tres Pinos! I was just next door at the new Mexican food place and here I am now at Flap Jack's! Located on the main drag you can pull into Flap Jack's for breakfast or lunch - Open on Monday's too.

Inside the cute, little joint - I loved the wall color.

Jennifer's order of the Crab Melt. I was debating ordering this myself but she beat me to the punch. Unfortunately it wasn't her cup of tea. It looked pretty though.

John ordered the Steak Salad he seemed to enjoy it. Ate every last bit!

Amanda's order of the Flap Jack's - the name sake! She loved them! And, I must admit I have had them and sure are delicious!

Ok, this is my order - you are probably thinking, "What the heck is this..." This is what they jack the Crab Crepe Jack. Let me tell you, that this is way delicious. It was 2 very large crepes with with crab, spinach (onion, which I would leave out next time) capers and Hollandaise. Wow! Holy yum. I am ashamed to admit that I gobbled up this entire plate.

All in all we had a pretty relaxing experience. There were not too many people in the restaurant so we felt like we could carry on a pretty lively conversation. There are plenty of breakfast combinations, as well as Lunch options so make a special trip to Tres Pinos on a lovely day and maybe sit outside on the patio! Ciao -MD

Flap Jack's - Tres Pinos, CA

It seems like I have been spending quite a bit of time in Tres Pinos! I was just next door at the new Mexican food place and here I am now at Flap Jack's! Located on the main drag you can pull into Flap Jack's for breakfast or lunch - Open on Monday's too.

Inside the cute, little joint - I loved the wall color.

Jennifer's order of the Crab Melt. I was debating ordering this myself but she beat me to the punch. Unfortunately it wasn't her cup of tea. It looked pretty though.

John ordered the Steak Salad he seemed to enjoy it. Ate every last bit!

Amanda's order of the Flap Jack's - the name sake! She loved them! And, I must admit I have had them and sure are delicious!

Ok, this is my order - you are probably thinking, "What the heck is this..." This is what they jack the Crab Crepe Jack. Let me tell you, that this is way delicious. It was 2 very large crepes with with crab, spinach (onion, which I would leave out next time) capers and Hollandaise. Wow! Holy yum. I am ashamed to admit that I gobbled up this entire plate.

All in all we had a pretty relaxing experience. There were not too many people in the restaurant so we felt like we could carry on a pretty lively conversation. There are plenty of breakfast combinations, as well as Lunch options so make a special trip to Tres Pinos on a lovely day and maybe sit outside on the patio! Ciao -MD

Japanese Taco

Tasty lunch today at Miyako's: A Miyako Taco - filled with spicy Lobster. The "shell" is a deep fried tofu skin filled with rice and topped with the lobster (which I am sure was actually langoustine) and spicy sauce. I of course, dipped it into my soy sauce, ginger and wasabi blend.

Good day!

Lizarran Tapas - Gilroy, CA

Do you remember the beautiful, old building that used to be the Gilroy City Hall at 7400 Monterey Street? It was also home to Chips and Salsa, a Mexican restaurant. Well, it didn't last and it is now Lizarran, a Spanish tapas restaurant. It sounded like fun so my mom and friend, Susan went on over to give it a go!

What is interesting about the restaurant is that they have a "Tapas Bar" with pre-made items. You pick and choose out of a glass display. So, we did this to kick off the meal. You keep the toothpicks and put them into a ceramic dish - that is how you are charged at the end of meal - number of toothpicks. Kind of fun! Basically these are bites of shrimp, maybe a tuna mixture, peppers and tomato on slices of bread. They all were different but sort of had the same taste. I think the idea of the "Tapas Bar" is fun but we decided to continue on with ordering of the menu.

I know that this was the Tabla de Embutidos - which is an assortment of traditional Spanish cured meats. Tasty. Meat is good but we didn't order anything to go with it like cheese and they only served it with 4 slices of bread. So we just munched on the meat, which became old. I think we took the rest to go just because we were bored with it.

This is the Salmon a la Plancha which was basically grilled salmon served with sauteed bell peppers and onions. It was tasty, cooked well. Probably the best dish we were served that day.

Cute little crab cakes! They were very tasty, I ditched the bread they were resting on though, no need for the extra carbs!

This is the Paella de la Huerta which is saffron rice with vegetables. It was pretty good. It took a little while for them too cook but we just took our time visiting. I probably wouldn't order this variety again though, there was a seafood version that might be worth trying.

I did some research on this place after I had visited it, it is part of a chain and has locations located in Southern California. I would have never known! It is in such a beautiful building with the most precious courtyard, it is hard not to be happy while your there. I suggest you try it when your not too hungry and want to have a leisurely visit with a good friend over a couple glasses of wine. Stay a while, munch on some tapas - I was trying to imagine myself being on vacation while in Spain! Ha! Give it and a go and let me know!

Dona Maria's - Tres Pinos, CA

New restaurant alert! And make that another Mexican Restaurant at that! The small community of Tres Pinos has welcomed Dona Maria's in the fomer location of Mama Cass's Pizza Parlor. I had heard from a friend, of a friend, of a friend that it was really good home made Mexican type food. Was I excited to try it? Heck yes!

Chips and salsa brought out instantly! The salsa was good - it is like a puree, that is how I like it.

Inside it is quaint and colorful! Kind of like you're in Mexico - Ole!

I was a big fan of their crushed ice, you don't find that at too many places anymore.

A pretty order of guacamole. Very festive and good - pico de gallo was in the mix.


This is Sopa Azteca and it was FANTISTICO! I mean seriously. Very filling and delicious. A rich broth that had simmered with onions and peppers included shredded chicken, queso, tortilla strips, south cream, guacamole and cilantro. You must order this!


Too much food later... I also ordered this. I know it is excessive but I wanted to try everything. I am trying to become a semi-professional food blogger you know... Anyhow back to the food. I ordered a Two item combo of a Verde Enchilada - chicken and a Chile Relleno. For the record, I ate the enchilada, 1/2 of the rice, two bite of the rellano and scoop of the beans. The enchilada was good, the chicken was moist and the sauce was tangy. The relleno was ok, I hate it when they leave the seeds in it though. The rice was good, and the beans were well, beans.


J-Daz ordered the Mole Enchilada and she loved it. She just was so full from the soup that it was hard to enjoy our meals! But, she did say it was tasty.

All in all my experience at Dona Maria's was a good one. They serve Margaritas and have them in a machine rocking and rolling 24-7. Beer is also in a fridge to enjoy with your Mexican meal. The building is tiny so if you get there and all the tables are taken, sorry Charlie! They do have a flat screen television in the corner so maybe you can catch your favorite sporting events there too! I think this place can do well. Check it out yourself and holler back at me with your experience!

Bright lights of Vegas!

Been there and back!

Domenico’s - Monterey, CA

After the day at the Portola Spa in Monterey, yes I went to the spa again, we declared ourselves famished. Just steps from the Monterey Wharf we decided to try somewhere we had never been before! So welcome: Domenico's On the Wharf.

Our beautiful view on a very clear day in Monterey.

An appetizer of Calamari, yes please. I like to dip it in both the tarter and cocktail sauce. It makes for a pretty tasty experience.

Fresh baked bread! Baked in house I am sure because it took them so long to get it to our table! Ha. But no really, it was very delicious.

I sampled probably enough Chowder on the Wharf on our walk down Restaurant Row but I wanted more! This is the stuff dreams are made of. Not the best Clam Chowder out there but definitely a contender.

Amanda ordered a Caesar Salad and I thought it was beautiful. She enjoyed it very much and I was lucky enough to get to eat the Anchovy - I love salt!

Guess who ordered the Crab Cakes?! Ok, ok. Enough guessing... it was ME! My plate looks a little sad right? My crab cakes had bell peppers in them! Although I love bell peppers just not in my crab cakes. Was I in crab cake love? Mehh...

Oh Elena got a special! It was Calamari stuffed with cheese and sausage and all that fine stuff that goes into lasagna. That is what it reminded me of. She let me try a bite and it was ok - not something I would have ordered but certainly tasty.

Domenico's: I have to be honest, you kind of let me down. I had high hopes because you sold us on the wharf on your fantastic views, you wonderful food and all that jazz. But you made this a 2 hour lunch without being really necessary - it was a Monday afternoon, after the lunch rush. Our waiter was in and out - bus boys randomly walking around. There was no need for the lengthy lunch but at least I was there with good friends and had a good time catching up with each other.