Bellavino Wine Bar...  and Restaurant

As we have reported recently, we usually choose not to review new locations until they have had a chance to settle in. That is the approach we are taking currently with P6, Alessio’s and the remake at Le Café. Any other approach is unfair to both the FrankAboutFood subscriber and the restaurant. There are too many other fine dining choices available now  in the area. So why rush just to be the first one at a new place.  Early first time experiences usually prove to be major disappointments. 

Bellavino, has been open since November,2003. Unfortunately however  and mistakenly, it did not become a priority with us. That was because we incorrectly assumed it to be just another one of those trendy  “wine bars” offering sips of innocuous wine plus  boring evening snacks falsely romanticized as Tapas,  while being served in a dull low rent environment. 

Boy, were we wrong !!!

In fact, Bellavino is now much more than a prosaic wine bar. It  has become one of the most sophisticated and satisfying wine-dine-jazz music spots in the Ventura County area and points East.  This concept of a truly unique and courageous move away  from the basic wine bar to the above has been successfully consummated by owner, Richard Belloff. It took place  however due to some fortuitous and timely help with the fine tuning. 

Belloff has been a wine connoisseur since 1979 and a few years ago turned his interest into a business by selling difficult to locate wines via the Internet. About two years ago he decided to also offer this esoteric inventory in a very attractive retail wine store, which he then combined with what began as a  casual wine bar.

The bar had opened serving the traditional  selection of the now ubiquitous “small plates” incorrectly dubbed "Tapas" by the wannabee dining maven-foodies as we noted. The late niters on broad Castellana Blvd.  in Madrid or Las Ramblas in Barcelona, who all  really know their Tapas might wonder about this rather broad use of that specialized term.

But soon after, Belloff, took a shot at changing the semi-eponymous (Belloff- Bellavino?) wine bar to what it is today.  Well-traveled,  gunslinger du cuisine, Richard Hyman rode into Westlake and helped to pull the trigger. .

Make no mistake, Chef  Hyman, 41, has the chops and shoots straight.  He trained at the famed and top-rated Culinary Institute in Hyde Park, New York, worked at the Beverly Hills Hotel and in between two stints with the Two “Hot Tamales”, Susan Feniger and Mary Sue Milliken at the Border Grill, he worked the food line the legendary Joachim Splichal at the short lived but very influential Max’s Triangle in Beverly Hills. In addition to the iconic Patina, which is now the flagship restaurant at Disney Hall, Splichal is also the creator of Pinot Bistro, recognized by those who know, as the best restaurant in the  San Fernando Valley.

 Hyman also taught at the highly respected Pasadena Culinary Institute. The menu he has put together is one of the more interesting and adventuresome Pacific Rim Fusion offerings North of the Santa Monica Mountains and South of the Bay Area.  

It is important however to correct some false notions about  Bellavino’s wine pricing and food menu. It is not expensive. Nor is it inexpensive. But both the wine and the food are  fairly priced for the quality delivered. You can spend a little or a lot. It is your choice.  Well chosen 5 oz pours from perhaps the best “Wine by the Glass” list in the County run from about $7 to about $18. That latter price area delivers Veuve Cliquot Champagne, Chateauneuf du Pape from the Southern Rhone and Amarone from the Veneto.

That now widely offered category of small or lighter or appetizer plates is priced from $9 to $13. But at Bellavino, this includes great Crab Cakes  (I am a serious crab cake person ), Live “Singing" Bay Scallops, Chile Rubbed Baby Backed Ribs and an Asian Salad of Seared Hamachi, Micro Greens and Wakame Seaweed. Portions are large enough to split 2 or 3 with a partner to create a delightful and inexpensive light tasting menu.

Deserts are from $8 to $12. The latter is a Chocolate Fondue to be shared with an assortment of goodies for dipping. At $8 was a very good Bread Pudding. There is also a choice of Fine Cheeses that ranks up there in Southern California. The regular wine list is very wide ranging and very, very extensive revealing the depths of Belloff’s commitment. Prices vary from $30 for some reds to $2000 for the cult  2001 Screaming Eagle.

Thus it is remotely possible to spend a lot wining and dining at Bellavino, but it would require a serious vision and reading comprehension problem. Even the nightly specials (which are often not quoted and usually shockingly high-priced at most restaurants) are provided and priced on a separate menu so there are no credit card busting surprises when the bill arrives.  

Those who read us consistently know that we consider the quoting, verbal or in print of specials should be mandatory at all restaurants. Tell me why not.

 Bellavino therefore,provides a wonderful and complete package of very sophisticated wine, food and music that may be unequalled anywhere South of Bakersfield. After all that’s Basque sheepherder wine in a pouch, chicken fried steak and Merle Haggard country.

Finally as this article was being completed, we learned that Belloff had recently decided that the main room was somewhat cramped (as we mentioned above) and he is taking over the space next door to essentially double the dining space.  That sounds like doubly good news to me.

Bellavino      Dinner Only     3709 East Thousand Oaks Blvd. Westlake Village
805- 557-0202        Most Credit Cards    Easy Shopping Center Parking.

Frankly Noted – Dining Gossip of the Conejo  

Tommaso Barletta, the dynamic super restaurateur-owner of Tuscany and Rustico is planning to open a restaurant in Calabasas. Just watching him in action can tire you out. Yet Tuscany continues to be the finest in the county.

2087 recently closed its doors after a multi-year struggle with consistency and attitude as noted in our review about a year ago. The property had been in play since that time with no takers. A high price and the threat of competition in the new center at The Civic Plaza certainly does not improve the chances for a new dining spot to take over. 

Le Café has recently upgraded its entire operation with a new Chef and Manager. Both come to Westlake with strong background credentials. Chef Gael Lecolley was executive chef at Saddle Peak and General Manager Clark Sarchet managed the prestigious Citronelle in Santa Barbara. We will be looking at them again in the near future. 

P6 has been getting a lot of play but most comments have been about the décor and little about the food. In one of  those  newly on  the scene area code local monthly slicks, a supposedly  knowledgeable (?) reviewer  discussed the furniture and decor for two pages; but  gave the food one paragraph. The reviewer for the county paper seemed totally confused and reviewed  it in the same way that she reviews coffee shops. That is to  be expected since as often is the case she did not have dinner there.  

We will  review it after P6 settles down and can figure out for itself exactly what it is. In the interim there are perhaps many better choices to invest your dining dollar.