Bound for the Stars?
Suzanne’s Cuisine

The majority of the readers of Frank AboutFood.com would seem to be reasonably serious about dining out. The fact that they consist of a group of 10,000 visitors every month that make the effort to hit the right keys and bring up our obviously very sophisticated website is certainly a strong indicator.

They clearly understand that a completely satisfying culinary evening is more than just a plate of restaurant food.  Each one understands that service and ambience must also play a large role. In fact, in order to garner the top rating of *3  Stars from Michelin, *4 Stars from The Los Angeles Times’ Irene Virbila, one of the three best food critics  West of New York City, or *5 Stars from Mobil, a restaurant must clearly excel in all three categories.

In all of California, it is our opinion that only Bastide in West Hollywood meets those complete high standards We must, admit, however, that we have never visited the very highly regarded Erna’s Elderberry House on The Yosemite Trail. And that’s not a joke. It’s supposed to be magnificent.

On the right nights in this area , Aubergine in Newport or Valentino’s in Santa Monica come very close, but no brass ring. The French Laundry in Napa clearly delivers the food. But the ambience and service is a bit tight. Gary Danko in San Francisco also excels in the food category and deserves high marks for service. But his ambience is also tight and somewhat pedestrian. In fact the  ambience at Gary Danko can be chaotic. Chez Panisse in Berkeley  concentrates on delivering fresh, creative and wonderful food. The service is adequate but the ambience needs some work.    

In the New York area, Jean George at Columbus Circle in the “dreaded” Trump Tower is the clear outright winner and probably the overall national winner. Charlie Trotter’s in Chicago is close with the food but does not match up to Jean George for service or ambience. JG’s  food is brilliantly and deceptively simple. The two distinct also deceptively simple and understated dining rooms provide spacious tablings for intimate yet luxurious conversation. The servers are very knowledgeable, unpretentious yet pristine in the presentation of the cuisine. Be forewarned however. At none of the above do the highly sought *Stars come at bargain prices…except again !!! in the casual dining room at Jean George where a 3 course lunch is $20.04 up from last year’s $20.03. It is amazing.

So what about Ventura County?  Well, I thought you'd never ask. Over the last few years, the quality of food served in the area has improved exponentially. Previously the food snobs, especially in haughty Westlake and North Ranch used to proclaim that you had to “go over the hill” to get a decent meal. That day is past. You can stay within the county area and easily find fine Italian, Seafood, Chinese, Japanese (especially Sushi), French, American Fusion, Continental, Thai and with a little more work, paradoxically, Mexican restaurants that offer superior dining.  It is true that there are no decent red meat purveyors in the county but the entire San Fernando Valley has exactly one. Outside of that the overall choices in Ventura may be better than in all of the “Dreaded” Valley, clearly superior to that of the heavily middle income populated but palate impaired Orange County and certainly better than  San Diego, Riverside, San Bernardino, Kern and Imperial Counties combined. West  Los Angeles County and remarkable Santa Barbara are obviously a different story for obvious demographic reasons.

Few county restaurants, however, really aspire to solid overall performance in the three crucial iconic categories.  But, we had repeatedly heard some very good things from our reliable sources about Suzanne’s Cuisine in Ojai. So we waited for a break in the price of fuel, carpooled with a gas efficient Prius owner, split the transportation cost, saved enough to finance two gin martinis and made the trek.

We were glad we did.  After a 45 minute prox drive we arrived at dusk in front of the lovely understated and homelike restaurant with ample parking right in front. We were pleasantly greeted immediately at the door and ushered to our at the ready table for six. (One couple was staying over for the night in Ojai and drove up separately)  The room was well beyond expectations. Tables were widely spaced, a fireplace glowing unobtrusively and a lovely rear garden with a sensuously lit fountain.  

Our server quickly presented menus while taking cocktail orders at the same time. A very good sign. as opposed to the practice of many restaurants that delay the menus in the hopes of picking up a second round of booze.  The menu was extensive. There were 13 appetizer choices and 20 pasta and entrée selections on the regular menu. I would have been happy to dine on any one of them.

Then there was a further choice of specials for the night. Six more very tempting appetizers and 5 more equally appealing main courses.  The prices were clearly printed out and in a range similar to the regular menu . Two more customer friendly signs. Among others, the appetizer choices were a White Asparagus Salad (10.50), Smoked Scallop Salad (11.00)  and  a Duck Liver Pate (8.50. Special main courses included Sauted Sand Dabs (22.00), Grilled Halibut (27.00) Braised Lamb Shank (24.00), Grilled White Salmon (28.00) and Tender (what else, untender?) Calves Liver (22.00)

The server was charming, friendly, humorous and knowledgeable. It looked as if we were on our way to the 3*Stars Ventura County Style of ambience, service and food.  Our table chose a wide range of appetizers and main courses, mostly specials and all in the party indicated that the food was of superior overall quality.

But a few cracks in the aura surfaced. For $10.50, I expected  the beautifully lush White Asparagus from the famed Bassano Del Grappo area of Northeast Italy. Instead there were three small tough shards. On the positive side, my Bouillabaisse was as fine an example of this elusive dish as I have had in recent memory.  The very flavorful broth was a bit more hearty and tomatoey than normal but was loaded with fresh  crustaceans and fish. All the desserts were lavish.  The wine list contained well thought out and sophisticated choices, many from the emerging  Santa Ynez and Paso Robles area at fair prices.

However, as the evening progressed, I realized that our chairs were un-upholstered green plastic resin. A bit of a shock.  There was a mixup and an ensuing delay on one main order, a small bowl of sauce was dropped on the floor  and the desserts were slow coming out of the kitchen and missing one order.