Cordiano Winery — Attraction in California

Really lovely aesthetic and lovely location up the hill. The drive up there is also really pretty with all the plantations down at the bottom and then you get a nice view of the vineyard from the top as well. Love the positive vibes and the music playing and all the chatter when you come there for dinner. 10 on 10 for the ambiance.

Service of the food and drinks was also extremely quick!

Got a Pinot Grigio for the table and the group definitely enjoyed it. I tried the Sangria but was not a fan. The alcohol flavor was just too strong and it wasn't as pleasant as the one I remember having in Barcelona.

As for the food, the Rosé sauce was what everyone was going for the night! Husband and I got the special pizza that they had on the menu with the Rosé Sauce, mozzarella, grilled onions, Grilled chicken mushrooms and serano peppers. They were a bit too. Too many mushrooms on there so I didn't like that part and just asked for no mushrooms on half the pizza. They were a bit too too. Too many mushrooms on there so I didn't like that part and just asked for no mushrooms on half the pizza. Really like how they accommodated to that.

Friends also ask for that same pizza without chicken and they accommodated that as well. The same with making the Rosé Sauce pasta without chicken.

As for that pizza itself, it was absolutely delicious! Really good amount of chicken on there and also a lot of cheese which gave the perfect cheese pull! Pizza itself was also quite spicy and they did warn about that but I did not expect it to be this hot. Ended up taking off all of the serrano peppers and it made it spot on. Crust was also of a good thickness and just overall nice.

We also got the specials menu salad with lettuce, jicama, fresh tomatoes, shredded mozzarella, grilled chicken, tortilla strips and barbecue ranch dressing on the side. Decent amount of chicken here as well and tasted the nice with that barbecue dressing. Big downside here is that the salad felt a little low quality because they used iceberg lettuce and not romaine. So overall it just seemed like a little bit of a sad salad which had a lot of potential.

I would have given this place five stars but another big issue here was the bees! There was like a swarm of 4 or 5 bees that were just constantly at our table coming onto the food. Especially coming onto the chicken! We had to run for to-go boxes and box up our food and move it to a different table and secretly eat it out of the boxes so the bees...

I checked out Cordiano Winery for the first time and was really impressed! I loved the laid back vibe and stunning views of the San Pasqual Valley. The wines I tried were not among the best I’ve had but I went mainly for the food. Not many wineries in the region offer any meaningful food service unless it’s from a random food truck or prepackaged snack bag/tray. The menu at Cordiano features a nice array of appetizers, salads, pizzas and pasta dishes. Although not full service, reservations are recommended here. You order your food and beverage at the counter, give them your table number and it’s brought out to you in reasonably short order.

Both the calamari and carbonara I had were outstanding. I observed many other dishes coming out and they all looked great. Definitely seemed like high-end Italian restaurant fare to me. I would come back here just for the food alone. My Spaghetti Carbonara ($19) was served under a cloche, beautifully presented, al dente and richly flavored. The Calamari Fritti ($18) was such an abundant portion, lightly battered and tender. Served with a side of delicious house-made marinara dipping sauce. Cordiano Winery is located on Highland Valley Road in Esco, just outside of Ramona. The drive can be sketchy if you’re not familiar with the area or this road. Highly recommended.

Update: I visited Cordiano Winery again on April 16, 2025 hoping to try their lasagna! Unfortunately they were out or didn’t have any that afternoon. So I ordered the Spaghetti Carbonara again and it wasn’t quite as good as the previous time I had it. Although it was beautifully presented, hot and relatively al dente, it just tasted flat. Since I had to unexpectedly switch up my order I changed my wine selection to Grenache Blanc and they were out of that too. Most shocking to me was the staff taking orders were not at all knowledgeable on food and wine pairings. They had no suggestion for me when I asked. Kind of surprising. I did wind up enjoying a glass of Syrah but would have preferred that along side a nice order of lasagna. Sadly matters turned worse for some nearby patrons as they were informed their food orders would not be fulfilled since the kitchen had just run out of gas. I guess I got there...

Worst dining experience ever. I took my parents to your winery for my mom’s birthday and from the beginning it was an unbelievable disappointment. There was no heat in the event room (it was moved indoors due to the weather), and for some reason we had to ask for them to bring out heaters. No one offered up front.

We tried to order small salads to start and were told they were “out of small salads but we could get large ones.” How is that even possible to be out of salad but you can get the larger size no problem? The girl just told us we could try but it “would take a really really long time because she knows how they work.” When the two large salads came out, it appeared to be straight out of a bag, like the kind you buy from a grocery store, so I’m not sure how they can be out of small salads.

My dad tried ordering lasagna but was told they ran out the day before and didn’t make any more that day.

The rest of the meal was a joke and never got any better. They brought my parents’ pasta out and it looked like it was noodles straight out of a box of barilla noodles with canned sauce that no one even attempted to make look homemade. My mom’s pasta came out first. The table was so small we had to bring over a chair to put it on until we were finished with our two large salads (same type as the small by the way, but a larger size and served with chicken; apparently adding chicken saves time in making a salad).

We were sitting by the door and the wedding party kept going in and out. Because we were all still eating our salads we asked them to leave the lid for my mom’s dish to keep it warm. The guy just said no and walked off. My mom’s pasta was cold by the time she started eating it. Then dad’s pasta came out, again, equally disappointing and straight from a box at the grocery store.

Then my parents finished their meals and my husband’s and my pizzas came out. Yes, a good 20 minutes after my parents got their food. I’m not joking that they were done eating when we were served. They cleared my dad’s plate when the dropped off our food.

The pizza was actually pretty good, but not enough to make up for the rest of the evening. Won’t be going back. Happy...