Stanford Inn's Ravens Restaurant — Restaurant in California

I tried this restaurant because I stayed at the Stanford Inn hotel and I really enjoyed everything about it. First you need to understand that this is a fully plant-based restaurant and if you are looking for vegan processed food or food with a lot of fake flavors this won't be your place. However, if you are looking for healthy food, with good quality ingredients and you want to taste the original flavors with no additives of each dish then you are in the correct place! You must make reservations for breakfast and dinner (they are closed for lunch, however, they have a menu for a lunch to go) and I suggest that you make your reservations with a lot of advance because they don't take in a lot of customers at the same time and reading previous comments I can tell that for some people that is inconvenient, however, it makes a big difference on the experience because the server service is really good (you have the full attention of your server) and the food is freshly prepared by the time you order it. The restaurant has a beautiful interior and amazing views. The customer service is amazing. The staff were all attentive when it came to answering our questions and made really good suggestions. The menu has sections for larger dishes and smaller portions. For breakfast they have daily fresh juice, delicious coffee and teas and the menu has a lot of options to choose from. For dinner if you are a soup person I recommend that you always order a cup of soup, every day they have a different soup and the flavors are amazing. If you like desserts this is also a must, I loved all their desserts and my favorite one was the carrot cake, I like them because they were not too sweet and you can taste different combinations and flavors . They also have a happy hour. The bartender is really knowledgeable, she made recommendations to pair our food with wine and the combinations were tasteful, I didn't have the chance to taste their cocktails but they have a lot of variety . I love the fact that our dogs were welcome to the restaurant, they have a whole section for families with dogs and while we were there all dogs were calm and everybody was able to enjoy their meals in a great environment and the bartender and server were spoiling our dogs with delicious treats. I highly recommend this restaurant if you want to have a healthy, nice experience meal. And if you have dogs...this place is a must. I can't wait for us to come back again...

You MUST visit. Period. We stayed at the Stanford Inn for two nights, and ate at the Raven's for (3) meals. The presentation, fresh plant-based ingredients, and service were all outstanding! Thanks! Our meals included: Burrito* – Scrambled tofu or braised tempeh, mixed garden vegetables, black beans, rice, Ravens’ enchilada sauce and our cashew cheese in a whole wheat tortilla. With salsa cruda and sour cream, choice of country potatoes, sweet potatoes or refried pinto beans 12.50 Garden Scramble – Seasoned tofu or tempeh, braised seasonal garden vegetables. Choice of country potatoes, sweet potatoes or refried pinto beans 12.50 Stanford Herbed Polenta – Our signature brunch entree – grilled herbed polenta with garden greens sautéed in our braising sauce. Served with our cashew “cream” sauce 15.00 Chilaquiles – Tortilla chips sautéed in enchilada sauce, (optional: served with tofu-spinach scramble), Spanish rice and refried beans 13.00 Kale Salad – Massaged kale with raisins, avocado verjus vinaigrette topped with cauliflower ceviche and avocado tartare 14 (GF, NF, OF) Sea Palm & Root Vegetable Strudel – Local sea palm, carrots, onions in sesame phyllo, accompanied by a stir-fry of broccoli, shiitake, bell pepper and cashews. Served with Umeboshi and wasabi sauces 27 (NF option) Ravens Tres Tacos – One of each taco with shredded lettuce, avocado, achiote rice, pinto beans, Ravens salsa 23 (GF; NF & OF option). All of our meals were so good that we bought the cookbook, and will attempt to make them at home....

I really wanted to like this restaurant. I am a dietitian and I eat an almost totally vegan diet and believe healthful eating can taste great. I know they were ahead of their time in offering vegan fine dining. And maybe once upon the time they offered the whole package.The dining room is lovely and our server was cheerful and competent. But the food? What a disappointment. Whoever is in charge of the kitchen is holding this place back. So much potential unmet. Many things were not cooked enough, doughy ravioli, undercooked chewy whole chard leaves, chewy vegetables in the curry, a cold raw bell pepper piece with a mushroom saute’ on it. If I wanted raw food I would have gone to a raw food restaurant. The house made bread was dry. How did they manage to make such a mess of simple bread? The flavors of the curry and the ravioli were ok but overall the meal was a failure on so many levels. This beautiful facility needs much more than they are getting from whoever is in charge of the food. Get an inspired, experienced professionally trained chef and up your game. Vegan food can be so much more than you...