Trelio Food & Wine — Restaurant in Clovis

I am always skeptical about going to fixed menu places just based on the amount of food that I'm going to get. But I will tell you you get a very appropriate amount of food and the price point is fair. The only thing I would not get again that I don't think was worth the price was the mocha pot and Port. Two tiny little shots of coffee and two tiny glasses of dessert Port are not worth $18 in my opinion. That being said, The food was amazing. First course I had the watermelon salad and my wife had the melon salad - both excellent. The only thing I would change about the melon salad is adding green melon. It was all orange melon. Second course my wife had gnocchi with braised beef and I had the seared tuna - again both excellent, No complaints. Third course which was the main course. I had wagyu steak which came with potatoes and green beans and my wife had pork tenderloin - everything was properly seasoned and properly cooked, steak was very tender and the peppercorn sauce that came with it was very good. The pork tenderloin was also cooked perfectly and was very tender. For the fourth course which was dessert. I had carrot cake bread pudding and my wife had the chocolate mousse. The carrot cake bread pudding was awesome. I just wish I had gotten a little bit more. The chocolate mousse was very underwhelming. It was more on the bitter side of chocolate and not super sweet. So if you're looking for sweet I wouldn't go with that. We did get the charcuterie as well which I highly recommend. It came with two different types of jams, One sweet one savory, Honey and mustard seeds. Three different kinds of meats and three different kinds of cheeses. Last but not least, the service is amazing. My wine and water glasses never ran dry and they were knowledgeable about the menu and their wine selection. I would highly...

Probably the closest Fresno/Clovis has to true fine dining. However, it certainly has some room for improvement.

A prix fixe menu is great, but having 4 options for each course is convoluted. Also each item is paired with a different wine which creates a slightly awkward pacing of the meal service when the somm comes by to explain each wine, if each diner has different course choices that's a solid 5 minutes of pausing to hear about the wines.

The price was about right for four courses in a major metro, definitely feels high for central California, but they really are doing something unique and elevated for the region. The wine pairing was also very reasonably priced. Definitely some interesting wines.

The food was very good, but with a few technical issues. The haricot verts (green beans) with the wagyu steak were cold, and I don't believe they were meant to be. The lamb meatball had a great flavor, but was frankly quite dry. The pickled tomato salad was interesting and delicious, but the burrata foam was difficult to eat with a fork, either a firmer foam or serving with a spoon would be a better fit for this dish. I tried a bite of the ratatouille and it was phenomenal.

The servers were very nice, somm was very knowledgeable about his wines.

Dessert was...

Disappointing. I had high hopes for this one because of all the stellar reviews but this is not a five star or even a four star restaurant. Our waitress, although very nice, ignored us for about 15 minutes after she brought our water. It was a bad start. Then, when she finally came back, presumably because the other waitress had been motioned... she was completely unhelpful with regard to the menu selections. She didn't know any more that what was already written and on one key item not even that much. I could go into this more, but I don't want to embarrass her. As I said, she was very nice. Indeed, everyone at the restaurant was.

The food was just ok. The focaccia was sporadically salty. The fried artichokes, a little greasy and the sauce overly acidic. The cod was ok but the fish wasn't seasoned at all. And, please do yourself a favor, avoid the Wagyu steak. It's a very small American Wagyu that eats like an overcooked, frozen chuck steak and instead of seasoning, they char it black. It was chewy and awful.

In the end, I could be convinced to go back because everyone was so nice. That means something. And maybe with lowered expectations, the next meal won't be so...