Valentina Restaurant — Restaurant in Encinitas

Valentina is a small, but romantic modern European spot in Leucadia. The decor inside is modern industrial with a tinge of nautical, a salute to the beach city perhaps?

Looking over the menu, several items caught my eye but I couldn't help but notice that it didn't lean towards a specific European country, rather there is an opportunity for you to tour several countries over the course a meal if you wanted as the menu featured dishes associated primarily with Spain, France, and Italy.

I ultimately decided on the corn soup and the mussels. My waitress tried to sell me on a half baguette too which in theory would be excellent to soak up all of the the delicious mussel broth but I also choose to prevent food waste if I can and a half baguette for a solo person would not have been good.

Starting with the soup, it was delicious. You could really pick up on the smokiness of the roasted corn. The roasted poblano peppers and vanilla oil on top were nice touches though the oil did not really shine as much as the peppers. The soup was also more rustic with a coarser blend but I rather liked it. All in all, it was a comforting bowl of soup and well executed.

For the mussels, you definitely get a pretty generous portion! The mussels of a good size, plump and juicy and steamed perfectly. The white wine, garlic, parsley, and butter sauce? Well, that was, as expected, amazing! The dish comes with 4 grilled crostini which aren't great for dipping so I mostly used an empty half shell to ensure that I had broth with every mussel and trust me, that's the move.

To round out dinner, I went for the basque cake which was also delicious! I loved that it was delivered warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on the side. The contrast between warm/cold was surprisingly wonderful. As for the cake, its mostly an almond cake but I liked the addition of amarena cherries...too bad I only had 2 through my whole slice. I also loved the bites that got the pastry cream from the middle - those bites were definitely meant to be savored! If you have room, definitely get this dessert. If you don't have room, make some.

Dinner for 1 came to just about $50...

We tried Valentina during our visit to Cali and overall it was a solid experience.

What we ordered:

🐖 Pan Tomate with Jamón Ibérico The ham was really good quality and had great flavor, but it was kinda hard to bite through cleanly. I ended up getting more bread and using my hands to sort of break the ham and put it back on the toast. Not a big deal but it made it feel a little awkward to eat.

🍤 Gambas al Ajillo Classic garlic shrimp, really good. The oil had flavor, the shrimp were fresh, and it had a little kick from the chile. Definitely needed bread to dip in the sauce so I’m glad we had some.

🐙 Pulpo con Alubias This one was the favorite. The octopus was perfectly grilled and the beans made it feel a little more filling without being too heavy. Would 100% get again.

🥖 Bread & Butter Big warm loaf with soft butter. Sounds simple but it hit, especially with the shrimp oil. Could’ve been better with salted butter but still solid.

🍒 Basque Cake Honestly, I didn’t think I’d like it as much as I did. Creamy with that cherry on top vibe and the vanilla ice cream made it even better. If you’re doing dessert, this one’s a good call.

🥂 East India Solera Sherry Very sweet, almost syrupy. If you’re into dessert wines, it’s a strong choice. Not for everyone, but worth trying once.

Very sweet, almost syrupy. If you’re into dessert wines, it’s a strong choice. Not for everyone, but worth trying once.

Overall:

Vibe was chill, food came out at a good pace, and the pulpo and shrimp combo was the move. Not the kind of place where you leave super full unless you order a lot but it felt like a nice little treat night. Would go back but maybe try different...

Located right off the 101, this is a cute, chic-casual restaurant with a spacy and low lit feel. It could be perfect for date night, dinner with friends or to celebrate important occasions. Parking is located along the road. They have a strict 2 hour time limitation policy, which made no sense to us because the restaurant was 3/4 empty while we were there. The server was nice and was able to guide us through the menu and our drink choices in depth.

I got the Riesling which was pretty good. My friend tried a bunch of different wines before she settled on the Albarino, which was close to a Sauvignon Blanc.

For food, we got a bunch of different tapas plates. The corn and coriander soup was a Chef's kiss. Warm, flavorful without being too punchy, like a warm summer night's hug. The patatas bravas were different from what I expected them to look like, but they were pretty tasty. The Codorniz was a nice little surprise - Spanish quail presented as one would a chicken wing. The tamarind sauce was a little salty which made it harder to finish this quickly. But, overall, I enjoyed the meat a lot. It was also falling off the bone pretty easily, which is what I like my wings to be like. The Tomaquet con Iberico was a bruschetta presentation of Iberian ham on tomato bread. Personally, I would've liked more than just ham and bread.

They have an interesting menu and I'll be back to try some more options. I do wish they remove the 2 hour dining limit. The server coming back to keep us moving the menu felt rushed. I understand having this rule for a bigger group, but doesn't make sense for 2 people looking to have an easy,...