The Dutchess — Restaurant in Ojai

If you're on the hunt for an unforgettable dining experience in Ojai, look no further than The Duchess. Nestled in the heart of this charming town, The Duchess promises a culinary adventure that will leave your taste buds singing with delight. My recent visit to this restaurant was nothing short of extraordinary.

The ambiance at The Duchess is both warm and inviting, making it the perfect setting for an evening of gastronomic exploration. The decor exudes a subtle blend of elegance and comfort, setting the stage for an exceptional dining experience. But it's the food that truly steals the show.

Our meal commenced with the naan, a classic favorite that never disappoints. The naan at The Duchess was warm, pillowy, and perfectly cooked. It served as an excellent canvas for the array of delectable flavors to follow. Next up were the chickpea fritters, a crispy delight that had just the right amount of spice. The fritters were expertly prepared, boasting a crunchy exterior and a tender, flavorful interior. They were served with a mouthwatering dipping sauce that added an extra layer of complexity to each bite. The crispy potatoes were a revelation. Golden and crispy on the outside, yet soft and creamy on the inside, they were seasoned to perfection. A sprinkling of herbs elevated their flavor profile, making them utterly irresistible. And then there was the tandoori chicken, a dish that showcased The Duchess's mastery of Indian cuisine. The chicken was succulent and bursting with the smoky, aromatic flavors of the tandoor. Each bite was a revelation, and I found myself savoring every morsel. The naan, chickpea fritters, crispy potatoes, and tandoori chicken were all exceptional, and I can't wait to return to explore more of their menu. If you're in Ojai and in search of a memorable dining experience, make a reservation at The Duchess—you won't be...

Went on a day trip to Ojai and started with the Dutchess for pastries. We got to try the danishes with strawberry pistachios and with heirloom tomato. I immediately felt in love with the texture of the Danish and thought they were the best Danish I've ever had. The pastries were layered and crispy, and the heirloom tomatoes added an amazing lightness to it.

So we decided to go back to Dutchess later for dinner because their menu with the Indian/Burmese influences looked promising, but that's where we went wrong.

We had naan, crispy chickpea fritters, tea leave salad, and half chicken masala. Starting with the decent, the naan was not bad, and the garlic herb butter makes it enjoyable.

The fritters were fried nicely, but the chickpea filling was paste-y and did not have a pleasant texture. We were thinking that they would be similar to a falafel, I was way off base.

Then onto the half chicken. While the cook on the half chicken was good with crispy skin and moist chicken breast The masala sauce would make any Indian food lover mad. The flavors are sorely lacking, especially the salt component. I think the level of flavor intensity may be adjusted to the locale, but ultimately, the depth of the sauce is so shallow, it should not be allowed to have any ties to any south east Asian cuisine.

Lastly, I love tea leaf salads, and the one here is bad. Overly sour, and the bitterness of the tea leave is not balanced. It's like Someone read the recipe, got the ingredients, but did not see the proportions.

I would definitely stick to neighborhood Indian and Burmese restaurants instead of spending fine dining dollars at Dutchess. It makes me sad if someone was to come here without knowing much about Southeast Asian food, and think that's what is like.

But, the danishes are definitely a must. So, I would recommend doing the...

Oh Ojai…

There’s always been an LA element to Ojai as it’s been a getaway for Angelenos for a long time. That said, Ojai has gotten VERY LA since I moved away many moons ago, and places like these don’t help.

I’m glad there’s some attention on better food options in Ojai. The town hasn’t exactly had great restaurants in its history. I just wish the focus was on less trendy restaurants. This place is trendy as hell, filled with trendy people eating trendy food paying trendy prices.

Many items sound great on paper but execution falters. Quail was over cooked and tough. I don’t consider kimchi fried rice to be a great accompaniment to steak, but even if it was, make it a great fried rice and a great steak. This was neither. Why not separate the two? Make a killer fried rice as one dish and a great steak as the other? Tea leaf salad and naan were fine, I’ve had better. I get the feeling a lot of folks oohing and aahing over this haven’t really eaten around much.

Desserts were cloyingly sweet, the pie being unpleasantly cold, like fresh out of the freezer, so that biting in just gave a terrible icy texture mouthfeel. I’ve enjoyed pastries from Huckleberry so this was a letdown.

Wine list is good, filled with many producers you won’t find elsewhere in Ventura County but at exorbitant markups, even by LA standards. In the European countryside you can pay slightly over retail (sometimes less!) for great bottles. In California countryside it’s 4x apparently.

What Ojai needs and deserves is a Chez Panisse or Zuni cafe to highlight all the great ingredients available locally, cooked very simply but with a keen attention to detail, accompanied by a killer wine list that’s priced attractively to enthusiasts. You can’t possibly give me the “expensive real estate” excuse when Zuni has some relative bargains...