A.R. Valentien — Restaurant in San Diego

A.R. Valentien isn't perfect, but it is reliably stellar. In a city with so few legit fine dining options, I'll take that.

Let's start with the positives: Service is always excellent. It's located in a woody, luxurious resort and overlooks the 18th hole of the legendary Torrey Pines golf course. The food is pretty.

Occasionally I'll order something sublime, something that convinces me that A.R. Valentien belongs in the same conversation as Addison as San Diego's best restaurant. And then I'll have a meal at Addison and realize how much of a stretch that is.

Here's the thing: when I spend ungodly amounts of money at Addison, I feel I've gotten appropriate value for my splurge. When I part with far less cash for a meal at A.R. Valentien, I second guess myself, I groan over it, I shake my head when I pay my bill. I'm well-fed, and I've enjoyed my meal, but I start asking myself how many tacos I could have tried instead. My car needed an oil change. I could have gotten ten oil changes. My daughter wanted the Barbie Dream House for her birthday. I could have bought her a Barbie City. You get the point.

And yet I'm back a few more times each year.

It could be because of the "Liberty Duck Breast and Confit Leg," which is outstanding. "Duck 2-Ways" is one of my favorite dishes to assess the culinary competence of a kitchen, and this version has become a measuring stick for me. I ask myself when I have it elsewhere: Is the breast as tender and supple as it is here at A.R. Valentien? Is the thick skin crispy with delicious, rich subcutaneous fat underneath mingling with the juicy leg meat? Are the flavorings and seasonings as pitch-perfect? Let's be clear: you won't find this done much better than it is done at A.R. Valentien.

Depending on my state of being, I could instead order the "Caramelized Sea Scallops." These are outstanding, plump diver scallops that taste as clean as the plate beneath them. The accompaniments change from season-to-season, with my favorite being the vinegar-spiked frisée and chorizo salad with roasted fingerling potatoes. The buttery golden brown surfaces are seared with flavor that is both rich and intense. If I have any complaint, it's that three scallops of this size are not enough for a filling meal.

Also, by way of the north Pacific Ocean, A.R. Valentien sometimes features a "Pernod-Braised Halibut," which is served bare on top of an arugula and fennel salad, rather than smothered in this or that. Sometimes you need to let the fish speak for itself, and when your sourcing is impeccable as it is here, it's an easy choice.

The desserts I have had at A.R. Valentien are solid, from the contrasting textures of the "Chocolate Hazelnut Trifle" to the "Donuts," which are actually Hawai'ian-style malasadas. But Mrs. K and I prefer to order their "Cheese Plate," which is always satisfying, and consists of a sharp blue cheese, a funky soft cheese (such as camembert), and a piece of hard, nutty cheese with notes of caramel or butterscotch (like an aged gouda or comté). In all matters fromage, A.R. Valentien is superior to any other restaurant in San Diego.

Long known as one of the top restaurants in southern California, A.R. Valentien is difficult to ignore. I've waited years to write this review, hoping that I'd have something absolutely mind-blowing here to evangelize, but it's not that kind of place. Think ambiance, service, décor, excellently-prepared (but not mood-altering) cuisine, and location, location, location. In other words, more than enough to enjoy a...

The room ambiance & food quality were good. However, the service was BAD. Things we ordered NEVER came (and WERE billed for) & things we did not order (& do not prefer to eat) were brought to our table. In order of occurrence:

1. the table top cloth was pretty WET ALL OVER upon arrival & x 1.5 hours while there. So odd, so gross! Yuck! My wife thought that the undertable surface was washed prior to our sitting & I thought maybe the roof was leaking, but 30 mins into our meal we saw a young man bus boy clean & then prep the lover’s booth just across from us, with him SPRAYING water from a plant mister onto the just applied new top white table cloth. I called to him after & asked him WHY he did that, with his response: “it removes wrinkles in the tablecloth.” Omg, so THAT was why our tabletop cloth was VERY WET ? Come on, totally gross;

2. The requested gourmet bread selection never came after our order or before or with the delivery of our yummy appetizers, so I asked a passing bus boy for it again, with it finally brought as we were finishing our apps & as the main courses were being prematurely delivered by a young man food runner;

3. yep, as we were enjoying & finishing our 3 ordered apps, a young gentlemen food runner came with our 2 entrees. What? A cafeteria or taco shop? Correct, I asked for our Server, the absent “Grace”, & explained to her that no one seemed to coordinating our service at all. Removing our just cooked dinners “to keep warm in the kitchen” while we finished our apps & rested a bit & chatted more seemed not best. Re-heated gourmet food? Come on. We rush-finished our apps to make way for more the next course. Not good;

4. my very expensive lamb entree ($60.) was served medium-rare, not as ordered, medium-plus. Yuck. Yes, I ate the more cooked ends & asked the bus boy for a take-home box so I could cook the near raw inner meat more at home & have tonight (correct, Grace was not around then too);

5. non-ordered brussel sprouts were given to us (correct, we do NOT eat them & did NOT order them) but NOT our ordered (& later billed for) $11. snap peas side dish. They never came. We just watched to see IF Grace would notice…but she did NOT. Huh. What? And she placed that ordered item on our final bill? Yep. Come on. Charging for things NOT given? A crime;

6. and as above, a FALSE & OVERCHARGED final bill handed to me by Grace, with me having to later find her (“where is our Server”) & tell Grace & then re-calculate the bill in my head - $11 + - tax, about $12. They charge customers for things NEVER ordered or delivered to the table?;

7. yes, the gourmet restaurant dinner experience SHOULD have been what they advertise & charged...

DISAPPOINTING…A.R. Valentien is in a beautiful location. Unfortunately, the good story ends before the food starts. We dined at the restaurant for our 26th anniversary. We were seated promptly for our reservation at a delightful table on the deck outside. Unbeknownst to us, the table was in the walking path to another event room in the restaurant and over 50 people walked by our table throughout the night. It should have been a romantic setting, but It felt like we were in the shopping mall.

The evening felt rushed. Just as I was sitting down, the bread person came to our table and offered us bread. I hadn’t even sat down yet. I hadn’t put my napkin on my lap. No water was offered, just bread. I mean sliced bread. One thyme biscuit, two slices of basic bread, one sourdough and the other whole grain. The bread service was less than special and the timing of the service was wrong. The bread waiter never returned the entire night.

The waiter who brought the amuse bouche, served it while our main waiter was taking our order. We never heard what the dish was, and he was gone. We had to call the main waiter over to ask what the dish was and how it was prepared. Our service the entire evening was rushed and mis-timed.

We ordered the charcuterie plate for the first plate. Meh, the plate was not beautifully presented and seemed incomplete in concept. We had to ask the waiter about the different items on the plate as no description was delivered when the plate was presented. The pickled fig was the highlight of the plate. The charcuterie plate was the most flavorful dish of the evening.

My wife ordered duck finished medium and it came out rare. She ate parts which were more cooked and left the rest. Obviously, she was disappointed. She even said, “Yuk” once which is never a good sign from my wife. I urged her send it back, but after the rough start with the service, she decided to eat what she could.

For the second plate, I ordered halibut. What a “snoozer”. Not bold flavor, not subtle flavor… just little flavor. No more words should be wasted on this dish.

After the poor showing, we decided we could have a better desert experience elsewhere. The were kind enough to bring us a plate with happy anniversary written on it with two poppy seed cooking and two donut holes. (Yep, donut holes…just like Dunkin Donuts)

Like I said, the facility is beautiful. The execution of the food and service was disappointing. Maybe your experience will be...