Gatehouse Restaurant — Restaurant in St. Helena

Food was great but not perfect. I had three courses and my partner had four. I won't go into names of the wines will instead remain generic for respect of the makers.

First Course: I had the Kohlrabi noodles and it was bright and fresh. They paired it with a sake instead of mellow white. Maybe since the dish was a bit acidic, it was believed to be a good choice but for me the pairing was a terrible, it tasted of cough syrup and took the total opposite direction of the dish. One of the worst pairings I've ever tasted. 4/5 on the dish, 2/5 on the sake, 1/5 on the pairing.

The roasted carrots were my partners choice, they came with a pleasant red. It worked, the carrots dish was really pleasant. 4/5 on the dish, 4/5 on the wine, 4/5 on the pairing.

Second course: I skipped, but partner had the octopus. She really loved it, I didn't taste this. The wine for this round was very good.

Third/Main: I had the salmon. It was very good, the flavors were extremely good here. The salmon itself was very slightly undercooked, but I'm a sushi fan so it didn't bother me at all. The white served with it was the best wine of the seven I tasted during the entire meal. The pairing was perfect. 5/5 food, 5/5 wine, 5/5 pairing.

My partners choice was the miso pork loin, it was delicious, but her pork was very slightly over. The wine was a bit too dull for the strong miso flavors but they really did bring out some lovely bits. 4/5 on the food, 4/5 on the wine, and 5/5 on the pairing.

The last course: I got the Japanese cheesecake and it was wonderful. The dessert wine that was served with it was good too but extremely sweet. Self preference that I don't admire sweet wines but not terrible. Food 5/5, wine 3/5, pairing 5/5

My partner got the yuzu tart, it was exceptional, and her wine pairing was super good on its own but really had so many nice compliments to each other. 5/5 food, 4/5 wine, 5/5 pairing.

Service was wonderful, not too much to say here, it was on par for a fine dining experience.

Atmosphere was a little on the quaint side but the cozy was was nice but still didn't quite capture the relaxed atmosphere that can set apart an experience.

After service fees (the 20% non optional tip that is not a tip but a donation to the students program), it came out at...

Restaurant Review:

1-10 scale, 5 is average. I'm a fairly tough reviewer. Restaurants are compared to their peers, i.e. fast food to fast food, fine dining to fine dining, etc.

Gatehouse Restaurant - St. Helena (Napa Valley), CA

Ambiance: 2.5 Service: 7.5 Food: 4 Price: 2 Overall: 4

Notes: This is a restaurant staffed entirely by culinary institute students near downtown St. Helena. The 4 course dinner was OK, not great. I felt the food was bland and under seasoned, but presented very nicely and somewhat inventive. By far the worst part of the experience was the wine paring. In Napa Valley, NONE of the paired wines were Napa or even California wines. They were all European, French and Italian generally. I'm not a European wine expert by any means but, to my palate, none of the wines were even close to good. Every varietal was extremely watery and almost tasteless. At a Napa Valley restaurant failing to pair Napa wines with the food is a huge missed opportunity. Even worse, the wines selected were so awful that, to me, it reflected poorly on the culinary school itself. It's very hard to trust the judgment of anyone who thought the wines they selected were worth serving. Otherwise, the students were nice, prompt, and polite. The environment and decor was plain and underwhelming. Overall,...

We had such a wonderful experience dining at the student restaurant! From start to finish, the service and attention to detail were top-notch.

Dylan, our server, was absolutely amazing—professional, friendly, and even took the time to open the wine we brought with care and ease. Jake was fantastic as well, delivering each course with a warm smile and impeccable timing. In the kitchen, Riley was not only serving up delicious dishes but also serving looks—truly a star behind the scenes!

Ashley, the instructor on the floor, struck the perfect balance between mentoring and ensuring guests had an excellent experience. She checked in with us just the right amount and even thoughtfully folded our napkins when we stepped away—such a lovely touch that didn’t go unnoticed.

To top it all off, the coffee and latte art were beautiful—almost too pretty to drink (but we did, and it was great).

Kudos to the whole team. It’s clear there’s a lot of passion, talent, and dedication behind every plate and interaction. We’ll...