The Restaurant at Ponte — Restaurant in Temecula

The short and sweet of my review is that it's over priced food and drink without much quality backing it. As for the details...

We went to this winery as a first venture out in Temecula, we heard so much about this city that we decided to rent a car and give it a go. We came to Ponte Winery starving since we missed lunch and did a bit of moving in the earlier part of the day so we were ready to dig into about anything. The menu looked a bit daunting at first with prices between 25-30 dollars for a dish but we figured that we're here and hungry, let's see if it's worth it. We were sat down promptly and were able to order soon after we came to our decisions. The waiter was even nice enough to warn us against the Bolognese after my girlfriend decided she wanted something simple but didn't realise it was a dish put on simply to cater to the gluten free vegetarian crowd without concern for actually tasting good, and if we are dropping 25 dollars on a plate it better well damn taste good vegetarian or not.

I selected the chicken and my girlfriend decided on her go to, shrimp. The wait was long, we polished off a loaf of their complimentary bread and were halfway through the second before our meals arrived. Did I mention we were hungry? Mine was a fairly bland roast chicken with a bready baked thing like a bread pudding but without sugar and some garlicly broccoli. This of course was dowsed with heavy white cream like you'd expect from a southern classic biscuits and gravy. However, I think the chef had some vendetta against salt as he intentionally decided to exclude it from almost every component. The end result was creamy mushy blandness, which maybe catered to the older clientele which were in droves about the place but certainly did not fit my appetite. Did I mention I was hungry? I'd hate to think of experiencing that without much of an appetite.

On to the shrimp! Outright, I hated them. My girlfriend thought them just ok but certainly not warranting the fine $26 price tag. Some creative visionary decided that they would meld sweet oranges with shrimp and brown rice and defy all gastronomic conceptions. Well it baffled me, as you took two fantastic ingredients and managed to ruin both. The oranges would have made a fantastic dessert, juice, or even salad but it just totally spoiled the shrimp. This wasn't an Asian inspired dish or even interesting, it was just outright bad. I think we both agreed the oranges were an impediment not an enhancement.

It was an easy no on dessert after those two dissapointing meals and we decided to peruse their local wines. We didn't end up sampling anything offered as the $40 per bottle price tag had us laughing out the door. I'm sorry for the poor saps who drove all the way out there to slap down their hard earned cash for overpriced "premium" products. Fool me once, shame on you.

You can get better ambiance at Mount Palomar up the road, and the wine's a bit cheaper although not very good. As for me I think I'll stick with a few wine samplings from Sprouts and an evening on the beach versus making the trek all the way out to this pretentious...

We have been living in temecula for 2 years now and only now tried dinner at the point. Now before going i read a number of reviews, good to great. So my expectations was neutral. Upon walking in we were greeted warmly by the hostess and asked about our reservations. We were 30 minutes early so she explained that it may not be possible to seat us, but would check. Also offering us options to walk around and get a nice drink at the outside bar, while she checked on the seating. Upon her return we were told we could be seated early but would need to wait 15 minutes. The hostess told us about the other parts of the hotel, cellar bar ( her favorite) and the pond to the back of the hotel. She took the time to show us around and left us to walk the ground while we waited. The pond was a short walk to the back of the property and nice. The outside bar was on one side and the restaurant the other. We decided to get a cocktail while we waited...I know we are at a winery and ordered a cocktail. Sorry...anyhow I had a gin and my wife a limon drop martini. Let me tell you that martini was perfect. After about 20 minutes the hostess came to get us seated outside. The outside seating was perfect for the nice warm temperatures temecula offers in the summer evening. We had nice cold waters, fresh cooked sourdough bread with a very yummy butter waiting for us. On the menu their was options for everyone. Beef to vegan .

For the starter we picked the calimari which was cooked perfectly. The main for me was a perfectly cooked beef steak filet. My wife had the special which was 4 very large scallopes. Both meals were great tasting and definitely a most get. Our waiter was very attentive and helpful all through or meal and never once made us feel rushed. He provided thoughts on our selection and provided input for drinks, desserts etc. Overall this was a great first experience for us at the point and would recommend it to you. Oh, I forgot to mention. The point offers a hotel accommodation along with room service and the 3 restaurant dining options. So if you're traveling book a room so you can stay and enjoy all the hotel offers. We live just a few miles away s So to book a room would be a bit over the top, but we...

DO NOT BOOK WEDDING HERE!! SEVERAL ITEMS STOLEN IN BRIDAL SUITE

A few weeks ago I was a bridesmaid in a wedding at Ponte Winery. It was a horrible experience. I had an expensive PURSE STOLEN with $$ Valuables taken (heirloom, jewelry, money, wallet, etc.). Also, the BRIDE'S WALLET WAS STOLEN too! Whoever stole this (which we think might be STAFF) went on a shopping spree during the wedding.

The MANAGEMENT/WINERY did not even try and help to solve this issue (We are still waiting to hear back from them with assistance). We filed a police report and everything. They Ponte told us that they have surveillance cameras on property which I thought would be good so we can see who took the items. WELL...we find out from the police that the cameras haven’t been working since OCTOBER!! REALLY!! You are a great winery and your security cameras have been broken since October??

The venue didn't even give us a key to lock bridal suite in the first place and also said it was fine to leave items in the suite....well now I know why!! I WILL NEVER TRUST ANY OF THESE PLACES.

If you are looking to book your wedding here, I would be cautious!! I would have felt better if PONTE did something about it, but it seems like they are avoiding us!

Wish I could give a NO STARS!! This was such a bad thing that happened and now I'm dealing with getting my identity back b/c my License, Bank Account, etc. was compromised.

THEY EVEN TOOK THE BRIDES STUFF!!! RIDICULOUS! WHAT A GREAT...