Napa Rose - Anaheim, Ca

the reputation of napa rose is that its the best restaurant in orange county.

i have three simple rules that will hopefully give you the best experience at napa rose

1. splurge

2. sit at the chef's counter

3. trust the chef

napa rose is a beautiful restaurant, has a great wine list, and an amazing open display kitchen. there are 8 seats (4 and 4) that are right in front of the kitchen which make up the chef's counter. why sit there? there is the regular menu, there is the weekly changing 4 course pre fixe as well. at the chefs counter there is a third option, and thats letting them cook for you. this is usually an amuse bouche, 4 courses, possibly a soup, and a dessert - pricetag of $90. want it paired with wine? $45. because you're right by the kitchen, the chef will come up to you, talk to you, ask you if you have any allergies, likes/dislikes, and how you like your meat prepared etc. from then on its up to them to create your meal and if you have 2 people you'll receive different items each course, so its like 10 different dishes. if youre going to a restaurant youre not going to dine at a lot (because yes, its expensive) you want to get the best things, and not be restricted to one item, this way you get to try the best of the best, and lots of it. oh and there is no dress code here since some people come straight from disneyland to eat here -

a plus if you dont like to suit up!

lobster martini. almost like a lobster ceviche, with fresh mangos, avocado, citrus, and spices - big chunks of lobster and refreshing fruits and veggies. awesome way to start with a deep fried pepper stuffed olive just like a real martini.

question number one - whats better than lobster? more lobster. tempura lobster (we know how i feel about this)

question number two - how do you make a salad better? add lobster tempura.

no more questions. oh what is it? thai beef mizuna salad with a coconut lime vinaigrette with lobster tempura.

pheasant bolognese with shaved black truffles.pwhat is one of the most expensive ingredients in the world? no not pheasant. but black truffles.

rabbit loco moco. if youve ever been to hawaii, one of the local favorites is hamburger loco moco. hamburger patty, fried egg, and gravy. here? rabbit meatloaf - not a fan of rabbit? its not very gamey because they add pork to it. what did we learn today? add lobster. add truffles. add pork (bacon). make things better. cooking for dummies.

chocolate decadence cake with vanilla pudding - extremely rich and delicious chocolate cake to finish it all off.

we obviously had more than this but these were just some of the highlights. i highly recommend the counter because of all the dishes you can sample, plus the interaction with the chef and cooks is a legen...wait for it...DARY meal. true story.

Napa Rose at Grand Californian on Urbanspoon