Dining Review Archive

« Previous Month | Next Month »

In 1995, chef Chuck Samuelson opened Bird Rock Café on La Jolla Boulevard featuring upscale comfort food and a well-versed wine list.

Over the next several years, Samuelson quietly and methodically built a nice little clientele for himself. In the beginning of 2001, the neighborhood of Bird Rock started changing. Restaurants were coming and going, retail spaces were being vacated and things got, as they say, “a little tight” in lower La Jolla. Sept. 11 made a tough decision easy. It not only added to Bird Rock’s slowing economic situation, it also triggered a time of introspection for Samuelson, both personally and professionally.

After much contemplation and soul searching, Samuelson asked the proverbial question one always seems to ask when soul searching: “What really makes me happy?” He determined he was happiest when planning and cooking wine dinners, and a new concept was born.

One late night in early December, he lifted a glass and bid his restaurant farewell. A two-week face-lift of paint, carpet, drapes and furniture was performed. The décor matched the new name, new menu and new concept. Cuvee, a blend, marriage or combination of otherwise independent flavors and ingredients, was born.

The menu, which changes completely each month to take advantage of the freshest in-season ingredients, is straightforward and very reasonably priced. It is broken into small, medium and large plates, with the more expensive items made with pricier ingredients. It all makes sense. The small plates range from $6 for the “Warm Brussel Sprout Slaw” to $11 for the “Breast of Duck Tonkatsu.” I’m a lover of that big green sprout, and this shredded warm salad is done simply with olive oil, a bit of butter, red wine vinegar, and a pinch of salt and pepper.

The medium plates section is loaded with dishes that soar. The “Beggar’s Purse” ($11) is a crepe filled with slow-cooked, almost Korean-style barbecued duck and shiitake mushrooms. Bundled into a purse and plated over a red wine and veal stock reduction, it is to be savored.

The other standout, “Day Boat Scallops with Mushrooms,” ($12) is a real jewel. Mashed garnet yams are topped with plump, dry pack scallops that have been quickly sautéed in a very hot pan. The dish is finished, surrounded really, with a shiitake mushroom and port wine reduction. Samuelson adds a hint of veal stock to the reduction to enhance the meatiness of the shiitakes. This makes a great juxtaposition to the sweet, buttery melt-in-your-mouth scallops.

‘Day Boat Scallops with Mushrooms’ is one of the standout items. (photos/Alan Decker)

The large plate options are varied and fairly priced. With choices like the “Braised Boneless Beef Shortribs” ($13), “Pork Loin with Homemade Applesauce” ($11.50) and “Potato Wrapped Catfish over Grits” ($13), it is very hard to select just one entrée. Farm-raised Midwestern catfish is crusted in shredded Yukon gold potatoes, flash fried and served over a bowl of creamy polenta cooked with rendered bacon and onions. Riding shotgun is a side of bleu cheese (gorgonzola) dressing that begs you to slather it on. And oh, did I ever.

Desserts are made in-house and also change monthly. The evening I visited, two jumped out and bit me (just before I bit them): The “Baked Apple Dumpling with Cherry Butter and Apple Brandy Sauce” ($5) and the “Pineapple Upside Down Cake with Caramel Ice Cream” ($5). Again, how about those nice prices?

But wait, here comes the real beauty of Cuvee, and another defining moment for the concept: The wine is priced at cost. Yes, you read me right. The wine list has more than 120 bottles of wine all priced at cost. An $8 corkage fee is charged, whether you bring in your own bottle or purchase one of Cuvee’s. This is a bold value move for Samuelson.

The list is mainly Meritage and blends. Cuvee, get it?

A 1999 Chateauneuf du Pape, Vieux Lazaret from the Rhone Valley sells for $15. Even with the corkage fee, that’s a fine price. I was in the village of Chateauneuf du Pape this fall and was hard-pressed to find a local bottle anywhere near that price. The wine list tops out at $64 for the 1977 Stag’s Leap “Millennium Blend” — unless you splurge for a magnum of 1996 Neibaum-Coppola Rubicon, a Meritage of Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Franc.

Samuelson and staff cook solely dinners Tuesday through Saturday. Reservations are a good idea, and the separate dining room is great for small or large parties. Bring a Meritage of friends to Cuvee and blend good solid food with interesting wine, all at a great value.

— Terryl Gavre