by Frank Mangio
San Diego has some venerable names in its restaurant history and none have a more romantic reputation than Humphreys on Shelter Island. So when I heard that this anchor spot had undergone a major makeover of the décor, dinner and wine menu, I had to see and experience the upgrades.
Humphries and the adjacent Half Moon Inn are hallowed grounds for me, having done all the communications for this intimate, south-seas format many years ago.
I have enjoyed countless music events on the grounds at the Humphreys Concerts by the Bay. It could be the most intimate venue in the country to see big names in the music business.
At Humphreys new format, I was struck by the positioning of the tables so that each had a view of the bay and marina. Cool, maritime colors are relaxing and inviting. The new executive chef is Paul Murphy (seen in the accompanying photo). He has created a modern, global menu to accent his French-trained skills. You may know him from his previous work at El Bizcocho in Rancho Bernardo and Delicias in Rancho Santa Fe.
I chose the seared Blue Crab Cakes and Treviso Salad for starters. The paired wine was an ’04 Trefethen Chardonnay. I then moved into a gorgeous Prime Rib with rock-salt crusted mash potato, au jus. That’s when the red wine accompaniment arrived: a half bottle d’Arenberg, “the Dead Arm” McLaren Vale 2002 from Australia. Humphreys knowledgeable manager, Shauna Aguirre, personally selected this varietal, and it was a home run.
Half bottles make a lot of sense in a restaurant environment. With its three- serving content, it’s perfect to complete the bottle in one sitting. If your companion likes something else, ordering up another half bottle won’t break the budget. And Humphreys has some household names that I never knew made a scaled down bottle: Grgich and J Lohr Chardonnay, Beaulieu and Chateau Montelena Cabernets and Opus One Meritage.
Humphreys also has dinner packages wrapped around a number of their summer concerts, that include up-front seating. You can also have the dinner package, concert, plus a guest room at the half Moon Inn. For more information or to make a reservation, call 619-224-3577 or visit www.humphreysrestaurant.com.
Wine World Mourns the Passing of Robert Mondavi
Robert Mondavi, the icon of Napa and one of the most respected winemakers in all the world, died on May 16th. He was 94. He was the father and founder of the American fine wine industry. He started his first winery in Napa in 1966, believing that world-class wine could be produced in California. His innovative spirit and techniques brought his Robert Mondavi Winery to the pinnacle of greatness, culminated by the Opus One Winery, a Meritage masterpiece. His Italian roots held firm with his message that wine and food are created equal, and he wanted to see a bottle of wine on every American table.
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