We were recently invited to stay an evening at the relatively new Allegretto Vineyard Resort here in Paso Robles. In Part 1 I will talk about the restaurant, Cello Ristorante & Bar. Chef Eric Olson is the man behind the menu and we were fortunate to speak with him a few different times on our first day there.
After a tour of the property, which I will discuss in detail in Part 2, given by Linda Sanpei we went to the restaurant to grab some lunch. Prior to this visit we had only eaten breakfast there and on another visit enjoyed a drink at the bar. So this was certainly a great opportunity to see what they were up to for lunch and dinner.
Chef Eric gave us some recommendations and from those we ordered (and shared) the following:
Scallop Salad – Butter leaf lettuce salad with Thyme seared day boat scallops, Morro Bay avocado, mango, ginger, Halter Ranch Chardonnay reduction dressing. $18.00
Italian Sausage Ravioli – Artichoke, parsley, parmesan cheese, with HammerSky White Wine crème garlic sauce. $14.00
It’s hard to go wrong with a scallop salad and this one certainly did not disappoint. The scallops were prepared perfectly and the added flavors of mango, ginger, and the reduction sauce were perfect. As someone that lives with an addiction to avocado that too was a nice addition. The ravioli dish was one of the best I’ve had. The sauce was out of this world. This is one I will absolutely order again. Well done, Chef and crew.
Now, let’s talk dinner. Chef was kind enough to make some decisions for us and bring out a few dishes he thought we’d enjoy. Here’s what we tried:
Charcuterie Plate – Cured dried meats, artisanal Humboldt Fog, roasted eggplant hummus, Castelvetrano olives, artisan bread. $20.00
Burrata Martini – Carmelized Anjou, mache, ginger, fresh burrata, micro greens, toasted almonds. $18.00
Bread sticks with tomato sauce (Do not remember price)
14-ounce ribeye with balsamic glazed carrots, butternut squash mashed potatoes, mashed potatoes, blue cheese mushroom sauce, asparagus, hericot verts. (Do not remember price)
Tiramisu (Do not remember price)
It was a beautiful lineup of food. So many amazing flavors. You can NEVER go wrong with a well prepared charcuterie plate and the burrata martini…what a presentation! The fresh bread sticks with olive oil and the delicious tomato sauce was fantastic. I don’t normally order ribeye but this was so good. The blue cheese mushroom sauce knocked it out of the park. Annie had a couple of bites of the Tiramisu so I felt it was my duty to finish it. She didn’t want to have one of her hyper sugar moments…good call and more for me.
For those that have not been to Cello Ristorante yet, it’s a beautiful environment. There is a good sized bar as well as the main dining room you can sit in. There’s also a gorgeous patio with stunning views. That’s where we enjoyed our lunch but chose to sit at the bar for dinner. You’ll see some of what I’m talking about in the slideshow below.
Annie and I want to say thank you once again to Chef Eric Olson for the great conversation as well as taking such great care of us on this journey through the world of food.
Cello is a great addition to the Paso food scene. Have had dinner there twice and both times chef Olson did not disappoint. And Michelle working the from adds a fine touch to a visit. The only down side is that it is getting harder to decide where to go on any night.