We are looking for two special restaurants in wine country that will not "break the bank"
Any suggestions? We have heard about the French Laundry for years but with the economy the way it is- we can't afford it. Anything as good but not as costly?

These days it doesn't take much to "break the bank". There are many excellent restaurants in the "Wine Country". Where will you be staying?

Thomas Keller has two other restaurants in Yountville besides The French Laundry. Both Bouchon and AdHoc might fit your needs. But there are many others. A search through recent postings will lead you to many recommendations.

Hooray! The Preview and edit functions are back. Thank you, Fodors.

You've heard of the FL for years but now you can't afford it?? Why didn't you go there when you could afford it?? (Ha ha - Juuuust kidding)

- Try the Rutherford Grill, Taylor's Automatic Refresher,‎ or Go Fish. Not the same as FL but something you may afford‎.

The poster is asking about something like French Laundry, and you're recommending Taylor's Automatic Refresher?????

This is our first trip to Ca. in 30 years.Hence no opportunity to eat at the FL before now !!! We are staying in Napa.

I would go with Cyrus in Healdsburg. I think it's just as good as French Laundry and it's a 1/3 of the cost. It's worth the drive from Napa.


http://www.cyrusrestaurant.com/

We enjoy the French Laundry but we go for lunch but why spend $500+ when they are so many fab restaurants in the Napa area for A LOT less..
We dined for lunch at Redd last September and it was excellent..had one of the best ahi burgers at Taylor's refresher in St. Helena..
Enjoyed Bouchon for lunch and Ubuntu as well.
There is a place in St. Helena called V Sattui winery (rivals Dean and DeLuca)
that you get these high end sandwiches made to order, wine and olives and you sit outside and for under $25 with a bottle of wine..lovely!
You could do so much for so little and have an incredible time.
Have a wonderful time!

www.vsattui.com

Michael Chiarello's new restaurant in Yountville has been getting rave reviews. Bottega

http://www.botteganapavalley.com/

Here are a couple Chronicle reviews:

http://tinyurl.com/dlzwmo

http://tinyurl.com/bjckjh

I haven't eaten there yet but can't wait! There is also a Napa Style store in the same building as well as a nice little cafe and a wine tasting bar. Michael's Giana Zin is very nice. I think it won an award or two.

http://chiarellovineyards.com/

http://www.napastyle.com/home.jsp

I should have said the cafe is in the Napastyle Store.

http://tinyurl.com/bhnygu

Bistro Jeanty is our favorite French restaurant. It's in Yountville, where there are a number of other great "Napa" restaurants.

Thank you all. We can't wait to go.

Just got an e-mail for the new Marriott Napa Valley Resort for $129 a night and includes a Hess winery tour, bottle of Hess and some other goodies..have to stay by April 30th..

Our favorite is Etoile Restaurant at Domaine Chandon in Yountville. Both lunch and dinner are great, but we especially like lunch because we can see the grounds (and you can coordinate a tour of the winery with a meal). Bouchon is very much the typical French bistro and reasonably priced. We also like Mustard Grill and Don Giovanni.

I used to love Bistro Jeanty but it got a bad review in December from the Chronicle critic Michael Bauer. I'm not sure I'll be going back for a while. There are so many restaurants I haven't been to yet.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/articl...&feed=rss.food

If you are staying in Napa, one of the best restaurants is Ken Frank's La Toque. It just recently moved down to the new Westin Hotel from Rutherford.

Here is Mr. Bauer's review:

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/articl...LVCG13TOG9.DTL

Another exceptional restaurant in downtown Napa is Ubuntu. It's vegetarian but has gotten many rave reviews.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/...entry_id=27399