VinDivine

PRO: Nice atmosphere, good selection of small plates, great steak dish
CON: No croquettas! Some dishes could use more spice

Yes, another business meal, another blog post. That’s how we roll over here at VdV. The secret to happiness is mixing pleasure with biz any time possible.

So, ZuZu is located right in the historic downtown area of Napa. It’s a cute place, and has a rustic and authentic Argentinian feel about it. With nice lighting, weathered tin ceiling tiles, sandstone plaster walls and some interesting wooden artwork on the walls, they walk the line between casual and classy. The result is a very comfortable spot to have a biz meeting, date, or hanging with friends type of place to grab some small plates.

Bonus! They have a nice recycled pine bar that seats around 10 and is a great spot to hang out and chat up some folks. If you’re into that, of course.

They serve up a good regional menu, but I was shocked and horrified…ok, just bummed…that they did not have Croquettas on the menu. Come on guys!

So I started with the Ceviche ($10), a nice mix of fresh Halibut, lime, and peppers. Yummy for the tummy. Next was the Corn Chowder ($8) – it tasted cream based but it wasn’t. Very sweet and tasty, but the only real spice was some spring onions. Coulda used some ‘heat with the sweet’ as my man Bobby Flay would say.  Next, the server highly recommended the Vegetarian Quesadilla ($9) (I don’t think I look vegetarian), which I took a gamble on. Very good actually, for being meatless. I like my ‘dillas with meat! But this one, with melted Manchego cheese, onion, fresh lettuce all in a delicate yet crunchy flour shell hit the spot. I finished every bite. And to wrap it all up, the Niman Ranch Flat Iron Steak with Jalepeño Chimichurri ($11). Bada bing. Served very simply on a small white plate, with 6 generous slices of rare steak, EVOO and excellently spiced chimichurri. No steak knife needed. This baby took the prize! Yay meat!

What’d I wash it down with? Sangria, suckas! They make a fresh batch each day and it’s pretty good. Yes I have had better but no complaints at all. They also have a pretty extensive vino list, lots of wine by the glass and some interesting beers too.

This place won a Top 100 Bay Area Restaurants award for both 2003 and 2004 from the SF Chronicle. Yeah I know… what have you done for me lately. Damn you’re a tough crowd. Anyhoo, definitely check out ZuZu if you’re in the area. It’s a great lunch spot and good for dinner too if you’re looking for small plates and a nice, relaxed atmosphere.

VdV Rating: 3.5

Hours:
Mon-Thus 11:30a-10p
Fri 11:30a-11p
Sat 4p-11p
Sun 4p-10p

Zuzu
829 Main Street (betw. 2nd & 3rd)
Napa, CA
(707) 224-8555

napa, tapas