A.R. Valentien

Incredible food, beautiful cozy décor and nice service.
Had a delicious vodka, berry, lime and ginger beer cocktail.
There were four warm bread options — the biscuits were so flaky — I could have had cocktails and biscuits for dinner.
The mussels were in a light garlic wine sauce served with toast. The citrus salad was fresh and light. Roasted free range chicken was so flavorful and moist. The Brussel sprouts were caramely and crisp.
The only thing that I didn’t love was the chocolate cake dessert with peppercorn flakes — I like the salt and chocolate combo, but the pepper was a little too spicy.
Expensive, but such a nice treat for a special occasion.

La Jolla is just beautiful and this restaurant did not disappoint. Nestled in Torrey Pines, the sunset view was breathtaking and the food was as well!
We were a little worried about the dress code, business casual can mean different things at different places, but it was such a beautiful and relaxed environment, nice jeans and a top did just as well as a little black dress.
The service is top notch. The wait staff are extremely well versed on the menu and were able to offer helpful tips on what dishes to select. I started with the citrus salad, which was refreshing and a wonderfully light way to start the meal. My main was the butter poached lobster with potato gnocchi. That dish was probably one of the best things I’ve ever eaten. Perfectly cooked lobster over fluffy gnocchi… Yum.
For dessert we got the dark chocolate cake, which was extremely rich. It was accented with black peppercorns, which I felt the amount was unbalanced with the sweetness of the cake. The chef gave us some bonus treats (donuts were melt-​in-​your-​mouth amazing), which was such a nice touch.
Overall, I would definitely come here again and again. The champagne and wine list was perfect, having a lot of the champagnes and sparkling wines I love (but hard to find in restaurants). Next time, I’ll probably eat outside so I can enjoy the view a little better.

First, it was years ago that my husband and I dined here. It was an unforgettable experience in a most regrettable way. At that time we were fortunate to reguarly enjoy many of San Diego’s best restaurants.
La Jolla tends to be terribly racist toward blacks. Interestingly, they took it out on, in my case, the white woman married to a black man. We’d go into these fancy places all dressed up and jolly and the usual scenario was at least one dour faced white woman would give me a poison glare the entire time we were there. I’d mostly ignore them and keep smiling.
A.R. Valentien was the worst. One particular woman went so far as to ask wait staff if we could be ejected from the restaurant. It obviously made the waiter uncomfortable.
My husband isn’t a particularly social butterfly and was wearing his version of a zoot suit. He liked it, that was all I cared about. It was gray with wide vertical strips on his large frame and obviously rocked her world in the worst way. Of course now, ten years later that would be considered well dressed.
Ah, «rights of privilege.»

Wonderful evening! From the moment we were greeted to the moment we left we had everything we needed. They were very tentative to making sure we were comfortable. Justin was excellent. We had a pre fixed menu due to it being Christmas but there were many choices. I had the osso bucco and my fiancé had the NY strip. Both were very tasty. The portions were very generous. We both ordered a glass of wine and when the glass got low the manager came by and topped us off. Which was very nice. It was a very pleasant evening. We would definitely go back.

Very nice atmosphere with accents of a lodge. Staff was top rated and attentive with water glasses always filled and more. The food was delicious and tasted as if the chef put some serious thought into the right flavor combination.

What a Fantastic Evening!
Some friends of ours made dinner reservations; I had never heard of nor been to this restaurant located in The Lodge Torrey Pines (Hotel & Golf Course), but I love trying new places
There’s very little lighting as you enter the property (thank goodness for GPS). At the entrance, there is complimentary valet parking. Nice (plus, the valets were friendly)!
You walk through the lobby, through a lounge to get to the restaurant host. The rest of our party had not arrived, so we headed to the lounge for a drink. Shortly thereafter, our friends arrived and we were taken to our seats.
I was THRILLED when we were led outside, overlooking the pool (I had hoped, while having a cocktail in the lounge we were seated outside). It was a beautiful night and although it was a bit chilly, there were plenty of heaters on the patio (although after a couple of hours, the top of my head felt cooked).
I opted for the Tasting Menu w/​Wine pairings. This was 4 courses (although the chef added a couple of complimentary dishes). EACH Dish was Flavorful and the Wine Pairings were complementary.
Amuse
Lobster
Pasta
Hanger Steak
Deconstructed Apple Pie
Donuts/​Cupcakes/​Cookie
As if the Food wasn’t enough, Service was Excellent (even when I spilled one of my wine glasses; not only was he fast cleaning it up, he repoured my glass)!
This restaurant would be great for a romantic dinner date, too. But for our party of 4, we had such a good time, we ended up back in the lounge until closing.

Service was good, food was alright. Would eat here again, but not high on my list.

Celebrated our first year anniversary here with 10 of our friends and had an unbelievable experience! Food was sooooooooo delicious!!! We had the pâté sampler to start, and the cheese platter then a few of us ordered the taster special and omg it blew our minds! The seared ahi was to die for, the lobster was ridiculous and the steak was melt in your mouth delicious!!!

A little context — I had the tasting menu at another North County restaurant a few weeks earlier, and it was fantastic. After checking reviews, I expecting A.R. Valentien to at least be on par.
We arrived around 8:30pm — a little late for dinner, but the restaurant is open late. As we had at the other restaurant, we ordered the tasting menu with wine pairing.
The service was courteous, but for the price, I expected it to be more timely. The wine came 3 – 5 minutes late for every course except dessert.
The food itself was good, but again, for the price I expected it to be great.
Our server was a cool guy — he offered to refill our wine glasses several times, even though we’d only paid for the pairing. Unfortunately, I could have bought a case of that wine for the price of dinner.
Based on my experience, I wouldn’t recommend this place to my friends. Not at this price, and not if they’re celebrating a special occasion. I’d send them to the other place, but it’s probably a dick move to mention the name of that restaurant in this review…

Despite living close by and getting married at The Lodge, I had never been to this restaurant before. My husband and I decided it would be fitting to go here for our three year anniversary this week and we were not disappointed. I love how quiet and peaceful The Lodge is generally, and this restaurant was no exception. There’s nothing worse than spending a lot of money at a restaurant where you have to yell to your dining companion. The restaurant was so calm and serene and made for a great intimate experience.
Everyone kept on wishing us a happy anniversary which make it extra special. I was offered some complimentary refill of the sparkling wine I was drinking and our dessert had a happy anniversary greeting on it. Service was perfect and attentive. No course was rushed and it was nicely paced.
We ordered A LOT of food. We of course had their complimentary breads (the biscuits are awesome) and were offered an amuse bouche that involved a cucumber. We started with the duck liver pâté and also the smoked trout appetizers. Both were delicious but I loved the duck liver especially with the seedy mustard. My husband had a Caesar salad and I had the heirloom tomato salad which had fresh burrata, fried green tomatoes and the most perfect heirloom tomatoes. It was one of my favorite parts of the meal!
For our main courses I had salmon which was a surprisingly big portion size and my husband had a steak. We had the smashed potatoes as a side and the chef brought out some complimentary vegetables as well. We also shared a cheese plate because why not? For dessert I chose the baked apple which was a baked apple with apple pie filling inside and bourbon ice cream and it was perfect for the bringing in the fall season.
I’m glad to say this restaurant did not disappoint me at all! The Lodge remains my favorite hotel in San Diego and their food is no exception. Definitely would come back here again.

Delicious corn soup, drug store burger, sea bass, wine and the setting was just beautiful! The service was first rate! Wish we lived closer to come back!

I was very disappointed with the service from this upscale restaurant. Our waitress, Tiffany, was not attentive nor was she very friendly. She checked on us just once during our meal. I expect, from any restaurant, that the waiter/​waitress fills up my drink without having me wait. I had waited over 20 minutes before she came to our table and then had to ask for a refill. It was clear that I needed a refill. I ordered a Caesar salad which was very poor quality. The lettuce was mushy and the dressing was nothing like Caesar dressing.

Excellent, top notch service. They were very accommodating to our kid who had a great time. :)) Order the duck confit. It’s perfection.

Went here for dinner last night. We ate out on the Patio. We started off with cocktails, then a bottle of wine, then another cocktail. We had a cheese platter before having Steak. It was AMAZING. everything about the night was amazing. Staff was so great, food and beverages were great, the weather worked with us so it wasn’t too cold out. We were there for about 3 hours really enjoying ourselves. From watching the sunset to our amazing server dropping off complimentary desserts.
They are Gluten Free friendly as they are an amazing farm to table restaurant.

We met here for dinner with some friends. One of our friend picked this place for the spectacular California view of golf course and ocean view. We had serendipitous visitors — wild ducks — who came and waddled in the pool while we watched the sun reach the horizon. We made reservations as suggested. It is important that you make reservations, because it does get packed with visitors staying at the hotel.
Our friends told us to be light on appetizers, because the portions tend to be big. For appetizers, we ordered the charcuterie platter of three with house made pickles and dijon mustard. During the course of the evening, the chef offered us complimentary tasting menu items starting with the amuse bouche of seared tuna on a delicate pastry topped with a garnish of wasabi. We fell in love with the warm bread and biscuit, which is bad, because it got us full. We must have asked our waitress for 3 – 4 refills of biscuits.
Between the 5 of us, we practically ordered three quarters of the entrée menu to share among ourselves. We must say the most fabulous pick came from my fiancé who ordered the Seared Sea Scallops. It was just magical. Crusted on the outside, moist on the inside, perfect temperature and consistency. Fell apart with one cut of the knife. Definitely «Chopped» technique. For the Pork Loins, it was very tender and not dry. The glaze was the perfect fit and did not overwhelm the pork. The chef even included a plate of complimentary special carrots with berries and they were delicious.
For our dessert, we asked our waitress, Amy, for recommendation. We had the Meyer Lemon Chiffon Cake and Coconut Bavarois. The cold ice cream was a sharp contrast with the warm Earl Grey crumble. Earl Grey is a fantastic ingredient for any dessert.
Despite the Thanksgiving feast we had and already overpopulated real estate in the tummy, the chef came one more time and BANG, one more complimentary plate of dessert full of deep fried donuts, goat cheese cheesecake with apricots and mini chocolate cakes! Such a wonderful place. We were there for 4 hours, and never felt rushed. Wonderful staff, wonderful location, wonderful location. Definitely coming back to try the dry-​aged beef.
Food 5 stars. Service 5 stars. Location 5 stars. Great for special events, dates or just feeling decadent and needing to be pampered. Well done A.R. Valentien.
ps.
Parking was free.

Inside the wonderful Lodge at Torrey Pines is A.R. Valentien Restaurant. A painter and designer, Valentien, moved to San Diego in 1908, he was commissioned by Ellen Browning Scripps. One of the things he is known for is the watercolors of the California flora and landscapes; several of his impressive works are on display in the dining room.
I’ve had the privilege of indulging and imbibing in some of the most celebrated, successful and Michelin rated establishments around the globe. Executive Chef, Jeff Jackson, (pictured above) raises the bar with creative menus that will nourish, satisfy and delight everyone, even the most discriminating, self-​proclaimed foodies. My dinner was memorable and that is always the best gauge with regards to gastronomy.
The service, selection, presentation and flavors are, in my opinion, exceptional. Expect to indulge on the chef’s inspired creations like Butter Poached Maine Lobster, Wild Alaskan Coho Salmon with roasted turnips and brussel sprouts or Seared East Coast Scallops, parsnip fondant, kabocha squash purée, green apple and blood orange. Ask manager and sommelier, Paul Kikorian, to pair your choices with a glass of California’s finest wine.
My meal began with the chef’s daily amuse bouche: cauliflower soup with caviar. Delectable. After my first taste, I had an inkling that the rest of the meal was going to be extraordinary. I started with a fresh salad including roasted walnuts, pear, assorted greens and aged cheese — the ingredients change according to seasons and what’s available at the nearby farmer’s market.
I recommend the Roman Style Liberty Duck Breast (above) and confit leg with roasted plum and fennel shortbread, caramelized fennel, watercress and verjus vinaigrette. This dish was succulent and perfectly accompanied by seasonal root vegetables. Delicious! Like nature, the menu will change throughout the year with the freshest and highest quality farm-​to-​table ingredients.
Note: A.R. Valentien offers an Artisan Table family-​style dinner every Thursday at 6:30 pm. Join the local purveyors, professional chefs, their families and friends for a dinner with gusto.

I don’t treat 5 stars very lightly. I loved everything about A.R. Valentien.
Easy complimentary parking when you dine at the restaurant, friendly faces and such vintage and elegant vibe.
Their valentine’s day dinner was wonderful (see photos).
Even more amazing, they sent each guest with a treat to take home and I loved it. Such a special and thoughtful menu, I was very pleased.
Excellent service, we had the pleasure of meeting the service manager Dan and thanked him profusely.
Dinner was exceptional, the amuse bouche started us off in the right direction.
My experience was flawless, the scallop crudo scared me at first but it worked beautifully with the strawberries and uni.
Thank you for taking me on a beautiful food journey, I cannot wait to return.

First time dining at the upscale (but mostly casual) A.R. Valentien in The Lodge At Torrey Pines.
The place is gorgeous, if a little far from any freeway exit. Looks like it was built in the 20s, lots of Tiffany-​looking stained glass windows, big Brazilian wood pillars, beautiful dining room with cozy booths and also tables, lush décor, great patio overlooking the golf course and ocean. Superior service. The wait staff were super attentive without being overbearing. Very knowledgeable, took the time to explain each of the dishes and answer questions.
First they brought us a tiny little amuse bouche… a tiny duck pâté pastry that was flaky and a delicious mouthful. Then we ordered the pear and baby lettuces salad. Absolutely delicious, fresh, light aromas, with pieces of persimmon and a tiny chunk of the THE MOST delicious cheese: Humboldt Fog cheese. Indescribably delicious.
Ann had wine and liked what she got. This place only serves California wine, no foreign brands, but hey what’s wrong with that. Cali has great wines.
Now we come to the main dishes and here’s where the problem lies. Ann had the appetizer ravioli as her main course and it looked absolutely delicious. There were three big ravioli with squash and mascarpone filling. She said the flavors were wonderful.
I ordered the fish that was recommended by the server. It was sablefish (never heard of it), which is a white fish served in a mushroom broth. Even just thinking of it makes me want to retch. The fish was VERY oily and slimy, gelatinous. Not only that but the taste of it was yechh… it had a dull, flat taste, nothing delicious. It was swimming in its broth so that made it ever more heavy, tasteless and creepy.
I sent it back and the waiter offered to bring me some salmon. So I accepted. Another bad dish. The salmon was also swimming in sauce. I have never had salmon this way. It ruined completely the usually light and flaky texture, and the flavor of the salmon was lost in the soupy sauce. It almost had the texture of meat. Maybe that was the point.
In any event, I took one bite and put it aside and to the restaurant’s credit, they didn’t charge us for either of the fish.
I contented myself with the wonderful sauteed spinach I had ordered on the side, and they brought a complimentary dish of sauteed white asparagus which were really very nice.
The two fish dishes reminded me of some very heavy meals I had in Germany. Maybe a simple flaky salmon dish is not in this chef’s repertoire.
At the end, they brought us a delightful little dish of freshly baked pastries, a sampler, with a snickerdoodle cookie, a little brownie, a little two-​bite-​size carrot cake.
I have to say that I was so disappointed with my main courses that I wouldn’t go here again. If you’re heading this way, have a steak.

We were invited out for dinner by my cousin who was staying at the lodge. I loved the rustic feel, the views from the patio, and the amazing food with perfect, attentive service! When we walked into the restaurant, and saw the vintage looking bar, comfy chairs, and warm fireplace, my husband and I exclaimed that we would love to return for drinks. Our table overlooked the pool, and was in a lush, wooded area. Though it was chilly out, the heat lamps kept me comfortable. Service was professional and perfect. I felt very catered to, as we started with a couple bottles of champagne and a variety of different freshly-​baked rolls and breads. I almost felt full after the bread, but when my scallops came out, I couldn’t resist eating them all. Our meals were served with plates of root vegetables served family style, and plenty for our large party. I also felt that they had a great wine list, and enjoyed a Sauvingon Blanc with my meal.
Following dinner, my husband and I decided to share a dessert. We chose a hazelnut and salted caramel layered dessert that reminded me of a fancy ice cream sandwich… and was absolutely delicious.
After that satisfying meal, they then bought us a large assortment of small desserts… for free. Not sure if this is something they always do, of if is because we were the last party there that night. There were small cups of mousse, apricot bars, mini cupcakes and beignets. The mousse was absolutely amazing… really dark and chocolatey. Despite being the last group in the restaurant, and savoring our desserts, service was excellent and we were able to take our time without feeling rushed.
This was a great experience, and I hope to return.

We came here to celebrate a special occasion and spent 2.5 hours dining here for dinner. We were offered a table on the patio that overlooks the pool and part of the golf course. The patio has heat lamps so thankfully it wasn’t too cold.
We ordered a couple glasses of wine to start the evening — Justin Cab and Riesling. One of he servers came out with bread for us to select — white, grain or homemade biscuit. I opted for the biscuit and it was warm and amazing!!!
We ordered the following:
–Butter Poached Maine Lobster, Tempura Squash Blossom, Carrot, Citrus and Green Coriander ($ 18)
–Green Kale, Quinoa and Local Strawberry Salad, Crispy Pork Belly, Humboldt ($ 16)
–Alaskan Sablefish ($ 36)
–Liberty Duck Breast and Confit Leg ($ 38)
–Duck Fat Smashed Potatoes with Crème Fraiche and Caramelized Onion ($ 8)
–Chocolate and Hazelnut Trifle, Chocolate Custard, Hazelnut Dacquoise, Camelia Crème and Salted Caramel Ice Cream ($ 12)
–Vanilla Chiffon Cake, Strawberry Fraiche Sorbet, and Strawberry Pink Peppercorn Crumble ($ 12)
–Reg coffee and Decaf
In between our meals we were offered an amuse bouche, a tart sorbet to cleanse our palate and little sweets (warm donuts, cheesecake and cupcakes) at the very end of our meal comps of the chef.
The star foods of the night were the Green Kale Salad, Duck Breast Entrée and both desserts.
The ambiance is very romantic, and the service was awesome. We had an amazing experience, and the dinner was very good. The restaurant is on the higher end so come when it’s a special occasion!
Of note: There is a 4 course tasting menu available for $ 75pp. $ 115 with wine pairing.