A few changes are happening at a favorite St. Helena landmark, Greystone at the Culinary Institute of America.  Barbara Hom, new General Manager, is a very warm and personable gal that has overseen the expansion of the outside deck and hinted at forthcoming changes inside.  I love the restaurant decor but things do get dated, so good for her!

My favorite part about my lunch there last week was the service  and the wine flight.  Thomas, our waiter with the cute aviator glasses, was typical of what I have come to expect…attentive listener, enthusiasm for the menu, generous about our special request and solid information about the CIA and how it operates with the restaurant.   Barbara swung by our table while checking on the guests and we had a warm, enlightening conversation.

The wine flights have cute memorable names like Call Me a Cab. I was excited to see three of my favorite whites in a flight, Uvaggio’s Vermentino, Pey-Marin Riesling (bone dry in the Austrian style but from Marin County) and Bokisch Albarino.

I approached the meal by first choosing a flight, then asking the server to recommend dishes to match.  I would have liked to have a pairing menu; I hope they’ll do that for lunch in the future.

If you visit Greystone/CIA, I encourage you to ask lots of questions about the school and culinary arts program, it’s what makes this place unique.

PS: I usually don’t post pictures of myself, but my friends really like this pic, so there you go!