Restaurant Review: Lucio’s

Scott and I are huge fan of BYOB restaurants, we frequent Collina’s and La Vista on a regular basis solely because they are BYOB. Last year we discovered a new BYOB favorite, Lucio’s. This place doesn’t look like much from the outside, but the magic is in the kitchen. Both times we have dined here, the restaurant has been packed, the service excellent, and most importantly the food delicious. Lucio’s is what I will call an upscale BYOB restaurant, it’s a little pricier, but hey you can bring your own wine so you aren’t paying a markup. And my personal favorite detail is that Lucio’s uses nice wine glasses, instead of the short glasses I see at other BYOB places.

We brought two bottles of wine, a white and a red, to pair with the various courses of our meal.
Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars, Rancho Chimiles Sauvignon Blanc, Napa Valley
Silver Oak, Cabernet Sauvignon, Alexander Valley

Appetizer:
Jumbo Lump Crab Tower
Sliced avocado, pico de gallo, poblano coulis

The crab tower was the perfect start to the meal, the chunks of crab were huge and it was just enough to get our mouths watering for the rest of the evening.

Salads:
Goat Cheese Apple Salad
Shallots, mix greens, candied pecans, chevre, apple, honey vinaigrette

This salad was an obvious choice for me because I love goat cheese. The only detail not mentioned in the description, which I consider to be a very important one, is that the goat cheese medallions are fried. We all know fried things are always better. The second reason I ordered this salad is that apples and pecans are in season so it had “Fall” written all over it.

California Tomato Salad
Fresh mozzarella, basil, mixed greens, balsamic reduction

Scott ordered this salad with thick slices of mozzarella and tomatoes, and it was loaded with fresh basil. I love the smell of fresh basil.

Entrees:
Grilled Jerk Quail
Potato hash, red pepper, onion & asparagus

The first time we dined at Lucio’s Scott ordered quail and the tiny bite I tasted was fantastic, so this time my decision was already made. The quail was so tender and delicious and the veggie hash was fantastic. I was asked 3 times if I had finished eating because I wanted to savor every bite. I will only order the quail from now on. Plus quail is one of those ingredients that unless you are a bird hunter, you don’t usually make at home or see on restaurant menus.

Rib Eye Au Poivre
Thyme cognac sauce, cheddar mash, haricot verts

Scott ordered the rib eye which is a true man’s meat and potatoes dish. I had a bite of the cheddar mashed potatoes which were of course delicious as is anything with cheese, and covering the potatoes was a rib eye so huge it took up most of the plate. The bite of rib eye I tasted was delicious, but my favorite is still the quail…I can make a mean steak at home, so I usually try not to order steak when I go out.