Guests entering A.R. Valentien are greeted by California Craftsman architecture with views of the patio, Torrey Pines Golf Course and Pacific Ocean. Behind this familiar setting, a new chapter unfolds under Executive Chef Eric Sakai.
The Evans family purchased the 74-room inn in 1995 and reopened it in 2002 as a reconstructed 170-room luxury resort. Arriving in March, Sakai established three goals for the AAA Five Diamond and Forbes Four-Star property: honor its trailblazing history, build upon its legacy with new products and ideas, and keep The Lodge relevant for the next 20 years.
Sakai began cooking at a Tex-Mex restaurant on Oahu. After a sports injury ended his pursuit of Olympic weightlifting, he returned to the kitchen. Mentored by Le Bistro Chef Alan Takasaki, he later trained at the Culinary Institute of America (CIA), in restaurants in Manhattan and Italy, and in Michelin-starred kitchens, including Acquerello and Rubicon.
His résumé also includes leading luxury resort culinary operations and owning acclaimed restaurants, including Seattle’s Restaurant Marron, where he was named Food & Wine’s 2015 People’s Best New Chef for the Pacific Northwest, and Phoenix and the Dragon in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, recognized as a 2020 Best New Restaurant.
Sakai’s philosophy centers on small farms and purveyors, allowing his chefs to “follow the seasons and respect the product.” Collaboration and empowerment are important, with each chef encouraged to take ownership. With Michelin-starred experience behind him, earning that distinction for The Lodge is on his vision board.
Chef de Cuisine Owen Beatty shares Sakai’s affinity for Italian cooking and ingredient-driven cuisine. At age 9, he made flan with his mother and pasta with his grandmother and aunts. The Ventura County farms where he grew up deepened his appreciation for fresh ingredients.
After initially pursuing plumbing, Beatty returned to his passion and graduated at the top of his class from Johnson & Wales University, where he delivered the commencement address. His fine-dining journey included Terra, La Toque and three-Michelin-starred Quince. His San Diego career has included leading Juniper and Ivy and helping launch Wildland and Michelin-starred Lilo.
Now leading A.R. Valentien, Beatty is focused on strengthening the restaurant’s Southern California identity through local farms, fishermen, seasonality and precise technique. He wants to develop a kitchen where cooks and sous chefs grow, take ownership, and become the next generation of culinary leaders, while introducing more guests to A.R. Valentien for breakfast, weekend brunch and lunch.
Pastry Chef Jessica Valero adds another creative voice. Raised in Cancún, she studied at CIA San Antonio before Boston’s L’Espalier sparked her love of French pastry. Her San Diego experience includes Sugar and Scribe, Juniper and Ivy, Sandpiper and Omni La Costa.
Since joining The Lodge in May, Valero has led pastry across the resort while revamping banquet menus, building her team, and shaping the program with creative freedom.
General Manager Edgar Fernandez completes the leadership team, bringing more than 30 years of Five-Star and Five-Diamond hospitality experience. His résumé includes helping reopen Windows on the World and leadership roles at The Resort at Pelican Hill and Waldorf Astoria Monarch Beach.
His influence was evident at my recent dinner with Taste of Wine & Food founder Frank Mangio. We were warmly welcomed by our server, George Graziano, assisted by Djumae and Konstantine, and shortly afterward by Fernandez.
Impeccable table settings, advanced hospitality training and finely tuned details distinguished the service. Even my camera bag was placed on a stand within arm’s reach. Each wine arrived in glassware selected to enhance its aromas and flavors.
Frank chose the mineral-driven 2023 Chateau Montelena Chardonnay, while I selected the silky 2023 Far Niente Chardonnay. Both well complemented citrus-cured tuna crudo with pluots (a plum/apricot hybrid), pink peppercorn and citrus yuzu.
The meal began with tender, layered and flaky gluten-free cornmeal and thyme biscuits served with Straus Family Creamery European-style organic butter. House-made agnolotti pasta in a triple-cream sauce, accompanied by heirloom tomatoes, Urfa chili sauce and basil, paid tribute to Sakai’s and Beatty’s Italian culinary backgrounds.
With our entrées, we moved to the polished 2021 Sinegal Estate Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon. Frank also enjoyed the 2022 Chappellet Cabernet Franc. King salmon arrived with summer corn polenta, piperade, salsa verde and succotash. The remarkably sweet late-season corn transported me to my Ohio roots.
A perfectly prepared medium rare dry-aged prime New York striploin was paired with gold beet soubise, grilled onion glaze and smoked beet bordelaise. The soubise was rich with butter, onions and tallow topped with panko and baked to a golden brown.
Valero concluded the evening with a mind-blowing savory corn crème brûlée featuring blue corn masa streusel, blackberries, whipped crème fraiche and candied baby corn. Each bite could be tailored to your liking. In contrast, a light, sweet summer melon pavlova featured Piel de Sapo melon, melon granita, whipped citrus yuzu, sea salt and olive oil.
Guests can experience the team at the 23rd annual Celebrate the Craft on Sunday, Oct. 18, from 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m., with Sakai at the helm. Beatty will serve live-fire lamb with smoked eggplant, preserved lemon and pepper-cultured butter on warm flatbread.
Valero’s team will assemble mille-feuille live with fig-leaf crème, Asian pears, house-made candies and another creation still being imagined. There will also be a coffee station.
The reimagined festival will feature expanded interactive tastings, artisan demonstrations, entertainment, and a poolside cocktail and dessert experience, with the San Diego Food Bank as charitable partner. Tickets are $375 plus tax and fees, with an optional $100 VIP Enhancement. RSVP at lodgetorreypines.com/celebrate-the-craft.
— Rico Cassoni
Wine Bytes
Ace Porter at Omni San Diego Hotel celebrates National Bourbon Heritage Month with American Alchemy, a new menu tracing American cocktail history. Highlights include the Woodford Reserve Bootlegger’s Boulevardier, a bourbon flight with artisan chocolates, zero-proof creations, shareable bites and America’s Apple Pie Jar with bourbon caramel. Go Padres!
Rico Cassoni is executive producer ofTaste of Wine and Food. He and founder/advisor Frank Mangio, a renowned wine connoisseur certified by Wine Spectator, are two of the leading reviewers on the web. Reach them at [email protected].
