Rutherford Grill

I have been going to this restaurant since 2012 and have never had an issue with the quality of the food until recently. Yesterday, I went into Rutherford Grill, excited to eat the vegetarian platter, which I always order, and I was given a total surprise. They usually create a dish based off of the seasonal vegetables, but what they gave me yesterday was something that I could make out of Trader Joes. First off, they gave me focaccia bread, which has never happened before with the dish. They always give their signature corn bread. Second, the vegetables assortment that they put on my vegetable platter was nothing special. Usually they put heirloom tomatoes and variety of other «unique» vegetables, but this time, they put a very basic cherry tomato with asparagus and broccoli. This is summer! The peak season for many different types of vegetables. I know what Rutherford Grill is capable of and I have seen it many summers prior, but this time I was quite disappointed. I was surprised on their lack of creativity and the lack of quality. Also, the dish was way too salty and it masked the flavor of the vegetables, but looking at how basic the vegetables were, I am not surprised that they may have to compensate for the lack of flavor. Another thing that was quite disappointing was that we also ordered the appetizer corn bread for the table. In the past, the cast iron plate would be really hot, indicating that it probably came out of the oven. Yesterday, the cast iron was lukewarm and we could all tell that it was reheated.
For the price that they are asking for their food, they really lowered their standards and their quality of their food. I am quite disappointed, and to be honest, I don’t think I will ever come here again, even though I have been a loyal patron to this restaurant since 2012. I do hope that they do something about this because if they are planning to continue this path, I do not think this restaurant will last.

Mercy sakes. Salmon was quite tasty and
my margarita was nice and string. service was great as well.

Very flavorful rock shrimp Caesar salad. Surprising kick from the shrimp which gave the salad a unique spin along with the corn which went well with the theme. Shrimp was cooked perfectly with a light crisp batter. Would recommend following a warm day of wine tasting as it is light and fresh. We also ordered the Rosemary focaccia and olive plate which was excellent and only $ 3. Great flavor for something so simple.

Thank god we found this place on Unilocal!You would think good food was easy to come by around his area, and maybe it is, but it seems like EVERYTHING closes so early around here! Regardless this place was a real treat! The wait was a bit long but the outside bar makes up for that. Put your name in, grab a drink (outside) and wait for your name to be called! Luckily I happened to be doing a loop around the inside bar, keeping an eye out for two seats… them BAM! Two people got up and we swooped in!
The bartenders were great! We even learned that they are part of the same group as one of our Favorite restaurants in Boston, so we knew right away that we were in for a good meal. I ordered the French dip and my partner ordered the ribs. Get BOTH. Split them… eat them, OMG they are so good! The ribs fall off the bone and are slathered in a sticky, sweet yet smoky BBQ sauce, and the French dip is soft, delicious and worth your while!
When we go back, we will definitely push repeat and relive this evening, probably down to the same exact entrees.
Thanks for a great meal!

Very close to Inglenook. After wine tasting at Inglenook, we had lunch here. Crowded but easy to find a seat at bar. Food not bad, big portion. I ordered grilled salmon, and my husband bbq ribs and chicken combination. Friendly service.

Very good food. Should have known no corkage. Tuna salad is really really good. Smoked salmon super yummy. Rib eye is juicy. Great service. Right next to Peju.

Came here with a reservation and got seated right away. Ordered the grilled artichokes and the French dip; both of which were excellent. The French dip is a must as are the artichokes. The corn bread is good too, it’s got a kick to it. But the French dip really blew me away. This restaurant doesn’t charge corkage so be sure to bring your own bottle of wine. The ambience is great, it’s dimly lit and volume is a mild chatter. Our waitress forgot the glass of wine that we did order which was unfortunate, so we just told her to forget it. We will come back someday for sure.

Somewhat of a franchise, I’ve found, but so what.
We order their cornbread every time we go (we’re wine club members just down the road), and take most of it home, but that’s just fine. It’s excellent for several days. What makes it so good? it’s moist. It has actual bits of corn in it, and it has just a hint of jalapeño … not enough to make it hot, but enough to get the flavor in there.
Everyone says their French dip sandwich is the best ever, and I agree, although it’s a bit pricey.
I also really like their kale salad with peanut dressing.
It is a very busy restaurant, so unless you’re going at off hours (middle of the afternoon) it is probably a good idea to make a reservation.
One thing that is fun about it is seeing a whole group of vintners in the big booth sharing multiple bottles of their wine.
But sometimes a like a beer, and although they’ve got a small tap selection, they do have Anchor Lager … enough for me.

Our favorite go to Lunch and dinner spot when we’re in the neighborhood! Our favorite waitress, Taylor, is the best! Her beautiful smile and warm personality make the experience fantastic for us every time! Food is delicious, and thanks for turning me onto my new MOST favorite wine, Dumol Chardonnay!
Great ride getting there.
Don’t change a thing!

Went here for a work birthday lunch a week ago, and after hearing so many good things about Rutherford Grill, was excited to finally try it for myself!
If you are in the area, it’s worth checking this place out :)
Pros:
–Food was delicious. Especially the artichoke appetizer, SO good!
–Gorgeous location. Surrounded by beauty and wineries.
–Good ambiance. Also, I usually get really cold in restaurants, but they kept the inside the perfect temperature.
–A lot of parking right there next to the restaurant. A lot of the little wine-​towns don’t have that for the restaurants, so that was definitely a plus.
–Vegetarian, and also gluten-​free food options on the menu. The veggie-​burger was delicious.
–Big servings. So you WILL leave full!
–Since it was a work lunch, I couldn’t try any of their wines. But they have an extensive wine list that looks amazing!
Cons:
–No gluten free desserts. They said they could bring out a scoop of vanilla ice-​cream, but they said no toppings. They didn’t seem willing to try and make something work, so we all decided to go elsewhere for dessert.
–Not extremely impressed by the service. I wouldn’t really describe it as friendly. Not that the service was terrible or anything, just wasn’t as good as you’d think it would be for the price.
Note: I heard that in the past you couldn’t call in ahead to make reservations, but apparently now you can. We didn’t know that, and I wish we had called in advance! So to avoid the lunch or dinner-​time rush, you may want to call ahead :)

Brianna was amazing as our server and took care of all our crazy needs! The grilled artichoke and smoked salmon are still or faves!

Food (³⁄₅): Came for brunch, ordered the cornbread and grilled artichokes. The cornbread was pretty disappointing — I feel like when it’s good, it’s really good, but ours was overdone and lacked in flavor. The artichokes were pretty good — we enjoyed the dip it came with!
Service (⁵⁄₅): Super friendly, prompt, and helpful.
Value (³⁄₅): Pretty expensive for the amount of food we got, but then again it’s Napa.

We just finished eating at this place, my husband had been asking for a while to come over, we finally came, what a terrible experience!!! We felt rushed to order and leave from the moment we sat down, to the moment we left. My husband was still signing the check and the waitress and bossier were rushing us cleaning up the table, they even move my cell phone and diaper bag over for me to move out of of their way, sooo rude of them!!! WE WILL DEFINITELY NOT BE COMING BACK EVER!!!
If we could give this restaurant 0 star we would

Found this restaurant through Unilocal and was so excited to try it based on all the good reviews. I was under the assumption it was a little neighborhood grill in Rutherford serving local food that I couldn’t find anywhere else. How unique, right… NOT. They’re part of the Hillstone Restaurant Group which has a location just 15 minutes from my home. We decided to stay anyways since I was on the verge of getting hangry and just needed some food ASAP.
While I was already slightly disappointed that I was trying a chain restaurant on this trip, their service made it even worse. The lady at the front was rude when we first walked in and did not even look up from her iPad as I spoke to her. She said we could not sit outside as they do not give service out there, but while we were waiting for our table, we saw her seat a couple outside and they were receiving service just fine!
Ordered the iron skillet cornbread and salmon entrée. Cornbread was tasty but way too rich. Would recommend sharing it with at least 3 – 4 people. Can’t say I see what the 4 stars here is all about.

Delicious artichoke dip and grilled artichokes. Good beer and wine. They sell a 2,200 $ bottle here! Wow. I had the ribs for dinner and they fell off the bone perfectly cooked. We also got the ahi salad and it was wonderful.
Our server was very personable, however, there were a number of times where we wanted water, or another drink, or to order/​pay and she was nowhere to be found. We were kind of in a weird part of the restaurant so maybe not enough servers get around there? It just seemed too expensive to not have attentive and timely service.
The guys at the bar were quick and very polite, they seemed a little understaffed as well, but they were kicking butt!
I would go back to see if the service is better next time.

Even though Rutherford Grill is a chain, I love it. It’s consistently good!
Don’t miss the skillet corn bread and their salads. Great cocktail menu too

We dropped by here for dinner before we head back home after a day in Napa. We were supposed to go elsewhere but my friend really wanted to come here. He’s been to this restaurant a handful of time already. Every time after he goes wine tasting so after a long day. I didn’t want to argue with him to go elsewhere. I saw that we could make reservations for this restaurant but since we were on our way already we didn’t even bother. I think this restaurant is a pretty popular choice around the area because it was pretty when we arrive but luckily there was no wait. We ordered:
Flying Ahi tuna platter: I ordered this dish for myself… I wanted something light and so a salad was perfect. Loved the ahi tuna and the bits of
mango with the salad. I was content.
Bbq pork ribs: I am not a fan of bbq pork ribs so I didn’t bother trying it. But my friend said it was just okay.
Bangers and mash: I tried a piece of the sausage and it was definitely good. I think I would order this if I were to come back again.
Roasted prime rib: I didn’t try this but the friend who highly recommend this place came back here 3 other times for it so it has to be good.
Grilled chicken salad: My friend did not enjoy this. Maybe because she was kinda sick too? But either way. This was left mostly untouched.
Oreo ice cream sandwich: We got this as dessert so all 5 of us can share. And it was definitely a good way to end our meal.
Overall, we were all satisfied we the meal. Service was great and we did not have to wait long at all for our food. I am not too sure if I’ll come back here anytime soon since there are so much more options around that I would like to try. Also, there’s nothing that really tempts me to come back here again already. But if you’re visiting Napa for a day is a looking for a nice place to eat at. This won’t disappoint!

After a day of wine tasting, we needed food.
My friend, who has done a couple of wine tasting trips to Napa, recommended we end our day at Rutherford Grill.
As we were in no hurry, we didn’t make reservations. We figured we would get there when we were done with the tastings and if there was a wait time we would sit at the bar, and that is exactly what we did.
They have an outside seating area by the bar, where we found a high table and waited for our name to be called.
While we were there, we ordered some drinks and 2 appetizers: The Focaccia Bread and the Cornbread.
Both appetizers were delicious and enough for the 3 of us.
The Focaccia bread comes with olive oil and olives on the side.
The Cornbread is warm, served on a cast iron skillet and is amazing. One of the best I’ve had.
After, maybe, 40 minutes, our table was ready and we were escorted to it, inside.
The menu has just about everything you can imagine… salads, sandwiches, ribs, steak.
Since I knew I was coming here before my trip, I looked at the Unilocal pictures and had already decided I would have the ribs (they seem very popular). I was not disappointed. Servings are huge, and so much flavor. The ribs were so tender, the meat just came off the bone, perfectly cooked. It came with fries and coleslaw.
One of my friends ordered the French Dip sandwich, which was my second option after looking at the picture, and the other ordered the chicken and ribs. Both of them were really happy with their dishes as well.
I hear they are generous with their wine pour, I know they were with the drinks. And, as much as I would have liked to include dessert on my review, it was just impossible. I guess I must come back fort that…

Swanky place… thought I saw Don Draper nursing an Old Fashion at the bar.
Low intimate lighting, red tucked booths & an extensive Napa Valley wine list. You have the makings of quite a romantic interlude here at Rutherford Grill. Acknowledged promptly and shown to our table. My wife, who could easily pass for a Dr. Faye Miller, had rave reviews about this place.
«God, I’d think this place would be packed still.»
«It’s eight o’clock darling. There’s only so much we can pretend like we’re doing.»
Greeted warmly by our waitress, I got down to the business of deciding. Just how does a man go about choosing Barbecue Pork Ribs over a Blackened Rib-​Eye? How do I feel? Like a salty Irishman wanting his Bangers and Mash? Like a well-​to-​do advertising exec with a tenderloin in front of him?
Barbecue Pork Ribs ($ 30) The best supporting actor would be those devilish, creamy, garlic mashed potatoes. They’re called «colcannon» potatoes, a traditional Irish dish. They mix in delicious, soft cabbage, incredibly good. The pork ribs were tender with a complimenting sweet BBQ sauce over them. Felt they were ever-​so-​slightly on the dry side, enabling those mash potatoes to win the award. The dish also comes with a well put together coleslaw, sweet with a raisin flavor, my mouth says, «Thank you.»
Bangers and Mash ($ 17) Garlic and fennel showed their familiar faces in these two locally made sausages. Of course it came with a side of THE outstanding mashed potatoes. To the right of the plate came a mild, spicy deli mustard that complimented your sausage bite. Not looking wow, however the goodness comes in taste. The unique slaw came with the dish as another supporting actor. Creating a suggestion of bitterness on the tip of your palate, after tasting the mustard. Then, following through with a flat, sweet relish flavor myself and Dr. Miller found appealing. Would recommend asking for a third sausage for all you salty Irishmen out there.
Ice Cream Sandwiches (2, not on menu) Order this desert. That’s an order Pvt. Benjamin. Two thick, round delicious minty ice cream sandwiches. Perched in a sea of creamy, decadent coffee chocolate.
«Make it simple, but significant.»
The sweet flavors just go together, making a great cast for your final act. You’ll be a happy diner.

We received recommendations from various locals that we should checkout Rutherford Grill while we are visiting Napa. We didn’t need reservations and got a table very quickly.
–There is NO corkage fee. How convenient! This is a great option to enjoy a bottle of wine that you purchased during one of your wine tours/​journeys.
It was recommended for us to get the ribs and cornbread. Both did not disappoint. Other guests in our party had the following dishes:
–Spinach and Artichoke dip
–Wedge Salad
–Rotisserie Chicken
–Ribs and slaw
We were too full for dessert. The food came out very fast, the service was excellent, and overall it definitely is a great place to stop. Prices were very reasonable and good for the entire family.
The restaurant location sits adjacent to BV Winery on Route 29 heading North.

Der Weg von SF hierhin lohnt sich auf jeden Fall. Guter Service, ansprechende Weinauswahl und vor allem ein sehr gutes Essen. Vorweg Cornbread war echt spitze und danach spare ribs der besonderen Klasse. Jederzeit gerne wieder