Artisan

Met friends for Artisan's ""Monday Night Supper"" this past week. Every week they are featuring a local winery along with one of their food suppliers. This night featured RN Estates & Windrose Farms. Awesome to say the least. Each course is served ""family style"", really shows off the talent of their Chef Chris Kobayashi. The pot roast was so tender you could cut it with your fork. There were six of us at the table, everyone loved it! The wines were paired perfectly and the service (Stacy) was first class. more

For our 30th anniversary and our friends 65th bday we decided to go to Artisan. We had been there before and it was quite good. This evening was very disappointing and while they may have had an off night when we brought it to their attention the owner, Michael was arrogant and not at all gracious. To start we had reservations which were honored. Our friend told the receptionist about our very special events. They proceeded to ignore that. The special that night was veal short ribs and one friend's meal was all fat. My husband ordered steak medium and it came rare. I am a vegetarian and asked about ordering off the menu and was encouraged to stick with the menu. We all made the best of the disappointing evening but when I got home I emailed the owner. He really was not interested in listening or in our business. There was absolutely no attempt to keep us as customers. He needs to take a seminar in how to deal with disappointed patrons! So now, instead of wooing us back we will frequent other restaurants. We are in Paso frequently and look forward to visiting all the new and wonderful scrumptous restaurants which have been opening!! more

My boyfriend and I recently visited Paso Robles and it's definitely an up and coming area. The wines the area are producing are fantastic as we spent nearly two days touring wineries. When asking locals where to eat, Artisan seemed to be at the top of everyone's list. One of the wineries we visited called and made a 7:30pm reservation for us on a Saturday. When we arrived,the place was packed. We thought we would have to wait, but were seated right away. After looking through the menu, I had a lot of questions. Our server, Courtney, was awesome! She was so patient with us and answered all our questions. We ended up going with the abalone starter which was so tasty. For the main courses, my boyfriend had the lamb chops and I had the egg plant lasagna which was made with home made pasta. YUM! The portions were so plentiful that we weren't able to fit in dessert. We didn't even look at the wine list as we were wined out by the time we got there, but it looked like a lot of local wines were on the list. All and all we had a great time in Paso Robles and Artisan was one of the extreme highlights. more

Artisan is a fabulous restaurant on the Central Coast. I finally had the\r chance to dine there this past week and was really impressed. The service\r was top notch, all three courses ordered were fabulous and the dessert was\r to die for. The Wild Boar was the stand out dish at our table (along with\r the Scallops) and the Lilet Blanc Cheesecake was the topper. Wine list is\r locally impressive with mainly Central Coast selections. In reading some of\r the reviews below, amateur home-kitchen chefs that gloat about being foodies\r can't be pleased. Just keep doing what you're doing Artisan and let the\r novices wallow amongst themselves.\r more

My fiance and I have pretty much visited Artisan for every occasion. We've done a couple winemaker dinners, gotten wild at the bar, enjoyed quiet evenings out and stopped in for lunch. The food has always been terrific- and fresh- we've seen the chef at the farmer's market stocking up a couple times now. Their wine director is fantastic and their beer selection is always on point.\r \r These guys- including the staff- know how to do it right and are very good at making everyone feel welcome and comfortable when they walk through the door. No matter what we always seem to unwind when we walk in this place, it's that damn good.\r \r I strongly suggest trying the crab cake starter, farmer's market salad and scallop or boar main coarse for dinner. I think the fiance has eaten more boar the past couple months than he has his whole life! For lunch- gotta try the olive oil poached Ahi or the duck enchiladas. \r \r Regardless it's worth a stop. Not sure what the other folks are talking about, but coming from someone that has tried out many spots in the central coast area- this one never disappoints. Pros: setting, winelist, food, service more

Being a foodie and an amateur chef plus having a friend recommend I try this place, I made reservations on a recent trip. Service was good, food suffered from overkill on sauces, and prices were high considering the fantastic dinner I had the night before at Villa Creek, which was outstanding. Also, the restaurant manager must have been having a bad day because I questionned the waitress about a charge on the bill and the manager came over to the table, threw the bill at me and said he took it off. Not a good way to treat guests who simply asked a question. I paid the full bill and left but will never return to experience such rude behavior again. more

your address is wrong...93448 is for pismo beach. Get the address right and maybe the food might be right. maybe it is just a glitch of this sight. In any case why would i want to get food with a restaurant guide that doesn't even give the right address. more

This place is really a gem in quiet Paso. The interior is sleek without being overly so, and has a fun urban vibe but is still low-key. The food is great, from apps to entrees to desserts--everything is flavorful and seasonal. The service is very nice--friendly but not solicitious like in LA or NY. We've been here several times now and I feel like I'm in the city but in the best way. Of course fantastic wine selections and very reasonable corkage... which is why we love Paso! Pros: great ambience, amazing food, friendly service more

We visited Artisan after spending a day wine tasting in the region and were pleasantly surprised to find that they offer flights and exclusive tastings from vineyards in the area, thus continuing out excursion. The food was classic and flavorful and certainly helped us get through our long day. The chef has found a way to combine hearty food with a fine dining flare. Porterhouse was pretty good and Mushroom Stew KILLER. Service was good, our waitress was very polite. Overall, a great place to dine with friends and family and would recommend visiting anytime you're in the Paso area. \r \r Pros: wine flights, food, classy place Cons: somewhat pricey more

I am not sure what the other reviewer is talking about or when they went but Artisan is fantastic. I am a local and it is about time a great, trandy restaurant comes along to cater to those who miss the city lifestyle. The food is fabulous. Favorite appetizer is the fondue, crab cakes a close second (though I hear the seared tuna is also fab!). The menu changes seasonally and I can tell you I have had most everything on the list. Super! As for the wait staff, they are so friendly, helpful, and have ALWAYS done great by me. They recognize me by sight and always come over to say hello. And the owner, Michael, is always accomodating!!! He makes a point to stop by every table to see how things are. He makes you feel like a valued guest and not just a person eating there. I am guessing the other reviewer is someone who constantly complains but I have no idea. Pros: Food, ambience, staff Cons: slightly above average prices (but for Paso not a big city) more

mediocre food, absolutely poor service, inattentive and rude. brought it up with the manager (owner?) who apparently doesn't understand business 101 - the customer is always right. instead, he chose to basically insult us stating ""i don't believe you, i trust my waitstaff..."" and facetiously asking if we'd like him to reprimand his waitress in front of us. this young restaurateur obviously has a lot to learn about the customer service industry. it's one thing to get shoddy service on a friday or saturday night, but a thursday night? and the place was far from full. no excuse. definitely won't be back any time soon, besides, there's better places to spend money on fine dining in paso anyways. Pros: nice place, decent food Cons: awful service, manager/owner doesn't seem to care much about customer complaints more