Vessia Ristorante, Irvine.

Vessia

Being as we’re not long for this part of California (we’re moving 50 miles to the north in a few weeks), we wanted to take advantage of a little time and visit one of our favorite restaurants: Vessia, in Irvine. We go often enough to be regulars but don’t get a “Hi Norm!”, nor does the staff chatter excitedly in hushed voices: “THEY‘re here” when we walk in. I am totally fine with that.

I do not intend to start writing restaurant reviews. And this is not meant to be a review of Vessia, but we are fond of the place. It’s big, but cozy feeling and the food is great. The wine list emphasizes Italian wines and is pretty nice for a bedroom community.

We have never had anyone introduce themselves as the sommellier, but the wine service has never been lacking: They decant at the table. If there is a problem with the wine, they whisk it away and bring another bottle. No questions. No arguments. If the wine is too warm, they chill the bottle. But they can’t do that without us telling them what we like or need. The servers taste all wines on the list and they do get some training as well.

We’ve had some awkward and even bad wine service in the past. It happens. On occasion, you get a server who is a jerk (or is having a bad day) and some restaurants have crappy wine service. If the place is not geared towards being attentive (in spite of its pricing), we speak up – politely. If there is a problem, I find that most restaurant staff (servers and management) are accommodating. If the staff disregards our concerns, we let our money do the talking when it’s time to pay and do not return to those places. We work hard for our money and don’t like throwing it away on a bad time and bad service. If we want a nice wine-and-dine experience, we go elsewhere. It’s that simple.

For our time in Irvine, we have been glad to have Vessia in our neighborhood.