Lucia Restaurant

When Lucia is good, it’s especially good, and that was demonstrated with a perfectly cooked steak, cocktails that elicited smiles of glee, a fantastic wine selection, an unhurried atmosphere and mostly excellent food. Mostly.

Some friends and I went on a midweek evening so we could order Chef Cal Stamenov’s Wednesday-night special: brisket and fried chicken. (I’m told it’s no longer a Wednesday night special, but it might make it on to the rotation again.) Fried chicken has in recent years become a thing at high-end restaurants, a “look-at-us-we-can-cook-down-home-too” shtick. I’m glad Stamenov jumped into the fried chicken wading pool. I’ve eaten Thomas Keller’s fried chicken too, and Chef Keller, when it comes to fried chicken, you are no Cal Stamenov.

Stamenov’s had a well-spiced, golden crust that shattered in the mouth, revealing juicy organic herb chicken. It shared the plate with an ample portion of Wagyu brisket. Good thing there were four of us, because that plate alone could have fed us all – it also includes a homemade rosemary-fig biscuit, Hook’s cheddar polenta and garden greens. It came paired with a choice of Bernardus Griva Vineyard Sauvignon Blanc, a Cru Beaujolais or Eric Bordelet “Sydre” apple cider for $28 total. We also ordered a glass of 2012 Pisoni Pinot Noir ($25) so rich it coated the glass and a Sierra Mar Chardonnay ($20) that was fruity without being cloying.

Equally successful was the Wagyu steak one of us ordered (rare, please). Cooked exactly as requested, my companion declared it the single best piece of meat he’s had (for $62, it better have been). Another companion, also a devoted carnivore, found his steak serviceable but overcooked – he ordered it “blue,” meaning with a cold red center, but it arrived slightly past rare.

We also ordered the Dungeness crab cake with remoulade, pickled vegetables and arugula ($18) – high-quality crab, treated simply, with just enough filler to hold it together. This was a great crabcake.

Other promising items from Stamenov’s remade menu: Monterey Bay abalone carbonara ($20), scallop ceviche ($15), Sonoma duck burger with foie gras ($38), Pacific salmon with pancetta ($32) and slow-braised short rib ($38). He also continues to do one of the best chef tasting menus in the region ($105/five courses).

When Lucia was less than especially good, though, it caused a little confusion. For example, water was requested but didn’t arrive, the waiter had to be reminded of the request, then had to be asked again to refill the glasses. A shared appetizer of duck confit rillettes ($12) provided a huge amount of rich, flavorful duck, but it was plated with crostini and a large, messy arugula salad studded with olives. Were we supposed to pick out the olives and leave the greens? It wasn’t clear the greens were dressed or seasoned, so we didn’t know if they were there for decoration, or for eating. At the end of the meal, we had to wait longer than we should have to receive our bill. At a restaurant charging these prices, timing should be everything, and while the service was affable and polite, the timing was a bit off.

A few months later, one of my dining companions tried again on a Monday night. This time, they were in search of a more casual experience and a lighter meal – she and her companion sat on the new glassed-in, vineyard-facing patio and ordered salads and wine. Stamenov started them out with an amuse bouche – a puréed heirloom tomato gazpacho with basil oil, chilled in a highball glass. On a hot evening, it was the perfect opener. Next came a glass of Bernardus’ Sauvignon Blanc ($13) and a unoaked Chardonnay ($10), light and crisp. Both ordered peekytoe crab salad in half a Haas avocado, dabbed with a delicious lemon sauce ($20).

Service was on point without being overly involved and they sat on the patio for a half hour after finishing their meals and nobody tried to rush them out.

A side note on the atmosphere: In its earlier iteration, as Marinus, the restaurant exuded a warm, albeit dated, charm – welcoming woods, a center table used for bread service piled high with goods. In its new iteration, as Lucia, which came last spring, the sleek interior looks like a Restoration Hardware showroom. Think breathtakingly expensive furniture, steel, gray tones and white couches that should never be sat on by children. But the new curtained booths are beautiful.

Opposite the vineyard side, on the other side of an elegant glass wine display, appears the pretty indoor-outdoor bar/lounge with retractable walls that open up onto the well-appointed patio, which sits next to the grass bocce ball courts and huge stone fireplace. The lounge or patio provide a beautiful place to try one of the cocktails that made us so gleeful.

Last month the bar menu got a number of new additions, including the Waking of the Dead, with complexity summoned from Far North Solveig gin, St. Germain, Absinthe Verte, fresh lime juice and muddled fava bean. All cocktails are $15. Like the rest of the menu, they’re priced at a premium, which is OK when everything matches that high standard.

LUCIA RESTAURANT 415 W. Carmel Valley Road, Carmel Valley. Restaurant: 7am-2:30pm, 5-9pm; bar: 11am-10pm. 658-3595, www.bernarduslodge.com/wine-cuisine