It took a bit of doing for me to fall for the California Cafe.
For one thing, it’s a long drive from my digs to Park Meadows, at the intersection of Interstate 25 and County Line Road.
For another thing, I am suspicious of restaurants with the word California in the name. Admittedly irrational, but suspicious nonetheless.
And for the last thing, I was, as chance would have it, in a rotten mood the first time I went there. But by the time my lunch (a beautifully made, buttery, flavor-packed pizza topped with pears, onions, Point Reyes blue cheese and a port wine reduction) was halfway down my gullet, I was a fan of the place.
Set on the upper floor of the mall across the hall from Crate & Barrel, California Cafe (part of a chain that includes outposts in Minnesota, Pennsylvania and, duh, California) occupies a friendly, roomy, well-appointed room, tables winding around a tasteful bar area, central fireplace and long, hectic-but-muted open kitchen.
The menu changes with the seasons. Granted, we’re in a mall here, which means this isn’t exactly farm-to-table cuisine in the purest sense, but by and large the options are fresh and carefully prepared. Dishes are simple and urbane, not overgussied, and taste like the ingredients they’re built from.
Aside from the aforementioned pizza, standouts on the menu include the butternut squash ravioli with sauteed spinach and a creamy sage sauce (unlike most sage sauces I meet, it wasn’t too sagey) and the crab-melt sandwich, sweet and savory and just naughty enough.
Skip the buffalo Reuben, flat in flavor and underwhelming in presentation.
Salads are a safe bet here. The seared tuna salad with Napa cabbage, radishes and ginger was clean and zingy, but satisfying as a meal, as was the grilled steak salad, perched on crispy romaine tossed with feta and olives and a roasted pepper vinaigrette. Pair the first with a glass of Gainey reisling, the second with Acacia pinot noir.
Or pair either with any of the other items on the extensive, all-California wine list. There are bargains on the menu, including a few half-bottles, a perfect amount for a pair of you out shopping.
Service at California Cafe is comprehensive and friendly, and — this is particularly valuable at lunchtime — prompt. You won’t be rushed here, but you won’t be left waiting for a tab, either.
Bottom line: California Cafe puts forth a thoroughly pleasant lunch and is worth a visit even if you aren’t otherwise going to the mall. (That means you, hungry Tech Center workers.) Bring friends and order wine.
California Cafe
Contemporary Park Meadows Center, 8505 Park Meadows Center Drive, Lone Tree, 303-649-1111Very Good/Great
Atmosphere: Stylish, urbane, well- appointed room, generous tables and wide-open kitchen.
Service: Professional and tidy, and happily not overindulgent.
Wine: Well-considered and large wine list with dozens of by-the- glass options.
Plates: Small plates, $8.75-$13.50. Entrees $12.50-$18 and up.
Hours: Lunch 11 a.m.-4 p.m seven days. Dinner 4:30-9:30 p.m. Monday-Thursday, 4:30-10 p.m. Friday- Saturday, 4:30-8:30 p.m. Sunday.
Details: Credit cards accepted. Wheelchair accessible. Parking lot outside mall.
Three visits
