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The Argyle Steakhouse at the Four Seasons Aviara (fancy name for Carlsbad)
January 2007
George Caye
Getting to the Argyle restaurant is a bit tricky and that is part of its draw. What could be more enticing than a secluded hideaway restaurant run by one of the most luxurious hotel chains in the world at one of their best locations.
There is something mysterious about the Four Seasons that marks a new trend in countering capitalism's critics. How can you balance a feeling of familiarity with a sense of entitlement? How can you wear flipflops and eat a $62 steak? How can you at once be pampered and yet still retain a sense of identity that eschews any notion of superiority?
The Four Seasons is doing something right. Stress of your life is washed away for some reason just by stepping foot on the grounds. It's as if someone configured a situation just right so that you can forget that a shirtless one-armed homeless man screaming at himself (or an invisible entity) waved a cardboard sign at you that you couldn't read as you waited at the stop sign while a GMC Yukon House-vehicle (3 MPG) that started the Iraq war by gas-guzzling and needing that oil runs the stop sign in front of you and a fatass lady with probably a high school ged diploma, wasting public funds on her medical care while she gets fat off of dorito chips, tecate, parliment light 100's and mcdonalds, who still owes more than the price of the Yukon to her rip-off car dealer gives you the finger because you motioned to her that it was your turn to go and not her's.
Yes.
It's as if that was just a bad vision you had in a nightmare when you pull up to the Argyle.
You have to take this long winding road past private home/gated communities that you will never afford, including the Four Seasons' private residences, and you wonder: is there really a restaurant back here? What if the cops pull me over just for daring to come here? Will they smell the North Park on me? Or can I fake a sense of entitlement that will trick them?
At the Four Seasons Carlsbad Argyle restaurant they can smell whatever on you, they don't care, they like you, they welcome you, they give you some of the best soap in a pump in the men's room that you will ever have on your hands, as well as a private room just to pee in, with a door that goes all the way to the floor and ceiling, and some clean rolled towels to wet your hands with, and that's just the bathroom.
These people they hire here are not faking their job, they are genuinely nice people, and welcoming, even though they probably can't afford to eat in the place they work at on their salaries. And it doesn't matter if you are a fat loser from North Park with a few coins in your pocket or JR Spankingsworth III, inheritor of JR Spankingsworth Golf Clubs and Clothing empire, they will treat you the same.
JG Spankingsworth Martini
(Not that this is entirely innocent, or without its problems, but it seems that this sort of level of service is not just manufactured but a naturally occurring event given the combination of elements: money, nice weather, nice people, nice food, good drinks. This would be a good study actually, something along the lines of a "new" sort of system adhering to a new form of hyper-capitalism that is actually a sort of Marxist utopian vision at some level. But I digress.)
(But seriously, there are high-class joints that are built on exclusion, don't treat the badly dressed punk rockers the same as the polo-wearing "Chets," and these places usually have crappy food at incredible prices. This is hyper-capitalism at its downfall. I would argue that the Four Seasons is beyond hyper-capitalism, that it is reaching new levels of "production" that are a naturally arrived at place given the history of humankind as industrialists, rather than a Bush-Halliburton conspiracy to get into Iraq and take their money for their companies only (which is hyper-capitalism failing once again). Instead the Four Seasons is the good in us, triumphing over the bad.) (Of course this is not without problems but maybe you get where I'm going without me outlining these problems anyway.)
my tablemate's entree - steak tartare and garlic shrimp
(Another problem that you get is low-class gentry like myself feeling nervous or out of place in places that cost money to go to. Here at the Four Seasons you have no worry, besides most "rich" people are petrified that they are too poor or in debt so much that gangsters are after them anyway, there are very few rich people with any class that I've met too. Who cares.)
salumi plate
The food and menu at the Argyle is set up to be like a kind of snack bar for people who play golf or want to go to the bar there after a day on the course (the restaurant overlooks the 18th hole at the Four Seasons' course, and the Bataquitos Lagoon). But the selection and the prices are anything but a snack bar - Steaks that range in price from around $20 - $70, steak tartare, warm salad, butternut squash soup, jazzed up assortment of appetizers, everything).
We ate at the bar, which is actually large and carpeted, and even though people were at the table next to ours we couldn't hear them (Four Seasons touch).
The table had ample space, it was night and dimly lit, slight music could be heard if you listened for it otherwise it wasn't apparent. You could hear your tablemates fine. The chairs were huge and inviting, comfortable. There was also another room with a fireplace and large relaxing chairs to lounge around in, set up like Ernest Hemingway fantasy of something, but welcoming and homey too.
The bartender came and gave us the menus and told us he would take our order.
Now, they have a steaks section, cut into three different tiers, low, medium, high, with different cuts of meat in each. The high end had Wagyu steaks, either a filet mignon or a New York Sirloin, a larger one. The filet mignon cost about $62. The other sections are not exactly "cheap" steaks either, in quality, you can pick from a variety of either Nebraska Corn Fed USDA Prime or California Brandt Natural Prime Beef.
Wagyu beef comes from a breed of cattle from Japan that they use for Kobe beef, essentially the same but only different. Like Champagne vs. Sparkling Wine. Wagyu designates their genetic lineage. This beef is particularly marbled in such a way that it produces a fat infused texture effectively devoid of "bad" fat, which is usually in steaks that I eat. The steaks I typically get remain half eaten on my plate because of the fat and gristle and hidden bone that makes it look bigger. Apparently there is some controversy because US farmers are growing Wagyu cattle only for export to Japan (and thus limiting the US market). But I know very little about this.
a $62 steak
What does a $62 steak taste like? There's no possible way I can do it justice. No way. It was an experience like the Four Seasons itself, quietly phenomenal, sneaking up and around you silently, one of those rare moments in life that you remember the details of, those instances of life that suddenly become "it."
Ok, maybe I didn't have a religious experience from the meat, but it was fantastic nonetheless. They served it on this big metal meat plate and it looked a little small to me for $62, like seeing a movie star in person: oh, I thought you were taller. This, like all things Four Seasonesque is a masque, a humble strength that infuses every "really" good thing.
There were no chewy pieces of this steak, it cut like butter, smooth, and literally melted in the mouth, I know it's cliche, but that's what happened. The meat was not runny with juices, but was moist, with a touch of dryness that allowed the taste to seep into every bite. I think with this marbling of the meat, the fat runs into each section, dispelling itself and imbricating its taste throughout.
The sensation was so thorough that when the steak was gone I felt like crying. I looked around the metal plate for any flecks. I looked up at my party only to realize that I hadn't been talking for about 10 minutes.
I wanted to be rebellious and be like: oh, well, it was ok I guess, f-in $62 though, wtf. But instead it won. I still think about it from time to time. There was one moment in time when I first had aged scotch. I couldn't taste Jim Beam the same after that. The same thing goes for this steak. Goodbye cheap meat pleasure. I am now spoiled by experience.
I need to stop eating red meat though. So should every one of you. After one of these steaks of course. This junk is bad for your body, bad for the environment, bad for farmers, bad for economy, everything. Whatever, you say. Well you are to blame then.
For entrees they also have lamb chops, chicken, salmon steak, tuna and swordfish. Though you should check to make sure (don't take my lame word for it).
I just wanted to start the review with my entree, even though it was the last thing I ate, because I was excited about telling you about it.
For each main dish you get to choose a side also, or sides, which cost extra. I got the potato tots, small crispy on the outside and creamy on the inside, these things complimented the steak perfectly. Other sides you can get include various vegetables, mushrooms, beans, and other potatoes, including whipped, which a friend had and which were light, mildly spiced, and yet still somehow delicious (how do you make a potato delicious??).
out of focus tots (sorry, my only pic)
I fret about food writing because it's new to me. But so many blogs and reviews are like: "Pam and I went to the new steakhouse, I got the big steak (he he), it was delicious, Pam got the soup, which was a little salty." So I think I'm ok.
I think of Vincent Vega in Pulp Fiction: I need to taste what a $5 shake tastes like....then: that's a pretty fucking good shake. (Telling of VV, but not really of the shake...).
With your entree you also get to choose a sauce (which comes in a separate dish), on the bartender's recommending I got the house steak sauce, which had a nice sweet tang to it that went well with the meat also, but to tell the truth I mostly just ate the steak "as is." Other sauces include shallot and red wine, cognac and green peppercorn, maytag bleu cheese, bearnaise, and lemon butter.
If you are so inclined you can also get an "enhancer" (hilarious name) - these include lobster tail, foie gras, or crab legs, and they come with your entree, thus "enhancing" it. I always go for enhancement whenever I get the chance, though I was already a little full from our appetizers when ordering the steak.
MGM presents: The Enhancers, making everything just a little better.
The chef tried out an amuse bouche for us, including a small cup of butternut squash soup and a small sampler of steak tartare. The soup was so good I got a bowl of it also.
The steak tartare was salty, and mixed together like a chicken-salad type consistency, though I'm not saying it was bad, it was delicious and had layers of texture and taste that melded well with each other, including the fact that it was served on a thin wafer like crispy thingy.
The soup was phenomenal as well. I really like soup, not a big fan of squash, but this was thick buttery, rich, creamy, savory, and mildly spiced deliciousness. It was served with a crostini with house bacon, which added both a nice crispy texture and a slightly more powerful bacon taste to the soup, a really nice combination of tastes.
In all, a dinner well served, well cooked, well tasted. I hope I conveyed a slight % of that here.
The bartender recommended a Patron margarita with some mango in it to start with, which made me dizzy, but was a good blend of sweet juice and tart tequila. He also paired us a wine for our meal, which I've unfortunately forgotten but which was great nonetheless. He was attentive and knew a lot about the menu, as well as being a fast and great mixer of drinks.
tablemate's warm salad - my one taste says "yes"
The service is that Four Seasonsesque thing that they do, quiet, welcoming, polite, suddenly appearing with your food or drink or water, at once familiar and yet accommodating.
After dinner a coffee was ordered and served in a huge French press, fresh.
If there were any negatives maybe it would be the salumi plate we started with. But only because the three different types of salumi they served all tasted kind of the same. The pickled vegetables they had with the salumi were mildly vinegary and went well with the slightly mild and underwhelming taste of the meats.
The meal began with a basket of pop-overs, perfectly done bread rolls that were crispy on the outside and chewy and thicker on the inside. This was served with a spicy eggplant dipping sauce. My god. Good stuff.
Highly recommend for steaks and ambiance.
There is a shuttle from the main Four Seasons hotel, but you can drive there direct too (to the golf course).
They are open:
Breakfast
Sunday 7:00 am – 10:00 am
Monday to Saturday 7:00 am – 11:00 am
A la carte brunch
Sunday 10:00 am – 2:30 pm
Lunch
Monday to Saturday 11:00 am – 2:30 pm
Dinner
Tuesday to Saturday 6:00 pm – 10:00 pm
Attire Resort casual
Reservations Recommended. Call 1 (760) 603-6908. All reservations must be guaranteed with a credit card. For groups of 8 or more, please confirm the number of your party 72 hours ahead. Missed reservations are subject to a cancellation fee.
7447 Batiquitos Drive
Carlsbad, CA 92009
their website: http://www.fourseasons.com/aviara/dining/argyle_steakhouse.html
Take Aviara Parkway and then a right onto Bataquitos and then drive for a long time until you think you've gone too far and then you'll see the sign for the golf course on your right.
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