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Categories: American (New), Breakfast & Brunch
3287 Mt Diablo BlvdMon. 6:30 a.m. - 10:30 a.m.
Tue-Thu. 6:30 a.m. - 10:30 a.m.
Tue-Thu. 11:30 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.
Tue-Thu. 6:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.
Fri. 6:30 a.m. - 10:30 a.m.
Fri. 11:30 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.
Fri. 6:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m.
Sat. 7:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m.
Sat. 6:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m.
Sun. 10:30 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.
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Four star in the food range vs. pricing but extra star for the wonderful staff that made the experience that much better!
From mixed greens and beet salads to fresh fish served with your choice of sides. Flavorful mussels / clams with a comfortable serving size. Tomato, onion, etc. soups lean towards the hearty.
We dined numerous times from both the main restaurant and bistro menus over a two-week period due to some very important people being guests there. Try requesting the handsome side room for larger groups.
Yes, lovely, lovely waitstaff.
People thought this was:
One of my favourite places to eat in Northern California. I really don't know why this place does not get more press than it does. I have been eating there since 2004 and it's been perfect every time I have been there.
I usually order a steak which is always cooked to perfection. They know what "rare" means and "rare-rare" for that matter. The last I went though they no longer had a Ribeye on the menu but did have a New York and Fillet Mignon. I personally prefer a Ribeye to the other cuts but I am being picky here.
I have also had lamb, fish and pork all cooked perfectly. They have the best garlic-mash I have had outside of Great Britain.
The drinks are strong and very well made, top shelf all the way.
The atmosphere is semi-romantic but still open enough to be social with others if you like.
Service has always been wonderful and sophisticated.
They offer valet parking which is also wonderful.
In my top ten places to eat in the Bay Area.
Their salmon dish was cooked perfectly. Never had it so crispy on the outside and yet just a little raw in the middle. It was perfect. Onion soup was very tasty, but it's more like a stew, dip, rather than soup because it was so thick. We put the globs of onion on bread, and that was yummy. We tried their beef short rib, and that was pretty good.
The price is very reasonable (we sat in the front lounge/bar). The place was nicely decorated. The only thing I would say is be patient because the wait staff is a little bit slow, but who cares, you're there to enjoy your meal and take your time right?!
Had a great dinner here on Saturday night. Started off with a drink in the Bistro and then were seated in a booth-style alcove overlooking the courtyard...a very cool, European feeling space with old world fountains...very charming.
Wait staff was helpful and informed. The menu was appealing and approachable- our two favorite entrees were the prosciutto-wrapped halibut and chicken pomodoro. We also got a very nice wine recommendation from our server.
We went to the Russian River Brewing Co. Beer Maker's dinner.
It was fantastic. The meal was well matched to the different beers and each course was both complementary and creative. The beers themselves were a great mix of just plain good (Pliny) and just plain interesting and good (Consecration). My favorite course was a cinnamon-seared duck, with a roasted apple, barley risotto, with a spicy swiss chard. The beer and roasted apple together were brilliant!
The service was outstanding. Folks from the hotel, restaurant, and brewery all spoke, but not too much. We enjoyed the setting as well. It was even better in the morning for breakfast looking over the sunny courtyard.
The Duck Club sponsored a French Regional Winemaker Dinner last weekend and it was fantastic. It kinda felt like I was at a wedding because it was set up like a special event in the center courtyard.
We started off with Tattinger, Brut, and having French champagne was a great way to begin the festive evening. The live music was a nice touch too.
Chef Chuck Courtney visited with us and talked about the presentations for the evening. He and his team prepared several sophisticated courses to accompany the wine: 2007 Sancerre, Loire Valley with a terrine of apricot and smoked trout; Chardonnay poached petrale sole with the 2005 Louis Jadot Montrachet Burgundy; Lamb cassoulet with the Bordeaux; and the 2003 Clos Jean dessert wine was perfect with the poached pear.
The entire evening was very special and the food and wine were tops. Luckily the weather was great too.
The total cost for the evening was about $150 per person. It may be a little expensive, but at least I didn't have to get anyone a wedding present.
People thought this was:
First class all the way.
Every time I go it seems to get better.
The Halibut dish is the best I have ever tasted!!!
Fancy inside with very professional staff. Try to get a booth seat that looks into the courtyard. Very nice on a rainy day!
It's expensive, but worth every penny. You do get what you pay for here.
I highly recommend it.
I HATE to do this because our service was OUTSTANDING (thanks Stacey!!) but the food was .... not so good. We shared a salad (we had our server choose for us) and it was pretty - blah. For dinner, I had the recommended Alaskan Halibut Saltimbocca which was overcooked (the fish and prosciutto was dry) and my friend had lamb chops - which were great! Finally, we shared the brownie a la mode ... ummmm.... I'll skip it next time.
I'd like to try the Bistro next time. It was busy so it must have been good!
People thought this was:
I have attended a few holiday buffets and company dinners here.
For the price, the buffet does not meet your expectations. However, this being the only choice for a brunch or holiday buffet I hope to see them around for years, but with a better quality of food. The hotel kitchens typically can not produce the quality of the intimate restaurant food.
I love the great look of the patio and the building in general.
People thought this was:
Ok. We picked the Duck Club for our Valentine's dinner. I've tried for several years but couldn't get a table so the expectations were kinda high. We got a great corner table in the bistro which was converted into a dinning room for V day.
We decided to start with the appetizer special -- Cheese & Champagne Fondue for two. We got a large plate with bread, grapes, dried apricots, sliced apples an a cheese bowl in the center. No additional utensils were provided even after I asked for them. The first couple of bites were tasty and than the cheese got very clumpy and we couldn't really dip anything in it. When we told our server and asked about a way to keep the cheese hot she replied with: "Just look at each other" (I wish I were making this up). No apologies or offers to substitute. We looked at each other in disbelief.
For the main course, The Lobster Risotto was quite good but the Coho Salmon was overcooked.
We shared a runny Creme Brulee and asked for the bill. We were surprised to find our cheese-ball fondue on the bill.
We should have stayed home and used our own fondue set.
I am laying in bed on my laptop still incredibly full from a great Father's Day brunch this morning. This was my first experience at this place and since my Dad and I love brunch for special occasions, the family decided we would come here when we were out for dinner on Mother's Day.
The brunch here is a bit different from buffet brunches I have experienced before. First of all the restaurant itself is small. They have cold food set up as a buffet and then you order a main entree off a printed menu. Toni and my man ordered a bay scallop and shrimp omelet which came with nice big Yukon potatoes. My daughter and I both had a made to order off the BBQ New York Steak and my Dad had the tri-tip. Everything was delicious, but I was especially impressed with the variety of things they had on the cold buffet. With all of the meats, cheeses, salads and ripe (yay) fruit and grilled vegetable offerings, we were full before our entrees arrived.
The desserts were interesting too. Everything from the normal cookies, cupcakes and cheesecake, but also delicious chocolate covered strawberries, trifle and strawberry shortcake.
Since today was a special occasion, the prices were a bit higher than usual. The service was good and the only negative I can say is that the choice of Heineken for the beer was BORING when there are so many great beers out there. Oh well, everything else made up for it and most of all, the company was wonderful. Thanks Toni!
People thought this was:
Hit and miss at Duck Club. Service was definitely outstanding, but certain dishes were not despite high price tags.
The Alaskan Halibut Saltimbocca was cooked perfectly. A delicate catch of fish that melted like butter.
First things first: avoid any and all special events, brunches and buffets here. They roll out the teeny tiny frau frau food and it isn't their standard stuff, nor standard special event/buffet/brunch food. We blew better than $300 on a father's day here and had to go eat someplace else as soon as we left.
At lunch, the Duck Club is a good spot. The place is nice, food is consistently good, as is the service. Hardly a hoppin' spot, at lunchtime it's about 75% blue-haired "ladies who lunch" and 25% biz people. Excellent for a biz lunch as tables are far apart from one another, it's quiet and professional. Prices are reasonable.
For dinner, it lands somewhere between the lunch and special events values. Your best bet is to stick to the bar area ("The Bistro") where the tables and chairs are super comfy and the menu is every bit as good, slightly less expansive, and significantly less money.
People thought this was:
Four of us dined here last weekend and it was wonderful. We had one of the booth tables with a window that overlooked the inner hotel courtyard. It was a beautiful and comfortable setting made even more cozy by the rain pouring down outside.
To start we shared the crab cake - the best I've had in a long time - and the Wild Mushroom Popover - very good and unique. We all started with the Petite Greens. The salads were good if not a bit wilted and/or soggy. I can skip this next time. The drink pours were generous too!
Two of us had the filet mignon which was cooked to perfection. Mine had the peppercorn crust. It was tender, flavorful and a fairly large piece of meat. The mashed potatoes were also very good. One friend had the Halibut - which is what I will get next time. There are several pieces of fish wrapped in proscuitto (with not an ounce of fat to be seen) and again was cooked perfectly.
The prices are somewhat high, but not too out of line with comparable restaurants. Service was knowledgeable, friendly and inobtrusive. This was the first time I have eaten at the Duck Club. I will be back.
The first time we came to this restaurant, we had just finished showing both our parents our wedding location to be. It just so happen that there was a wedding in the courtyard that night, so we were able to see it all from our dining table. Talk about watching your future in front of your eyes go by...
My husband and I have been back several times and we have never had a bad meal. We've had roasted duck, prime rib, salmon, roasted chicken... it's all wonderful. I had breakfast here the morning of my wedding. I had delicious fluffy pancakes with fresh berries on top. My last meal as a single gal couldn't have been more yummy.
It's not a large dining room, but it's not too cozy. Large windows overlook their beautiful courtyard, complete with fountain in the center.
Service is attentive, but not invasive. A perfect place for a romantic evening every time.
People thought this was:
All I remember is that they has the most exquisitist salad ever! A very pleasant dining experience indeed.
My friend tells me that if I yelp my favorite restaurants my favorite restaurants will get more business because smart and attractive people use Yelp to find out where they should go to eat or do things.
The duck club restaurant has an absolutely beautiful setting. The hotel looks like a French chateau that I saw when I was touring the southern side of France.
My company had our holiday party there in December. Food was really delicious. The attire I would suggest is business dress or business casual. The nice thing about the restaurant is that though its slightly more expensive than you would think to spend, they provide you with good size portions. One of my pet peeves is when you pay for an expensive meal and it's good but it only feeds a small child.
Overall I would definitely recommend this restaurant if you are going with someone you want to impress and you don't mind spending a little more for that extra quality.
People thought this was:
I took someone here for a special occasion and really wish I hadn't! Service was abysmal. The server brought our soup and then disappeared...forgetting to give us spoons. I tried for quite a while to get her attention, with no success. Finally, I had to go up to the front to ask the hostess if we could please get some spoons. By then, our soup was cold. I would have insisted on having the soup replaced except that neither soup tasted interesting at all and besides, the server was still no where to be found. When the entrees arrived after a long wait, they were unevenly cooked and flavorless. The server never checked back in. I could hear the table next to me discussing similar problems. I was completely unimpressed and will never go back again. I took my companion to Absinthe in SF the next night to make up for a horrible birthday dinner -- thank goodness they never disappoint me.
The quick and dirty: Good service, okay food, but always seemed to be "out" of items.
The only reason I ate at this restaurant was because I was a guest in the Hotel for a weekend. The Duck Club also provides the room service for the Hotel so my review is cumulative of 4 meals eaten over a weekend stay. On my first night I had dinner which was the best meal of of the four. My only complaint for dinner was the dinner rolls seemed dry, cold, and maybe even stale. The meal itself was good and filling.
The next morning for breakfast I went down from my room and ate at the restaurant. At 8am on a Saturday there was no one else in sight. When I originally ordered my omelet they did not have the cheese that I wanted even though it was listed on the menu. When I did get my omelet, it was very fluffy but lacked enough cheese for the size. My toast was wrapped in a cloth napkin and when I was ready to eat it, I was welcomed by bread that had gone soggy.....yuck.
I was working poolside on Saturday when it was decided that lunch should be served by the pool. I was again informed that one of the items I ordered for lunch was not available, maybe they shouldn't list it on the menu?? I ended up eating a cobb salad that was *very* good indeed but I still longed for my original item.
Breakfast on Sunday was eaten inside of my room. They of course were missing cheeses that were listed as options for my omelet. The omelet was fluffy but overall it was bland and again lacked enough cheese for the size of the omelet.
The only reason I kept eating here, as I noted earlier, was only because I was a guest at the Hotel. Overall I was constantly let down and found myself unsatisfied with my meals from the Duck Club.
Came here for brunch with the family and sister's in-laws, loved it. The mimosas were perfect, the eggs benedict were made so well I still think about them in my dreams! Holy shit, it was one of the best brunches I've ever had! I remember it being free refills on the mimosas/champagne, so....man, i think i was a bit off that fine morning in Lafayette...
I would come again, but just haven't had the time, or the gas in my car ;(
ducks and clubs and brunches make good matches! :D
My boyfriend and I enjoyed a lovely brunch here with friends. We liked that they had the cold food buffet style to help ourselves and that the hot food was ordered off the menu. The service was great and we really enjoyed the experience.
over-priced, stuffy, and full of (to use my friend's word) fuddy-duddies.
i've been here for several thanksgiving/holiday meals, none of them impressed, none of them even hit the 'mediocre' mark.
2 stars for the beautiful building that houses this restaurant.
People thought this was:
This is one of my favorite restaurants! The food is always so scrumptious. I love sundays because of their prime rib, its so tender you can cut it with a fork. The seafood with risotto is also another one of my favorites. Their salad also has the best vinagrette dressing I've ever tasted! And for dessert you have to try the chocolate mousse cake... YUM! They also have dutch mints in their candy bowl instead of starlight mints like every other restaurant and those are my favorite types of mints! All the more reason to eat here. Also, I had a bday dinner here and they offered me the private room that usually costs $100 to rent, at no cost. If i were rich, I'd eat here more often.
People thought this was:
Went there once. Not bad, but not memorably good either. Probably a nice place to take a parent or an older relative.
Wonderful salmon dinner... crispy outside, perfectly cooked inside. I would go back again.
This used to be one of our special brunch places when my mother was still mobile and intact enough to go out. It's been 8 or 10 years since we've been here. It's always been good, but it fell off our restaurant radar. This morning we met Tam and her family to celebrate Father's Day. Brunch is set up so you can serve yourself from the buffet and then order a main dish off the printed menu. Today, in honor of Father's Day, they had steaks barbecued to order outside in the patio, and beers. Champagne, orange juice, tea and coffee are included. The price today was $49, higher than usual, probably because of the steaks. The buffet offered an array of cold cuts (I had thinly sliced roast beef, which was excellent), poached salmon and smoked salmon, prawns that were fresh and sweet, turkey that Tam pronounced excellent and a fabulous array of interesting salads plus roasted vegetables. I'm sure I've forgotten something. There was a lot and everything was good. In addition, there were breads and an array of desserts. Tam and Alan had coffee and I had tea, which was served loose in the strainer of a large Tetsubin cast iron teapot. The beer choice was limited to Heineken, disappointing Alan. Service was attentive and friendly w/o being intrusive. Glasses and cups were kept filled and used plates were whisked away but never prematurely. Alan and I agreed we'd be back before another decade elapsed.
People thought this was:
AWFUL AWFUL AWFUL. Our Easter-brunch-buffet experience was so bad, I hardly know where to start.
I guess I will tackle the decor first, since it was the least offensive thing about the place. When I say least offensive, I simply mean that the decor was so bland, that, unlike the lousy food and mediocre service, it didn't offend me.
The food, however, not only offended me, it gave me a stomach ache that I still can't shake (and I have eaten papaya enzymes AND taken alka seltzer).
To begin with, the selection was pathetic for a $70 per person meal. There was a single carving station, a waffle bar, an omlette table, a single row of barely warm food (the food was supposed to be hot), a row of cold dishes that looked more like the stuff busboys scrape off plates at the end of an evening than actual dishes, and the smallest dessert table I have ever seen at any buffet.
The waffle bar might have been ok if the waffles had been made to order, but they weren't. Instead, the waffle maker (who doubled as the omelet chef) routinely filled two bins with cold waffles and only made fresh waffles when the cold waffles ran out or when someone begged. The toppings were as dismal as the waffles. For $70 per person, you would think you would at least be able to top your waffle with a fresh strawberry. Not at the Duck Club. Instead, we had a choice of strawberry goo, blueberry goo, or fake (think I Hop) maple-flavored syrup.
The made-to-order omelet would have been decent, if I hadn't added the shrimp. It was frozen and so fishy tasting I couldn't eat the omelet.
Over at the "cold" dish table, the "salad" bar consisted of greens, a handful of cheap (think Denny's) toppings, and watered down dressing.
The cheese selection was cheddar, a brie rind (it was never replenished), something green (not blue cheese, it was actually green) and some white stuff of unknown and unknowable origin. Oh yeah, they left the head on the cold salmon, which completely freaked out more than one child.
The desserts (the few that were available) were just awful. The hot cross buns were stale, the cheese cake would have made Sarah Lee cringe, the thing I thought was white-chocolate mousse was some sort of jello-brandish lemon pudding, and the carrot cake was just gross.
The service was just slightly better than the food. Although our waiter was very nice, he rarely came by to clean the plates. And, since we left most of what we took on our plates, they quickly piled up.
Finally, there was the Easter "bunny" --- or, should I say, the young girl in a dingy, grey rabbit suit, whose face and pony tail were showing. By "showing, I mean she didn't wear a mask or try to make her face look like a bunny. Rather, she simply stuck rabbit ears on her head and figured the kids wouldn't notice. (They did.)
I still can't get over how rotten this experience was. I have taken two digestive aids, but my stomach is still upset. Take my advice and stay clear of this place.
Ducky? i like duck. Makes me feel like joining a huntin' club.... well, naw, but how hungry am i?
I went to the Thanksgiving buffet. Except for the turkey and the stuffing, the dinner was delicious. My friends also didn't like the turkey (overcooked) and the stuffing wasn't tasty. They had a large variety of other dishes that were wonderful. The service was very good. They included a 20% tip on the bill and didn't mention it so we almost gave a double tip. It was pricey. Easy to park there.
This is a fine place for breakfast, special occasions, or just a fine lunch or dinner on short notice. The decor is absolutely beautiful. They also have special rooms that you can use for luncheons or showers. For a very nice and reasonably priced sandwich and/or a drink, go to the adjoining Bistro. Lovely, old fashioned, Pebble Beach kind of atmosphere.
Lafayette, CA
Category: Restaurants
Lafayette, CA
Category: Hotels
Lafayette, CA
Category: American (New)
Lafayette, CA
Category: American (New)
Concord, CA
Category: German
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