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The Range
Rating Details »
- Hours:
Tue-Fri. 5:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.
Sat. 11:00 a.m. - 9:00 p.m.
- Attire:
- Casual
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- No
- Parking:
- Street
- Price Range:
-
$$$
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
- Takes Reservations:
- No
- Delivery:
- No
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- Yes
- Good for:
- Dinner
- Alcohol:
- Beer & Wine Only
9 reviews for The Range
A tiny little nugget of pure gold can be found in the hilltop town of Santa Margarita, about twenty minutes south of Paso Robles. The Range may even be one of the best kept secrets in all of California.
This tiny little chef-owned restaurant delivers big on some of the freshest, tastiest, seasonal offerings. Mostly local, the menu also features some delicious, if not so sustainable items as corn-fed Midwestern beef, and New England scallops. But where they fudge a little with the sourcing of some items, they more than make up for it in preparation and presentation.
My wife had a soup of cauliflower puree drizzled with pistachio brown butter that was to die for. Perfectly creamy, very savory, and just enough texture from the whole pistachios.
I started out with a nearly flawless caprese salad of fresh heirlooms, basil, and mozzarella slices, drizzled with lemon-infused olive oil, and spritzed with a pinch of fleur de sel.
While my wife made a meal out of a succulent butter lettuce salad, I feasted on delicious venison medallions cooked perfectly medium rare, kissed by a cabernet reduction. The garlic mash on the side was as good as I've ever had it, as was a succotash of hericots vert, fennel, baby carrots, and zucchini.
We washed all of it down with some terrific local Pinot Noir (the name escapes me) while we listened to the beautiful voice of the owner's daughter as she belted out the words and strummed her six string acoustic to songs she'd written herself, songs that were emotionally deep and told of stories far beyond her sixteen years.
While we enjoyed ourselves under the stars on the outdoor patio, we would have done just as well appreciating the artful interior inside the restaurant, which was designed by the owner's wife. Think of it as Ponderosa Chic, with a front door covered in copper on the outside and cowhide on the inside, and the horns of Texas longhorn steers nearly spanning an entire wall in the main dining room.
As good as the food was, so was the service. Very friendly, very prompt, and providing just enough attention.
You can't go wrong with this restaurant, unless you don't bring cash, because they don't take plastic.
Great local restaurant. Nice folks. Great food. I don't normally order chicken but it is done fantastic at the range. Lemon pound cake a great topper. If you Are expecting tahoe joes, stay home. Similar to mcphees grill in templeton but cozier, more personal, more interesting specials. Expect to spend 100$ for the two of you.
Good idea to call ahead to make sure they will be open. We showed up last Saturday at 4pm just to find a handwritten sign on the door that said "Closed for Halloween". What?
Dropped in for a lite dinner and charmed by food space service and cost. No attitude relaxed pace and great vintage CA vibe. Worth the trip to this quaint small town and the cash only policy. Great eats.
Well, this place had some pluses and minuses. On a scale of 1-10 (10 being wonderful):
Cauliflower bisque - 10, superb, inventive, delicious
Pork porterhouse - 7, meat was not very tender
Flat Iron steak - 5, not the greatest
Creme brulee dessert - 7, pretty good, would have been a little better warm
Service - 9, good, understated
Atmosphere - 10, very causal, western, cozy
I think if the entree was better I would give it a higher recommendation but it's hard to give my full "thumbs up" when it's kind of pricey (20-30 bucks) and not just wonderful.
I am going to try it once more though because it really had potential...
Friday night dinner, got right in. The place turned over at least 3 times that evening, so good for them. The service was nice; but the waiter was over worked...not his fault at all and he handled it great. The food was not as good as previous visits. Honestly, when I go out for a steak, they need to cook it better than I can AND they have to have the highest quality meats...they need to work harder at this. Cooked to the right temp for all of us except the nut in our party that wanted it well done (it's a feather in the chef's hat that he just couldn't get it that done! lol). Nevertheless, a nice place and pretty good food. I'll be back. It is expensive and CASH only!
Fantastic!
Yeah for the Range! Finally fine dining worth our hard earned money. We don't get to go often because it is expensive but every time we have gone it has been fantastic. Everything from the service to the food to the decor and music.
What is really neat about this little gem is one evening we stopped in all dirty from moving cows and thought we may be a little under dressed but what the heck (oh did I mention we had the two little ones with us) and they welcomed us with big smiles. Brought out the crayons and high chairs and we were set to go. I don't recommend bringing the kids mostly because for this experience the kids aren't really what you have in mind but none the less they ARE welcome.
If we have company in town and are taking them out to dinner this is where we always take them. Well I guess we will see you at The Range!
Oh not to forget bring cash or check they don't take credit cards.
I couldn't agree more with Jennifer! The Range is awesome! The food is as locally farmed as it can be, with a fabulous wine list to boot! Dress up or dress casual, it's all about the food! They do not take reservations so it is packed on weekends and dinner time. We try to arrive no later than 5:30. They have a great comfortable feel and dining outside is wonderful, weather permitting. No credit cards, so do not forget your checkbook or cash. It is a bit pricey, but worth it for the special occassion. Absolutely one of my favorites!
Really inexpensive wine list with great local wines, wonderful service and really good food. Try the stinking rose pizzette and the grass fed beef. I wish the menu would change more frequently or they offered more specials. Edward Sellers had a recent wine dinner there and the food, service and of course wines were all great.
