A Touch of Romantic Russia in Mendocino County
St. Orres
From the moment you arrive at St. Orres and approach the impressive main building and enter the intimate lobby bar area, you know you are in for a unique experience. I was greeted immediately by the resident canine contingent: Scarlet, Pearl, Honeybunch and Roxy. They offered me a friendly welcome with plenty of tail wagging and sniffing, making me feel right at home. St. Orres guest accommodations – for us and our uprights – include all the cottages but not the main hotel.
St. Orres came into being 32 years ago when Rosemary Campiformio and her business partners, Eric and Ted Black, decided to create “structures that echo and honor the romantic Russian heritage of the area”. Now consisting of over a dozen unique cottages, its intimate hotel, spa pavilion and exquisite restaurant, St. Orres is a truly remarkable celebration of what it means to follow your bliss and to persevere at something you love.
Rosemary sums up the St. Orres experience: “By respecting the land, its shape and its history, we’ve created a coastal sanctuary where revelry and romance, singing and silence, silliness and serenity, feasting and fasting are equally welcome and appropriate”. Embodying many of the traits and philosophies of life common among the inhabitants of Mendocino County, the dedicated staff of St. Orres provides a loving testament to the county.
The cottage we stayed in had a Japanese soaking tub (some cottages have saunas). I do not like baths at the best of times, so I gave this a wide berth after climbing up the steps to investigate. Our cottage had a great window seat that was perfect for me to look out at the ocean and all the wonderful nature that surrounded me. St. Orres does not have designated pet areas, we are free to wander and explore just as our uprights; however, please be aware that as St. Orres shows its respect for the environment, our uprights should do the same and be conscious of your cottage neighbors and bring plenty of bio-degradable waste bags.
One of St. Orres Cottages
After spending some relaxing time firmly ensconced in my window seat, we joined friends in a neighboring cottage where I wiled away the afternoon on the deck, enjoying the sun and watching the ocean. The uprights indulged in conversation while sipping delicious Mendocino County wines. I, of course, had water and a few healthy treats, but not enough to spoil my appetite. As well as enjoying your guest room, guests have access to the spa area with its outdoor hot tub; you can book a massage or if you are feeling more energetic, take a stroll on the various trails on the property.
As dusk approached, it was time for my favorite part of any day – dinner. St. Orres has two dining areas: a main room exclusively for the uprights and the Solarium where your uprights can share a truly magical culinary adventure with you. The Solarium has French doors that open onto a beautiful garden, creating a wonderful al fresco aesthetic. I did not need much encouragement to get into my seat (at the head of the table, of course). Rosemary and her staff have honed their skills to create and design food that is not only delicious, but cuisine that is given much thought in its construction, visual design, color, mixture of textures and balance of flavors, and rightly deserves the WOW factor. Rosemary classifies her food as “North Coast Cuisine” meaning anything she can see from her kitchen window including all manner of seafood, wild boar and other game; what is grown in her garden and orchard ( funghi are a particular passion of hers) and anything produced locally. As Gualala is also very close to Sonoma County, Rosemary has the richness and diversity of both counties to draw from when selecting her ingredients.
Solarium
The menu changes constantly as the items created daily reflect what is in season and available to stimulate the creative juices of Rosemary and her staff. You could find yourself trying to choose from such mouth watering selections similar to the ones listed below. I had the opportunity to try several bites from all of my upright guests’ choices and I can attest to the deliciousness of every creation.
Sample Appetizers:
Baked Goat Cheese with Smoked Wild Boar and Tomato
Garlic Flan with Locally-Foraged Black Chanterelles
Baby Abalone with Seared Scallops
Sample Entrée Selections:
Pheasant Breast Stuffed with Andouille Sausage and Wild Mushroom Risotto Cakes
Pan Roasted Fresh Wild Salmon with Zucchini Cakes, Grilled Green Onions and Wasabi, Lime & Ginger
Seared Sea Scallops with Fresh Arugula, Potatoes, Pancetta and Fresh Orange
Fresh Sonoma Duck Breast with Strawberry Orange Pancakes and Fresh Strawberries
Grilled Veal Chop with Garlic Mashed Potatoes, Foie Gras and Truffle Madeira Sauce
Medallions of Venison with Yam Waffles and Wild Huckleberries
Sample Desserts:
Praline Basket filled with Espresso Ice Cream and St. Orres Chocolate Sauce
Old Fashioned Bread Pudding with Homemade Nutmeg Ice Cream
Crème Caramel
Lemon Tart with Fresh Blackberries
Seasonal Sorbets
I am very happy!
Entrées include a salad course and a choice of warm or chilled soup for $45.00 per person. Vegetarian options are also available. Appetizers and desserts are a la carte. St. Orres serves only wine and beer. Guests are welcome to bring their own wine selection to the dining room for a $20 corkage fee. The service was extremely pleasant and efficient; I was made to feel as welcome as my dining companions. My own bowl of water was presented to me and I received lots of attention and admiration as is my custom.
The culinary adventure does not end in the dining room; no my faithful followers, wait until you experience breakfast. Guests staying in the main hotel building have breakfast served in the dining room. The cottage guests have their breakfast delivered in a wonderful wooden box that separates into trays. As we unpacked our box, (it felt like the holidays only I had no wrapping to pull off with my teeth) out came all this wonderful food. Along with cloth napkins and silverware were glasses of chilled freshly squeezed orange juice, bowls of house-made granola and carafes of milk, a delicious frittata with a shoe-string potato base filled with fluffy eggs, mushrooms and red bell peppers accompanied by melon, strawberries, blueberries and orange slices. All cottages have coffee machines, a tea kettle and everything you need to enjoy your gourmet picnic breakfast.
Room rates at St. Orres range from $95 to $445 per night. Dinner reservations are strongly encouraged. Please visit www.saintorres.com. The website offers more history about the development of St. Orres and its philosophy than I can cover here and is full of many visual delights as well. St. Orres is a wonderful backdrop for special occasions, weddings or gatherings of any kind.
Romantic and relaxing in rustic luxury and rich in hospitality and creativity, this homage to Russian Romanticism is a true gem of the south Mendocino Coast.
St. Orres offers its guests, especially the four-legged variety, a truly satisfying experience: four very enthusiastic paws.
St. Orres
36601 Coast Highway
Gualala, CA 95445
(707) 884-3335
