Cellar Monica Little The Cellar

The Cellar Awards

Lively restaurant, wine bar and cheese shop in the heart of San Clemente’s main drag.
Openings: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner Tues.-Sun.

Features

The Cellar, San Clemente, CA


The Cellar Restaurant Review:


Nestled among the boutique shops and eateries that line downtown San Clemente’s vibrant Avenida Del Mar, this intimate restaurant is regularly packed with people looking to unwind with a beer or a selection from the extensive list of wines by the glass. Those who want to settle into the dark, art-festooned space for more than liquid refreshment can indulge in executive chef Monica Little’s compact menu of seasonal offerings. Start with a smartly composed cheese board featuring items culled from the in-house cheese shop. Other first course dishes shine, while salads, perhaps burrata with grilled peaches and greens, highlight ingredients plucked from the venue’s backyard garden. For mains, we recommend the citrus thyme-roasted game hen with spring succotash and the Zinfandel-braised short rib with cheese grits and mustard crema. Sweets such as the budino or the cookie skillet are an ideal nosh, even if you’re just here to enjoy the nightly live music. Locals and day-trippers swing by to partake of waffles or pain perdu in the morning, or a salad and sandwich in the afternoon.