Restaurant: Pamplemousse Grille Location: 514 Via de la Valle #100 Solana Beach, CA Phone: (858) 792-9090 Price Range: $20-$35 for main courses, $7 and up for salads.

Number of visits: 1-5
Last visit before review: November 12, 2000

Randy had: Warm smoked trout salad (with tangerine slices and tangerine vinaigrette dressing), mustard and herb encrusted rack of lamb (special, chef's signature dish, with truffled mashed potatoes and grilled vegetables).

Jeff had: Salad of seasonal greens (field greens, pear-shaped mini tomatoes), roasted free-range chicken (with lentils and caramelized vegetables). And on another visit, lamb stew (with potatoes and carrots).

Rating 10 (of 12) Excellent

Jeff says: The salad of seasonal greens had a dressing that was not too heavy. It was just perfect.

Randy says: In the smoked trout salad, I liked the greens, but the trout was a little disappointing. Note: the details of the disappointment were not recorded and have been lost to time.

Jeff says: The roasted free-range chicken was in a cream sauce that was actually very light, and the chicken was tender and not dry — even the white meat. Randy's rack of lamb was well seasoned but the meat itself had a strong flavor I'm not fond of, as did that in the lamb stew I had before. In the lamb stew, the sauce and vegetables were hardy and good. Randy's truffled mashed potatoes were nice and buttery, just the way I like.

Randy says: Jeff's chicken was flavorful and moist. The rack of lamb was very good. You could really taste the mustard and herbs. I didn't find the strong lamb taste objectionable. The mashed potatoes were far too buttery for me, but the stack of grilled vegetables was very nice.

"Pamplemousse" is French for "grapefruit." The restaurant serves French provincial food with decor to match (they could go a little lighter on the pig imagery, we think). There are a lot of extra touches which make this restaurant stand out. First, each table receives a basket of unique breads: French bread, mini buttermilk biscuits, and corn biscuits. We usually go through two of these baskets and stop only to avoid "filling up on the bread." Another memorable touch, for which the restaurant is undoubtably named, is that they bring each diner a tiny dish of grapefruit sorbet between the courses to cleanse the palate. And finally, arriving with the check are sugar cookies in pastoral shapes. The menu consists of chef's specials which change regularly, and a permanent menu with selections of beef, seafood, chicken, and lamb.

The service, while excellent, can be slow. On this visit almost an hour passed before our main courses came out, but we did have the salads, bread, and sorbet to hold us over. The staff is formal in dress and demeanor and quite attentive. The patrons, however, vary. Pamplemousse is right across from the Del Mar race track, and so you see a variety of customers from well heeled professionals to ladies with too high hair and metal-studded blouses. On this visit, we ourselves had to go a bit scruffy. Just before it was time for us to clean ourselves up for our evening out, a water main on our street broke and the water was turned off. We dressed nicely but otherwise were forced to go as-is.

The bottom line on Pamplemousse is that while it is pricey, the service and culinary accomplishment are worth it. We go at least once a year for special occasions.