Quail Lodge welcomes you to the Fall season at its spectacular setting in the sunbelt of Carmel, with a property featuring lush gardens, award-winning golf, decadent cuisine, luxurious accommodations, and a variety of open-air activities.
Some of the highlights of visiting the resort this season are the new menu items for Covey Grill and Edgar’s Restaurant helmed by recently promoted executive chef Alvin Quinol, who joined Quail in 2021. Born and raised in Las Vegas, Quinol is a big fan of the Iron Chef TV show, counting chef Masaharu Morimoto as his all-time hero and favorite chef.
“His unique Japanese cooking techniques and his beautiful plating style inspired me to learn and become a chef,” says Quinol. He also credits a dear friend, Henry Shoulders, who recently passed away, for talking him into attending culinary school when the two of them were juniors in high school. It proved a seminal moment in shaping his culinary career.
After high school, Quinol attended the Art Institute of Las Vegas and pursued an Associates Degree in the Culinary Arts. At Bellagio Hotel and Casino, he helped open Yellowtail Japanese Restaurant and Lounge created by Michelin Star Chef Akira Back and at the City Center Aria, he helped open Bar Masa, a concept created by the 3-Michelin Star Chef Masa Takayama.
In 2010, Quinol moved to the Central Coast, where he gained experience at Estéban’s, P.F. Chang’s, Benihana, Portola Hotel, Monterey Plaza Hotel, Monterey Bay Aquarium and Pebble Beach. Realizing that working two jobs as a cook was not sustainable, he took on for his first Sous Chef position at the newly opened Levi Stadium in Santa Clara in 2015. At first it was exciting, but football is seasonal, and not in the way that food is seasonal. So, in 2016, he became sous chef at Alila Ventana Big Sur, where he worked closely with chef Paul Corsentino to help make it a prime destination in Big Sur. Over his nearly four years there, Quinol planted a hillside garden with free-range chickens and worked on the roadside BBQ house that opened after he left in 2019 to follow Corsentino to Salt Wood Kitchen in Marina. The pandemic put a crimp in that venture, as on many others. In 2021, he came to Quail Lodge and Golf Club as chef de cuisine for Covey Grill, and he was promoted to executive chef in May 2022.
Quinol describes his culinary style as a versatile mix of American, Asian, French and Spanish fare—all of which he’s infusing into the Edgar’s and Covey Grill menus. “I am adding some unique international twists and nuanced cuisines that locals and members can enjoy and can’t get anywhere else on the Central Coast,” he says. “My culinary goal for Quail Lodge is to offer more seasonality at the restaurants, along with uniquely different, bold flavors that can’t be found everywhere else.”
He points to highlights from the new fall menu at Covey Grill, like Seared Ling Cod with Rainbow Chard, Baby Fennel, Chanterelle Mushroom, Butternut Squash Puree and Pepita Gremolata, as well as a comforting Corn Chowder with Grilled Corn, Pickled Fresno Chili, Queso Fresco, Chervil, and Popped Sorghum. His ongoing vision is to continue complementing the restaurant’s grill-inspired fare with unique, globally inspired flavor profiles.
With an eye to healthy, more sustainable dining, Quinol feels it important to incorporate more plant-based dishes on the menu. For example, his fall signature dish: Almond Wood Smoked Eggplant with Ratatouille and Quinoa Tabbouleh Salad topped with Argentine Chimichurri.
As we begin the holidays, Quail can help you enjoy this season of giving and thanks with its Thanksgiving at Covey Grill, a delicious three-course meal to be held on November 24, 2022 between 11:00 am and 9:00 pm. Offering a menu complete with holiday favorites like turkey, savory stuffing, braised short ribs, crispy skinned salmon, smoked eggplant and caramel pumpkin spiced trifle, you will be sure to leave with a full belly and in a warm heart. $70 per person. Select one first course, entrée and dessert. Reservations are required. See Thanksgiving menu HERE. To-go offerings are also available.
For an intimate gathering of overeating and gratitude, celebrate your friends at Quail Lodge’s Friendsgiving Feast available every Saturday during the month of November, where you can indulge on Thanksgiving classics like organic turkey, sweet potato mash, cranberry sauce, and pumpkin pie at a private table along with two complimentary bottles of wine. Just one seating per Saturday, from 5pm until 9pm. $750 All Inclusive: up to 8 Guests, $50 each additional guest. Reserve with mindyblundell@quaillodge.com up to 72 hours ahead. Friendsgiving menu HERE.
Make the season even more special with Quail’s Fairway Villa Thanksgiving Experience. Give thanks to your loved ones and keep your home and kitchen clean when you splurge on a 2-Night Stay in Quail’s luxurious 2-Bedroom Fairway Villa, inclusive of private, in-room Thanksgiving Dinner for up to 8 people, two bottles of Hahn wines to complement dinner, and a special welcome amenity in-room upon arrival. Enjoy the natural comforts of its outdoor wrap-around patio seating overlooking the natural beauty of Quail’s lush garden landscapes and the green grasses of our 14th Fairway. Offered throughout the entire month of November with 72-hour advance booking.
Christmas Dinner is served December 25, from 5pm until 9pm, featuring smoked prime rib, grilled Chilean seabass, seared duck breast and cauliflower steak, followed by decadent desserts such as Chocolate Pomegranate Trifle and Cast-Iron Persimmon Coffee Cake. Reservations required. To-go offerings will also be available.
Make plans to head over to Quail Lodge, where their warm hospitality and seasonally-inspired menu and décor will put you in the holiday spirit.
About the author
Laura Ness is a longtime wine journalist, columnist and judge who contributes regularly to Edible Monterey Bay, Spirited, WineOh.Tv, Los Gatos Magazine and Wine Industry Network, and a variety of consumer publications. Her passion is telling stories about the intriguing characters who inhabit the fascinating world of wine and food.
