October 17, 2017 – When the Pfeiffer Canyon Bridge collapsed in February, business in Big Sur came to an abrupt halt. Ventana Inn & Spa shuttered their doors, electing to use that time to undergo an extensive renovation.
With the new bridge now open, Ventana Big Sur is preparing to welcome guests starting on Friday, October 20th with a slightly different name and a new look. The relaunch marks the North American debut of the Singapore-based management company Alila Hotel & Resorts—which operates luxury hotels in Indonesia, India, Oman and China. “Alila is Sanskrit for surprise and Alila hotels are surprisingly different,” says guest services director Stephanie Lewis. Ventana Big Sur boasts some surprising details that capture the magical serenity of its surroundings.
Their sunburst logo is featured on the new artisan-crafted weathering steel gates that greet all resort guests and mirrors the pattern on the door of the Social House. “It’s a sign that you have arrived to Ventana,” Lewis says. The word ventana is Spanish for window. The 160-acre resort, perched at the edge of the continent, is a window to the dramatic convergence of sky, sea, mountains and trees for which Big Sur is famous. They have created experiences for patrons to fully bask in that unparalleled majesty.
All of the accommodations have been refreshed. A rustic motif still echoes its natural surroundings, but each room now includes rich leather detailing, hefty wood furniture, other handcrafted elements, and a private balcony or patio from where guests can savor the mountains or the Pacific Ocean. Additional changes include re-imagining the Social House, where guests convene to listen to vinyl records, play billiards or board games, and socialize at a communal table.
Other Alila experiences include falconry—an opportunity to get up close to master falconer Antonio Balestreri’s birds—a drum circle, glass fusing, and cooking classes with executive chef Paul Corsentino.
Corsentino is at the helm of the remodeled Sur House restaurant which features an expanded ocean-view terrace high above the Pacific. Sumptuous seating surrounds the outdoor bar where diners can eat alfresco. And up to fifteen diners can enjoy a more private meal on the Sky Terrace.
Sur House will host soft-opening lunches and dinners this Thursday and Friday, then they will be running full-service breakfast, lunch, and dinner starting Saturday with completely new menus.
Corsentino has crafted a coastal cuisine inspired by the sustainable ingredients and bounty of California’s central coast. The lunch menu is built around Pacific seafood, featuring local fish as much as possible. Dishes of note—and some of the chef’s favorites—are the swordfish over Israeli couscous with date romesco sauce and pomegranate relish; steamed Penn Cove mussels in coconut broth; shrimp roll on toasted brioche with lemon aioli, cucumber, celery, bib lettuce, and roasted tomato; and his spin on the ubiquitous avocado toast. His is topped with lightly smoked Mt. Lassen trout that he prepared in his newly-acquired smoker. View menus here.
Next summer he hopes to launch a roadside barbeque in the Post House, the historic red house located just at the turnoff to Ventana from Highway One. “While I will have great barbequed meats in the central Texas tradition, I’m experimenting with smoked vegetables, too—we already tried smoked leeks and lentils and smoked cauliflower,” he says.
Speaking of vegetables, Corsentino has a planted an impressive organic garden just below the Ocean Meadow. While it won’t happen for a little while, the intention is that the garden provide 10 percent of the produce used onsite. In addition to his home-grown vegetables and herbs, Corsentino sources fish from local fishermen, meats from local producers, and obtains produce from nearby foragers.
Where the lunch menu is seafood-centric, the prix fixe dinner tasting menu ($90 or $80/vegetarian) includes a plethora of options from the vegetarian Chick Pea Panisse served with date puree, shishito peppers, tzatziki, quinoa tabbouleh, and roasted turnips to a seared duck breast with spiced basmati rice, grilled dandelion greens, and pomegranate raita. Dinner seafood offerings include halibut with butternut squash, roasted cauliflower, clams, and fennel and squid ink carbonara served with smoked sturgeon, Hawaiian shrimp, squid, and trout roe.
Along with Food & Beverage Manager Thomas McKay, Corsentino has designed a Wine and Cheese Hour for guests. “We will be on a ten-day rotation with a tour of the major California wine growing regions,” McKay says. Every afternoon, in the Social House, they will plate two California cheeses and pour two California wines. Diners receive an explanation of the pairing and, then, are poured a third wine from somewhere else around the world, but with grapes grown in a similar climate and soil condition. “It’s interesting to see how wines differ—or are the same—traveling along the same lines,” Corsentino says. The tasting also includes carrot hummus and dried fruit. McKay offers a preview: “With the Holey Cow out of Paso Robles and Death & Taxes from Tomales, we’ll pour the 2014 Chardonnay and 2012 Pinot Noir from Cima Colina in Monterey County. Then we’ll compare that to the 2014 Nerello Mascallese from Tascante near Sicily’s Mt. Etna.”
The Social House is also where guests can pick up freshly pressed juices that Corsentino offers in the Sur House Restaurant during breakfast. He’s played with fresh flavors that represent a part of Ventana’s allure—the Redwood Forest, the Orange Sunset, the Purple Rain, and the Green Mountain which incorporates watercress, kale, spinach, parsley, cucumber, and gem lettuce.
Ventana Big Sur has instituted a multitude of green initiatives, including a property-wide recycling program; irrigation around the resort uses 100% recycled water and is stopped during periods of rain or cold; all cleaning products are non-toxic and environmentally friendly; and select furniture is handcrafted from reclaimed wood. Onsite craftsman Chuy Gonzalez used redwoods downed in the storms to make seating in the Redwood Chapel, tables for the glampsites, and the Sky Terrace dining set.
With all the changes, Ventana Big Sur has managed to strike a surprising balance between relaxation and invigoration, solitude and community, and wild nature and polished elegance.
About the author
Camilla M. Mann has crammed a lot of different jobs into four decades: florist, waitress, SCUBA divemaster, stock photo agency manager, stroller fitness teacher, writer, editor, and au pair. But, if she had to distill who she is today – tree-hugging, veggie-crunching, jewelry-designing mean mommy who loves to cook but hates to clean. Thankfully her husband and their boys clean like champs. Her current culinary goal: grow conscientious, creative kids with fearless palates! She blogs at culinary-adventures-with-cam.blogspot.com
