The Elderberry House has been the premier fine dining establishment in the area for 30 years.  In the Sierra Mountains, minutes from Yosemite National Park, it offers a 3 or 5 couse tasting menu curated by Head Chef Ethan de Graaff.  Graaff stated in 2019 at the Sous Chef  until he was promoted to Chef de Cuisine in 2022.  The place is part of the Château du Sureau, a Relais & Châteaux that is a 9 acre castle resort with 10 guest accommodations.    It is a short walk through some gardens to the restaurant building from the hotel.   The white cloth covered tables were well spaced in a lowly lit room with fairly loud background music.   Lots of windows look out on the gardens and fountains and spotlights hang from the vaulted celing to light each table.  Paintings and mirrors are on the walls and the tables are set with large upholstered chairs and fresh flowers.  Unfortunately the table was set with a cotton-polyester blend napkin which is one of my pet peeves.   They offer wine pairings or you can chose your own wine, which we did.  Service was friendly but very slow.  Portion control was good and the server stated that the 5 course portions are about an ounce less than the ones on the 3-course.   Nothing was bad but I’m not sure anything was outstanding however if you want fine dining in this area I think this is the place to do it. Continue reading →