A good Vintage: High-end dining, drinking on Paseo del Norte

The 2012 opening of Vintage 423 on Paseo del Norte Boulevard was a bold gambit.

Founders Rudy Guzman and Jason Daskalos wagered that a place that combined fine dining with a lively bar and rooftop patio that stayed open till 2 a.m. on weekends would take root along the Paseo corridor. It seemed a dubious proposition for an area more associated with grab-and-go dining at modest prices.

But Vintage 423 has defied the odds. Twelve years later, it’s still rolling, offering lunch, dinner and drinking seven days a week.

A good Vintage: High-end dining, drinking on Paseo del Norte

The restaurant’s name refers to its extensive wine list and its location on highway 423, Paseo del Norte’s lesser-known alias.

The two-story building, clad in earth tones and topped with an overhanging flat roof, has a commanding presence at the eastern end of a large shopping center adjacent to the intersection with Wyoming Boulevard. Approaching from northbound Paseo, there’s an access road just past the restaurant. On the southbound side, it’s reachable from Wyoming Boulevard or Barstow Street.

We visited for an early dinner on a Saturday evening after making reservations online through Open Table. The scene was pretty drowsy when we got there, with the staff, clad in black pants and shirts, outnumbering the guests. After checking in, we were led past a bar that seemed to glow from within and up a couple of steps to a long, narrow dining room beautifully decorated with plush burgundy banquettes and wall panels sculpted into 3D wave forms.

The drink selection takes some time to work through. Besides the biggest wine list in the city, there are Classic Cocktails, an Espresso Bar, a series of riffs on Moscow Mules and even a couple of Wellness Drinks containing CBD oil. California, New Zealand and Europe are well represented on a wine list where pricey bottles share space with glasses for as little as $8.

The assaultive heat outside led me to a Sicilian Spritzer ($15), a variation on a common Italian apéritif that combines Aperol, prosecco lemon bitters and Italicus, a liqueur made from a citrus fruit called bergamot. Though not as vividly orange as the traditional spritz, it offered a similar mix of bitter, floral and citrus notes that made it a good appetite primer.

The dinner menu combines fine-dining staples with Asian and Mediterranean dishes. The $60 seafood tower is gone due to the difficulty of getting fresh oysters here, the server told us, but there are still plenty of big-ticket items for those looking to splurge.

Starters include a couple of soups and eight salads that run from $15 to $26.

We tried the Vintage 423 Salad ($17) with vinaigrette dressing on the side. In and around the pile of mixed greens, creamy lumps of goat cheese vied for supremacy with a host of raisins, dried cherries and apple chunks. A granita-like topping of cucumber snow cooled the zing of the potent dressing. All that was missing was a crunchy component.

The dozen appetizers range in price from $12 to $29. An order of Beef Carpaccio ($26) arrived on a long, rectangular plate. Thin sheets of well-marbled Wagyu beef were dressed with capers, a pile of baby arugula and Parmesan crisps. The beef was very tender and made for a terrific bite when piled with the briny capers, greens and crisps.

Price wise, several entrees occupy rarefied air. Steaks, lamb chops and sea bass all check in at more than $50, and the Chateaubriand for two is $120.

I was intrigued by the two Asian dishes among the filets and lobster tails: a Spicy Thai Curry with Beef ($29) and an Indonesian fried noodle dish called Mie Goreng ($27). The latter was served in a shallow black bowl that served as an apt backdrop for the bright colors of the red pepper and green vegetables insinuated through the thick noodles. Along with the vegetables were a few shrimp that had a fresh snap to them and a bunch of very tender chicken thighs that soaked up the sweet and savory sauce. Of the impressive assortment of vegetables, only the broccoli suffered as it got a bit soggy with sauce. Overall, it was a tasty and filling interpretation of classic Indonesian street food, with a portion size that was enough for two or three meals.

Gluten-free options include a 5-hour Slow-braised Short Rib ($39). The almost cylindrical boneless rib was served with chile mashed potatoes, grilled asparagus and a roasted green chile with the skin removed. The rib meat was fork tender and picked up a flavor boost from the very spicy green chile sauce. The mashed potatoes, however, were underheated.

Banana Pudding ($13) makes a surprise appearance in the dessert menu. Vintage 423’s version of this diner standard was nicely presented, the brick of pudding under a scoop of whipped cream that held two vanilla cookies. The pudding itself was more gelatinous than creamy, like a panna cotta. The highlights of the dish were the crumbly cookies and a banana that wore a thin shroud of caramelized sugar.

There is a separate lunch menu available from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. with selections such as a club sandwich, a quesadilla and fried chicken at prices ranging from $17 to $26.

Our server, who said he had been at Vintage 423 for five years, was prompt, friendly and knowledgeable about the menu.

By the time we finished our meal, the dining room was almost full. The presence of couples and groups of four spanning a wide range of ages spoke to Vintage 423’s broad appeal. It has something for everyone, be it a beer and a burger, or a cigar and a $300 shot of Louis XIII cognac.