balzano vineyard

We had Valentine's Day Dinner at the winery, something they set up special. While I understand they have just opened, and still have some kinks to work out, my husband and I were relatively disappointed with the whole experience. We paid $50 a person for a 5 course dinner, but did not feel we got anything remotely close to our money's worth. It felt more the event was a fund-raiser but they didn't tell anyone that. We had reservations, and were seated quickly, and offered our glass of wine that came with our meal, but it went down hill from there. First, they provided us with disposable plates and silverware, and after telling the waitress that I have a food allergy to garlic (which I was told wouldn't be a problem when we made the reservations), she was able to offer one of the 2 choices to me. But then, immediately after, I was served a salad in which the dressing was a vinaigrette (which has garlic in it!) without a second thought. So, my husband got 2 salads, and I wasn't offered another one.When our meal arrived, I had a a chicken cordon bleu which was pretty much a heated pre-packaged frozen dinner along with only 3 tiny baby potatoes and a kale salad. The beef-wellington my husband had, while good he said, was the same thing. Something that looked like it could be purchased at any grocery store in a box. What bothered us most was we were never offered a second glass of wine, asked if we'd like to buy a bottle of wine, or really, anything at all. And I'd think that they'd want to sell their wine, being a winery...So, overall, I'm willing to be a little understanding for a place that just opened and still has some logistics to figure out. But if you're going to charge $50 a plate, at least give your customers some real friggin' silverware! It's really hard to eat chicken with disposable...Overall, sure, go for a wine tasting, but head over to the YellowBrix in town if you want a meal. Or at least give them a few more months to work out the kinks.