Farmhouse at Roger's Gardens- The First Bridesmaid Proposal

Natasha and I haven’t seen each other in what feels like in forever! So a couple months ago we decided to force ourselves onto each other’s calendar, so we could finally catch-up. No more life excuses! Originally, we were looking for a place to do high tea, but then randomly came across this cute little restaurant near Fashion Island called Farmhouse at Roger’s Gardens. When we arrived, we were so enamored by the rustic farmhouse look and cutesy decor. Living in OC for almost 10 years, I have no idea how we never came across this adorable place!

When we arrived around 5:30pm on a Sunday, the wait was over an hour! Luckily, the bar had plenty of open seating. I had just asked Natasha to be one of my bridesmaids, so to celebrate, we decided to start off with a bottle of Malbec La Madrid 2014 Lujan de Cuyo ($28). I’m no wine snob, but it was very light for a red, and I actually enjoyed it (Akshay would probably say that I enjoy anything that has fermented grapes in it though)! I don’t know if it’s just me, or if I’m finally transitioning into my late 20’s, but if I finish more than 2 glasses of wine, my entire body feels like a dehydrated fish the next day. Natasha and I killed this bottle though, and I felt fine the following morning, soooooo I would definitely recommend this wine!

After, we decided to order a couple of small plates and a salad:

Farmhouse Market Salad ($10): This salad consists of shaved fennel, radish, roast butternut squash, cherry tomatoes, goat cheese, raisins, lettuce, and dijon red wine vinaigrette. I don’t normally like mixing salty with sweet, but the raisins mixed really well with the vinaigrette and goat cheese. I actually devoured the entire plate and didn’t have a chance to take a photo! OOPS!

Grilled Asian Short Beef Ribs ($12): I do not like ribs, mainly because I’m weird and bones freak me out (specifically ribs). Yet I love LOVE love beef. So when the server told us these were boneless, we immediately ordered them. Imagine steak lettuce wraps! The beef was very flavorful with a slightly sweet tinge. It also comes with a green papaya salad. We would order this again!

Chinese Sausage, Dried Shrimp & Farro ($12): This was my favorite for sure! I’ve never had farro, but it was so good! It reminds me of crunchy rice. With the Chinese sausage and dried shrimp, super delicious!

Pumpkin White Chocolate Bread Pudding ($8): Our bartender recommended this one to us, and oh my gosh, the bread pudding just melts in your mouth! Don’t forget to add a spoon of vanilla ice cream with each bite! I tried taking a photo, but unfortunately it did not do the dessert any justice, so you should probably venture out to try it yourself ;)!

All in all, we had a great night. The bartenders were really entertaining and probably amused by the fact that I wouldn’t allow Natasha to eat until I took a photo of our food! I do want to return during the day to experience the super cute decor. However, coming at night allowed Natasha and I to experience the beautiful Christmas lights/ambiance in their garden and shop. It’s worth a visit!

Check out the Farmhouse at Roger’s Gardens’s website.