Food and Culture in the IE: Falkner Winery chef savvy about customers' needs

Ciciliot says imaginative patrons want creative, surprising experiences

At Pinnacle Restaurant at Falkner Winery, customers come with different needs

There's the active visitor who wants to get in and out quickly, stressed to complete a packed Wine Country tour schedule.

"It's like people on a mission," said Ray Falkner, the Temecula winery's co-owner, in a recent interview. "First thing they'll ask the server is, ‘What can you make for me very quickly?'"

Then there's the patron with a more flexible tour schedule and a loose approach to dining, followed by the multicourse-seeking lounger who can record two-hour meals.

The variance in moving along is typical of Wine Country tourists looking to balance the pursuits of food and wine.

"Food and wine are both very artistic types of items, and the ability of putting these two artistries together ends up enhancing both of them," Falkner said. Perhaps that is why guests at wineries seek raised culinary experiences, a pattern noted by Gianni Ciciliot, the new executive chef at Pinnacle, which was named best restaurant of 2007 and 2008 by Inland Empire Magazine.

"People who go out a lot, enjoy good wine and good food, they expect creative food," said Ciciliot. "To me, when I think of dishes or flavor combinations, I try to create things that almost kind of trick or play with people's senses. Food is not just about eating. You have an expectation level when you get that first bite." Working in the vein of American Mediterranean cuisine, Ciciliot said he likes to create with unexpected texture and flavor combinations as well as use flavored oils for color.

"You have to create curiosity among your guests and diners," he said, citing the importance of perceptive aspects such as the height of the food.

"There's nothing worse than serving something in front of somebody that's flat on a plate, that has no dimension to it. It's not appealing visually; it doesn't make you inquisitive about the dish.

"That would be the antithesis of what I'd like to do."

Since Pinnacle is located at a winery, Falkner said they stress the importance of the wine in the menu.

"We are a winery; for us wine is the premier product," he said. "When we go through establishing the new menu, it's important the food goes well with one of our wines. If we can't find a wine that partners perfectly with our food item … Gianni will make changes with the food."

Elizabeth Han, The Press-Enterprise writes about Temecula wineries. This article is about the Temecula Falkner winery. More information can be learned about Falkner winery at http://falknerwinery.com.