Y’all know that george’s is my favorite restaurant. I love it so, so much. And, it just turned 40! It’s been around la jolla “almost” as long as I have.

For their 40th celebration, george’s is bringing in guest chefs for special curated menus throughout the year. All of these chefs have come up through the george’s kitchen is some capacity or another.

We attended the inaugural dinner back in february… and I’m still thinking about these dishes today.

Obviously had to do the wine pairing, and it ended up feeling like the return of tbl3 in many ways… far less courses, but still a fun experience, and getting to experience it with a room full of fellow george’s enthusiasts was a whole new experience.

The bar downstairs was open when we got there, and they were serving up some fun drinks… including my favorite the french 75. And not only was it a french 75 but it included my favorite gin (the botanist) of al time.

Jamie was just happy to find one of his go to hazy ipas. Doesn’t take much for that one, i’ll tell you.

While all of the appetizers were amazing, for us, it was the sesame leaf that blew our minds. Maybe it’s because I’ve been a little dungeness crab obsessed lately? But I’ll tell you, the combo of flavors on this one was just perfection.

The champs pairing was excellent with all three dishes.

Why are cara cara’s not more of a thing? I love them. My kids love them - and they are such a distinct citrus flavor. So lovely to see them here… and perfectly balanced with the smoke of the salsa negra.

It was my first time trying raw fluke, and I can’t say I’m upset about it. Super delicate flavor, enhanced by the accoutrements.

And the grenache blanc? Prolly my most surprising wine delight. It was super unexpected and paired beautifully, while being excellent on its own as well.

Another great wine pairing. Love a sancerre. Especially with fish.

And that fish? Perfectly cooked.

But can we talk about the pesto for a moment. Amazing. Such a good idea using the hoja santa for the herb, with all of its complex flavors.

You had me at truffle. And pine nuts. And brown butter.

I mean seriously? Is there anything wrong with that trifecta? Especially when served over fresh agnolotti?

I love a good, buttery chard. And this was all of those things. So good with the pasta, and truffles. Neither overpowering the other.

The flavors in this dish were spot on. However, as great as the flavors were, my squab was slightly under-rare, and a little less than warm. Which I totally understand is bound to happen to someone when cooking for 30 people and serving at the same time. It’s just a shame that I wasn’t able to enjoy as much as I would have liked to.

Loved the red wine pairing though. Totally made all the flavors pop.

Sunchokes are such an underrated vegetable, and one of my favorites. They worked so well with the charred broccoli, and the perfectly tender wagyu. Such a great combo.

As for the pairings? For this one we got not one, but two. A surprise extra taste. Both went excellently with the ribeye in their own way. Couldn’t pick a fav.

Got another double taste. This time, dessert wine.

I always forget how much I like dessert wine, until I have it again.

Perfect with the palate cleansing dish. And of course carried through to the final course.

I adore the continuation of citrus through all the courses. It was such a great note to end the meal on, especially when paired with chocolate and chamomile. It was like a cross between sleepy time tea and hot chocolate with a pop of citrus.

The perfect end-cap if you will.

Can’t wait for our next celebration dinner.