Rancho La Puerta is renowned for freshly picked produce and nutritious natural foods. We have developed, tested, and proven hundreds of recipes since 1940. Over sixty years of culinary creativity, experimentation and dietary research have culminated in a superb all-natural diet. It is low in fat, sodium, and refined flour and sugar -- while high in energy, fiber, and complex carbohydrates.
We follow “Slow Food” precepts. As much as possible, and as attuned to the seasons as we can reasonably be, we procure organic fruits and vegetables from our own extensive organic farm, or from our region’s purveyors who practice sustainable, organic farming.
La Cocina Que Canta, our culinary center that opened in the summer of 2007, is an exciting center where the “Cuisine of the Californias” can be learned, explored, discussed, and created by guests along with talented chef/teachers from around the world.
The grand Spanish Colonial dining room at Rancho La Puerta, complete with a spiral staircase winding around a central fireplace, symbolizes the convivial atmosphere so important to the Ranch experience. Here you can dine at round tables with new friends (seated in order of arrival) or choose to dine alone or with a smaller group of your choosing, just as you would in any fine restaurant. Dinners are sit-down affairs with an attentive waitstaff; breakfasts and lunches are served buffet-style—informal and lively. The dining room is presided over by Chef Gonzalo Mendoza and Sous Chef Mariela Manzano, who bring farm-fresh ingredients to life with creative presentations worthy of any city’s finest restaurants.
Olive-shaded patios surround the dining room, and are popular for lunch. In summer, we often serve the Friday night farewell dinner outside, followed by dancing to a live band. The atmosphere is magical.
The Ranch's diet, which is lacto-ovo vegetarian, includes a seafood "catch of the day" five to six times a week for dinner, and several times for lunch. (A vegetarian alternative entrée is always offered for those who don't eat fish or shellfish).
For those interested in additional healthy fats, we always have available virgin olive oil, natural peanut butter, nuts and seeds. Our diet is very closely aligned with that recommended by Walter C. Willett, M.D., from Harvard's Graduate School of Public Health, author of "Eat, Drink and be Healthy
