I ate here about a year ago and forgot to write a review. Here's the thing. I am afraid to go back. It was the best meal top to bottom I have had in 50 years. I spent 20 of those working in the restaurant industry. I am concerned that they will not be able to replicate the experience. The server ( French Accent) was a psychic. He was only there when wanted. Knew the menu down to the details. Scallops and whatever they were served on was perfect. Crazy dessert with pistachio something or other. Anyway, thanks for the finest dining evening I have ever had. Sorry for the late review.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Pan Seared Maine Diver Scallops, Creme Brulee
Cali Casual
If you can sit outside on a beautiful sunny day or a cool evening then do it!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
nina haines
Delicious food, on the expensive side but worth it, great ambiance too!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Pan Seared Maine Diver Scallops
Greg Schmitt
Why wife and I ate here and it was spectacular. Our bartender Chris was really knowledgeable and had great suggestions. Definitely recommend.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Melissa
The Food and service were amazing! The gnocchi appetizer is made from scratch every morning. So worth the calories! The duck confit was prepared perfectly. My husband Loved his pheasant dish and said it was so good! We're from out of town but would return to eat here next time we're in San Diego.
Steffani J
Lovely attention to detail, service was absolutely amazing.
Atmosphere: 5
Service: 5
MikeJ
We are annual visitors from Canada and Paon is our 'go to' restaurant for our final night. The quality of the food, wine and service make this one of the best dining experiences we've enjoyed anywhere. It has never failed to impress.
Koty
We enjoyed our dinner at Paon! The service is exceptional, the food is delicious , the atmosphere is romantic. We were celebrating my birthday & they brought me a delicious dessert. Highly recommend Paon it is expensive.
TammyM
This is my fourth or fifth time dining at Paon and my son and I were quite excited, my son even viewed the menu options prior to arriving and knew what he wanted. I ordered the caviar and my son ordered the butternut squash as appetizers... I was given a heads up that the caviar would take 20-25 minutes to prepare, which was fine. When the appetizers arrived, we were both very disappointed. My caviar had pancake blinis as well as mini potato pancake/waffles ... when I picked up the first waffle, it literally fell apart in my hand. It wasn't firm at all, just mushy and raw and undercooked. It was the same with all of them, which should've been hard to miss and disappointing for a $100 appetizer. My son's butternut squash raviolis were equally disappointing... first and foremost, the dish was loaded with mushrooms, which were not mentioned in the description and my son hates mushrooms. Second, the ravioli were flat, the filling was nonexistent and the pasta itself was thick and raw. It left a terrible taste in the mouth and we were both very shocked at how they messed up our first two dishes. The waiter took the ravioli away and removed it from the bill and offered to either remake the potato pancake waffles, but I just asked for more of the blini's as the potato pancakes would've taken 20-25 additional minutes that we didn't want to waste. For dinner, I went with the scallops on high recommendation from the waiter, they were okay, but barely had a sear on them. I would give them a 5-6 and my son ordered the filet, which was ordered medium rare, but came out medium and was under seasoned and also lacked a proper sear. Not sure what has happened with this place, new chef maybe? I'm not sure we will be back, for the money, I would much prefer to go somewhere that won't mess up on all four dishes. The poor food coupled with the loud and arrogant man sitting right behind me made for a bad night all around.
The entire experience was lovely. From the moment we arrived to our departure was an experience to remember and tells friends about. I suggest Paon to two couples that came in contact with today. I look forward to my next visit!
Our dinner was amazing. The service was predictable, excellent! We eat there every time we are in Carlsbad and every meal and service has always been excellent. Hopefully they will open for lunch again soon.
JohnB
We had never been to Paon before. This turned out to be one of the best dining experiences we've had in a long time. The food is really amazing. We were in the Wine Bar section rather than the busy formal restaurant. By choice. This section has access to both the formal menu and their fairly extensive bar menu. It was quiet and perfect frankly. The bar tenders who doubled as our servers were awesome. Not intrusive and very friendly. The wine selection of course is superior. Had one of the best bottles of wine I've had in a long time. The final tab was not inexpensive, but worth every penny and we will be back very soon. Keep in mind parking is a bit of a challenge as it's on a busy street and you need to park a ways away and walk over. Not a problem when you know what awaits you when you arrive.
Pennez
Beautiful setting, very French-like. Eugene our waiter was wonderful, very attentive and knowledgeable. The hostess was great-on top of everything and very welcoming. The noise level is about medium to high later in evening. We got there at 5:30 and it was fine. The scallops were very good as was the filet for my date-just the way he ordered it. Highly recommended.
there were several problems with our valentine's day dinner this evening. first of all, when we booked the reservation we were unaware that it was an “Experience” dinner that cost $135 each. i don't know if this is an open table problem or if the restaurant deliberately failed to report this so as to prey on unsuspecting couples who literally cannot consume $135 worth of food otherwise. i will say that when we arrived the ambiance was lovely. the hostess at the front was very sweet. our waiter unfortunately was aloof and somewhat condescending. when we were confused about the menu because we did not know that it was an “Experience”, i asked him how it worked and he slowly pointed to each category while making eye contact with me and saying “you order one of these, and then one of these, and then one of these, and then one of these.” the food itself was actually very good until dessert. we both ordered the cheesecake and both of our slices were clearly frozen in the center. they literally were frozen slices with sauce drizzled over them and a single strawberry sliced up and placed on the side. when my fiancé tried to take a bite out of it i could hear his fork hitting ice from across the table.
SydneyB
We had a wheelchair with us and they kindly acknowledged that we would be more comfortable in the wine bar area which was perfect! He wheeled in no problem and was able to fit comfortable under the table. Great service from everyone. We really enjoyed everything. Price was right on for what we received. Can't wait to go back! Thank you all, Sydney Brick
I ate here about a year ago and forgot to write a review. Here's the thing. I am afraid to go back. It was the best meal top to bottom I have had in 50 years. I spent 20 of those working in the restaurant industry. I am concerned that they will not be able to replicate the experience. The server ( French Accent) was a psychic. He was only there when wanted. Knew the menu down to the details. Scallops and whatever they were served on was perfect. Crazy dessert with pistachio something or other. Anyway, thanks for the finest dining evening I have ever had. Sorry for the late review.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Pan Seared Maine Diver Scallops, Creme Brulee
If you can sit outside on a beautiful sunny day or a cool evening then do it!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Delicious food, on the expensive side but worth it, great ambiance too!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Pan Seared Maine Diver Scallops
Why wife and I ate here and it was spectacular. Our bartender Chris was really knowledgeable and had great suggestions. Definitely recommend.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
The Food and service were amazing! The gnocchi appetizer is made from scratch every morning. So worth the calories! The duck confit was prepared perfectly. My husband Loved his pheasant dish and said it was so good! We're from out of town but would return to eat here next time we're in San Diego.
Lovely attention to detail, service was absolutely amazing.
Atmosphere: 5
Service: 5
We are annual visitors from Canada and Paon is our 'go to' restaurant for our final night. The quality of the food, wine and service make this one of the best dining experiences we've enjoyed anywhere. It has never failed to impress.
We enjoyed our dinner at Paon! The service is exceptional, the food is delicious , the atmosphere is romantic. We were celebrating my birthday & they brought me a delicious dessert. Highly recommend Paon it is expensive.
This is my fourth or fifth time dining at Paon and my son and I were quite excited, my son even viewed the menu options prior to arriving and knew what he wanted. I ordered the caviar and my son ordered the butternut squash as appetizers... I was given a heads up that the caviar would take 20-25 minutes to prepare, which was fine. When the appetizers arrived, we were both very disappointed. My caviar had pancake blinis as well as mini potato pancake/waffles ... when I picked up the first waffle, it literally fell apart in my hand. It wasn't firm at all, just mushy and raw and undercooked. It was the same with all of them, which should've been hard to miss and disappointing for a $100 appetizer. My son's butternut squash raviolis were equally disappointing... first and foremost, the dish was loaded with mushrooms, which were not mentioned in the description and my son hates mushrooms. Second, the ravioli were flat, the filling was nonexistent and the pasta itself was thick and raw. It left a terrible taste in the mouth and we were both very shocked at how they messed up our first two dishes. The waiter took the ravioli away and removed it from the bill and offered to either remake the potato pancake waffles, but I just asked for more of the blini's as the potato pancakes would've taken 20-25 additional minutes that we didn't want to waste. For dinner, I went with the scallops on high recommendation from the waiter, they were okay, but barely had a sear on them. I would give them a 5-6 and my son ordered the filet, which was ordered medium rare, but came out medium and was under seasoned and also lacked a proper sear. Not sure what has happened with this place, new chef maybe? I'm not sure we will be back, for the money, I would much prefer to go somewhere that won't mess up on all four dishes. The poor food coupled with the loud and arrogant man sitting right behind me made for a bad night all around.
The entire experience was lovely. From the moment we arrived to our departure was an experience to remember and tells friends about. I suggest Paon to two couples that came in contact with today. I look forward to my next visit!
Restaurantji Recommends
Our dinner was amazing. The service was predictable, excellent! We eat there every time we are in Carlsbad and every meal and service has always been excellent. Hopefully they will open for lunch again soon.
We had never been to Paon before. This turned out to be one of the best dining experiences we've had in a long time. The food is really amazing. We were in the Wine Bar section rather than the busy formal restaurant. By choice. This section has access to both the formal menu and their fairly extensive bar menu. It was quiet and perfect frankly. The bar tenders who doubled as our servers were awesome. Not intrusive and very friendly. The wine selection of course is superior. Had one of the best bottles of wine I've had in a long time. The final tab was not inexpensive, but worth every penny and we will be back very soon. Keep in mind parking is a bit of a challenge as it's on a busy street and you need to park a ways away and walk over. Not a problem when you know what awaits you when you arrive.
Beautiful setting, very French-like. Eugene our waiter was wonderful, very attentive and knowledgeable. The hostess was great-on top of everything and very welcoming. The noise level is about medium to high later in evening. We got there at 5:30 and it was fine. The scallops were very good as was the filet for my date-just the way he ordered it. Highly recommended.
there were several problems with our valentine's day dinner this evening. first of all, when we booked the reservation we were unaware that it was an “Experience” dinner that cost $135 each. i don't know if this is an open table problem or if the restaurant deliberately failed to report this so as to prey on unsuspecting couples who literally cannot consume $135 worth of food otherwise. i will say that when we arrived the ambiance was lovely. the hostess at the front was very sweet. our waiter unfortunately was aloof and somewhat condescending. when we were confused about the menu because we did not know that it was an “Experience”, i asked him how it worked and he slowly pointed to each category while making eye contact with me and saying “you order one of these, and then one of these, and then one of these, and then one of these.” the food itself was actually very good until dessert. we both ordered the cheesecake and both of our slices were clearly frozen in the center. they literally were frozen slices with sauce drizzled over them and a single strawberry sliced up and placed on the side. when my fiancé tried to take a bite out of it i could hear his fork hitting ice from across the table.
We had a wheelchair with us and they kindly acknowledged that we would be more comfortable in the wine bar area which was perfect! He wheeled in no problem and was able to fit comfortable under the table. Great service from everyone. We really enjoyed everything. Price was right on for what we received. Can't wait to go back! Thank you all, Sydney Brick