My husband was really looking forward to eating at La Balena. Service was wonderful, and food was okay. The tomato sauce for the kid’s pasta and meatballs was under seasoned—salt was needed. The warm bread was undesirably pale looking. The fried cauliflower was a favorite at the table—after salt was added. The crispy potatoes were also a nice addition although the aioli was underwhelming. The strawberry salad was flavorful. The vegetable soup had copious amounts of fresh vegetables, after salt was added it was delicious. I think I was shocked by the price point of most things on the menu —the kid’s pasta was $18 and didn’t come with a meatball. Crazy.
Agree with the most recent review. We had great service and enjoyed a lovely ambiance sitting outside this quaint restaurant, but the food was rather insipid. Almost everything lacked flavor and seasoning. It felt like the kitchen wasn’t allowed to use any salt.
We were in Carmel on a Saturday late afternoon looking for a restaurant for an early dinner. Most places were booked for the entire night! After a while we found La Balena. Wow were we lucky! Not only to find a restaurant that was open, but one with this good of food!!! For the two of us and our young granddaughter it was perfect! Most of their seating is outside but with heaters so it doesn't get too cold but with lots of fresh air. My wife had the rigatoni. She thought it was very good. I had the lamb shank. It was fantastic! Very tender and flavorful. My granddaughter had a plain rigatoni with marinara sauce. She ate it all plus a little of my lamb shank.The staff was extremely helpful, polite and friendly! The meals were served quickly. We couldn't have had a better experience!
Beautiful atmosphere and ambience to spare. Sale and bread were amazing, but main dishes were a little under flavored.
Best pride in ownership I think I have ever encountered in a restaurant!Amazing meals!
Great food. Homemade and authentic. Owner is friendly and a pleasure to speak with
I have been dining at La Balena since shortly after it opened. Not only am I never disappointed, but I am assured of excellent dining whenever I come. I came in late October for the Carmel Bach Festival which had been moved this year from late July because of the pandemic. I dined here three times. They always have some specials based upon available ingredients—they take maximum advantage of the superb ingredients of all varieties which are close by. They had as a starter of breaded and fried artichoke hearts served with a garlic aioli which was so good that I doubled up on starters the next time. The salads are all superb and I usually have difficulty choosing: one time I had the House Salad which would be a blessing on any house. I last had a salad special which was leaves with citrus wedges, strawberries, feta in just a light touch of vinaigrette. (I could dine just on starters and salads and be delighted!) One of the special mains I had was Petrale Sole from Monterey Bay just a few miles away and it had been out of the water just a few hours. It was lightly breaded and sautéed in lemon and butter with capers. Such sweet fish needs and deserves such a light touch. Another special was the chef’s lasagna which I consider the best I have had anywhere. From the regular menu I had the fried chicken and this was not Col. Sanders’ recipe. Delicious. I did not get adventurous and just slurped the house wine. This is an establishment that refuses to insult its food by offering up bad wine suitable only as paint thinner. You get a decent glass of wine, whether red or white, in a decent pour at a fair price. I shall return, to coin a phrase.
We’ve been coming to La Balena annually or semi-annually since 2012. It has always been an excellent meal, nice ambience and very good service. La Balena was recommended to us by our server at Pacific Edge, a Michelin star restaurant. He said he & other chefs & servers patronize it. No higher praise then from peers. I love the house canelli bean soup. The fried chicken is the best I’ve ever had and “La Bomba” is an incredible ice cream and chocolate dessert. Easy parking.
We've had better meals at Denny's!! And certainly for less than $211 for two people! Other than the soup, which was quite tasty, EVERYTHING else tasted atrocious, from the burrata, to the beet salad to the fried chicken, etc. Do they even LOOK at the plates before sending them out of the kitchen? Sorry, but the fried chicken was all in one ugly piece on the plate and (other than tasting awful), looked like a big doggie doo-doo, with VERY thick unseasoned tasteless batter, and undercooked chicken. The mashed potatoes that came with it tasted like they were out of a box, and mixed with used motor oil!! The beets in the salad tasted old (canned?), and so did the burrata. As for service? I could not believe how RUSHED we were. It was early on a Sunday evening (5:30), it was not busy, there were a number of empty tables (maybe that should have been our clue?). We SPECIFICALLY requested a leisurely meal and did not want to be rushed, the server acknowledged that he understood ("stagger the meal, sure")...then they proceeded to IGNORE our request! Basically our meal was over in 40 minutes! The appetizer, soup and salad were brought out at the same time, and the VERY minute we were done with those items, the main courses were placed on the table!! To be so RUSHED through an expensive meal, especially since it was not busy, and we specifically requested a leisurely pace? Unacceptable! How this restaurant manages to stay in business in a town with so many wonderful restaurants (we dined at La Bicyclette three times during our stay, each meal costing about the same as this horrible place, with DELICIOUS food) is beyond belief!
Great service great food ?