The Velvet Martini (Sheldon, CA) - June 22 2023
We are members of Adkins Winery, which is owned by the same family that owns Sheldon Inn Restaurant and Bar, and now "The Velvet Martini," which sits atop the restaurant and bar below.
We got an invitation to come to this soft opening event about a month ago. We were excited to see that it was falling on a day when we would be in town and promptly RSVPed. They only allowed 100 people. So we got lucky!
This was supposed to be cocktail attire, so it was an opportunity to dress up a little. My wife loves that kind of thing. For me, it was just an opportunity to see if I still knew how to tie my tie. Nailed it first time! Old habits die hard.
When we arrived, a little before 7 PM, the parking lot was full. Luckily, we got one of the last spots and headed indoors. There is an entrance on the left hand side of the restaurant, and there was a sign there that said, VIP. Yes! We're in the right spot.
You walk up a single flight of fairly steep stairs to get to the lounge. They also have an elevator somewhere inside the restaurant that will take you up as well. When we got to the top, we were greeted by a hostess that handed us a glass of sparkling wine, an Adkins Winery special. There were about 30 to 40 people there when we arrived. A lot of people were coalesced around the bar area and most of the tables were still available. So we snagged a nice table on the back wall, and sat side-by-side so that we could look out to the musician's stage.
I really liked the feel of this lounge. It's pretty much what you would expect a night club lounge to look like, dark walls and carpet, sconce lighting on the walls just in the right places, dim rainbow-reflecting table lights, the bar in one corner, the stage positioned diagonally across the room at the other corner, a few plush booths, tables with plush bench seating and chairs along two walls, and circular seating with low cushion chairs and round tables in the center of the lounge. When you're here, you feel like your spending a special evening out. The sparkle in my wife's eyes let me know we had hit a home run on this particular evening.
Our entertainment for the night was CJ Williams, a very talented solo acoustic electric guitar player and vocalist. CJ has a terrific voice and his Traveling Martin acoustic electric guitar sounded fantastic! He's a very talented player and had lots of great songs, including Motown, classic rock, and even a few country songs.
We loved our waiter, Gavin. A very friendly and attentive guy who brought us menus and shared a little bit about the food options. We had already eaten dinner before we came, so we weren't too interested in food this evening; however, they were also serving free hors d'oeuvres, so we decided to wait for those. We ordered our drinks and then sat back and watched the entertainment and everybody enjoying themselves.
Winery and Velvet Martini owner, Jake Adkins, came to our table a short while later and thanked us for coming. Jake is a very personable guy and we always enjoy sharing stories about our latest travels.
Our drinks showed up a short while later, a traditional Manhattan for me and a Velvet Martini for my wife (gin, lilet rose, velvet falerman, strawberry shrub, compari, rhubarb bitters, sparkling wine, and aquafaba). Never heard of some of those ingredients? Me either! Both drinks were very tasty! Manhattan is my go-to cocktail and the bar tender got this one spot on with two dark Italian luxardo maraschino cherries to boot.
We enjoyed a few more cocktails as the evening marched on and had the good fortune to come across a couple of friends that we hadn't seen for a few years! Good to see you Gordon and Virgie!
The Velvet Martini! The perfect place for a perfect evening of drinks, entertainment, and socializing! read more