Urban Press Winery and Restaurant

My love of Napa and Sonoma has never been subtle. The way meals are lifestyle, cuisine is culture, and how it is all regarded in such a slow, reverential pace, it just speaks to me. Flying north every weekend or hopping in the car for a quick 9 hour zip up the coast, not always ideal. A little secret deep in the San Fernando Valley? Enough to raise the brow.

Ingenuity, innovation and inventiveness blooms here in the City of Angels, and still, this is new. Spearheaded by self-taught winemaker Giovanni D’Andrea who joined forces with Roman chef Emidio Tidu, together they created a new frontier in SoCal cuisine. Housing a winery and a fine dining establishment crafting its own wine, Urban Press Winery and Restaurant, is the first of its kind, breaking ground and breaking boundaries here in our so very south of Sonoma city.

The studio hub of Burbank is hardly a hotbed of gastronomic influence, which makes the Urban Press location such a welcome surprise. Behind a set of doors that one would imagine lead to nothing, a barrel room and wine library line the way to the main serving room, where chandeliers dangle from sky high ceilings backdropped by rough-hewn brick – contrast appreciated.  The custom iron, crystal lined staircase leads to the mezzanine dining area, overlooking the main floor and the tasting room. A little further and you’ll land at what no proper winery is ever without. A sumptuous pergola covered patio. The answer is yes. They do host events.

Wine and Grapes at Urban Press Winery

And if it seems like the type of place you should be blissfully sipping while taking in some live music, oh yes, that happens here too.

Tidu’s culinary creations combine Italian tradition with a hum of something French. He goes big. Rainbow beet salad with micro-greens and goat cheese. Magnificent charcuterie spreads. Pizzas including a wild mushroom truffle or a garlic shrimp. A lobster ravioli, a spinach gnocchi, and two risottos I couldn’t choose between. A seafood one (mussels, clams, calamari, and shrimp) and a Risotto Piemontese – an Urban Press Cabernet risotto with herbs. The menu continues with carne and pesci options. Chateubriand for two, Italian Cioppino.

Like the vineyards and eateries of our friends to the north, you can make a celebration of it, or you can come for a glass and some antipasto. And still make a celebration of it.

Urban Press Winery Pizza

With every intention, the experience echoes the tasting rooms of Italy. Where conversation and connection happen over food that took all day to prepare, making recipes older than time. Luxury does not take shortcuts. D’Andrea’s technical knowledge and respect for tradition both run deep. Urban Press Winery and Restaurant is a vine to glass affair, one to savor by the sip.

The Details

Urban Press Winery and Restaurant, 316 N San Fernando Blvd, Burbank, CA 91502, United States.

Tel: +1(818) 561-4858

Website: www.urbanpresswinery.com

Email: urbanpresswinery@gmail.com

Follow the path of least resistance towards Burbank. Traffic can be grizzly. There is free parking in the structure on Palm. Closed on Mondays and Tuesdays. Open Wednesday and Thursday for dinner from 3:00pm to 9:00pm (Happy Hour: 3:00pm to 6:00pm); Friday from 3:00pm to 10:00pm for dinner (Happy Hour: 3:00pm to 6:00pm). Weekend Brunch from 11:30pm to 3:00pm and dinner from 3:00pm to 10:00pm on Saturday and 3:00pm to 9:00pm on Sunday.

Type of Restaurant: Winery and Restaurant

Price Band: Medium

Insider Tip: Madison was excellent and well informed. Worth requesting.

Reviewer’s Rating: 7/10

Author Bio:

Jolie Loeb is a Luxury Lifestyle columnist based in Los Angeles.

Photographs courtesy of Urban Press Winery

25 Comments

  1. Mmmmm. You had me at wine library. A little nook where I can have a glass of something different (at the proper temperature, which is a pet peeve of mine, so places that care about wine are a favorite, always!) and a nibble, without a long drive are always welcome!!

  2. Okay…the next trip to Ikea just got an injection of happy anticipation! 🙂 This looks so good, I can smell it through the screen!

  3. I’m happy for Burbank…! Pergola, wine and music is never wrong. Thanks Jolie for your beautiful write ups!

  4. When I am out that way sounds like a great place to get some good food–happy hour looks inviting. Thanks for another great review!!

  5. Just when I was beginning to stress about where to take my daughter for her special birthday dinner….this sounds great. Thanks for another wonderful review!

  6. That mushroom truffle pizza sounds so worth the trip! I love your writing so much! I want to accompany you on one of your adventures someday!

  7. As a major fan of wine country, it is nice to have a winery close to home. Looking forward to wining and dining at this Burbank establishment in the coming months.

  8. We will definitely have to check this place out soon. Great sounding food, dsrink and ambiance—rare to get all three under the same roof!

  9. This is very good news because I actually do, for one reason or another, find myself quite close to Burbank! Looks delicious!

  10. Living in the Burbank area, I am always looking for new and fun spots to check out! This restaurant due to its stunning review will be at the top of my list.

  11. Looks great! It’s nice to have a destination in Burbank. The pizzas sound delicious and I love a spinach gnocchi.

  12. What I’ve learned is if Jolie says then I eats! Lobster ravioli was delicious and live music entertaining! Nice treat while in Burbank!

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