Wandering Vine At the Castle

Holy YUM! Who knew you could eat a delicious meal in a castle in Shawnee?! It was so warm and cozy from the moment we walked in. I knew our meals were going to be delicious but I fell head over heels for the Lobster Cavatelli! The pickled mustard seed on the 5oz Lobster tail was such an amazing touch. The dish also featured golden beets and hand rolled pasta cooked to perfection. My husband went for the KC strip, asparagus with hollandaise and smashed potatoes. The steak was cooked perfectly at medium rare and the hollandaise paired deliciously with the asparagus. Wandering Vine has a selection of wine flights for any palette. I chose the Sommelier's Selection which had a light white, medium bodied red and a full bodied red to finish off. The service was stellar! Randee was such a gem and was an excellent server, she made us laugh and had a wonderful sense of humor. The owner Carla came by our table a couple of times and was such a delight with great anecdotes. Overall it was a 10/10 for us and we will absolutely be back, sooner rather than later!

Built in 1905-7 this castle has had many lives. From humble beginnings as a family home, to sanitarium, to night club to haunted house to finally restaurant. I enjoyed reading and researching the history. Being a lover of the late 1800's to early 1900's history, this place has been on my radar. So when hubs asked where to celebrate my birthday this year I asked for here. We made reservations online through their website for a Wednesday. My hubs called in early afternoon day if to ask a few questions.....good thing he did because they could not find our reservation! He spoke with Carla ( owner) and she then made our reservation. On Wednesday's they have a guitarist who plays jazz mixed with a little blues. He was very good. Upon arrival we were greeted by the owner ( Carla) and given a brief explanation of the wine offerings. The waiter Calvin informed us they had a new chef and some of the options on the menu were not available. We started with a wine flight (Old world red) and some appetizers, fried olives ( because I was intrigued) and house made focaccia bread. The wines were a nice pairing ( Italy, France & Spain ). The focaccia bread was delicious with the garlic infused oil and pesto. The stuffed olives are fixed tempura style, and I found them boring. Not my favorite. For our entree I had the Pan-seared scallops and hubs had the chicken pot pie. The scallops were seared perfectly but unfortunately a little cold when brought out. The pairing with the citrus, radishes and peas made for an attractive presentation and a very interesting combination. It may have been intentional for scallops to be lukewarm since the garnish was cold but I prefer them hot. My hubs said the pot pie was tasty and basically what you would expect of a pot pie. Knowing in advance it was my birthday, the waiter brought out a flower arrangement with a little sparkler at the end of our meal. Then left with it to light for another table. No offering of a free dessert. I came expecting to be blown away and left underwhelmed. For me it's a " one and done" . Beautiful atmosphere and ambiance. That's the real seller here. Definitely a special occasion place but unfortunately not one I'm dying to comeback to.

Lovely, relaxing setting. The oysters and steaks were delicious, however the artic char seemed very overdone. The pomegranate mocktail tasted like cranberry juice on ice, and the server did not remember to bring my boyfriend's eggnog (although we also didn't get charged for it).

We really enjoy coming to this special spot. The service is quite nice and the food is always exceptional. You gotta try the wine flights--very good! We enjoyed a meal on their patio which has great shade from trees and umbrellas. The patio furniture is comfortable. The owner is lovely. After enjoying our meal I had to leave unexpectedly and the owner was so nice and accommodating. She is good people. Would recommend this spot. No complaints.

Oh. My. Goodness! Such a cute restaurant - like seriously adorable! Although I have to say when we checked in I did get a little surprised by the dog statue...since I wasn't paying attention, for a moment, I could have sworn it was a real dog. And was about to embarrass myself getting very giddy over a "puppy!!!". Anyway, we were seated quickly...and then we waited. The downside of a restaurant in a converted castle is that the servers had to go up and down stairs to cover everyone. That being said we just chatted until the bartender came by go get our drinks for us - I ordered a Manhattan and my man got some type of beer. We thought it was a IPA but ended up tasting more like a larger? (I don't know beers sorry). We ended up ordering the steamed mussels and soup of the day (was NE Clam Chowder) to start. The mussels were delicious, steamed perfectly and the nduja butter really popped. The chowder was excellent from the few bites I was able to steal from him. Appetizers were followed by the duck for me and lamb pot pie for him. I was definitely surprised by the figs but once paired with everything together in a bite it worked! I did NOT try the lamb pot pie as I'm not usually a fan of lamb unless its in Indian food - but my man loved it so I'll take his word for it. Now normally, we'd have dessert but we were so full that we didn't. Next time :)!Overall, an excellent experience for a belated birthday dinner!! Will definiely be back - since I want to sit on the patio next time!!

Dinner at the castle (the building looks like a miniature castle). It has an interesting history. We pulled into the circle driveway upon entry and parked in the rear lot. Entry was kind of weird in that there is no obvious hostess station upon entry. It's to your right--at the bar. I would change that. We were seated at a table on the second level. The waiter came by quickly. He was great throughout the night in answering questions and making recommendations. Other than not knowing where to go upon entry, the only other area for improvement would be temperature of the food. The calamari was very good. Our entrees were not as hot as desired. I ordered the artic char entree which included the skin-crisped fish with barley, apple and pomegranate. Loved the flavors, but it would have been better at a warmer temperature. She ordered the filet mignon with Brussels sprouts and new potatoes. With all the talk about loud dining rooms, this was very comfortable for conversations. Service was great throughout the whole experience. The owner walked around and checked on diners. Recommended.

Wine tasting multi course preset dinner. Food was inspired from European riviera. Crisp dry rose wines compliment the selections. Owners were engaged and entertaining, service was top shelf. The old castle home is an architectural dream. Can't wait to return to explore the menu. A few weeks passed and we returned, still marvelous dinner great food wonderful service. Seared scallops w soup and my wife enjoyed a grand soup. The photos are mixed from both nights.

Following a show at Aztec, it made perfect sense to return here with my wife and parents. They never disappoint. Lovely atmosphere, always very friendly staff, and beautiful food. I enjoyed the lobster bisque but was especially blown away by the lobster pasta. Wandering Vine's chef is truly creative and I greatly admire her colorful original plating.

1st time in for brunch. Super cool architectural setting for dining. Good variety of menu options and the price was certainly reasonable for the meal. We will be back.

Celebrated our 48th anniversary with family recently at the Castle. As always, the menu selections and food tastes were exemplary. Cudos to Carla for attention to service and the beautiful flower with vase. Thank you so much and we will see you again soon.Leah and Lenny