Domenico’s Italian Chop House at Truffle Pig Winery is the newest winery restaurant in Temecula Valley. The design of the dining room is sophisticated, sexy even, with black accent walls, open kitchen, and green and brass accents. The entry has low, slung sofas with brass chandeliers overhead, and a black accent wall that showcases Truffle Pig wines. At the back is an open kitchen where Executive Chef Taylor Israelson’s team can be seen busily prepping food for their guests.
Domenico’s menu is a modeled after a classic steakhouse with a California Cuisine and Italian bent. At launch, the dinner menu included entrees of duck breast, veal shank, lobster tail, chicken parmesan, pork Milanese, and a selection of six different cuts of steak. But for the non-meat eaters in your group there are seafood starters, a fish entree, and a pasta or two. There’s a kids menu as well. The lunch menu has more salad, flatbread, and sandwich options.
The restaurant’s wine list is small right now, with most varieties come from the Central Coast as the new winemakers grow their new Temecula vineyard. Still, the wines offered at the restaurant are very nice, and there is a full bar with an interesting cocktail list. (In a large building across the pond from the restaurant, visitors can sample the new Truffle Pig wines by the glass or flight. More on that in a bit.)
Though the Brie en Croute and Steak Tartare sounded tempting, we began with the super flavorful Beets Carpaccio: thinly sliced bright red beets topped with dollops of goat cheese, pickled onion, and a just a sliver of caperberry. It was light, acidic, and refreshing, a great way to kick off a steak dinner.
For dinner, I ordered the 2023 Truffle Pig Market Red Wine—a lovely light and fruit-forward blend of Barbera and Sangiovese—to go with my 8 oz American Wagyu Filet. The steak menu is a la carte, so I also ordered a garlicky chimichurri sauce and a side of delicious grilled asparagus topped with lemon zest and freshly grated parmesan. (The asparagus are not on the menu, they were a substitute for the broccolini that they had already run out of at 6 pm.) The steak was perfectly cooked medium rare, and wonderful.
If you’re interested in visiting, make a reservation, this new spot has generated a lot of excitement in the valley, and they are required for Saturday evenings after 5 pm.
My husband enjoyed Truffle Pig’s smoky Grenache with his Ahi Steak. We weren’t expecting the Ahi to be a cold dish, it was listed under the steak selections, but it was such a good cut and well seasoned, that we were won over. It came plated on a puree with celeriac and raw tuna on top. We also sampled the incredible mushroom marsala side dish that I’d have trouble not ordering again on a return visit. They were perfect.
We also had a sneak taste of the 2024 Chenin Blanc thanks to a friend at a nearby table, and loved the fruity tropical flavors. It will make terrific summer sipping. On my next visit, I’ll be ordering that along with a plate of oysters. I’m also interested in Domenico’s classic Italian-American dishes, like the Chicken Parmesan.
Truffle Pig Winery’s Pig Pen Tasting Lounge
The winery is opening bit by bit. The main tasting room opened after the restaurant in November of 2025. Initially, guests were tasting wines by the flight, glass, or bottle in the winery’s Pig Pen Tasting Lounge which now serves exclusively as the member lounge. Eventually the Pig Pen will be an after-hours space for cocktails and light bites.
The design scheme of the Pig Pen follows the restaurant, but with a more speakeasy vibe with club chairs, faux fireplace, tufted leather sofas, and mirrored lighting fixtures. Step outside, and there’s an entirely different feel. Guests sit with their wine lakeside, or maybe pond-side, on beachy striped lounge furniture and (hopefully) a breeze.
The main tasting room is across the pond from the restaurant, and is open daily from 11 am to 5 pm. No reservations necessary.
📍Truffle Pig is in the location of the former Avensole Winery.
