Going to Napa and Sonoma - Advice

[James Roscoe]

My wife and I are going with our eldest daughter to California wine country the week after Labor Day. My daughter, who works for RNDC, has set up some amazing tastings, but are there any places we really MUST visit? Also, her birthday is September 7th and we would like to take her out for a very nice dinner, any recommendations?

James - It may be too late to get a dinner spot at the French Laundry, but try anyway; plenty of other great places to eat, too. It will be a busy time for wine making but Lagier-Meredith was a very nice visit with Steve and Carole drinking their Syrah and eating their olives. They do it all so you are meeting with entire winery staff on their porch. Shoot them an e-mail and see if they have time. Great drive to their place at the top of Mt. Veeder, too.

If you can't get a reservation at the French Laundry, Bouchon ain't too shabby.

-Paul W.

K&L Bistro on Main St. in Sebastopol is one I like. The Farmhouse Inn on River Road is really excellent and has a wine list that usually includes Edmunds St. John.
Zazu on Guerneville Road in west Santa Rosa is casual and has great food and an interesting wine list that isn't too expensive.
Dry Creek Kitchen in Healdsburg is upscale and very good. There are several other upscale restaurants in Healdsburg but I haven't tried them
Sadly, Santi closed a month or so ago.
The Girl and the Fig in Sonoma has a very good reputation; I haven't been there.
In downtown Santa Rosa, I like Petite Syrah. It does small plates and you can order as much as your appetite requires and budget can stand.
John Ash & Co. at 101 and River Road is another upscale, good restaurant. I haven't been there in several years.
Fresh by Lisa Hemenway has quite good food and not too expensive, at the east end of Rincon Valley.
Is that enough to confuse you?

John

James, I just remembered going to Cindy's Backstreet Kitchen. Good comfort food and near the train station if I recall.

http://www.cindysbackstreetkitchen.com/

I've read a couple of enthusiastic reviews of Cindy's - but St. Helena is almost as far as Nick's Seafood Grotto in Marshall, which is very good, but not exactly in the heart of the wine country.

John

Early September is a great time for eating in the Bay Area. It's actually the peak of tomato season (unlike on the East Coast) and the markets are still flooded with summer fruits and vegetables. Plus, there are many BYO places so you don't have to be stuck drinking CA wine with your tasty CA food.

Enjoy!

James - yet another thought: On your way to Napa, you might stop at Sebastiana in Sonoma which has a very nice tasting room and if you talk up the pourer he/she might bring out a bottle of Cherryblock cab. Also Corison winery in Napa, small table set up in a barn surrounded by barrels full of aging wine.

http://www.corison.com/visit.html

John Treder already mentioned the restaurants I have enjoyed--Farmhouse Inn in Forestville, Dry Creek Kitchen in Healdsburg and The Girl and the Fig in the city of Sonoma. Others have recommended Mosaic. You can look up most of these on www.opentable.com to get an idea of cuisine and wine lists. The Girl and the Fig runs to Rhone wines and California Rhone versions. Dry Creek Kitchen waives corkage fees if you bring a wine from Sonoma. Healdsburg has some tasting rooms in a two-block area. In Sonoma County, you may want to visit Gary Farrell for Chardonnays and Pinot Noirs and for the view. Martinelli is in the neighborhood and it is in the vicinity of Farmhouse Inn if you decide on dinner there. Rochioli normally only have one or two wines for tasting as they sell out their Pinot Noirs. Hook and Ladder (Cecil Deloach) is near Pelligrini on Olivet Lane. ?Ferrari-Carano makes a variety of wines and have beautiful gardens. If you go there (further north than many of the other wineries in Sonoma) do the reserve tasting on the lower level where you get a more comfortable setting, higher end wines, and more personal attention from the pourer. I haven't been to Napa in a number of years so won't make recommendations there other than to say that the Sterling Vineyards location up a tramway on the hills is unique.

[James Roscoe]

Thanks for all the advice and tips! Keep 'em coming!!!!!!

Redd,Jeanty, Bottega, Bouchon, in Yountville in that order. St Helena Terra, Cindys Backstreet Kitchen in order. Meadowood expensive but very good, Napa= Morimoto if your into fusion. Oenotri in Napa food good but noisy. If you want any other specifics email me. Don Giovanni Napa local hangout

Aw, hell, stop by Mom's Apple Pie and get a pie made with local Gravenstein apples.

Stop at Martinelli for apple cider, too. Ignore that funny purple stuff they sell.

Aw, hell, stop by Mom's Apple Pie and get a pie made with local Gravenstein apples.

Stop at Martinelli for apple cider, too. Ignore that funny purple stuff they sell.

Over the top to the nth degree if you love that style go for it.

[James Roscoe]

Aw, hell, stop by Mom's Apple Pie and get a pie made with local Gravenstein apples.

Stop at Martinelli for apple cider, too. Ignore that funny purple stuff they sell.

Over the top to the nth degree if you love that style go for it.

Are they the people who make the sparkling apple cider you buy in the grocery store? If so, that is pretty good stff for what it is.

Lou - I will definitely be in touch by email. Thanks!!!!!

No, the sparkling apple cider is made by a different Martinelli family in Watsonville.

John