Despite pandemic and wildfires, new restaurants are popping up around Sonoma County. Click through the above gallery to check out some newcomers on the dining scene.
20 New and Soon-to-Open Restaurants in Sonoma County
Despite pandemic and wildfires, new restaurants are popping up around Sonoma County.
Charro Negro, Santa Rosa: The best ocean-to-table tacos and tostadas in Sonoma County. Hands down. No question. Rodrigo Mendoza is a former Willi’s Seafood chef who made the leap to a mobile kitchen. He runs El Charro Negro with business partner Ricardo Ibarra in a brilliantly colored, hash-tagged and social media-ready truck that’s impossible to miss at its usual Roseland spot, the new Mitote Food Park. Read more. 665 Sebastopol Rd., Santa Rosa. (Christopher Chung)
Chicken Nature, Santa Rosa: This newcomer to the Marlow shopping center in Santa Rosa serves Asian food featuring mostly chicken dishes. Simple but hearty dishes like chicken curry puffs, tangy tamarind chicken rice bowls, curry rice bowls, poached chicken and rice and grilled chicken and rice are available for pickup and delivery. Most entrees are $12.95. Read more. 1791 Marlow Road, Santa Rosa, chickennature.com. (Courtesy of Chicken Nature)
Coming soon – Fourth Street Social Club, Santa Rosa: First time restauranteurs Melissa and Chris Matteson's plant-based restaurant (with meat options) offers "healthier comfort food with a focus on locally grown ingredients." All-day brunch includes raspberry and blueberry waffles with seasonal sorbet and fruit, mini quiches, veggie Chilaquiles and a carrot "lox" plate; lunch items include mushroom pomegranate toast, chickpea meatloaf, and jacked up popcorn "chikn." Scheduled to open late September. 643 4th St., Santa Rosa, 4thstreetsocialclub.com. (Courtesy of Fourth Street Social Club)
Stark’s Brazilian BBQ Pop-Up, Santa Rosa: Stark’s Steak and Seafood transforms its outdoor parking lot into a churrascaria from 5 to 8 p.m. Thursday through Sunday. The restaurant's “Big Red” mobile rotisserie fires up up all-you-can eat dishes like mesquite-grilled New York steak, ribeye, filet mignon, lemon herb chicken, smoked pork belly, and barbecue salmon. The meal is served family-style and includes dessert. Reservations are strongly encouraged. Read more. Details at starkrestaurants.com; 521 Adams St., Santa Rosa. (Heather Irwin)
Tamales Oaxaquenos, Santa Rosa: Sonoma County radio host and businessman Neil Pacheco has paired the salsas and long-simmered homemade moles of his Oaxacan ancestors with a handful of California cuisine-inspired ingredients like extra virgin olive oil, finishing salt, edible flowers and micro-greens to create this newcomer to Roseland’s Mitote Food Park. Read more. 665 Sebastopol Road, Santa Rosa, in the Mitote Food Park. (Heather Irwin)
Wooden Petal, Santa Rosa: Professional baker Clare Hulme of Wooden Petal is making small-batch sea salt, cheese and “everything” pretzels from her commercial kitchen with cheese dip and mustard for pickup or delivery throughout much of the county. These soft little nuggets are closer to a roll than a tooth-breaking hard pretzel, with a yeasty, homemade flavor that’s hard to resist. Read more. Ordering details at woodenpetal.com. (Courtesy of Wooden Petal)
Coming soon – Grata, Windsor: Former Starks chef, Eric Foster, will be opening a modern Italian eatery in Windsor this fall with his wife, Christina. The couple says they’ll be doing appetizers, salads, pasta and some larger plates, along with “adult” low-ABV Italian sodas in the former Chinois space (pictured) near the Town Green. Christina says it will be a fun place for families, dates, and “gal pals” to hang out. 186 Windsor River Rd. Windsor, gratawindsor.com. (Jeff Kan Lee)
Coming soon – Little Saint, Healdsburg: Little Saint is slated to open later this fall in the former Healdsburg SHED, once owned by Doug Lipton and Cindy Daniel. It will be open to the public daily for all-day dining, retail and ticketed events. Acknowledging the vision of Lipton and Daniel, the new project will foster at least some of the ideals of its former owners by creating a space to talk about sustainability and support the local community. Plus some really cool art and music. Read more. 105A W North St, Healdsburg. (Courtesy of Healdsburg Shed)
Coming soon – Hazel Hill at Montage Resort, Healdsburg: Montage's new "ultra luxury resort" in Healdsburg, slated to open in December, comes with a "terroir-to-table" restaurant that overlooks a vineyard to the east and a private dining area cantilevered out into an oak tree. A locally sourced seasonal menu will feature "French-influenced California cuisine" and there will be a wine bar and brunch menu with "nourishing Wine Country fare." 100 Montage Way, Healdsburg, montagehotels.com/healdsburg/dining/hazel-hill. (Courtesy of Montage Healdsburg)
Corner Project Ales and Eats, Geyserville: This family-run brewpub has one brother brewing and the other manning the kitchen. More than just fried pub grub, Chef Tom Adamian’s menu includes comforting dishes like meatball sandwiches, grilled veggie sandos, gem salad and tomato salad. Locally sourced, the menu changes up weekly. Menu favorites include Geyserville cheesesteaks, chocolate beer brownie and house-fermented pickle plates. 21079 Geyserville Ave., Geyserville, cornerprojectales.com. (Courtesy of Corner Project Ales and Eats)
Folktable, Sonoma: Top Chef contestant Casey Thompson's new concept, Folktable, is now in previews at Cornerstone Sonoma. Weekend pop-ups at the Sunset Test Kitchen feature craft cocktails and an abbreviated menu until the new restaurant opens at the former Palooza space, also in Cornerstone. The pop-up menu includes lobster, along with fresh tomatoes and seasonally-inspired dishes like Panzanella salad with peaches, mint and sumac, tostadas, hand-pulled mozzarella, a Wagyu hotdog, and funnel cakes. Read more. 23570 Arnold Drive, Sonoma, cornerstonesonoma.com/folktable.
Valley Bar + Bottle, Sonoma: Valley Bar + Bottle opened in July as a wine bar, restaurant, and bottle shop. Housed in the Leese-Fitch Adobe built in 1836, which was most recently Harvest Moon Cafe, it feels like a French neighborhood cafe. The concept for the fare is California home cooking that’s ingredient-driven, rustic, and simple, using traditional methods of cooking. The XO Egg topped with the iconic, spicy Hong Kong condiment, is a must-order. 487 First West, Sonoma, valleybarandbottle.com. (Conor Hagen)
Wit and Wisdom, Sonoma: Wit and Wisdom Tavern, a Michael Mina project at The Lodge at Sonoma, opened Sept. 14 at the former Carneros Bistro, featuring a new patio. The restaurant, inspired by author Jack London’s collection of writings by the same name, highlights locally sourced ingredients and open-fire cooking. It’s the first Mina restaurant in Wine Country, so expect a stellar wine program as well. 1325 Broadway At Leveroni & Napa Roads, Sonoma, witandwisdomsonoma.com. (Courtesy of The Lodge at Sonoma)
April Pantry, Petaluma: Newly-established at the former Ulia’s Deli in a Petaluma office park, April Pantry has some serious talent making crave-worthy sandwiches and salads. Menu favorites include the Billionaire’s BLT (pictured), with crunchy sweet bacon, juicy heirloom tomatoes and smoked tomato jam; the grilled cheese sandwich with cherry tomato salad; the barbecue pork banh mi on a soft French roll and the Aloha Plate, with fresh mac salad, coconut rice and fried chicken. 1000 Clegg St., Petaluma, 707-658-1326, aprilpantry.com. (Heather Irwin)
Ethel’s Bagels, Petaluma: Chef Nicolas Abrams has been on a quest to create the perfect East Coast-meets-West Coast bagel for years. Enlisting the help of his two children and his wife, he has created a delivery-only bagelry in Petaluma that’s gaining word-of-mouth traction throughout the Bay Area. Abrams also makes Oy Vey cream cheese schmears that are required eating with the bagels. Deliveries to Sonoma County are on Friday, and you’ll need to order the week prior. It’s worth the wait. Order online at ethelsbagels.com. (Courtesy of Ethel's Bagels)
Table Culture Provisions, Petaluma: Get fried chicken takeout dinner deluxe at Wishbone restaurant in Petaluma on Sundays. The fledgling project from the Shuckery’s Executive Chef Stephane Saint Louis and business partner Steven Vargas is a toe-dip for a mobile bistro the two plan to launch in the future. The menu includes fig, capicola and baked Red Hawk cheese; fried chicken with farmers vegetables and caramel flan. Patio dining and curbside pickup only. Pre-orders required at tablecultureprovisions.square.site. 841 Petaluma Blvd N, Petaluma. (Courtesy of Wishbone restaurant)
Blue Ridge Kitchen, Sebastopol: Blue Ridge Kitchen, a Southern(ish) restaurant located in the former Zazu space, was designed to be a something-for-everyone spot similar to Napa’s Rutherford Grill or the iconic Buckeye Roadhouse. Chef Matt D’Ambrosi (Spoonbar, Harmon Guest House, Pizzando) is keen to throw a few curve balls with deconstructed plating (Mississipi mud pie), culinary winks such as Asian pear coulis with the tuna tartare or anise-y fennel pollen ricotta in his tomato salad or surprises like saffron bechemel or caviar classing up the Croque Madame. Read more. 6770 McKinley St., Suite 150, Sebastopol, brkitchen.com. (Heather Irwin)
Flavor Bistro, Sebastopol: Flavor Bistro, the popular downtown Santa Rosa eatery, shuttered in November 2016 as construction on Courthouse Square lagged. After four years, the owners have reopened in a small bistro that formerly housed a Caribbean restaurant on Healdsburg Avenue in Sebastopol (near the former Peter Lowell’s). Expect a slightly reduced menu, but most of the old favorites. Read more. 7365 Healdsburg Ave., Sebastopol, flavorbistro.com. (Heather Irwin)
Region, Sebastopol: This new wine bar at The Barlow in Sebastopol is the first of its kind in Sonoma County, pouring 50 small production wines from self-serve WineStation machines and providing intimate access to winemakers in a casual setting. The wines span 14 appellations (almost exclusively Sonoma County). Patrons can choose from a selection of dishes from neighboring restaurants The Farmer’s Wife, Acre Pizza, Sushi Kosho and Fern Bar. 180 Morris St. Ste 170, Sebastopol, drinkyourregion.com. (Dan Quinones)