Village Bakery to Open Two Locations This Fall in Santa Rosa

By Heather Irwin
Scones from Village Bakery in Santa Rosa. (John Burgess/The Press Democrat)

The ovens will once again breathe life and the fresh smell of sourdough perfume as the Village Bakery opens not one, but two new locations in the coming weeks.

Owners Patrick Lum and Teresa Gentile are on the rise, announcing the opening of a Montgomery Village cafe bakery and a second bakery at the former East Wind Bakery (3851 Sebastopol Road, Santa Rosa) in early fall.

The couple spent the last seven months quietly rebuilding both their business and their lives after losing their 3,500 square-foot production bakery and cafe in the February floods that displaced many tenants of Sebastopol’s Barlow market district.

“We had an opportunity to reinvent ourselves with a blank slate,” said Teresa, sitting in the forthcoming Montgomery Village cafe (most recently Michelle Marie’s Patisserie) that glows with warm light and nearly 60 seats waiting to be filled.

Though most impacted businesses returned to the Barlow within a few months of the disaster, the extent of their loss and Teresa’s subsequent heart condition (called Takotsubo Cardiomyopathy or “broken heart syndrome”) forced them to close their doors and lay off 60 employees. Without working ovens, they also put on hold 200 commercial accounts from restaurants like K&L Bistro and Stark’s Steak and Seafood.

It’s something that still makes Teresa feel emotional as she recovers from the cardiac syndrome thought to be caused by extreme stress and sadness. But the thought of so many of their longtime customers and friends returning, however, is the light at the end of the pastry case.

“We have so many faithful people we can’t wait to see,” she said.

The Montgomery Village location will be both a retail bakery, cafe and gluten-free baking facility; the Sebastopol Road space will feature their breads, pastries, and coffee (and a traditional bread-baking kitchen).

“We’ll have a limited number of breads at first, but for sure seeded sourdough, rye, whole wheat,” said Patrick Lum. He hopes to bring back English muffins soon as well.

The Montgomery Village Cafe, which has been in development since early 2019, will have a more extensive cafe menu that includes pastries, skillet dishes, sandwiches and other seasonal specials from Chef Zack McClintock (formerly of Beltane Ranch and Spinster Sisters).

The couple said that the shopping center’s owners, David and Melissa Codding, have been instrumental in the build-out and helping them get back on their feet. Inspired by a French country palette, the cafe features local artist Alex Cole’s artwork, which will be on exhibit (and for sale) through December 2019. 

Between the two locations, the couple plan to employ nearly 30 people. They will have a kiosk with pastries and their signature heart breads at Pacific Market at the Town & Country shopping center. 

“The goal now as humans is to align ourselves with good people,” said Teresa. That, and making the breads and pastries we’ve all missed so much.

You Won’t Miss What’s Missing at Cotati’s Tiny Thai

By Heather Irwin
Pad Thai at Tiny Thai restaurant in Cotati. (Alvin Jornada / The Press Democrat)

Pad Thai made with ketchup is an abomination, and I’m not the only one who thinks so. It’s like using margarine in chocolate cookies, or Miracle Whip in tuna salad — you can do it, but it fundamentally changes everything and makes it gross.

I’d all but given up on this sweet, smoky, savory Thai noodle dish because — ketchup. I know exactly who adds it to their noodles, which is why I also know who doesn’t. Tiny Thai in Cotati doesn’t*, and for that, we should all be grateful.

Nestled between a hair salon and Redwood Cafe, it’s barely a blip between the bars, restaurants and…more bars on Cotati’s main street. Fortunately, Tiny Thai is also a great spot to cure your hangover so, you’re welcome.

Besides the Pad Thai, here’s why I’m a fan…

Fish cakes at Tiny Thai restaurant in Cotati. Photo: Toru Mori/google
Fish cakes at Tiny Thai restaurant in Cotati. Photo: Toru Mori/google

– Fish cakes: This isn’t a dish for everyone, but if you’re a fan of these chewy, light cakes made with white fish and curry paste, they’re delightful.

– Papaya Salad (Som-Tum), $7.95: Julienned strips of green papaya are tossed with tomatoes, string beans, tomatoes and crushed peanuts. Chili and lime juice gives it a punch, but it won’t land you on the floor with too much heat.

– Tom Kha, $5.95/$7.95: A sour-but-creamy coconut milk soup studded with galangal (similar, but totally different than ginger), peas, mushrooms, lemongrass, kafir lime,  and carrots. It’s even delicious cold.

– Pumpkin Curry, $11.95: Rough cut chunks of soft pumpkin swim in a lightly spiced red curry sauce. Lip-smacking with plenty of vegetables mixed in for good measure. Fried tofu is our favorite add-in, though prawns would also be a good pairing.

Tiny Thai restaurant in Cotati. Photo: Mr. Orange/google
Tiny Thai restaurant in Cotati. Photo: Mr. Orange/google

– Pad Thai, $9.95: Wok hay (the breath of the wok) is strong with this one, giving it a slightly smoky flavor. It’s a little on the sticky side, but it’s really a top-notch version.

Tiny Thai is located at 8238 Old Redwood Hwy., Cotati, 707-794-9404. Open daily from 11 a.m. to 3p.m. for lunch and Wednesday through Monday for dinner from 5p.m. Lunch specials are available.

*At least as far as I know…

New in Napa: Horizontal Tasting of Wines from 12 AVAs

By Matt Villano

Wine lovers are known to geek out over vertical tastings that feature different vintages of the same wine.

Now, a Napa winery is taking things in a different direction, inviting guests to sample same-vintage cabernet sauvignons from 12 of the Napa Valley’s 16 American Viticultural Areas (AVAs).

Presented by 1881 Napa—the latest venture from wine magnate Jean-Charles Boisset—these horizontal tastings are intended to give guests a sense of how terroir can change the taste, minerality, body, aroma, and texture of the same wine.

“We felt it was essential to give a comprehensive look at the Napa Valley and present it to the world in a way everyone could understand,” says Boisset, who, along with his team, has named the new tasting “Embark on a Journey Throughout the Valley.” The price tag: $175 for twelve 2-ounce pours. (For the math nerds out there, that’s just about a bottle’s worth of wine at roughly $14.50 per glass.)

The team at 1881 Napa takes a novel approach to winemaking.

Instead of vinifying grapes by vineyard block or vineyard, winemaker Thane Knutson separates grapes by appellation (or AVA) and makes distinct wines from each batch. (Thanks to the size of Boisset’s wine empire, Knutson can source grapes from 13 of the Napa Valley’s 16 AVAs). He then applies the same winemaking technique across the board: every batch spends the same amount of time in tanks, with skin on, and the wines are aged in the same percentage of French Oak barrels (about 50 to 60 percent).

Other tastings at 1881 Napa group the 12 AVA-specific cabernet sauvignons into three geographically distinct regions: Mountaintop, hillside, and valley floor. Each tasting comprises four wines from each region of the Napa Valley and lasts between 30 and 45 minutes. For the big tasting, guests receive samples of 12 wines and usually sip for 2 hours.

Each experience also includes visuals: Jars of soil from each AVA provide proof of the different terroir.

“The range of soils and flavors opens a door for fantastic conversations about what makes cabernet taste how it does,” says Knutson. “It’s always eye-opening how different neighboring appellations can be. St. Helena gives you a sexy and feminine texture on the palate. Rutherford, right next door, creates this powerful and dark cocoa texture. And that’s just those two.”

Boisset echoes this sentiment: “We’re really trying to change the perception that Napa is a one-trick pony when it comes to wine. We’re not just cab. We’re not just Bordeaux blends. And different location can create vastly different wine.”

At press time, 1881 Napa had sold 28 twelve-wine tastings—approximately seven per month since opening in June of this year. But, in true Boisset fashion, this is more than just a tasting room: the white Victorian just north of Oakville Grocery doubles as a museum of winemaking. It boasts 30-foot ceilings and two stories with distinctly different experiences.

Walls on the ground level are lined with one-of-a-kind decanters from Boisset’s personal collection, which tops 2,700 vessels. The second floor features a wraparound balcony with farm tools from the early days of winemaking in the Valley. There’s also a small room with photographs that tell stories of some of the most famous farmers from this era.

Perhaps the most iconic feature is on the ceiling: A map of the AVAs that comprise the Napa Valley.

Even if you don’t spring to taste wine, a visit to 1881 is a deep dive into the history of winemaking in Napa. Thankfully, there’s more than one way to drink it all up.

Open 7 days a week, 10 am to 6 pm, 7856 St. Helena Highway, Oakville, 707-948-6099, 1881napa.com.

Fungi Bloom in Sebastopol at Gourmet Mushroom Farm

By Heather Irwin
Maitake Frondosa mushrooms at Gourmet Mushroom Inc. in Sebastopol. Heather Irwin/PD

Though Northern California’s damp mushroom hunting season is currently months away, thousands of edible fungi are blooming in Sebastopol. They grow all year long, in fact, inside a 43,000 square foot warehouse hidden among the vineyards and apple orchards of West County.

Gourmet Mushrooms Inc. has been around since 1977, pioneering the cultivation of wild mushrooms in the US. The company grows more than 1 million pounds of exotic edible fungi including meaty Trumpet Royales, tiny Forest Nameko and Clamshell mushrooms, fan-like Maitake Frondosa and adorable Velvet Poppini.  They also grow nutraceutical mushrooms used in health supplements and are currently developing cultivated morels.

Though cultivated exotic mushrooms are a tiny fraction of the mushroom market (button mushrooms are the big sellers), they’re gaining traction among foodies and of course chefs. You’ve likely seen the hard-to-resist Chef Samplers at stores like Oliver’s, Whole Foods or high-end menus.

Though the Sebastopol growing facility isn’t open to the public, the mushroom farm offers special group tours by appointment. Recently, I got an opportunity to peek inside at the forests of fungi and see the process start to finish — from baby spores to towering six-inch trumpet mushrooms.

Here’s the science-type-stuff: Gourmet Mushroom cultivation happens in a fairly closed system where small reusable containers are filled with a substrate (in this case, a fine wood-based mulch that is reused). The jars are inoculated (seeded, so to speak), and then given time to grow in dim, moist rooms that are carefully climate controlled. After they’re hand-harvested, the substrate is chopped up, sterilized and the process starts again.

I’d always imagined a much dirtier, soil-and-manure filled experience…which isn’t the case. The rooms smell of clove, more than anything, used as an organic deterrent to mites.

You can find Gourmet Mushroom packs year-round, but from time to time, the Sebastopol warehouse has mushroom sales, announced on their Facebook page and newsletters. More details online at mycopia.com.

Animal Prints Are Back in Style and in Sonoma Stores

By Karen Kizer

From the luxury furs of the ’60s through the ’80s leopard-everything to several faux fur incarnations thereafter, animal prints are back in style. The animal prints of today are the new “neutral,” and Sonoma stores have some fun options for fall. Our favorite (re)take on the trend? Animal prints on shoes. Click through the gallery for all the stylish details.

Sustainability to Dye For: How to Dye Clothes and Fabric With Food

By Karen Kizer

Hold on to your avocado pits and onion skins! Besides being discardable trophies of your cooking-from-scratch skills—that might have resulted in a perfect guacamole, stew or soup—they can be put to good use before they hit the compost. Throw them in vats of water to extract their essence and you’ve got yourself a natural dye bath for clothing, fabric or yarn. Avocado pits yield pink, onion skins make yellow.

According to to Fiber Circle Studio founder Alisha Reyes, who recently led a workshop at the Gravenstein Apple Fair, there are special techniques to this particular form of dyeing, including pre-washing fabrics and using mordants to set the color — but the outcome is always different. And it’s that surprise element that makes natural dyeing especially appealing to Reyes.

“Natural dyeing is something our community is beginning to come back around to. I believe it is important to understand where our color comes from, and how it affects our environment now and in the future,” says Reyes.

Down-to-earth, artisan rich Sonoma County has many sources for natural dye know-how and tools. Click through the above gallery for more information.

Napa Valley Wine Train Celebrates 30th Birthday with ’80s-Themed Murder Mystery Party

By Christi Warren

In honor of its 30th birthday, the Napa Valley Wine Train is throwing a party, and you’re invited.

It seems like everyone in Wine Country has an opinion about the wine train and its tenure in the valley — some good, some not so good — but there’s no denying the giant tourism magnet it has become since its inaugural passenger trip on Sept. 16, 1989.

Each year, the train ferries some 100,000 passengers through Napa Valley in its restored Pullman rail cars, with special events like the Hop Train, the Tequila Train and the annual holiday Santa Train.

If nothing else, surely that’s a feat worth applauding. All the more reason to celebrate: proceeds from the 30th anniversary event will go toward the Children’s Museum of Napa Valley.

To kick the party off, the Wine Train is hosting a reception on Sept. 16 at the Downtown Napa station. For $25, attendees can take in music, a tour of the train and hors d’oeuvres.

For those interested in celebrating in a more extravagant way, $250 tickets to the Wine Train’s 1980s-themed murder mystery party on Sept. 26 are now on sale.

The evening trip aboard the train will feature a four-course meal and a mystery for the guests onboard to solve: Who murdered singer Poison Ratenstein before he could perform for his fans?

Wine for Mom and Dad, Scavenger Hunt for the Kids at Sonoma Mountain Winery

By Matt Villano

A new tasting experience at a winery on the northwest shoulder of Sonoma Mountain has something for grown-ups and kiddos alike.

The winery, Belden Barns, recently unveiled special scavenger hunt backpacks for kids who accompany their parents for tastings. While mom and dad taste through the latest releases, kids can borrow the packs and wander the 55-acre property in search of flora, fauna, and other random or whimsical items.

There are eight backpacks in all, and they’re free for families on a first-come, first-served basis.

Each of the red or blue backpacks contain binoculars, a compass, a magnifying glass, a set of crayons, a journal and a guide to local birds or insects.

Of course, they also contain a checklist of things to find; participants are encouraged to explore with purpose and check off as many items as possible. Among those items on the list: An acorn, an owl pellet, a feather, something heart-shaped, a piece of trash.

Belden Barns co-owner Lauren Hirshfield Belden came up with the idea after being inspired by a similar program at an arboretum in Martha’s Vineyard. Belden, who has two young children with her husband, Nate, described the original experience as a perfect combination of education and fun, and wanted to replicate the mix back home in Sonoma County.

“We’re constantly looking for ways to make this entire experience more family friendly,” she said. “The scavenger hunt keeps kids busy but also gets them out and about, exploring the property so they can see where this wine comes from.”

Kids who find all the items on their lists receive a tiny trinket; lately it’s been a magnifying glass the size of a grown-up’s thumb.

Rules of the Belden Barns scavenger hunts are simple: cooperation is good, fighting is bad, don’t wander off-property, stay out of irrigation ponds. Kids also are reminded not to eat too many grapes off the vines (20 acres are planted) and not to pull handwritten wishes off the “Wishing Tree,” an old oak to which visitors tie tags with handwritten hopes for the future.

Lauren Hirshfield Belden adds that the “golden rule” for all who participate in the hunt is to have fun.

“As parents who love wine and spending time with our kids, we really wanted to make sure we were able to create something here that was legitimately enjoyable for everyone—parents and kids alike,” she said. “Elsewhere in the industry the bar was so low. Some places had cornhole. Some had coloring. We asked, ‘What if we could make wine tasting as great for kids as it is for adults?’ I’d like to think this answers that question.”

Belden Barns is still small—the winery produces no more than 2,500 cases per year. Tastings, held in an old barn near the family’s home, are by appointment only, include six wines, and usually last about an hour. The backpacks are a test run for when the Beldens have a full-time tasting room for which they broke ground this summer.

Belden Barns also is a working farm and sells produce and several farm goods such as cornmeal and beans in a makeshift store.

5561 Sonoma Mountain Rd, Santa Rosa, 415-577-8552, beldenbarns.com. Tastings by appointment. 

10 Reasons Why Petaluma Is the Most Instagram-Worthy Spot in Sonoma County

By Maci Martell

Petaluma is an incredibly photogenic place. The historic downtown, the cute shops, the perfectly preserved Victorian homes, the sun-kissed hills, the glistening waterways – it’s no wonder the town continues to attract Hollywood filmmakers. But you don’t have to be a pro to capture Petaluma’s charm on film – or smartphone, you just need to figure out the best photoshoot locales, which, of course, we already have. So put on your best outfit, grab your camera, and head to the most Instagram-worthy spot in Sonoma County. Click through the gallery for details and don’t forget to tag your Instagram photos @sonomamag.

Han Bul Korean Barbecue is a Hot New Santa Rosa Restaurant

By Heather Irwin
Bebimbap at Han Bul Korean BBQ in Santa Rosa. (Heather Irwin)

Tasting an entirely new flavor is like discovering a color you’ve never seen. Consider that mindbender while I explain ssamjohng — a Korean chili sauce that’s become the new ultraviolet.

Sitting at a 5-foot-long hibachi table at the newly opened Han Bul Korean Barbecue with owner Han Soh, he points to a vaguely tan mixture with the kind of reverence reserved for church.

“That’s required,” he says as we sit among a forest of stainless steel bowls. Amid the mayhem of kimchi, pickled radishes, slivers of garlic and sesame oil studded with sea salt, his thin metal chopsticks wave around the sauce made with miso, chili pepper paste, green onions, garlic, honey, sesame seeds and sesame oil.

Han Soh demonstrates barbecue cooking at Han Bul Korean BBQ in Santa Rosa. (Heather Irwin/The Press Democrat)
Han Soh demonstrating bbq cooking at Han Bul Korean BBQ in Santa Rosa. Heather Irwin/PD

“A lot of this is nice to have, but ssamjohng is required,” he says.

Slightly sweet, savory, salty and mildly spicy, it’s almost impossible to describe other than to say, delicious.

Located on Seventh Street in Santa Rosa, Soh’s namesake Korean barbecue has been in various stages of “opening soon” for 28 months. But Soh, who is a second-generation Korean, was set on creating the kind of restaurant that he would love in Sonoma County.

From its high-tech imported electric grill tables to its Asteroids video machine and from-scratch sauces, Soh says he wanted a gathering place for families and friends to hang out around the table and eat together, Korean-style.

“We don’t have a word for ‘family-style dining’ in Korean,” says Soh, who also owns Haku Sushi next door. “It’s just called eating.”

Banchan at Han Bul Korean BBQ in Santa Rosa. Heather Irwin/PD
Banchan at Han Bul Korean BBQ in Santa Rosa. Heather Irwin/PD

But most of the foods on the table, even for a professional eater, lie deep beyond the realm of recognition. Soh says that even for him, many of the banchan (little side dishes) that line our table are unknowns.

“In Korea you just shut up and eat what your mom made you,” he said.

Best bets

BBQ Set: This is the family-style barbecue “set” that comes with three or four kinds of meat, the banchan omakase, soup, vegetable crepe, steamed egg and rice. If you’re not really sure what to order for a group, go this route.

You can do beef, pork and beef, pork or order a la carte for seafood (squid, lobster tail, shrimp) or single kinds of meat. Prices range from $85 to $155.

Tofu Soup (Soondubu, $16): Beef and seafood are added to a mild, medium or spicy broth with silken tofu. A raw egg is broken over the bubbling cauldron and cooks itself while you watch. You can also have just beef, pork, kimchi or veggies.

Bebimbap at Han Bul Korean BBQ in Santa Rosa. (Heather Irwin)
Bebimbap at Han Bul Korean BBQ in Santa Rosa. Heather Irwin/PD.

Dol Sot Bibimbap ($21): A pile of vegetables and fried egg are placed atop rice that’s sizzling on a scalding hot stone bowl. Think of it as the Korean version of fajitas.

Soh says it’s best to mix it up quickly so the rice gets crunchy but doesn’t burn. Douse with gochujang. Available with beef or chicken or vegetarian.

Jap Chae ($18): Warm glass noodles with vegetables and minced beef in a sesame oil sauce. “It’s the pad thai of Korea,” says Soh.

If you go: Han Bul has been in reservation-only soft opening for several months. Lunch is slated to start in September with dishes better suited for single eaters — like soups, rice bowls and noodles. Beer, wine and Korean sake available.

Tofu soup at Han Bul Korean BBQ in Santa Rosa. (Heather Irwin)
Tofu soup at Han Bul Korean BBQ in Santa Rosa. Heather Irwin/PD

There are only seven grills in the restaurant, which are reserved for large groups or communal seating. Don’t expect to get a six-person grill to yourself. The restaurant is also not all-you-can-eat.

Also note that there have been discussions about the high prices from my readers and on the Han Bul Yelp reviews. Soh says that he wants to keep the quality really high (he uses local farms, including his own) and not skimp on ingredients.

He also says that he’ll be looking at pricing as the restaurant gets more settled. The restaurant offers a happy hour from 8:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. with steep cuts on a la carte barbecue, soup, rice and beverages.

Han Bul Korean BBQ is at 522 Seventh St. in Santa Rosa. For information, call 510-206-3947.