Where to Eat Now in Sonoma County

By Heather Irwin

With the bounty and the heat of late summer cresting, Dining Editor Heather Irwin finds outdoor spots in which to cool down, beer up and enjoy the best of harvest season. Also: Seasonal doughnuts, boozy cupcakes and Bangkok in Sebastopol.

Amy’s Wicked Slush, Healdsburg 
Locals are lining up in droves to get a taste of something wicked in Healdsburg.

Just in time for summer, Boston native Amy Covin has opened Amy’s Wicked Slush just steps from the Russian River — bringing an icy sweet treat of her childhood to Sonoma County.

What’s a slush? Unless you’re from the East Coast, you probably have no idea. Think of this iconic New England dessert as Icee meets sorbet meets shave ice. Available in sizes from pipsqueak to “there’s no way you can eat that, bro,” slush is properly eaten with a spoon rather than a straw. Expect to find yourself with a wicked good melty mess on your hands halfway in.

But Wicked Slush is no mere ice cream shack. It’s more of an ode to Amy’s favorite New England foods, featuring nearly a dozen flavors of slush (mango and cherry to classic lemon) along with freshly made bagels and Italian subs that are straight from the North End of Boston.

Ah, the bagels! These are seriously good ones that don’t turn into a pile of crumbs when you cut them. It’s one of the only things we miss terribly about New York City.

And the Italian subs! Piles of mortadella, capicola, “hots” and not a dab of mustard in sight with a perfect hoagie roll. Bad delis have given this classic a bad name. The “half,” however, is bigger than your arm, and you’ll likely eat the whole thing. The whole is… well, bring a team to help you.

Wicked Slush didn’t happen by chance. Covin worked with local BurtoNZ Bakery in Windsor for three months to get the Italian hoagie rolls and boiled/baked bagels as authentic as possible. For the sandwiches, she used the power of persuasion and a whole lot of charm to get the secret recipes from the biggest names in Boston’s deli scene. And Covin can be very persuasive.

“This is just street food,” says the former CPA (she worked this tax season while opening the slush spot) and president of Healdsburg’s Prune Packers baseball team.

Though she had no real interest in a restaurant, after a string of tragedies that included her home burning to the ground and her daughter being seriously injured in a car accident, Covin was ready to leave her desk job and enjoy life a little more.

Sitting on the deck of Wicked Slush in a T-shirt, her fingers slush-stained as she holds her 2-month-old grandson, she’s clearly found her bliss. For the 55-year-old, that even includes pulling all-nighters jamming to Bruce Springsteen and making slush for the next day. That, and teaching high school kids she mentors how to properly make a dip cone.

“Usually on their fourth try they get it,” she says. But not without a few mishaps along the way.

With her son Benny as general manager and most of her other family members, including her dad and her husband, helping out, there’s a cheerful kind of insanity as lines begin to form even on an early Tuesday afternoon. “We were lucky to survive the first week,” she laughs.

Covin is currently working on her Wicked Wagon, a mobile slush truck for events and deliveries that will let the rest of Sonoma County taste a bit of Wicked.

13840 Healdsburg Ave., Healdsburg, 707-431-9253, wickedslush.com. Dog- and kid-friendly.

Trading Post, Cloverdale 
After ownership changes last winter, new chef-owner Erik Johnson and baker Aaron Arabian are seriously ready for a close-up on their garden-to-table concept in the emerging culinary destination of Cloverdale. With late summer’s bountiful days upon us, there’s no better time to go.

The menu, in part, revolves around Ronnie’s Garden, the restaurant’s own culinary plot. Restaurant gardener Ron Ferrato’s Instagram account (@ferratosgarden) hosts a rainbow of lettuces, daikon, peas and whatever else is popping at the moment. That translates in the daily “Ronnie’s garden” ($8) plate of the morning’s vegetables, “prepared on a whim.” Don’t miss it. Our version included a lightly dressed salad of pea shoots, radish, chamomile-soaked carrots, pickled strawberries and daikon with house-made ricotta with black sesame seeds.

The Trading Post bread basket ($6) is a signature, with a daily selection of baker Arabian’s painstakingly made, always insanely delicious breads with house-cultured butters. Not your usual sad basket of dried-out baguettes, but Parmesan focaccia, wheat bread, sourdough and a hearty seeded wheat. You’ll want to leave with a loaf or two.

As seasons change, so will the menu, but there’s always a daily tartine, half roast chicken that’s juicier than a telenovela and duck fat potato tots that will make you weep with happiness. There are burgers and a flat iron steak for more traditional eaters, and a three-course midweek market menu is available for $30 per person on Wednesdays. Don’t miss the small takeout counter with breads, cookies and tarts.

102 S. Cloverdale Blvd., Cloverdale, 707-894-6483, thepostcloverdale.com

City Garden Doughnuts, Santa Rosa
These aren’t workaday donuts or wacky cereal-coated marshmallow-dipped curiosities that are more fun to look at than eat. Instead, City Garden takes a more subtle approach, using intensely flavored glazes made with fresh fruit (the lemon glaze is perfectly pucker-worthy) and chocolate atop pillowy brioche.

Owner Alan McCandless said he planned to either open a donut shop or a hamburger place. Or maybe a pizzeria. Donuts won, and over the last six months he created City Garden Doughnuts — named for the 1860sera Santa Rosa public garden that once stood nearby. Must-tries include the lemon, pepper and pistachio Santa Barbara donut; the maple bacon combo (made with Hobbs bacon) that’s a taste of Sunday morning any day of the week; orange-glazed with fresh orange juice and zest; strawberry-glazed; and Guittard chocolate with sea salt. Scones aren’t usually worth the calories, but City Garden’s “Hobbs” scone is (and we don’t say this lightly) the best scone we’ve ever had.

Unlike the dusty hockey pucks we’ve had at too many places, this version falls apart like a stood-up prom date, but with a whole lot of bacon, Vella cheddar and green onion inside. Need a glucose stabilizer after all that yummy? City Garden Doughnuts’ Harney and Sons Cinnamon Spice Nitro Ice Tea is our official drink of the summer — made with three types of cinnamon, no sugar and a flavor that slaps your taste buds awake.

1200 Fourth St., Santa Rosa, 707-595-1932, facebook.com/CityGardenDoughnuts

Brewster’s Beer Garden, Petaluma
BBQ and brews are the focus at this 350-seat outdoor beer garden in the heart of downtown Petaluma. Having tasted some of the very best — and very worst — barbecue that Sonoma County has to offer, we give Brewster’s high marks for flavor and technique. When it’s been a good long while since you’ve had a barbecued rib that actually falls off the bone without the use of a knife/hacksaw/gnawing, Brewster’s will be welcome relief — with smoky, saucy pork that acquiesces like a Georgia peach in August.

To avoid starting a civil war between ’quethusiasts, chef Chris Beerman makes a solid Texas-style beef brisket, St. Louis-style pork ribs and even smoked Korean short ribs.

Even though there are also smoked beets, smoked wings, smoky pork belly, a smoky mezcal cocktail and smoked tea leaves, don’t bank on Brewster’s being just a barbecue spot. Modern comfort classics include his signature onion ring-topped mac and cheese, fried chicken sandwich and chocolate brownie sundae.

The space is immense, with a plethora of picnic-style tables that are great for a group, or if you’re interested in being social. There’s a bocce court for grownups and a kids’ area to let the tots go nuts. Brunch, served on Saturday and Sunday, and an abbreviated lunch menu start at 11:30 a.m. and go until 5 p.m., when the larger dinner menu emerges. A children’s menu features chicken fingers and other tasty kid grub. Dogs are welcome, and there are weekly music events Friday through Sunday. Every other Thursday is Bluegrass and Bourbon.

This busy restaurant can get crowded, and service can range from enthusiastic to dismissive depending on the time of day and staffing. Plating can also get a little haphazard when the kitchen is really humming. Finding the restaurant is tricky, since there’s not much signage from the street. Just follow your nose.

229 Water St. N., Petaluma, 707-981-8330, brewstersbeergarden.com

Bump City Bakery, Petaluma
The transition from fish biologist to baker isn’t as crazy as it might seem, according to Bump City Bakery’s Emily Floyd.

The cupcake, pie and cookie baker who used to spend her days studying the habitats of local fish now uses her science background as a basis for creating delicious gluten-free and vegan goodies. If you’ve ever tried to swap out typical baking ingredients with things like amaranth powder, rice flour, coconut milk and nut butters, you know gluten-free and vegan cooking is an exact science. Too much of one thing or not enough of another can make the mix grainy, or too dense, or just plain yucky. A biology and science background helps her tinker and experiment with foundational ingredients to get things just right.

Just right also means spiking most of her cupcakes with a little booze (rum, Bailey’s, Campari, gin, bourbon or brandy) and calling them “Drunken Cupcakes.” Though the flavors change up, we downed almost three cupcakes in a single sitting: Irish Car Bomb (chocolate cake with Jameson, Bailey’s buttercream and chocolate sprinkles); Orange Creamsicle (nonalcoholic) and our very favorite, the Dark and Stormy with ginger-beer cake, dark rum and lime buttercream.

Not all of Floyd’s cupcakes are on a bender, with flavors like raspberry cheesecake, chocolate chocolate and vanilla vanilla, along with Creamsicle and whatever else she comes up with. Floyd also makes vegan cookies like Peanut Butter Cup, oatmeal raisin walnut, chocolate chip oatmeal and Salty Date with dates, pecans, almonds and chocolate chips. Rye Pecan Pie with Bulleit rye whiskey and key lime pies are available to order.

122 American Alley, Suite B, Petaluma, 707-888-9026, bumpcitybakery.com

Khom Loi Pop-Up, Sebastopol 
At the Khom Loi Thai pop-up in Sebastopol, there’s nothing shy or demure about the spicy, sweet, sour flavors of East Asia
on the plate. The fire in my face, complete with watering eyes and running nose, makes that abundantly clear. Ramen Gaijin owners Matthew Williams and Moishe Hahn-Shuman — who started their own ramen shop as a pop-up several years ago at Woodfour Brewing — are hosting a handful of summer dinners inspired by travels in Northern Thailand and Laos. The food focuses on Chiang Mai and nearby Laos, with nods to Central and Southern Thailand.

Packed to capacity on a warm summer night, the restaurant temps were already feeling a little bit Bangkokish. But a brisk housemade Thai Iced Tea and cocktail king Scott Beattie’s Tiger Uppercut (house coconut-fat washed rum, lime, coconut milk, raw ginger, Thai herbs) loaded with ice in a handmade pottery cup was as welcome as a cold shower.

The first Khom Loi menu included tiny bamboo baskets of sticky rice (khao niaw, $3), and cold green papaya salad with braised octopus (som tam plahmuk, $13) that made us remember why we love this grated mixture of sour papaya, beans, cherry tomatoes, dried shrimp, fish sauce, lime and not-fooling-around chiles.

We also couldn’t get enough of the charcoal grilled mushroom salad (het paa nom tok, $12) with a punch of mint and fish sauce, lemongrass and toasted rice powder. As an entrée, the standout was Chiang Mai-style yellow curry (khoa soi gai, $14) that’s a soothing, creamy foil to the heat of spicier dishes. With slippery noodles, coconut milk, chicken and chili sauce, you’ll be lapping at the bottom of the bowl within minutes. Menus will change over the course of the pop-ups, which are twice monthly. Check out ramengaijin.com for details on upcoming events.

6948 Sebastopol Ave., Sebastopol, 707-827-3609, ramengaijin.com

Good Gourd: National Heirloom Expo Is About More Than Veggies

By Carey Sweet

Could corn, potatoes and soybeans be on America’s endangered list? How about apples? Or at least those classic potatoes, apples and the like produced from heirloom seeds that were first cultivated back in the 300s BC?

A little DNA twist here, a little gene splicing there — as big companies worm more and more foods onto the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s genetically modified approved list, farming is increasingly becoming pharmaceutical.

That’s food for thought, at least, as people from around the world gather for the 7th Annual National Heirloom Exposition running Sept. 5 through 7 from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. at Santa Rosa’s Sonoma County Fairgrounds. Tickets are $15 for one-day admission or $30 for a three-day pass.

Nearly 100 speakers, including Dr. Vandana Shiva of India, will take a hard look at the past — and the future — of the literal roots of produce. Shiva, who is known for her work as a pure seed activist, joins other visionaries including John Jeavons (a founder of the biointensive farming movement), “corn guru” Stephen Smith and celebrity chef Peter Gilmore (from Quay restaurant in Sydney, Australia) to discuss farming, gardening, cooking, seed saving, permaculture, biodynamics, orcharding, bee keeping and other critical environmental issues.

Uniting them all is the belief that heirloom fruits, vegetables, herbs and grains provide superior flavor and nutrition over more modern industrially farmed crops and hybrids raised on chemical fertilizers and pesticides.

The Expo, promoted as the largest pure food event in the world, showcases historic agriculture, horticulture and culinary traditions, and shares ways to preserve them. Every fall, more than 20,000 attendees converge for the nonprofit event that was created by seed entrepreneur and Petaluma Seed Bank founder Jere Gettle in 2011. In addition to the Seed Bank, Gettle owns Baker Creek Heirloom Seed Co. in Mansfield, Missouri, and Comstock, Ferre & Co. in Wethersfield, Connecticut.

Over the years, the Expo has expanded beyond its original California core, Gettle notes, now welcoming experts and guests from Mexico, Jamaica, Canada, Australia, India, Hawaii, France, Guatemala, Japan, Bosnia and beyond.

“The event is valuable on an international level, because it brings together seed collectors and agricultural ideas from so many countries,” he says. “Participants can then take seeds, ideas, and agricultural methods back to their countries and improve their food quality.”

Indeed, seed swaps are an Expo highlight, drawing gardeners of all levels interested in collecting, conserving and planting the valuable GMO-free heritage produce.

The heart of the festival is more than 4,000 varieties of heirloom produce on display, such as a 10-plus-foot-tall tower built of some 300 kinds of pumpkins and squash. Crafty growers lug in their biggest and best, too, vying for the $5,000 prize pumpkin contest. The challenge: beating the record-breaking 1,725-pound champion from 2015.

Other attractions include 300 vendors showcasing food and art, a Folk Music Festival and National Fiddlers Contest, and 150 exhibits featuring demonstration gardens, a “colossal” dahlia show and heritage livestock and poultry.

Then there’s the pure joy of exploring the sometimes weird world of the heirloom seed and food industry. Rare fruit specialist Stephen Spangler of Exotica Nursery in Vista, California, has been known to parade around with fruit on his head, while world-renowned fruit carver Carl Franklin Jones of Tennessee will show off why he retired from his successful career as a restaurant owner to pursue his true passion of whittling melons into works of art.

Kids, for whom the admission fee is waived, can get in on the fruity fun too with a new pavilion this year dedicated to games, tastings and school-group displays. A pre-Christmas visit from a notably slimmed down “Sustainable Santa” is another must-see, finding the bearded one sharing his message to shun fast and processed foods for honest nutrition.

If nothing else, Gettle hopes people embrace heirloom foods just for their remarkable flavors. What’s not to appreciate, after all, about beautiful, delicious delicacies like Amish Deer Tongue lettuce, Chinese Red Meat radishes, multicolor Rainbow Sweet Inca corn, and the rare Moon and Stars Yellow Flesh watermelon with a constellation of gold dots speckling its green-black rind?

“We think the Expo has been successful because people like the traditional agricultural fair combined with the more modern, up-to-date, organic methods,” he says. “And they see it’s something every gardener can do, focusing on saving the old ideas, seeds and methods.”

7th Annual National Heirloom Exposition
Sept. 5 – 7, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sonoma County Fairgrounds, 1350 Bennett Valley Road, Santa Rosa, theheirloomexpo.com.

Single-day ticket, $10; multiday ticket, $25. Children 17 and under free. Tickets can be purchased online, at the Petaluma Seed Bank and at the gate.

6 End of Summer Wines to Drink Now

By Sarah Stierch

Fall may be around the corner on the calendar, but temperatures aren’t dropping in Wine Country anytime soon. Whether enjoying a barbecue during these warm weather nights or settling into a night of binge watching fall television releases, there is rarely an excuse not to open a delicious bottle of wine. Click through the gallery above to discover six wines to enjoy at the end of summer. 

Kenwood Vineyards 2016 Rosé of Pinot Noir, Sonoma Coast ($22)
Their first rosé since the 2008 vintage, Kenwood has created a tasty 100% pinot noir that has a rich personality making it a nice rosé to sip during the impending indian summer. It’s nose is filled with bing cherry and it tastes of plum and exotic spices, making it a great pairing with tajine or bacon wrapped dates. Also pairs well with day drinking.

Benevolent Neglect 2016 Riesling ($28)
The best riesling I’ve tasted this year, Benevolent Neglect has created an estate grown wine that represents Mendocino riesling to the t. It’s lush, floral, and chock full of apricot, candied meyer lemon and everything delicious about riesling. It’s not too sweet, either. The mouthfeel is elegant, silky and lingers. It’s a stand alone wine, but tastes great with spicy fish tacos or your favorite Indian takeout.

Belden Barns 2016 Estate Grüner Veltliner ($28)
When I heard Belden Barns was growing Grüner Veltliner (GV)  – the only growing in Sonoma County – I knew I had to get my hands on it. Commonly grown in Austria, Belden Barns’ estate GV is a bright, lemon curd heavy wine that has some of the best savory, acid on the market. It’s dry, has a light tingle of radish and flavors of honey and lemon in the mouth. Fans of sauvignon blanc and picpoul should grab this before it’s gone.

Landmark 2015 Overlook Chardonnay ($25)
It’s been 25 years since Landmark Vineyards released their first Overlook Chardonnay. The winery celebrates it with this anniversary vintage, which sticks to the tradition that has made this wine one of the most popular premium wines on the market. Aged in French oak for 10 months, 25% of which was new, this chard is balanced with classic notes of brioche, lemon curd and fresh baked sugar cookies. A great, go-to everyday chardonnay.

Donelan Family Winery Cuvée Christine Syrah ($48)
Syrah is the new pinot noir and Donelan presents a prime example of how wonderfully the Rhône varietal thrives in Sonoma County. It’s a bold wine, with lush flavors of dark cherry, dark chocolate, and raspberry. Even better? It’s a mere 14.2% ABV, making it great wine for a cool night by the fire pit or to share with friends at a hearty end of the summer barbecue. Buy one to drink now and one to age for five more years.

Jordan 2013 Cabernet Sauvignon ($55)
Pop open a bottle of Jordan Cabernet Sauvignon and you’ll make friends you never knew you had. It’s a classic Sonoma County wine and ’13 vintage is no exception. The nose is filled with floral, elegant notes and black fruit. The flavor is juicy, velvety, and plummy with hints of currant and boysenberry. Nice acid and great tannins make this an age worthy wine. Decant for at least one hour upon opening.

16 Kid-Friendly Things to Do in Sonoma in September and October

By Sarah Stierch

Looking for some family-friendly fun in September and October? Click through the gallery above for some of our favorite picks.

Hopland’s Golden Pig Turns a Rancher Into a Restaurateur

By biteclub
Burger and fries at The Golden Pig in Hopland. Heather Irwin/PD
Burger and fries at The Golden Pig in Hopland. Heather Irwin/PD

Julie Golden’s dance card was full long before she opened The Golden Pig restaurant in Hopland earlier this summer.

There was the massive fire that wiped out acres of grazing land for the animals Mendocino Meats’ Adam Gaske raises on her 2000-acre ranch near Ukiah. Then there are she and her husband Joe’s winery and vineyards; four school-age children and a menagerie of animals. And her wine shop.

But it was her ongoing frustration about how restaurants source their food that made her a newly-minted restaurateur as well.

After years of selling her grass-fed beef, pork, and chicken to high-end chefs, then watching them cancel orders when she claims her prices were undercut by larger food suppliers, she figured she’d put her money where her meat was.

In late June, she opened The Golden Pig as an outlet for her beef, pork, chicken, eggs and produce—with that of nearby farmers—and as a sort of experiment in bringing true farm-to-table food to more people.

“I didn’t do this to just to be a restaurateur,” she said. “I did it because I love farmers and I want people to be able to thank me for bringing them great food.”

Mixing drinks at the Golden Pig in Hopland. Heather irwin/PD
Mixing drinks at the Golden Pig in Hopland. Heather irwin/PD

The Philosophy
Calling her restaurant farm-driven, rather than farm-to-table, the mission behind The Golden Pig is to grow honest food in healthy soil with clean water, lots of sunshine and minimal intervention, “to keep you healthy”, according to Golden. “We’re investing in the land and the farmer, creating a culture that strengthens goodwill among local businesses and delivers fine food to each of our customers. It feels good to cook with honest ingredients. And it feels even better knowing we’re nurturing the land for future generations,” says the menu.

Golden hasn’t hired a chef, but trains her cooks to execute simple dishes she’s helped to create, frequently based on what’s available rather than what can be delivered by a food service company.

“Farmers need somewhere for their food to go,” she said, adding that the claim of farm-to-table sometimes far exceeds the reality of what restaurants are actually serving.

As a producer, she said that frequently top San Francisco chefs would feature her locally-produced products for a while until food service suppliers were able to offer substantially lower prices than those being offered by her farm and other small producers.

Since restaurants frequently have slim margins on food costs, Golden said it’s understandable, but frustrating to lose those accounts.

Golden Dog at The Golden Pig in Hopland. Heather Irwin/PD
Golden Dog at The Golden Pig in Hopland. Heather Irwin/PD

“This wasn’t something I was just doing in my spare time,” she said. “I’m making good food, using the entire animal, and being sustainable. I thought it would be easy to make people understand. But until I opened a restaurant I didn’t understand,” she said.

“Now I understand why restaurants can’t easily work with small farmers. It’s complicated and there are market forces that incentivize restaurants not to. Yes, there are chef-driven restaurants like Thomas Keller’s that are truly farm-to-table but that’s just not affordable to the average person,” she said. By using her own products, and those of her friends, she hopes to both keep costs low and showcase the food of the region.

Location, Location
Hopland has long suffered from drive-by syndrome. Fifteen miles north of Cloverdale, the thousand-resident hamlet is bisected by Hwy 101 — only two slow-moving lanes here — with cars and trucks mostly passing through. But the Piazza de Campovida inn and tavern, along with the Emerald Pharms cannabis dispensary at the Solar Living Center, and other new wineries and other restaurants like Golden’s are suddenly catching the attention of travelers.


Beautifully remodeled with recycled materials and clean lines, The Golden Pig is actually housed in one of the oldest buildings in Hopland — a 19th-century saloon called the Cottonwood. The centerpiece of the dining room is the original bar from the Yuengling Brewery in Pottsville, PA, the nation’s oldest brewery. Her mother, says Golden, bought the piece at an auction, and used it for years in her Ukiah dress shop, Esther’s, with it later sitting in Golden’s barn, and now restored to its original glory. The full bar serves signature cocktails made with fresh local berries, muddled herbs and infused liquors, along with local beers on tap, a curated wine list with mostly nearby wineries (including their own Golden Winery), house made shrubs using seasonal produce from Heart Arrow Ranch.

More than just libations, they’re tasty symbols of Golden’s crusade toward of delicious sustainability.

“Opening this restaurant is giving me insight into the system, and I can affect change more easily. I want to have this conversation about food, I want farmers to continue farming. Otherwise, what’s my legacy?”

Best Bets:

Baby Kale salad at Golden Pig in Hopland. Heather Irwin/PD
Baby Kale salad at Golden Pig in Hopland. Heather Irwin/PD

– Kale Caesar, $10: Baby kale mixed with shaved Parmesan, anchovy and garlic croutons. A massive portion, gently dressed with tender kale that’s sweeter and less tooth-gnashingly hard than more mature leaves.

– The Golden Pig, $16: Pork-on-pork action with Mendocino Meats pork hot dog and sweet pulled pork snuggled into a pretzel bun. Whole grain mustard and kraut give a sharp contrast to all the oink. If you’re wiener fan, this is your dish. Served with fries.

– Pork Schnitzel Sandwich, $16: Golden’s favorite, based on her time as a consultant in Germany, it’s a sweet piece of breaded Dijon pork loin, Swiss, and onions on a soft Franco-American roll.

– Grass fed Burger, $12: Currently, Golden is using nearby Macgruder beef, served with all the fixings and garlic aioli. Grass fed beef that isn’t grain-finished can be a bit drier than corn-fed, so ask for your burger a little rarer than you might otherwise.

Egg custard at The Golden Pig in Hopland. Heather Irwin/PD
Egg custard at The Golden Pig in Hopland. Heather Irwin/PD

– Egg Custard, $3: Served in a jar, this homemade custard is creamy and rich without veering into the cloying sweetness of creme brulee. Addictive. Grab a few from the refrigerator to take home.

– Orange Rosemary Shrub, $4: Fruit vinegar is mixed with soda water for a refreshing, thirst-quenching drink. The combination of savory herbs and sweet orange is a winner.

Cocktails at The Golden Pig in Hopland. Heather Irwin/PD
Cocktails at The Golden Pig in Hopland. Heather Irwin/PD

– Elderflower Sparkler, $8: Vodka, Prosecco, muddled basil, grapefruit and elderflower liqueur. Pink, pretty and dangerously good–consume with caution.

If you go:
– Larger dinner portions are served after 6 p.m., including grass fed steak ($26), Heart Arrow Ranch chicken ($22) and smoked pork chops ($22), all served with mashed potatoes, carrots, and mixed greens.

– The building is broken up into three sections, with a small refrigerated section and walk-up counter for ordering, a tiny outdoor patio and larger dining room and bar. Take-out items are available at the counter.

– All dishes are available gluten-friendly, tapping nearby Pamela’s Bakery for their wheat-free bread. Vegan and vegetarian dishes including white bean chili and a garden burger are available. The restaurant is also family-friendly, with a creative children’s menu.

Needs Improvement: The restaurant is just getting started, so some inconsistencies, like dry vegan chili and slightly overcooked cornbread, will hopefully be sorted quickly. Ingredients do change up, and sometimes certain dishes aren’t available (we couldn’t get the delicious-sounding ceviche on our visit), so be a little flexible–this is farm-centric dining. The menu will expand in the fall with even more options, and we’ll look forward to that.

The Take Away: Supporting small local farmers always leaves a great taste in our mouth, and The Golden Pig is no exception.

The Golden Pig, 13380 S. Hwy 101, Hopland. Sun-Thurs 11am-9pm, Fri-Sat 11am-11pm, 707-670-6055, thegoldenpig.com

An Insider’s Guide to Taste of Sonoma

By Shana Bull

Taste of Sonoma is coming up this Saturday, September 2 at a new location – the Green Music Center in Rohnert Park. Whether you’re a seasoned “Taste” veteran or planning your first trip, expect this year’s Sonoma County food and wine festival to offer something a little different. Here are some tips to ensure the best Taste of Sonoma experience (for more tips and information, check out the gallery above): 

Plan by nailing down the details. Tickets sell out the week before the event so get your ticket ASAP if you want to attend.

Pack the night before, so that you don’t forget to bring sunscreen and sunglasses, and pick out your favorite “wine country casual” outfit.

Plan your wine tasting. Wineries are featured in alphabetical order this year.

More tips and information in the gallery above.

TASTE OF SONOMA, Saturday, September 2, 2017
12-4pm (Club Reserve entrance 11am)
The Green Music Center
1801 E Cotati Ave, Rohnert Park, CA 94928
General Admission: $150, Club Reserve Tickets: $255
sonomawinecountryweekend.com

11 Sonoma Wine & Food Events You Don’t Want to Miss this Fall

By Sarah Stierch

Fall means festival season in Wine Country. As the harvest begins, locals and visitors gather to celebrate all things delicious throughout Sonoma and Napa. Click through the gallery above to discover the best food and wine events to experience this fall. 

A Pastry Chef Iron Man? Only in Sonoma County

By biteclub

Even Robert Nieto’s Facebook feed is exhausting. The pastry chef and endurance athlete’s frequent check-ins are punctuated by gyms and parks where he works out, airports documenting cross-country flights as a contender for the United States Pastry Team and, of course, drool-worthy desserts and chocolate sculptures he prepares at Kendall-Jackson winery each day as their in-house pastry chef.

Consider him the chocolate-covered Iron Man.

It’s not as ironic as it seems for Nieto, a competitive and driven 35-year-old who has risen through the ranks to become one of the country’s top pastry chefs. He sees both marathons and pastry competitions as fairly similar in the amount of time they take in preparation, training, mental focus and single-minded dedication.

“The first step is to think how to train for either one. Look at how much time you have and give yourself at least six months. I always start preparing early. It’s always a bad idea to jump in right away without giving it any thought,” he says. That and working out a highly detailed plan.

Patting his stomach, he says that he’s not quite in triathlon form right now, but just three months ago Nieto was finishing an Iron Man 70.3 race in Santa Rosa (half the distance of a full Iron Man race), after months of intense workouts and dietary restrictions.

His training regimen of the moment: 16-hour days preparing for the world’s most significant pastry competition, the 2020 Coupe du Monde de la Pâtisserie. Held every three years, the international sweets contest is a sort of intense triathlon of cakes, chocolate, ice sculptures and sugar creations that takes every bit as much endurance and mental strength as any race, he says. Nieto, who co-workers at Kendall-Jackson lovingly call “Buttercup”, was an alternate on the 2017 team.

So how does he balance a life of sweets and sugar with the rigors of endurance athletics?

Like most chefs, he also loves food, at one pointing tipping the scales at 285 pounds. At his lightest, when training for his first Iron Man in 2010, he dropped to 183 pounds, more than 100 pounds off his 6-foot frame. “That’s what I weighed in junior high –– it was weird,” he said.

He credits his love of competition for driving him. “I know what I have to do and I like challenging myself to see what I can actually do.”

Ready for Race Day

Just three days before tryouts for the Coupe, Nieto looks tired. He got to work at 7 a.m. to start weighing out ingredients he’ll take to the pastry training facility in Michigan.

He’s also made a cake, now sitting in the freezer, and is looking over his chocolate showpiece, a soaring collection of gears, flowers and orbs — all made of chocolate — representing the theme of “time.” Practice sculptures from past weeks look almost clumsy next to this version.

He’s flying out early, just to calm the butterflies, he says. Reciting a checklist, he goes over how he’ll pack the cakes and ingredients, what’s left to do, what he needs to do before Tuesday, when he competes for the single spot.

Like any athlete, its a ritual of visualization and mental organization that helps keep nerves at bay.

“It’s so exhausting, we all feel the pressure,” he said. Each showpiece has to be weighed exactly, at a perfect temperature, with balance in flavor as well as visual appeal.

“But looking over each delicate feature of his sculpture he feels ready for the tryout.

He wasn’t quite as prepared when, in 2009, he tried his first mini-triathlon, which didn’t exactly turn out well. Unable to swim freestyle, he did backstroke for the swimming portion.

“I’m not a good swimmer,” he said. “It was horrible the first time, but I thought, ‘I want to do that again!’ ” he said.

Got serious

After that, he got serious about training, entering a Vineman race after training hard with a coach and taking swim lessons at Santa Rosa Junior College.

“And that’s how it started,” he said.

Soon after, he began training for a full Iron Man — a consecutive 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike race and 26.2-mile run — in Tahoe. Completing it remains one of his proudest moments.

He attributes his success to both coaching and pushing himself.

“I was up at 5:40 a.m. training six days a week,” he said.

“I’d bike 100 miles and then do a 6-mile run,” he said. “My coach walked me through the process so I didn’t feel like an amateur.

He says about 15 percent of triathletes drop out before they complete the first portion of the race — swimming.

“It’s a big commitment, but it’s good to test your body,” he said. As a lasting memento, he has a tattoo of the Iron Man logo and towering ponderosa pines native to Tahoe.

“It was my first.” He also has a tattoo of the molecular structure of sugar on his arm.

After a last 14-hour day of training for the pastry competition in Santa Rosa, Nieto is trying to just let all the practice gel, and focus on his upcoming performance.

“At a certain point, you just have to let it go.”

Buttercup’s training tips

When thinking about doing an ironman/pastry competition, the first step is think how to train for either one. Look at how much time you have, and give yourself at least six months.

Don’t procrastinate on training. I always start preparing early. It’s always a bad idea to jump in right away without giving it any thought. When I started doing Ironman competitions, I hired a coach to walk me through the training and race-day process. This helped my confidence level on race day and I didn’t feel like the lost amateur.

The best way is to set a goal and work out a detailed plan that best works for you. It’s very important to have a schedule for each day of your workouts/practice sessions. By doing this you’ll have a better chance and great results. Be goal oriented, stick to your plan!

Also it’s important to get proper sleep. By having enough rest you’ll feel sharper and stronger and ready to do it again all over. Don’t sacrifice sleep for training; it doesn’t work out.

Stay positive! No matter what happens in the end, be proud of what you accomplished and what you went through to get where you are … the finish line! It’s mind over matter, and a positive outlook will carry you farther than a negative one.

Don’t burn yourself out! Mix some fun into your training. Keep it fun and light.

Cloverdale Farmhouse Brings Vision of Eco-Friendly Homestead to Life

By Abigail Peterson

Hanging up their suits for overalls was the perfect choice for Manny and Carol Diaz.

While many approaching retirement look to simplify, even (dare we say) downsize, Manny and Carol Diaz did just the opposite. In 2010, after raising their children in Windsor, the couple bought an 18-acre farm in rural Cloverdale adjacent to the Russian River. “When we drove down the driveway, we stopped about halfway,” recalls Manny. “And we didn’t say anything for about a minute — that’s an eternity — and I knew this was it.”

Overseeing 10 acres of vineyards and growing most of their own food turned out not to be a very big leap for Manny, who worked in the airline industry, and Carol, a former accountant. Their passion for cooking (both are heavily involved in the north county slow food movement) and love of the outdoors have shaped a new life — one that focuses on the seasons, long walks by the river and plenty of time in the garden.

Summer is prime time at the Diaz home, where the couple love to work in the garden late into the evening and enjoy leisurely meals at the 16-foot outdoor table that overlooks 5 acres planted to Sauvignon Blanc. “We have basil in the containers, and we go get our tomatoes, and we’ll have our caprese every day. That’s my favorite salad,” says Manny.

“We have to buy the cheese,” laughs Carol. “I don’t think it’s that hard, but we just haven’t done [cheese] yet.”

Their two grandchildren visit often and jump at the chance to make happy-hearted mischief on the farm, like tossing ropes to climb the fig tree and throwing rocks in the culvert to make the biggest splash possible. “When they first got old enough to be out by themselves, they kept looking back at us all the time like they were expecting us to say ‘Don’t do that!’ But then they realized they can do all those kid things here,” says Carol.

To bring their vision of a grandkid-friendly, ecologically minded homestead to life, the couple worked with architect Michael Cobb of Studio Ecesis and landscape architect Michael Lucas of Lucas + Lucas Landscape Architecture, both based in Healdsburg. Cobb oversaw renovations to the house and barn and the addition of a guesthouse in 2010. Lucas designed a serene, eco-friendly landscape with minimal details, incorporating massed specimen grasses as a replacement for a front lawn. He recycled chunks of concrete from the former front path to make a bench as well as surrounds for raised veggie beds that contain salad greens, herbs, garlic and onions, potatoes, peppers, eggplant and, of course, plenty of tomatoes.

Lucas was inspired by the remote setting and proximity to the river. “The landscape here has different moods every direction you look,” he explains. “East, it’s more intimate, with the mountains in close proximity. To the west is more expansive, more vast, with the river and the mountains farther away. And in the middle, that quiet spot, with the shade of mature trees. It’s a nice juxtaposition.”

While Carol loves to travel far afield, Manny often prefers to be at home with his many projects in the barn and garden. “I enjoy traveling too, but I enjoy this place,” says Manny. “The best part of traveling and leaving Sonoma County is coming back. I like it here; I connect.”