Williams-Sonoma has finally come home to Sonoma.

“We’re celebrating our roots an coming back home,” said Janet Hayes, president of the Williams-Sonoma brand. On Oct. 4, Chuck Williams’ original store will reopen just off the Sonoma town square, nearly sixty years after its founding. Just in time for Williams’ 99th birthday.

And although the new store is more of the crisp, luxe lifestyle brand most of use are familiar with,

there are plenty of historic influences — from the original sign hanging out front and black and white tile flooring, to Williams’ own collection of copper pans and French cooking molds — serve as a reminder of its past.

First opened in 1956 at 605 Broadway St., the kitchenwares store was among the first to bring French copper pots, La Crueset bakeware and high-end culinary tools to American home cooks. In fact,  if you’ve ever used a KitchenAid stand mixer, Wustof knife, or poured cream from a little porcelain cow, you have Chuck to thank.

But since the store’s move to San Francisco just a few years after opening, there’s been no Williams-Sonoma in its namesake town.

In a stroke of luck, the original storefront (which had served as catering kitchen and frame shop among other things) came up for sale recently, and company officials knew they had to snap it up. Included in the sale was Williams’ home which he shared with his mother for many years.

The home has been renovated to serve as a stage for many of the Williams-Sonoma brands, and includes a backyard garden, grill and patio.

Food Network chef and Marin-resident Tyler Florence was at the opening, and reminisced about his first meeting with Chuck in 2006. “I had a real connection when meeting Chuck at my own kitchen store. He brought the first copper and paella pans to home chefs. He brought all these new vehicles of expression,” said Florence. “What Steve jobs did for computers, Williams did for cooking,” he added.

We couldn’t have said it better.

The new store at 605 Broadway, Sonoma, will be open daily from 9am to 6pm. A professional kitchen will include hour-long cooking classes that include:

• Chef Jen Demerest of Harvest Moon – 10/7
• Executive Chef Billy Reid of Hopmunk Tavern – 10/13
• Chef/Owner Duskie Estes of Zazu Kitchen & Farm – 10/14
• Chef and Culinary Instructor Jason Kupper – 10/20
• Chef Dustin Valette of Dry Creek Kitchen – 10/21
• Executive Chef Todd Thompson of The Red Grape – 11/3
• St Francis Winery – Wine Pairing Dinner – 11/11
• Chef Cindy Pawlcyn of Mustards – 12/12  
• 

It’s not often you get a decent cocktail at a bar anymore. ‘Tenders are too busy making Jack & Cokes and pouring cheap beer.

In fact, we’ve gotten a few sneers for merely asking for a gin and tonic.

But we’re loving the hand-crafted “original” sours at Whiskey Tip (1910 Sebastopol Rd, Santa Rosa) made with American bourbon, simple syrup, lime juice and egg whites.

They’re beautiful and delicious, and only $8 rather than, well, a whole lot more at other fancy drink spots.

I loved this article in the SHED newsletter, written by Gretchen Giles (editor of Made Local Magazine). She’s graciously let me reprint it here. Consider checking out the class.

It’s not a grain and it’s not a wheat, but buckwheat acts like a grain and cooks like a wheat. Best part? It’s extremely high in protein and entirely gluten-free.

In preparing for Sonoko Sakai‘s soba-making workshop, slated for Oct. 5 at SHED Modern Grange in Healdsburg, we have buckwheat on the brain.

It’s a pretty amazing plant. Interplanted, it acts as a natural weed suppressant. Featuring triangulated seeds similar to those of the Beech tree, it’s original name is Beech Wheat; knowing that the Dutch word for “Beech” is beuc helps to understand today’s moniker. And before the advent of petrochemical fertilizers, we used to grow literally tons of it in the U.S. — one million acres were harvested in 1918 — as a green compost that rejuvenates soils.

The French love it for crepes; the Italians, for pasta; and the Japanese, for their slurping noodles. They even have a word, nodogoshi, to describe the sensation one feels when whole soba buckwheat noodles slide down the throat.

Anson Mills, one of the country’s only artisanal outfits able to properly process this notoriously difficult seed, has offered to custom mill two types of buckwheat flour just for SHED. For soba making, they are producing Ni-Hachi Sobakoh, a high grade flour made from buckwheat “just cut from the field a few days ago”, according to Glen Roberts, the visionary founder of Anson Mills. For pasta, crepes and other pastries (such as the buckwheat seeded cookie made by our talented pasty chefs), they’re milling a refined taragna buckwheat flour. Discussing buckwheat on their website, they rather poetically declare, “the aroma and flavor nuances of freshly milled buckwheat are fleeting.” Look for these custom milled flours in our cooler, expected sometime next week.

The best soba houses in Japan still mill their own buckwheat flour in order to best capture its transience. Sonoko has been known to leave her clothes behind in order to pack her luggage full of this flour when she travels to places where it is freshly milled.

Join us on Sunday, Oct. 5, 2014 to learn more about this ancient staple and the soba noodle tradition that surrounds it. Sonoko has graciously allowed us to reprint one of her stories about buckwheat soba noodles and their importance to her personally on our blog this week.

On a recent tour of the Barlow’s SpirtWorks Distillery (6790 McKinley St #100, Sebastopol) BiteClub fell a little in love.

Partly with owners Timo and Ashby Marshall’s Boston Terrier, Bandit, and mostly with their newly-released barrel aged gin.

Made from their Red Winter Wheat gin, it’s aged in new White oak (giving it a more intense, toasty flavor), imparting a rich amber hue, with lots of vanilla, butterscotch, cardamom and orange and a perfect winter sipper. Try it mixed with a little eggnog or straight up by the fire.

Want to see the distillery for yourself? Guided tours are available Friday through Sunday for $15 per person, with reservations required. And while you’re at it, pick up a bottle of their vodka, rye whisky and sloe gin (a specialty of Timo’s family for generations).

Available at Oliver’s Markets, Bottle Barn and Bevmo, around $50.

Guerneville’s food and drink renaissance continues with the soon-to-open El Barrio cocktail lounge on September 27, 2014.  It’s the next in a series of food and drink projects by Crista Luedtke, who also owns big bottom market, boon eat+drink and boon hotel+spa.

The “Mexican modern cocktail lounge” will focus on spirits–bourbon, tequila and mezcal–rather than food, with a robust drink program developed by SF bartender and consultant Christina Cabrera (Novela, Range, Marlow, Michael Mina). Luedtke says the name, which translates as ‘the neighborhood’ is also a play on words “bar” and “rio”, or river bar.

The lounge replaces  Whitetail Winebar, and the revamped interior includes custom made Talavera tile and a graffiti wall installation by ‘the Apexer’, a SF based artists.

More details in the next couple weeks.

El Barrio, 16230 Main St., Guerneville, www.elbarriobar.com

 

Saturdays get even tastier on local news station, KSRO (1350AM, 103.5FM) with the debut of “At the Table with Wolf & Smothers” on Oct. 4, 2014.

Wine Country food fanatics Clark Wolf and Marcy Smothers will dish each week on food news and personalities with guests including Ruth Reichl, Emeril Lagasse, Bruce Aidells, Martin Yan and Top Chef Master’s Douglas Keane.

The dynamic duo’s first show airs live from the Sonoma County Fairgrounds during the Harvest Fair, and will on KSRO each Saturday from 1 to 3p.m. following The Good Food Hour with John Ash from 11am to noon and On the Wine Road with Jeff Davis from noon to 1p.m. Delicious!

BiteClub, of course, hits the local food beat on local radio station KZST (100.1FM) each Thursday morning from 7:40a.m. to 9a.m. with Brent Farris. Yeah, I just tooted my own horn. (And, PS…I’m truly sorry to those of you who have to hear me at Kaiser or your dentist’s chair.)

Get a sneak peek!

Sad news in Montgomery Village. Chef Jennifer McMurray has announced that her popular cafe, Viola Pastry Boutique and Cafe (709 Village Court, Santa Rosa) will shutter on Sept. 27.

The good news, however, is that her homey cooking (and her hostess/mom, Vickie) are continuing their culinary journey. McMurray will continue catering private parties and events and is looking for a new location for her restaurant. Stay tuned.

The adorable little roadhouse at 9890 Bodega Highway that’s seen a number of restaurants come and go in the last several years is being taken over once again, this time by the highly successful Fork Catering.

Owner Sarah Piccolo says she’ll use the spot for a variety of uses, including her catering kitchen, offering a breakfast and lunch eatery, food truck parking by the side patio for a “quick casual bite” and offering special event space.

Piccolo hopes to be open by November and plans to expand to weekend brunches, dinners and special events in the future. “The concept will be casual, approachable, family friendly, and will definitely support our local farmers, bread bakers, and community,” she said.