Boon Eat + Drink

By biteclub

fries.jpgNo matter what brings you to the resort hamlet of Guerneville, chances are you’re gonna be hungry afterward.
signpoloroid.jpgFollow the apre-swim, kayak, festival-going and cruising crowd to boon eat + drink (in the former burger & boy). New to the oft-shifting main street lineup, what the dime-sized boon lacks in diameter, it makes up for in taste — both in its pared-down decor and simply done menu of spot-on eats.
Lunch and dinner differ only in the addition of a scant handful of entrees (flat iron steak ($21), grilled halibut ($19), citrus herb chicken breast) and a meat and cheese course in the evening. Otherwise it’s both meals feature panini ($9) and salads ($7-$9) (panzanella, corn and cherry tomatoes in August) with produce from their own gardens, a beefy boon burger with garlic aioli and pickled onions ($9), and hard-to-choose-from sides. Don’t pass on the giant bowl of truffle fries ($6) with sundried tomato ketchup and garlic aoili. Consider sharing burrata with tomatoes, beet salad with goat cheese or  savory bread pudding.
trio.jpgMake no mistake. What seems almost disappointingly simple menu-wise is anything but — more remix that rehash.
boonpoloroids2.jpgDessert’s not negotiable. Anyone who brings up SF’s Humphry Slocombe ice cream in wicked flavors like Secret Breakfast (bourbon and cornflakes) has their finger on the sweet pulse. A dense fudge brownie with sea salt ($6). Come on.
Serving neighborhood wines (meaning Russian River), the spot is semi al-fresco with a ringside seat to the Guerneville scene, which depending on the day and hour can be just about anything you want it to be.
boon eat + drink: 16248 Main St., Guerneville, 869-0780.

Tomi Thai | Windsor

By biteclub
Tomi Thai Windsor

Tomi Thai Windsor Crying Tiger
Crying Tiger at Tomi Thai

The owners of Santa Rosa’s Bangkok Villa opened Tomi Thai Restaurant in Windsor (26 Emily Rose Circle, Windsor, 707.836.1422, the former Odyssey) with a menu that may be familiar to locals. Pulling from their original location, fans will recognize many of the restaurant’s signature dishes — pumpkin curry ($10.95), Crying Tiger (charbroiled ribeye with spicy garlic sauce, $13.95), Honey Duck ($13.95) and Dancing Prawns (jumbo prawns stuffed with crab and pork, $13.95), along with simpler dishes of pad thai; red green and yellow curry, drunken noodles and vegetarian entrees.
Inside, the restaurant hasn’t changed much since Chef Rudy Mihal left — the same glowing bar (which sits mostly empty, though the restaurant does serve beer and wine), a mute television screen along the back wall and open kitchen (which seems strange with a crew of cooks rather than Rudy).
Mirroring its upscale digs, Tomi Thai seems to be striving for some of the Pan-Asian flavors and high-end presentations that have been successful for Sea Thai’s Chef Tony Ounpamornchai. But the devil’s in the details. Jumbo prawns (Bangkok Dancing Prawns) are lovely to look at, but aren’t easy to eat with shells on and legs baked into the stuffing. Honey duck is beautifully plated with pickled ginger and greens, but too much fatty meat derails its simplicity. Pad Thai looks beautiful, on my visit was sticky and dry. Battered and skewered shrimp paste balls and rings of calamari are tasty, but the tiny portion-size makes $8 a bit dear for an appetizer.
Tomi Thai WindsorMore traditional dishes work better, a mild yellow curry with potatoes and chicken and fresh rolls studded with mint both satisfy. Marinated ribeye steak (Crying Tiger) is nicely done, but needs a bit more char to hit the mark exactly. Homemade peanut sauce is a solid sauce for everything from satay to fried tofu.
Attentive, thoughtful service and mostly reasonable prices ($8.95 for most entrees, $10-$15 for specialties; $4 for soup) make Tomi Thai a solid contender in Thai-scarce Windsor. But it’s all about details if they’re to overcome stiff competition from neighboring Asian kitchens Chinois, Truc-Linh, Sunju and Ume.
Tomi Thai . Open for lunch and dinner Monday through Saturday. Closed Sunday. tomi-thai.com

Mirepoix expanding to Langley’s space

By biteclub

So BiteClub hears that Restaurant Mirepoix will be expanding their presence on the Windsor Town Green in the next couple of months, taking over the space currently occupied by Langley’s On The Green.
Details are still emerging, but word is that they’ll be opening a casual Parisian-style bistro this fall in the Langley’s space while revamping Mirepoix into a haute-er version of itself. Langley’s remains open for now, but will close after the sale finalizes. Owners have confirmed that their Italian eatery and pizzeria, De Paoli’s is remaining open.
BiteClub’s been hearing rumors that the Chef Matthew Bousquet and his sommelier wife, Bryan, have been looking around for a spot to open a second restaurant for a while now — allowing Matthew to get back to his roots in classic French cuisine rather than the simplified bistro menu they adopted several years ago (allowing them to take time off to get married and start their family.)
Stay tuned for more details.

Root Beer Floats

By biteclub

rootbeer.jpgI’ve been obsessed with root beer floats lately, mostly from the Fosters Freeze (400 4th St, Santa Rosa – (707) 576-7028) too dangerously close to my house for comfort. There’s something about that creamy soft serve bubbling together with the nip and tickle of root beer that I can’t get enough of. Seems I’m not alone: I got an email this week from a CHOW how to make your own root beer, and I know that Diane Peterson is working on her own tasting over at Kitchentalk. Everything old is new again. 

Want some seriously tasty fresh-brewed root beer? Third Street Aleworks brews their own for a house-made dessert float. It’s almost nothing like the sicky sweet stuff from the fountain — instead, their brew is a pungent, earthy, spicy flavor of true root beer. 610 3rd Street, Santa Rosa, (707) 523-3060.

A&W also makes a decent float, which you can find at 6700 Commerce Boulevard, or 6610 Hembree Lane, Windsor, (707)584-9070.

Got your own favorite? let me know.

Yogurt Farms

By biteclub

froyo.jpgWith the dog days of summer slobbering at our toes, it seems fitting to give a shout-out redux to my favorite spot to beat the heat: Yogurt Farms.

Around since the early 1980’s, this
Mendocino Avenue soft-serve emporium is cute as a cupcake inside, with
a resident plastic cow and more flavors than you can shake a spoon at.
Purists laud the tart, yogurty quality of this local frozen treat
purveyor. They also have ice cream and Hawaiian shave ice with flavors flown in from the islands. Not to mention the nicest yogurt slingers in town (despite the fact that this old-school fro-yo spot is un-airconditioned.)

Take your cup to go. Or just sit on the curb like the rest of us. Yogurt Farms: 1224 Mendocino
Ave., Santa Rosa, (707) 576-0737

Check out even more great gelato, frozen yogurt and ice cream spots >>

Top 25 Restaurants: Destination-worthy dining

By biteclub

best25a.jpgWhat sounded like a ridiculously simple task turns out to be nothing of the sort. Like choosing a favorite child, I’ve struggled with who to include and not include on this list — adding names, taking away names, re-adding names. And I’m sure I’ll be taken to task for many of my choices.

There are so many factors to include: Innovative menus, use of local ingredients, consistently good cooking, wine lists and the restaurant’s staying power. But when it came right down to having to put together a final list of names, what I came back to again and again were restaurants with a guiding forces in the kitchen. Chef-driven restaurants with a clear point of view.

In order to keep the list to 25, I’ve had to make some other qualifications. For the purpose of this list, I’ve excluded restaurants (like Chloe’s French Cafe and Dierk’s Parkside) that have limited hours though they’re clearly worthy of note.

Ethnic and cheap-eats restaurants are also in short-supply, which I’ll explain by saying that this list is primarily focused on restaurants with classic French or Italian influences that have define the California Wine Country culinary experience.

That leaves a whole lot of restaurants off the list. Restaurants like Rocker Oysterfeller’s (which I love for oysters and brunch), Peter Lowell’s (amazing pizzas, veggie-centri, conscious eating), Humble Pie (homemade pies and comfort food), Pamposh (top-notch Indian) and Bruno’s (a favorite neighborhood spot) have so much to offer, as do local taquerias like Las Palmas. These are among the restaurants that defy conventional wisdom and are re-invigorating the local culinary scene. So stay tuned for another list…

There are others that have had recent chef changes (French Garden, Barndiva) that are also worthy of attention but still need settling-in time (maybe next year!)

But at some point, I had to put a stake in the ground. Some were easy picks. Others harder. But ultimately the list has been chosen. Here are BiteClub’s 25 Top Sonoma County Restaurants for 2009… 
Continue reading “Top 25 Restaurants: Destination-worthy dining”

Top 25 Restaurants 2009: Your votes

By biteclub

The big news here…the biggest vote-getter in the reader-generated votes for Top Restaurants 2009 was “other.” That tells me there are a whole lot of restaurants out there that folks have personal affection for. I’ve added many of those you’ve requested, though adding them all proves almost impossible.

Voting will continue, but as of August 8, 2009 with more than 21,000 votes, here are the standings.

Other answer…     1844     9%              
    Osake (Santa Rosa)     1001     5%             
    Girl and the Fig (Sonoma)     782     4%             
    Willi’s Wine Bar (Santa Rosa)     638     3%             
    Cyrus (Healdsburg)     629     3%             
    Underwood Bar & Bistro (Graton)     597     3%             
    Willi’s Seafood & Raw Bar (Healdsburg)     568     3%             
    Rosso Pizzeria (Santa Rosa)     557     3%             
    John Ash & Co. (Santa Rosa)     537     3%             
    Farmhouse Inn (Forestville)     533     2%             
    La Gare (Santa Rosa)     500     2%             
    Syrah (Santa Rosa)     456     2%             
    Zin (Healdsburg)     447     2%             
    Sugo Trattoria (Petaluma)     436     2%             
    Zazu (Santa Rosa)     436     2%             
    Cucina Paradiso (Petaluma)     422     2%             
    Madrona Manor (Healdsburg)     410     2%             
    Sea Thai Bistro (Santa Rosa/Petaluma)     409     2%             
    Ume (Windsor)     395     2%             
    Mirepoix (Windsor)     392     2%             
    Ravenous (Healdsburg)     386     2%             
    Monti’s (Santa Rosa)     367     2%             
    Dry Creek Kitchen (Healdsburg)     363     2%             
    Santi (Geyserville)     359     2%             
    Cafe Citti (Kenwood)     325     2%             
    Stark’s Steakhouse (Santa Rosa)     306     1%             
    Applewood Inn (Guerneville)     292     1%             
    Ca’Bianca (Santa Rosa)     282     1%             
    Chloe’s French Cafe (Santa Roa)     282     1%             
    Central Market (Petaluma)     274     1%             
    Bistro Des Copains (Occidental)     264     1%             
    Mosaic (Forestville)     263     1%             
    Fig Cafe (Glen Ellen)     259     1%             
    Estate (Sonoma)     259     1%             
    Lococo’s (Santa Rosa)     254     1%             
    Scopa (Healdsburg)     246     1%             
    Bistro29 (Santa Rosa)     219     1%             
    Cafe Saint Rose (Sebastopol)     216     1%             
    Bistro Ralph (Healdsburg)     215     1%             
    Cafe La Haye (Sonoma)     204     1%             
    Charcuterie (Healdsburg)     204     1%             
    El Dorado Kitchen (Sonoma)     200     1%             
    Barndiva (Healdsburg)     196     1%             
    Diavola (Geyserville)     179     1%             
    Flavor Bistro (Santa Rosa)     170     1%             
    Bruno’s on Fourth (Santa Rosa)     159     1%             
    Restaurant Eloise (Sebastopol)     158     1%             
    Rocker Oysterfeller’s (Valley Ford)     155     1%             
    Sassafrass (Santa Rosa)     138     1%             
    La Salette (Sonoma)     134     1%             
    Glen Ellen Inn (Glen Ellen)     133     1%            &nb
sp;
    
French Garden (Sebastopol)     129     1%             
    Starlight Wine Bar (Sebastopol)     122     1%             
    Della Santina (Sonoma)     120     1%             
    Hana Japanese     118     1%             
    Saddles/MacArther Place (Sonoma)     113     1%             
    Josef’s (Santa Rosa)     112     1%             
    Cafe Europe (Santa Rosa)     102     0%             
    Harvest Moon Cafe (Sonoma)     98     0%             
    Cena Luna (Healdsburg)     96     0%             
    Manzanita (Healdsburg)     95     0%             
    Red Grape Pizza (Sonoma)     94     0%             
    Gohan Sushi (Petaluma)     89     0%             
    Riviera Ristaurante (Santa Rosa)     82     0%             
    The Duck Club (Bodega Bay)     81     0%             
    Doce Lunas (Kenwood)     78     0%             
    Peter Lowell’s (Sebastopol)     76     0%             
    Le Bistro (Petaluma)     71     0%             
    Nonni’s Ristaurante Italiano (SR)     68     0%             
    Bluegrass BBQ (Glen Ellen)     49     0%             
    Saffron (Glen Ellen)     47     0%             
    Carneros Bistro (Sonoma)     46     0%             
    Terrapin Creek (Bodega Bay)     42     0%             
    Sante-Sonoma Mission Inn     14     0%

Julie/Julia premieres @ Hollywood & Wine launch in Hbrg

By biteclub

julia.jpgIt’s long been thought, at least by me, that a glass of wine might really improve the whole movie-going experience. Not to mention a decent sandwich and a seat that doesn’t have Junior Mints stuck to it. And poof, Hollywood & Wine appears on the scene.

The idea: Show first-run flicks with a decent glass of SoCo wine in plush leather seats with something other than greasy popcorn. The theater/wine bar concept kicks off on August 7 (Friday night) at the Raven Film Center in Healdsburg with — appropriately  — a showing of Julie & Julia, a film with Meryl Streep as Julia Child and Amy Adams portraying a whiny food blogger. Yeah, I said it.

Word is Hollywood & Wine is planning to have goodies from Costeaux Bakery and some local beers as well. Score.  415 Center St., Healdsburg, 522-0330.

++++
UPDATE: BiteClub’s 10 second review of Julie & Julia….

So, I skipped out of work on Friday to see the show (along with a whole lot of senior citizens).

And while I stick to my assertion that the Julie Powell portion is about as irritating as a rusty cheese grater to the eyeball, there were a few moments of brilliance. Like when her husband accuses her of being overly self-involved in her blog. And when she wonders if anyone is reading. And when she gets really excited when people comment. And when, again, her husband deals out a little reality check when it comes to her “fans” actually caring about the blog. Um, yeah. Self-involved food blogger who gets serious reality checks from significant other? Sounds a little familiar.

What makes the movie worth the $7.50 you’re going to spend seeing it at the bargain matinee is Meryl Streeps hysterical, dead-on performance as Julia Child. Brilliant. Almost makes you a little ashamed to be stuffing those Good & Plenty’s into your maw while she’s savoring buerre blanc.

Tell me what you thought? Looking for showtimes?

Secrets from inside the kitchen

By biteclub

chef2.jpgEver wonder what happens behind the kitchen doors at your favorite restaurant? Confused about tipping protocol or whether it’s okay to ask for something off-menu? How do you know if a restaurant is sanitary or what to do if you find a bug in your food? BiteClub gets the down and dirty from local chefs Josh Silvers of Syrah Bistro, Mark Malicki of Cafe Saint Rose, Mark Dierkhising of Dierk’s Parkside Cafe and Betsy Fischer, culinary educator, consultant and manager of the Santa Rosa Junior College Cafe, on what’s really happening behind the scenes.

What happens when I send food back to the kitchen?
It depends why you’ve sent it back and if you’ve eaten off the plate.  If your meat isn’t cooked through (or to your degree of done-ness), the kitchen will likely do a “re-fire” which means throwing it back on the grill to cook it more. This is a matter of some controversy, because if you’ve stuck your fork into it and taken a few bites, it’s a health issue to put it back on the grill. Usually it’s the call of the chef.

If you’ve sent it back for another reason, most likely you’ll get an entirely new entrée. Again, it depends on how much you’ve eaten and whether you have a legit gripe or are just being stinky. Obviously eating half your dinner and then sending it back is pretty uncool.

What if there’s a bug in my food?
It’s not that uncommon to find a little critter in organic salad greens, chefs tell me. Usually they’re small and harmless. It’s not necessarily a reflection on the sanitary conditions of the restaurant. Finding bugs (especially roaches) or other unwanted yuckiness should definitely be reported to management and the food sent back.

How do I know if the place I’m eating is sanitary?
In Southern California, restaurants are given a grade “A”, “B” or “C” that they are required to post on their door so patrons know the score. There’s been considerable industry push-back against this in Northern California. Want to know if your fave spot makes the grade? The Sonoma County Department of Health Services maintains current violations for all restaurants at food.sonoma-county.org. You can also click on the “Food Safety Recognition of Excellence” winners to see who’s received outstanding food safety records.

Will they spit in my food if I send it back?
I can’t say this never happens. But it doesn’t occur, as movies might want us to think, all that often. Insiders say they’ve never witnessed the “special saucing” of a customer it in years of restaurant service at higher end restaurants. There’s too much on the line and its juvenile. That doesn’t mean bad customers always have the last word. A few chefs I talked to aren’t shy about having a straightforward dialogue with particularly difficult patrons.
Continue reading “Secrets from inside the kitchen”