Crispy Kennebec Fries from the Spinster Sisters in the South A district of Santa Rosa. (John Burgess/The Press Democrat)
Sonoma County is not a secret to its many visitors from near and far, but one of the county capital’s most culturally alive neighborhoods is almost hiding in plain sight. Tucked away in a creative enclave just a short walk from downtown Santa Rosa, the SOFA — or South of A Street — district continues to undergo a renaissancethat began around 20 years ago when artists started setting up shop there.
Now home to a diverse group of workshops, galleries, independently owned shops, and restaurants, SOFA channels an artistic energy reminiscent of areas of Brooklyn or London’s East End, where former industrial and warehouse spaces metamorphosed into creative communities.
The SOFA district encompasses only a few blocks, but it has a myriad things to see and do in its many nooks and crannies. Whether you pop into the neighborhood for a morning jaunt, make a whole day of it or turn it into your home base for an extended stay in the area, this list will help you get acquainted with Santa Rosa’s charming SOFA district.
Check in at the Astro Motel
There is no better way to get to know a neighborhood than by living in it, even if only for a few days or weeks. The Astro Motel, which is walking distance from the heart of the action, provides convenient and well appointed lodgings in the SOFA district.
The Astro was recently renovated with a retro mid century modern design vibe, a nod to the motel’s 1960s era origins that also incorporates more contemporary sensibilities, such as the front parking lot turned into a manicured courtyard (including public art, a fire pit, herb garden and plum, apple, lemon, mandarin, fig and cherry trees).
Among its amenities, the Astro has a fleet of Shinola bicycles for rent as well as a bike repair station for guests interested in cycling in the area.
323 Santa Rosa Ave., Santa Rosa. 707-200-4655, theastro.com
Breakfast at Café Frida Gallery or Red Bird Bakery
It’s important to get the day started on the right note. Café Frida and Red Bird Bakery offer a veritable symphony of flavors to choose from on their breakfast menus.
Café Frida, created by Mamadou Diouf and Mario Uribe as an “artist hangout” with a gallery that features Sonoma County artists, has a menu drawing from French and Mexican culinary traditions. Among the drinks and dishes that can be ordered: A spicy Passion Fruit or Tamarind Fizz or Cortado (espresso with milk), Nutella Toast, Breakfast Burrito, Vanilla Concha (traditional Mexican pan dulce) or Spinach Feta Croissant.
Known for its wholesome breads and tempting pastries and cakes, Red Bird is the English translation of the owners’ Czech last name, Cermak. The cafe has a wide assortment of handcrafted baked goods such as levain, chai whole wheat with apricots and walnuts, baguette, sweet rolls, tea breads and cookies.
On the first Friday of each month, SOFA’s art studios open to the public at 5 p.m. as part of the Open Studios or First Friday Art Walk. The free event is the perfect opportunity to meet and mingle with artists in their studios, learn about their process and buy one of their pieces. Live music and light refreshments often round out the evening.
If you can’t make it to the First Friday event, the Santa Rosa Arts Center (SRAC) is a hub of cultural activity that is open most days of the week and by appointment. Founded in 2017, The SRAC is located in the Chroma gallery and sponsors art shows, performances, concerts, literary events, benefits and classes.
“All the world’s a stage, And all the men and women merely players…” Experimental theater company The Imaginists has taken the first lines of Shakespeare’s oft quoted speech from “As You Like It” to heart with productions that feature trained actors and non-actors alike. The group has collaborated with a diverse array of community members, including day laborers, undocumented youth, immigrant rights groups and environmental nonprofits to put on productions that aim to reimagine public space, cultivate radical inclusion and rethink theater.
If you are interested in cultivating your inner Gordon Parks, Henri Cartier-Bresson or Dorothea Lange, or just want to capture some photo memories of your visit to SOFA, a visit to this neighborhood photoshop might be in order. Jeremiah’s Photo Corner caters to aficionados and amateurs alike with an assortment of film cameras, film, photography and printing paraphernalia, as well as camera repair and film processing drop off and pick up services. The location is also home to Jeremiah Flynn Tintype Photography, where you can book a sitting for your very own vintage portrait (tintype was one of the first photographic processes, invented in the mid 19th century).
Before going in front of the cameras, it’s important to carefully choose your wardrobe. Newly opened Saint November creates handmade, small batch clothing and sewn goods designed and produced in its SOFA studio. You can choose from the items available in Saint November’s catalog or make an appointment to commission a custom design.
After a busy day nourishing the soul, it’s time to nourish the body. The Spinster Sisters restaurant, which exhibits the work of local artists in its “concrete chic” interior, is the perfect culinary complement to a day spent absorbing the neighborhood’s cultural vibrance.
Chef Liza Hinman’s innovative menu embraces traditions and flavors from all over the world with a distinctly modern flair. Dishes that are also available for takeout include Crispy Kennebec Fries (finished with rosemary and sage and served with SOFA sauce), Tunisian Style Meatballs, Citrus Cured Ocean Trout, Mussels Mouclade (with madras curry, aioli, herbs, white wine and grilled red bird levain), Meyer Lemon Mousse and Paris-brest.
Every year, the streets of SOFA come alive with a parade that personifies the exuberance and creativity of the arts district. The city sponsored event, Winterblast, continues to grow every year, featuring open art galleries and a zany procession of illuminated sofas and parade goers. Food trucks, live music and entertainers animate the festivities, but the decorated couches on wheels (with float themes that range from UFOs to Snoopy’s dog house) are the highlight of the parade event.
‘Tis the season to eat, drink and be merry! In Sonoma County, we’ve got oh so many delicious options to enjoy in December. For some festive cocktails that are sure to get you in the holiday spirit, click through the gallery above.
Acme Burger at Acme Burger in Cotati. (Heather Irwin/Sonoma Magazine)
In Sonoma County, “cheap eats” is relative. If you can get a meal for under $15, it’s a steal. For under $20, you’re doing well. And for under $30, you’re still ahead of the game (but don’t think about ordering any drinks).
This article was first published in 2021. Unsurprisingly, the prices on everything have gone up — waaaaaaay up — since then. In this updated version, I’m including both old and new prices to show the ripple effects of supply chain issues, staff shortages and insane price hikes on eggs, dairy, meat and many other ingredients. Restaurateurs aren’t getting rich off of price increases, and most are loathe to do up their prices unless it’s their last option.
There are still some restaurants tucked away in Sonoma County where prices hover around the $10 to $20 range for pretty darn good grub. Click through the gallery for some Santa Rosa favorites.
Prices listed are based on current website menu information.
Without a doubt, Wine Country is one of the world’s most breathtaking regions to travel through, whether you are looking for a romantic escape, a relaxing retreat or seeking thrills.
The area abounds with diverse landscapes and places to explore, as well as a plethora of ways to get there. Planes, trains and automobiles are just the start. There are also hot air balloons, horseback riding, replica vintage cable cars and a variety of other modes of transport that capture the imagination.
They say it’s not the destination, but the journey that matters. We’ve compiled a list of ways to get around Wine Country that make both the journey and the destination a true delight. Read on and click through the above gallery for inspiration.
Trains
With its origins in the 19th century, train travel conjures up the romance of the past, but investments in new technology also make it a vision for an environmentally friendly future. Romantics, commuters and day trippers alike can enjoy a ride on the rails on the Napa Valley Wine Train or the SMART train.
Traveling through the heart of Wine Country, theNapa Valley Wine Train features a variety of leisurely journeys in vintage Pullman rail cars that include multi-course gourmet meals, sparkling wine and afternoon tea, as well as stops for tastings and photo opportunities at vineyards along the way. Travelers can cap off their experience with a stay at the Napa Valley Railway Inn, eight steam-era railcars converted into finely appointed hotel guest rooms in downtown Yountville.
For a more modern take on the rail experience, the SMART train is an excellent way to travel in Sonoma County or south to Marin County. The line’s stops in Santa Rosa are close to attractions that include the Charles M. Schulz Museum, shopping at Whistlestop Antiques and Hot Couture Vintage Fashion or a stay at Hotel La Rose by Railroad Square; the Cotati station is a short walk from a meal or snack at Oliver’s Market, Acme Burger and Red Bird Bakery; the Petaluma station brings travelers right up to cultural venue the Petaluma Arts Center, while the city’s downtown restaurants and music venues are only a 10-minute walk away.
Afternoon tea on the Napa Valley Wine Train. (Courtesy of Napa Valley Wine Train)
Planes
There is nothing like getting a bird’s eye view of Wine Country’s varied topography and natural beauty. Based in Sonoma, Obsidian Wine Co.provides wine-related excursions including a de Havilland DHC-2 Beavers seaplane flight that takes off in Sausalito with an overfly of the Golden Gate Bridge before heading over the Mayacamas Mountains and making a water landing onto Clear Lake. (Food & Wine magazine recently named Obsidian’s Seaplane Wine Flight one of “the most extreme wine tastings around the world”.)
If you want to experience aviation history while you feel the rush of air and adrenaline, you can book a ride on a 1941 open cockpit biplane through Vintage Aircraft Co.in Sonoma. The Boeing PT-17 Stearman, which now takes passengers for joyrides above Wine Country and beyond, was used as a training plane for cadets prior to and during World War II.
Automobiles
If you have ever dreamed of driving a classic sports car or luxury vehicle through the rolling hills of Wine Country, your dreams may not be so far from coming true.
This fall, the Four Seasons Napa Valley in Calistoga created a weeklong curated driving and sightseeing itinerary that allowed guests to drive their own car or choose from iconic sports cars such as the Aston Martin DB11, silver and neon green Lamborghini Huracan Spyder or cherry-red Ferrari 488 GTB.
The next iteration of the Napa Valley 750 Road Rally, a five-day event that brings together more than two dozen owners of vintage race cars (such as a 1958 Porsche Speedster or 1955 Lancia Aurelia B24 Spider) for a local road tour, takes place May 5-10.
The event’s organizers have created a one-day 125-mile road tour route of Sonoma County for anyone to enjoy. Sites such asVinity and Turo make it possible to rent the dream car you most desire for a local spin, from a Bentley R Type to a Porsche 911L to a Pontiac Firebird 400 Convertible.
Horseback
For centuries before the advent of planes, trains and automobiles, the quickest way to travel over land was on horseback at a gallop. But these days it’s okay to saunter along riding high in the saddle, enjoying scenery and paths not accessible by mechanized transport.
Bartholomew Estate Vineyards and Winery in Sonoma offers a 45-minute ride on horseback through its historic estate guided by Sonoma Valley Trail Rides. The experience includes a bottle of Bartholomew Estate wine to take home.
Triple Creek Horse Outfit in Glen Ellen provides a variety of riding trail options at Jack London State Historic Park, allowing guests to explore different areas of the park from rides that last an hour to combo rides that take place over the course of two days. Riders can commune with the writing legacy and life of “Sailor on Horseback” Jack London, taking in the views of the author’s prized Beauty Ranch while passing through the many natural features that captured his imagination.
Triple Creek Horse Outfit in Glen Ellen provides a variety of riding trail options at Jack London State Historic Park. (Triple Creek Horse Outfit)Enjoy scenic flights over Sonoma County with Wine Country Balloons. (Courtesy of Wine Country Balloons)
Hot air balloons
If you’d like to travel at a more leisurely pace, floating above it all, there are plenty of options. Calling its rides “A Nature Walk in the Sky,” Wine Country Balloons says it has flown everyone from chef Gordon Ramsey to musician Dave Matthews, and customers are invited to take part in the set up and inflation process. Wine Country Balloons, established over 40 years ago, is the oldest continuously operated balloon company in Sonoma County. Based out of Yountville, the family-run Napa Valley Aloft’s ballooning history also stretches back to the 1970s. Napa Valley Balloons starts the day with a pre-flight pastry from Bouchon Bakery in Yountville and offers packages that include wine tasting and bike experiences.
Vintage cable cars
If you only think of the city when you think of cable cars, you might just think again after visiting Wine Country. The Sonoma Valley Wine Trolley, designed to look like an 1890s San Francisco cable car, takes riders on a six-hour tour from Sonoma Plaza that includes guided private wine tasting experiences.
The Napa Valley Wine Trolley has two distinct six to seven hour tour routes travelers can choose from to ride on a replica San Francisco cable car on wheels: The Napa Valley Classic wine tour focuses on South Napa and the Up Valley Castle Tour visits wineries in North Nap, including the Castello Di Amorosa.
Gondola
Flat-bottomed boats traversing the canals of Venice might first come to mind when you hear the word gondola. However, Sterling Vineyards in Napa features the kind of gondola you are most likely to see when climbing the Alps.
Thought to be the only winery in the world with an aerial gondola, Sterling’s tram provides 360-degree views up a tree-covered hill to the winery. After the gondola ride, travelers can have a self-guided wine tasting, learn about the art and science of winemaking and enjoy a seated tasting of a reserve wine paired with a cheese board on a terrace overlooking the Napa Valley as part of Sterling’s The Tour and Terrace Experience.
Sonoma Wedding Photographer
Volkswagen bus
If you are not interested in another run of the mill chartered bus tour, you just might want to check out West Wine Tours’ fleet of classic VW buses which embarks on tours in Sonoma and Napa. You can book just a seat or an entire six-seat or eight-seat bus for groups. Tours include stops at local wineries (wine tasting fees not included) or you can create your own custom itinerary if you book an entire bus. A picnic lunch is included in every itinerary.
14-person party bike
Those who like to get some exercise while socializing, sightseeing and imbibing might want to take a ride on one of Bike Healdsburg’s two basic tours. The Just The Seat Tour features a bar crawl of three stops in Healdsburg, while the All-Inclusive Tour features three unique wine tastings and small bites.
Skydiving
For the pure adventure seekers, there are few experiences that can match the thrill of jumping out of a plane, free falling in the sky before pulling open your parachute and gliding down to earth. NorCal Skydiving caters to those interested in taking a tandem skydive or receiving instruction to be able to make a solo jump.
Oakville Grocery on the Healdsburg Plaza. (Mariah Harkey/Sonoma County Tourism)
According to an Instagram post by Shop Local Healdsburg, a new cafe is opening in the former Oakville Grocery space on the Healdsburg Plaza. The new owner is Chef Beryl Adler, who is well-known in the community as the general manager of Black Oak Coffee Roasters in Healdsburg.
Adler is a longtime chef who headed the culinary program at W Hotel in Bali and Ritz-Carlton locations in Half Moon Bay and Grand Cayman. He also helped create the in-house menu at Black Oak in Healdsburg. Black Oak Coffee Roasters, however, are not part of the Oakville Grocery ownership team.
Though Adler confirmed the project in a phone call on Wednesday, he said he is waiting until the project progresses before giving more details.
The owners of Oakville Grocery hinted that new ownership was already in the works before they closed in mid-November after 25 years.
“A respected member of the Healdsburg community will soon unveil exciting plans for this beloved site, bringing their enthusiasm and passion to the forefront,” said an Instagram post on Nov. 15.
Aerial photo of Lodge at Marconi. (Lodge at Marconi)
After a multi-million-dollar renovation, the historic Marconi Conference Center in West Marin has been transformed into Lodge at Marconi, a luxury hotel property located within the 62-acre Marconi State Historic Park just south of Marshall.
The Marshall site has a storied past. Originally home to native Coast Miwok, it was turned into a signal-receiving station in 1912 by Guglielmo Marconi, often credited as the inventor of radio. (Though the 270-foot towers that once anchored a mile-long antenna are gone, many historic buildings constructed for the Marconi Wireless Company remain.)
Then, in the 1960s, the Marconi property became the headquarters for Synanon, a drug rehabilitation program that turned into an “alternative lifestyle community” before eventually becoming the Church of Synanon in 1975. After allegations of violent activity and subsequent investigations that led to the controversial cult’s demise, the property was purchased by the philanthropic San Francisco Foundation and was eventually gifted to the California Department of Parks and Recreation in 1989, to be used as a nonprofit conference center.
After its moment of infamy, the West Marin property and its conference center have remained unknown to many. In 2022, the grounds were acquired by Nashville-based Oliver Hospitality, as part of a 55-year lease agreement. The hotel and restaurant management company then started the process of renovating the existing hotel rooms and event spaces tucked away on the 62-acre property.
“People have no idea that we exist. We’re just starting to get the word out, which is really exciting,” said Leah Fritts Vitali, hotel manager of the Lodge at Marconi. “Restoring these old, cool buildings is very satisfying.”
Guest room at Lodge at Marconi. (Lodge at Marconi)
Reimagined retreat
The renovated property overlooking Tomales Bay features 45 rooms and suites, all designed with a natural color palette that is inspired by the surrounding forested landscape. Thoughtful and interesting touches, including Heath Ceramic tiles and mustard colored, retro-looking phones, can be found throughout but no two rooms are exactly alike.
Spread throughout four buildings, accommodations range from rooms with king or queen beds to quarters with lofts that are ideal for families or groups of friends. All quarters have modern amenities, including refrigerators, electric kettles and Wi-Fi, but there are no televisions.
The reimagined lodging is inviting and comfortable, but it’s the coastal West Marin location that’s truly the star of the show. Almost five miles of trails crisscross the property, revealing picturesque views of Tomales Bay and Point Reyes and, for those who are curious in the property’s past, remnants of Marconi’s transmission towers. Picnic tables abound and there’s even a basketball court, volleyball and assorted lawn games, such as croquet and horseshoes, to help guests while away a day in the great outdoors.
The renovation and reopening of the Lodge is the first of many planned updates to the property. Still to come: a sauna, onsite restaurant and day spa with fitness center and guided yoga, as well as the renovation and reopening of the historic cottages that dot the state park. Programming including guided hikes, bird watching, beach bonfires and more is also in the works.
Rates at Lodge at Marconi start at $299 per night. There is no daily resort fee or charge for parking. The property is pet-friendly; there is a one-time $50 pet fee. 18500 Highway 1, Marshall, 415-663-9020, lodgeatmarconi.com
The oyster poboy at Oyster restaurant at The Barlow in Sebastopol. (Kim Carroll/For Sonoma Magazine)
Feeling like dining is finally fun again? We are, too. Underground pop-ups, food-centric wine bars, and farm-to-table favorites are gathering all kinds of momentum this summer.
For this list, our team focused on spots that have opened since 2022. We defined “restaurant” loosely — as in, “any place where you can get great food”– canvassing food trucks, popups, and takeout spots as well as more traditional establishments. And just for fun, we’ve asked each of our winners to share where they like to dine out with their own loved ones. The result: A snapshot of favorites you’ll return to again and again. Click through the above gallery for a few top dishes.
Cyrus
This is Cyrus 2.0, really, since the Healdsburg original closed a decade ago, then reopened last September as a dramatically reinvented concept in a former Sunsweet prune packing plant. It’s elegance perfected, as guests are guided through a Champagne and canapes reception, elaborate hors d’oeuvres at an interactive chef’s table in the kitchen, entrées in the main dining room, and finally, dessert in room of chocolate with a molten candy fountain.
Chef-owner Douglas Keane has brought back many from his original team, and a few signature dishes, including a gorgeous Billi Bi soup of slow-cooked mussels in a silky broth of heavy cream, butter, fennel, and saffron.
The 20-course, $295 per person feast showcases Cal-Asian creations that embrace the five essential flavors: sweet, sour, salty, bitter and umami. That can mean delicate squares of raw shima aji (horse mackerel) set atop compressed watermelon radishes and sliced kumquat with sorrel, finger lime, ice lettuce, and shio koji. Or a silky oval of Hudson Valley foie gras drizzled in peach syrup-an already over-the-top rich dish elevated with warm steamed buns and salty-sweet white miso butter.
Cyrus’s Bubble Lounge is open for walk-ins, offering wine and à la carte bites. 275 Hwy. 128, Geyserville. 707-7235999, cyrusrestaurant.com
Guests enjoy the Kitchen Table while chatting with Chef Doug Keane at Cyrus in Geyserville. (Chad Surmick/The Press Democrat)
Bloom Carneros
Owner Jordan Kivelstadt recently decided the former Kivelstadt Cellars WineGarten & Eatery needed its own name, just in time for summer. So welcome to this newly rebranded, garden-centric destination on Highway 12/121. The creative, Cal-Med menu from chef Jennifer McMurry, is so expertly crafted that it can be hard for newbie customers to score a seat amid all the regulars flocking in. Previously open only for lunch, Bloom Carneros now serves dinner, too.
Kivelstadt scored a coup in landing chef McMurry, a Sonoma County native. She works magic with simple, seasonal, local ingredients in playful recipes that burst with upscale flavor. Chill out with clever mortadella corn dogs or fried chicken bites dolloped in whipped Bellwether Farms ricotta and house-made Calabrian chile jam. Or fancy things up with burrata and pea shoot pesto over arugula, followed by a bowl of glazed pork belly with grilled Hen of the Woods mushrooms, pistachio pesto, burrata, radicchio salsa verde and nasturtium flowers.
Bring your kids and puppies, too. The garden is a perfect playland and offers a kid menu. And-how cool is this-the kitchen treats canines like royalty, with their own menu of rice, veggies, and chicken.
Sushi Grade Ahi Tuna with avocado, kewpie and served with chips from served with Twice Removed Rosé from the taps at Bloom Carneros in Sonoma. (John Burgess/The Press Democrat)
Farmstand
Most people equate the posh Farmhouse Inn with the equally posh Farmhouse Restaurant. But last summer, owners and siblings Joe and Catherine Bartolomei opened a casual sister restaurant on-site, offering à la carte meals.
Under the direction of chef Seamus Guevara, the eatery operates out of a corrugated-metal-roofed shed that houses a mobile kitchen and a freestanding wood-burning oven. Guevara makes his own sourdough pizza doughs, breads, and pastas, including a towering, crisp-edged lasagna layered with chunky meat sauce and four types of cheese, or a wood-fired pizza topped in pork guanciale (the insanely tender and fatty cheek that sings with umami richness and a salty, velvety back note) and spicy Calabrian chiles.
Relaxing poolside next to the inn’s gardens feels almost like glamping, especially when we tuck into luxuries like local roasted trout dressed with chewy fregola pasta pearls, tart olives, and peppery arugula and French fries dolled up with porcini mushrooms, truffle oil, and a flurry of Parmesan cheese. It actually feels more decadent to eat such finery in a more rustic setting. And here’s a bonus for our ever-busy lives: we eat fine food, but we also can be in and out in an hour.
At Farmstand restaurant in Forestville. (Aubrie Pick)
Maison Porcella
This charming family-run gourmet shop and wine bar recently started offering lunch during the week with golden croque madame sandwiches, pâtés and French bread, and other gourmet treats. They’re also pouring on the elegance in the evenings with regular soirées featuring chef Marc-Henri Jean-Baptiste’s housecured salmon, duck pâte, and other delicacies.
Everything feels sparkly and special, especially with warm hospitality from Marc-Henri’s wife, Maud Jean-Baptiste. The couple, who met when Marc-Henri was working at a high-end restaurant along the French Côte d’Azur, have poured their heart into the business, a former catering kitchen transformed with French antiques (including Maud’s grandmother’s oak armoire and kitchen tools), shiny copper cases brimming with prepared foods to take home, and a thoughtful selection of French and local natural wines.
The bar is becoming a regular hangout for the winemaker set, many of whom have been taken, as are we, with Marc-Henri and Maud’s earnest passion for their work and their shared love of French food-both delicacies and rustic luxuries like country pâté and pickles.
More winemaker dinners are scheduled in the months to come, and the couple hope to expand their hours in summer. 8499 Old Redwood Hwy., Windsor. 707-955-5611, maisonporcella.com
Croque-Monsieur from Maison Porcella in Windsor. (John Burgess/The Press Democrat)Rillion of pork belly, with Pork Jus and Salsify Pureé from Maison Porcella in Windsor (John Burgess/The Press Democrat)
Kapu
First and foremost, Kapu is a tiki bar. You know, the kind with little grass huts as seating areas, island iconography, and fruit-forward rum drinks that will knock you on your caboose if you’re not careful.
Kapu mixes and matches midcentury modern and pinup culture with island nostalgia, pirate booty, and tacky tiki elements everywhere. A large rectangular bar has open seating for a better view of the bartenders at work on their mysterious concoctions — the Fink Bomb, Tropical Itch, classic Mai Tai or Missionary’s Downfall.
If you know tiki, you likely know Kapu owner/manager Michael Richardson. He came to Sonoma County in 2020 to oversee the beverage program at Burdock Bar in Healdsburg, where he wowed locals with outlandish tiki drinks he first created for the famous Frankie’s Tiki Room in Las Vegas.
Chef Mike Lutz’s Hawaiian-inspired comfort food is ono-licious. After spending more than 20 years on the islands, he knows his grindz. Moody lighting makes it a little challenging to see the beauty of the food, but the flavors speak loud and clear. Poke nachos, fried noodles, and a tasty stuffed rockfish with sweet kabayaki Hollandaise are top picks. And the garlic chicken is a must-order, with crispy nuggets double-fried, bathed in shoyu, and sprinkled with furikake and crispy garlic.
From Left, Fink Bomb, Classic Mai Tai and the Tropical Itch at Kapu Bar, tiki bar and restaurant in the heart of downtown Petaluma on Keller Street. (Chad Surmick/The Press Democrat)
L’oro di Napoli
Opening a new restaurant is never easy, but the launch of this family restaurant on downtown’s Fourth Street was a little bumpier than owners Domenico and Taylor De Angelis would have liked. L’Oro di Napoli opened quietly last summer but closed for a few weeks in fall for a quick reset with a new business partner. It reopened in late November with a fresh ambience, complete with art of a Naples street scene, and a renewed focus on Domenico De Angelis’s ingredient-driven pizza menu.
The Naples-born chef knows what makes authentic Neapolitan pie, and he’s nailing it, night after night. The crust, blistered from a wood-fired oven, is puffy and crisp with an irresistible, slightly stretchy chew. The classic Margherita, topped with San Marzano tomatoes, mozzarella, and basil is a great place to start. Elsewhere on the menu, De Angelis takes some creative license with toppings but keeps the puz y, crispy, chewy crust.
There’s always an of-the-moment salad, and De Angelis plans to add regular pastas as well. If it’s on special, don’t miss the mile-high lasagna, with sheets of housemade noodles layered in tomato sauce and béchamel-a dish as exciting as the pizza.
Margherita, the queen of pizzas with sauce of fresh tomatoes, melted mozzarella cheese with fresh basil and EVOO from L’oro di Napoli in downtown Santa Rosa. (John Burgess/The Press Democrat)
Second Staff
When Sean Quan and Jenny Phan moved to Sonoma in early 2021 for Quan to take a job at SingleThread, the couple realized they missed late-night socializing with other industry professionals.
“We needed to find a way to hang out with people,” says Phan, “so we thought, ‘What the hell, we’ll just do it ourselves.'”
And so Second Staff was born, with a core group of six friends and a stable of different, cheeky pop-up concepts, including RageCage fried chicken, Space Balls boba and street snacks, and Small Men, with sandwiches named after different trim models of the Honda Civic.
Several friends have fine dining experience, so they recently launched a small-plates spinoff called FNCY + PNTS. Quan’s younger brother, Emmett, who is helping out in the kitchen while spending a gap year in Sonoma, calls FNCY + PNTS “the anti-tasting menu.” Diners carry cafeteria-style trays and choose dishes directly from the chefs. Nothing is over $15, and most dishes are less than that. It all feels very underground and understated-a food lover’s freestyle mix-tape of a meal.
“Restaurants should be a reflection of the communities they are part of,” says Quan. “But they should also matter and provide an insight into the community that you wouldn’t normally see.”
Years in the making, this 7½-acre culinary paradise fully opened just last summer. Set in the heart of the predominantly Latino community of Roseland, a gathering of food trucks entices with tastes of Oaxaca, Jalisco, Michoacan, Yucatán, and Mexico City. There’s also a vibrant al fresco bar, live music, and an adjacent craft market.
Mitote is an incubator for Latino-owned businesses, giving entrepreneurs like the food truck owners support to establish success. Crowds throng to some 10 trucks, including Lucha Sabina (fabulous wild mushroom tlayudas and molotes), La Victoria (brilliant zucchini and pumpkin-blossom quesadillas on housemade tortillas), Maria Machetes (wildly good griddled hot dog draped with bacon, mayonnaise and queso), and Gio y Los Magos (decadent enchiladas Michoacánas served with roast chicken and potatoes).
Colorful papel picado banners decorate the picnic tables, and savvy diners load up with bites from several different vendors and always share plates to uncover flavors like huaraches loaded with cactus and chiles or quesadillas stuffed with huitlacoche, an earthy, savory mushroom-like delicacy.
For a sweet finish, hit up La Churroteka, for impossibly light, crispy churros stued with chocolate, caramel, or creamy condensed milk.
Who knows seafood better than a sushi chef? Chef Jake Rand, owner and sushi master at the popular Sushi Kosho at The Barlow in Sebastopol, opened a sister restaurant across the street last November. The Parisian-style oyster bar and seafood spot has beautiful outdoor patio seating and recently expanded into a larger indoor space next door.
Oysters are, not surprisingly, a highlight of the menu. They’re served raw, baked, and fried. The rest of the menu leans on sustainable shellfish, fish, prawns and octopus, all named “best choices” by the Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Seafood Watch. Rand brings awareness to aquafarmed seafood-controlled cultivation of fish and bivalves in water. He also promotes the eating of filter feeders like oysters, mussels, and clams, which help keep ocean water clean, sequester carbon, and can protect shores from erosion.
Sustainability doesn’t always mean deliciousness, but here, you don’t have to compromise. Rand’s chile-dusted calamari with a kicked-up rémoulade sauce, a hearty oyster po’boy sandwich with a creamy lemon slaw, and seared scallops with brown butter are familiar yet luxurious. He makes his own aioli and cocktail sauce and has added fish and chips with duck-fat fries to the menu. Be sure to grab a bottle of bubbly to go with those oysters.
The oyster po’boy sandwich at Sebastopol’s Oyster restaurant. (Kim Carroll/For Sonoma Magazine)Mussels mariniere at Sebastopol’s Oyster restaurant. (Kim Carroll/For Sonoma Magazine)
Piala
The tiny, rustic hideaway holds a secret, serving Georgian cuisine from the Eastern European republic, alongside rare Georgian and European wines. Owner Jeff Berlin has created a casual, cozy place that invites you to hang out and play, though he takes his work very seriously. That’s him behind the bar, sharing his love of the region with anyone who wants to listen.
Before opening, he flew in a consulting chef from Georgia to teach his full-time chef how to make the unfamiliar-sounding dishes as authentically as possible. It’s hard to resist a clay crock of steaming-hot chashushuli, a soulful, aromatic stew of lamb head and neck with potatoes, tomatoes, chickpeas, and lots of spices and herbs.
Try the classic Georgian dumplings, too, stuffed with spiced beef and pork, kale and ricotta. And chvishtari, crisp-edged golden corn cakes oozing melted cheese, served with a side of lobio, a fragrant, garlicky bean stew for dunking.
Note: Berlin’s business partner is restaurateur Lowell Sheldon, who in 2021 was accused of sexual harassment by six former employees and, in one instance, of sexual assault. As a condition of the restaurant’s alcohol permit, Sheldon is not allowed to work at Piala nor enter the space when employees are present.
These chewy, crispy, double-baked, rectangular Roman-style pizzas first captured our heart as a pandemic takeout offering, and we were over the moon when a brick-and-mortar location opened in Sebastopol. The menu here changes weekly, with options dreamed up by husband-wife owners Nicholi Ludlow and Leith Leiser-Miller that celebrate the season.
Farm-fresh toppings include chèvre with fresh lemon and herbs; potato with chile oil, mozzarella, and crème fraîche; and hot coppa with Estero Gold cheese, mozzarella and hot honey. There’s always one vegan selection, several vegetarian choices and a couple of meaty slices. The pizzas are sold by weight (order by the finger width-three fingers wide is a good small slice and runs about $7) and trying different options is encouraged.
“We’re a slice house, and we want people to have fun, just have a little levity. We want them to come eat good food, hang out, chill and maybe have a drink and just be happy,” Ludlow says. “We’re not fine dining, and we’re not looking to make anyone intimidated.”
The couple launched Psychic Pie as a side hustle while working full time at San Francisco’s Del Popolo pizzeria, perfecting their recipe for a chewy-crispy, naturally fermented sourdough crust. They sold out completely by word of mouth and a business was born.
So why the name Psychic Pie? The couple aren’t psychics or mystics. Ludlow studied to be a podiatrist, and Leiser-Miller is a former field researcher with a Ph.D. in the biology of bats. Both walked away from academics for a life in food, using all their brainpower to obsess about things like dough and where to get seasonal tomatoes or sustainable meats while raising their young family in Sonoma (the couple are expecting their second child just as this issue hits newsstands).
“We want to be a mom-and-pop and focus on this community,” Ludlow says. “Everyone is warm and fun, and we want to continue to support the people here.”
Grilled Carrots with Black Sauce, made with herbs, feta, local honey, and fried cumin, at The Redwood in Sebastopol. (Christopher Chung/The Press Democrat)Window seating area at The Redwood natural wine bar in Sebastopol. (Christopher Chung/The Press Democrat)
The Redwood
Young restaurateurs and bar owners in Sebastopol are contributing to a forward-thinking food scene unlike any other, and that includes the city’s newest spot, a natural wine bar with excellent food called The Redwood. Owners Geneva Melby and Ryan Miller (both alums of local Thai standout Khom Loi) know exactly what the next generation of wine drinkers want in their glasses.
These new-school sippers are, in simple terms, an un-futzed-around-with style of wine that stands in contrast to the helicopter-parent winemaking of Napa and Sonoma. They’re food-friendly and often remain unfiltered, giving them an often funky, un-wine-like quality.
Melby is an excellent chef, whipping up stunning nibbles as well as bigger entrées for dinner. The menu is divided into snacks, small plates, big plates, and desserts and guests are welcome to eat, drink or both.
The Redwood’s Route One Pita and Dips include a lineup of smoky baba ghanoush, hummus, and herbed labneh that you’ll crave for days afterwards. Dishes like scallop crudo tart with slices of kumquat, fennel, and drips of fennel frond sauce is chef’s-kiss good. The menu changes seasonally, but will continue to include snacky tinned fish with potato chips and pickles, and heartier, vegetable-forward dishes and risottos.
Sonoma Eats owner Efrain Balmes arrived in Sonoma County in 2007 with nothing but a dream and a drive to make something of himself. Though it’s a worn archetype, it exemplifies the vineyard-worker-to-business-owner hopes of many in the Agua Caliente community. Working multiple jobs, he saved up to buy a $29,000 mobile home shared with multiple roommates. In 2017, he sold the home for three times its original price and used the proceeds to purchase a food truck he parked at the Barking Dog Roasters.
Balmes’s Oaxacan eatery serves up elevated basics like a mole enchilada with intense flavors –chocolate, roasted chiles, nuts and potent herbs-mixed into an almost black sauce and cooked slowly over several days. Simple shrimp tacos are served with a light aioli studded with juicy tomatoes. This dish is restrained rather than over-seasoned and drowning in toppings to mask cheap ingredients. Generous beer-battered Baja fish tacos made with catfish beats the pants oz more traditional cod, while Balmes’s chipotle aioli lends sweet heat.
Vegan mushroom tacos are so much more than a concession to the moment, elevated with avocado and salsa verde. They’re also great in the mix with other à la carte tacos, including carne asada, chicken, carnitas, al pastor, chorizo and nopales.
At Barking Dog Roasters, 18133 Sonoma Hwy., Sonoma. 707-939-1905; sonomaeatsmex.com
Vine Burgers
When James Byus III swung open the doors of Vine Burgers last March, his mission was to make the best burgers in town. Those in the know seek out the unassuming strip mall location tucked behind a weedy field that was the K-Mart before the Tubbs fire. It’s a gritty landscape that belies the quality food that Byus and his small team turn out each day.
There’s a burger here for everyone, from basic beef to feta-topped lamb with meat sourced from Sonoma County Meat Co. A selection of seafood sandwiches, including lump crab cakes and a Cajun tuna burger, are made in- house from scratch with seafood from local purveyors. All burgers are served on toasted brioche bun.
This is a burger joint even vegetarians can feel good about, with a veggie burger, several salads, and a robust list of vegetarian sides including mayo-slathered street corn and housemade fried pickles.
Regulars know to order a side of fried cheese curds from the “secret” menu, a once-in-a-while special that was so over-the-top good that Byus made it a permanent addition-dine-in only, though.
It was a wine sales job that drew the Maryland-born Byus to Sonoma County in the first place, so it’s no surprise that he offers a succinct but super-appealing globe-spanning wine list. There’s also a rotating list of craft beer on tap so burgers can be washed down the way they were meant to be-with a cold pint of suds.
3579 Industrial Dr., Santa Rosa. 707-536-9654, vineburgers.com
At Troubadour in Healdsburg. (Troubadour)
Troubadour
This pop-up dinner restaurant is refreshingly single-minded in its vision of elevated French bistro cuisine. A side project of chef Sean McGaughey, the intimate, multi-course dinner is served five nights a week in the same space as the nibble-size bakery he and wife Melissa Yanc founded in 2021. The couple is also behind the buzzy Quail & Condor bakery that opened locally in 2020 and a yet-to-open spot in the former Campo Fina. Yep, that’s four concepts in less than two years for the SingleThread alums.
The menu isn’t Cal-French or Mediterranean-French or another fusion. It’s just French, with all the unpronounceable but delicious sauces that have been perfected over centuries. McGaughey and his small team cook seasonal, locally sourced dishes such as duck à l’orange with crisp salty skin, Wagyu steak tartare with a cured egg yolk, petite escargot served in a Limoges teacup with creamy velouté and roasted garlic, and a thick tomato slice with tart sauce vierge and caviar.
The small kitchen at Troubadour, lacking a grill and many other staples of a restaurant kitchen, forces the team to think creatively and keep things simple. The four best seats in the house are at the counter facing Healdsburg Avenue. There, you can watch people go by (and be watched, eating) in the evening hours.
More private seats at the bakery counter are better for intimate dining, and groups of up to four can sit at a communal table. The vibe is a mix of irreverence (don’t miss the homage to Andre the Giant in the bathroom) and old-school French, with antique mix-and-match plates and a clubby San Francisco cafe atmosphere.
Calidanza Dance Company will stage the 19th annual Posada Navideña holiday celebration December 8 at Santa Rosa’s Luther Burbank Center for the Arts. (Will Bucquoy)
For many years, Steven Valencia of the Calidanza Dance Company tried to keep two very different parts of his world separate, almost as if he lived a double life. But in 2010, “a huge photo” of him dancing ballet folklórico ran in a local newspaper. The next day, he walked into his job as a corrections officer at a maximum-security youth correctional facility, and inmates and staff all had funny looks on their faces. “Everybody wanted to know, ‘Is this you?’” he recalls.
Walking the line between dance theater and the penitentiary, Valencia takes a lot of pride in helping shape the lives of kids in both jobs. “In the prison system, you get to see the other side—what happens to kids when they don’t have programming and things in their lives that are important to them,” says Valencia, a fourth-generation Mexican American.
Valencia’s Calidanza Dance Company will stage the 19th annual Posada Navideña holiday celebration December 8 at Santa Rosa’s Luther Burbank Center for the Arts.
Steven Valencia.
Reconnecting with culture
“Posada Navideña is the Mexican celebration of Christmas, held for nine nights (Dec. 16-24) and recreating the journey of Mary and Joseph as they were looking for shelter before the birth of Jesus. In America, we often condense it down into one night. For some people, it’s about discovery, and they’re learning about their culture through dance and music.
Other times, I’ll see older people in the audience in tears because it’s something they miss, something they remember when they were a child, when they were younger growing up in Mexico. It’s important for people to reconnect.”
Teaching the next generation
“I started dancing in elementary school and now we go into so many schools every year. We do an interactive assembly, where we’ll teach them how to do things like “gritos” (shouts) or we’ll bring a few kids up and teach them steps, so they’re learning about what they’re seeing and it’s not like, ‘Oh, that’s a pretty dance with pretty colors and pretty dresses.’” Dance as therapy
“I’ve been assaulted three different times. The last time was in 2017. I was out for about 10 months with a shoulder injury. I love my career, but prison can really bring you down emotionally, spiritually, and physically. I think having that balance in my life with dance, having something that’s meaningful and brings so much joy, has really left me with a very healthy balance where I don’t feel like I’m pulled down too much.”
Changing it up
This year, there’s a new piece from the state of Guerrero that takes a mixture of the different regions of Guerrero and fuses them together. But this one’s really about women empowerment represented in dance.
Usually ballet folklórico is male-dominated. A couple dances, with the male taking the lead, that’s what you usually see. We wanted to change the narrative and bring the women to the forefront, as the lead in this choreography.
The Sonoma Coast will experience some of the biggest tidal swings of the year in December and mid-January.
King tides typically occur at a new or full moon and when the moon is closest to the earth, and they cause even greater impact when they coincide with big winter storms. They’re of interest to climate researchers because they can give a glimpse of how the coast may be impacted as sea levels rise.
Waves crash into Duncan’s Landing near Wright’s Beach on the Sonoma Coast, Tuesday, Dec. 27, 2022. (Kent Porter / The Press Democrat)
Post up on the cliffs above Goat Rock or along the Kortum Trail to take in winter’s drama from a safe distance. Check tidesandcurrents.noaa.gov for tide tables.
Local conservation group Stewards of the Coast and Redwoods will offer docent-led king tide interpretive events along the coast in January and February (see stewardscr.org for information). Dec. 13 and Dec. 24, Jan. 11.
When visiting the coast, be aware of weather and water conditions and heed warnings. Never turn your back to the ocean and stay much further back from the water than you might think is necessary.
“Sneaker waves can sweep people and pets into the sea from rocks, jetties, and beaches as well as move large objects such as logs, crushing anyone caught underneath,” according to the National Weather Service.
Sometimes, as a designer, the hardest thing to do is to hold back. Paul Pavlak and Karen Gilbert, founders of SkLO, a Healdsburg-based company that produces handblown glass lighting and accessories, focused on restraint when designing the renovation of their 1,200-square-foot cabin-style home outside Sebastopol.
The couple shunned large additions and excessive ornamentation in favor of the humble, essential beauty of a smaller, cozier space marked by untreated redwood siding, stone slabs, and large glass windows to bring the outdoors in.
“It’s very warm,” explains Paul, who trained as an architect. “As an architectural point of view, and as people, we don’t want fussy stuff. We like things that are durable, things that will wear with you.”
The couple chose redwood for the exterior siding. (Eileen Roche/For Sonoma Magazine)The cabin’s cozy great room. (Eileen Roche/For Sonoma Magazine)
The couple’s daughter, Lola, now a sophomore in high school, was just a few months old when Paul and Karen bought the property, a 70s-era rancher and an adjacent outbuilding along a winding country road. The house was in fairly rough shape, with wall-to-wall shag carpeting, orange Formica counters in the kitchen, and a funky old circular fireplace that was the only source of heat. Oh, and there was a cat—an elderly, indoor-outdoor cat that had belonged to the original owners.
At the time, with their growing careers and a young child to raise, the couple didn’t have much of a budget for renovations. They painted inside, ripped out the carpet, and installed a makeshift kitchen, but other needed improvements, like a more functional bathroom and better insulation and heating, had to wait a few years.
“When Lola was little, I just remember getting up in the morning, and it would be like 46, 48 degrees in the house,” says Paul.
“You get pretty good at making a fire when you use it for your heat source every day,” laughs Karen. With Paul’s architecture training and Karen’s background in jewelry and product design, the couple never stopped picturing what would come next in the property’s evolution. When Lola was 10, they took on a much larger renovation of the space, moving into a single small bedroom as work began.
“Remember at the beginning of ‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory,’ where everyone sits in the bed together? That was us. There was nowhere to be, but the bed. And Lola was still little enough that we could get away with that,” says Paul. His design added a mudroom and a half bath at the front of the house, a fully updated kitchen, and a new family bathroom. They also replaced doors and windows, added insulation and central heating, and traded the old fireplace for an economical European woodstove.
The family streamlined material choices, layering in color with SkLO glass, books, and artwork. (Eileen Roche/For Sonoma Magazine)Karen creates simple holiday displays of foraged greens, lights, and SkLO glass in jewel colors. (Eileen Roche/For Sonoma Magazine)
As they updated the layout and made the house more energy efficient, Paul and Karen focused on maintaining the pared-back simplicity that had drawn them to the home. Post-renovation, it still has a “just the facts, ma’am” feel, with a thoughtfully laid-out main room that combines a kitchen, dining area, and living spaces, plus two identical, modestly sized bedrooms just off the living room.
The couple chose redwood for the exterior siding, durable and inexpensive basalt stone floors in the new mudroom, and oiled redwood kitchen counters, inspired by ones they saw on a visit to Jack London’s turn-of-the-century cottage in Glen Ellen. The wood for the bathroom countertop is from their old dining table, studded with small touches of paint from Lola’s childhood art projects.
At every opportunity, Paul and Karen sought out the most honest expression of the materials they chose.
“I remember when the contractors were putting up the pine boards for the interior walls, which we’d repurposed from the old flooring. They were trying to figure out how to space the joints so they were all perfect, and one guy was trying to fill in all the old knots, so it would be seamless. And I was like, no—I want that texture, I want to see those knots. I want to see those old nail holes underneath the paint,” says Paul.
Intentionally, the redwood siding on the exterior is untreated, and the interior floors are treated simply with tung oil. There’s no drywall anywhere, no polyurethane sealants, no window coverings to separate the home from the outdoors.
“Everyone’s kind of obsessed with permanence,” says Paul. “But impermanence is part of the deal, for all of us. And we embraced that in building. The redwood—it is probably going to fail a little bit faster because we didn’t seal it, but it also would look different if we’d sealed it, right?”
Karen says she appreciates how the renovated space maintains the connection to the outdoors.
“That’s why it’s kind of like camping,” she says. “You’re very tied to the outside in all the seasons.”
When the weather is warm, the house opens up to the breezes, with skylights and sliding doors and various window configurations. And as winter approaches, the family can close off the windows and doors, or perhaps build a small fire on the weekend. (Even though the new wood stove is highly efficient, Paul is conscious of how often they use it, as the particulates in the smoke affect the environment.)
Karen and Paul’s workshop and design studio is just across the courtyard from the main home. It is a functional, barn-like space with tile floors and space for drawing, prototyping, and metalwork. (Eileen Roche/For Sonoma Magazine)Karen pins up sketches and color palettes for future SkLO lighting and tableware. (Eileen Roche/For Sonoma Magazine)
Paul and Karen are minimalists by nature and keep the common spaces neutral in tone, layering in color through books and art. While all the walls in the main space are painted white, Lola, who has grown up to be an artist and creative like her parents, wanted more color and vibrancy in her bedroom. She left the pine paneling in her bedroom in its raw form and chose a brightly colored bedspread.
The cabin feels cozier and quieter in early winter, as Lola sketches on her bed or at the kitchen counter and Karen works at the dining table.
“We’re very homebody people—we all kind of have our own inner world,” says Karen. “I make things, Paul cooks. We’re out in the country, so you don’t just go out for coffee. We make everything here.”
With the main home updated, the family turned their attention two years ago to a 1940s outbuilding, renovating it into a design studio and workspace for their business. The new studio is an unapologetically industrial space, with sturdy tile floors and big windows that look across the courtyard to the house and let in beautiful light to work by. One corner is given over to machinery and tools for Karen’s metalworking and jewelry, and there’s a large table at the center where she and Paul can spread out prototypes and work together on new designs.
SkLO’s lighting and accessories are designed by Karen and Paul in Sonoma County but are produced by artists at a glassblowing facility in the Czech Republic. “There’s this allure of being creative and working with a team of people in this ancient tradition,” says Karen. “Glassblowing is a craft—an ancient, living craft. Things are made exactly as they were 200, 300 years ago.”
The simplicity of the home in all of its seasons remains at the heart of what the family loves about living here. This time of year, there’s always someone in the kitchen, often heating up water for tea or starting a batch of soup. Lola puts on headphones and wanders under the oak trees, lost in an audiobook. They hear deer rustling in the leaves down by the creek, sometimes in the middle of the night. And the early winter light is especially resonant, pouring in through the windows to warm the home indoors and out.
“It’s one of the most beautiful times of the year,” says Karen. “You go somewhere else and it’s so gray all the time. We have entire weeks when it’s sunny—the sun is low and it’s still warm outside. That’s the real appeal, I think, of where we live.”
Karen Gilbert, Paul Pavlak and their daughter, Lola. (Eileen Roche/For Sonoma Magazine)The SkLO showroom. (Adam Potts)
Building a Business
Karen Gilbert and Paul Pavlak founded SkLO 10 years ago with design partner Pavel Hanousek. The trio have a new trade showroom in Healdsburg, and their designs are produced at a glassblowing facility in the Czech Republic. As with Karen and Paul’s nearby home, the focus is on subtlety and process, paring back shapes to their essence while layering in vibrant color. Handblown pendant lights and sconces, jewel-colored vases and vessels, and elaborate glass-beaded wall art (a nod to Karen’s background in jewelry design) are staples of the lineup.
Early on, the three founders felt compelled to put every dollar they made straight back into each next project. But as they found their footing, the company expanded. This year the trio introduced beautiful fluted and frosted glass, and soon, they will add new furniture and tabletop accessories. “I feel like we’re finally making what we want to make, versus what we had to make,” says Karen. “You go through a phase in design where you’re just trying to put the pieces of the puzzle together and make something that people want. I think we’re finally at that phase where we have a language we can speak in.”
