Hidden behind a curtain of foliage on an otherwise forgettable stretch of Bohemian Highway, and marked only by a cryptic sign, La Bodega Kitchen insists it’s not a restaurant. A handmade placard above the bar makes that clear — the word “restaurant” in “Sonoma Wine Shop & La Bodega Restaurant” has been crossed out and replaced, in a scrawl, with “not a restaurant.” And yet, somehow, it is one. Sort of.
For 16 years, Bryan Cooper and Meekk Shelef have operated their low-slung Sebastopol roadhouse with the serene confidence of people unbothered by categorization. Depending on the hour, the place is a bottle shop, a social club, a lived-in family dining room rearranged for a gathering no one quite planned. There are banquettes and sturdy wooden tables that shift around to accommodate parties large and small. No one seems in a rush to turn anything over.
“We want to feel like your grandmother’s house,” Shelef said. She’s the general manager, host, pastry chef and designated hugger, embracing you like your mee-maw the moment you walk in.
But the kitchen doesn’t smell of any grandmother’s Sunday roast. Rick Vargas, a classically trained chef with Michelin credentials, has been cooking a fully plant-based menu since 2022, at the behest of Shelef (a lifelong vegetarian) and Cooper.
“He is obsessive about food,” Shelef said. “It took a while for him to come to terms with it (the plant-based focus). When he was younger, he was doing foams and towers of food. Now, he is helping the environment and elevating vegetarian food. It’s not just hippie food anymore.”
A focus on wine
If you ask Cooper, La Bodega is really a wine club that happens to contain a kitchen and, incidentally, people eating dinner. It’s all about perspective, and his is through the lens of a wine collector. His selection — mostly local, mostly small producers — is what draws wine club members and regulars, who often time their visits to collect their allotments before sitting down to eat.
Guests enter through a crowded room lined floor-to-ceiling with small-lot discoveries, but it’s Ori Zeigfinger who “makes things fun,” according to Cooper. The Israeli-born wine wrangler freely admits he doesn’t really like wine. His indifference, though, is part of the method: he is more interested in your reaction to the wine than his own. He tracks each nod or cringe on a tally sheet, and suddenly you’re in the middle of a tasting ($20 if you’re a member, $25 if you’re not) that feels like the antithesis of a staid, predictable winery experience.
“We’re weird on purpose,” Shelef said, without a hint of irony. It’s less a boast than a disclaimer. The hugs, the meatless menu, the oddball tastings with tally sheets, the living-room chaos — none of it feels engineered for effect, nor, as Cooper notes, for profit (the wine club is what keeps the place afloat).
At Sonoma Wine Shop and La Bodega Kitchen, everyone’s invited to the table for a meal and a glass of wine. But you might just leave with a few new friends — and a wine club membership you didn’t know you needed.
The food
The menu — three pages of appetizers, salads and pasta — is mostly evergreen with seasonal flourishes inspired by whatever catches Vargas’s eye at the market or in a neighbor’s garden.
Diners are encouraged to preorder online, a mildly awkward request, but one that spares waste and allows diners to focus on the experience once seated at the table. The descriptions are exhaustive, addressing allergies, preferences and vegan alternatives.
Best bets
Mezze plate ($24): Warm za’atar-spiced pita, creamy hummus, olives, labneh and craveable caramelized eggplant with pomegranate molasses.
Saffron and rose petal arancini ($21): Oversized risotto balls with melty mozzarella, fried and sitting in a pool of marinara.
Pear tartlet ($13): Flaky puff pastry topped by blue cheese, pear compote and port reduction. A menu favorite.
Mushroom and spinach ravioli ($32): This seasonal special is entirely vegan, with three types of plant-based cheese, an egg substitute, porcini mushrooms and caramelized onions. Good for being entirely plant-based. I’m a cream and butter girl.
French lentil soup ($16): I’ve been let down by lentil soup, but this is a stunner, with roughly 15 different spices, including ras el hanout and cardamom, onions, tomatoes and green lentils. Spicy zhug crema adds serious zip.
The price
Wine club members receive discounts on many menu items. The club is free to join.
The spot
2295 Gravenstein Highway S., Sebastopol, 707-827-1832, sonomawineshop.com