Holy Sheboygan, Bratman! The Wurst restaurant in Healdsburg has opened, and boy is it a sausage fest.
Featuring eight kinds of Wisconsin-made wursts, $5 brewskies and cream puffs topped with warm chocolate sauce, The Wurst is one of Wine Country’s best summer restaurant openings.
A Detroit native, owner Charles Bell knows his sausage, offering up “real deal” sausages with caramelized onions, hot peppers, sweet peppers and sauerkraut. Giving a major assist with the opening menu and working in the kitchen, local chef (and new mom) Tracey Shepos formerly of Stark’s.
Recounting the brats of his Midwestern childhood, Bell, who is also a former MC5 bassist and finance guy, said creating the space on paper was good therapy during cancer treatment several years ago. “This is what I’ve always wanted to do,” he said.
What to try: Grab a traditional “Wurst” made with pork, fennel, parsley and smoked paprika, savory Sheboygan Brats, Detroit Polish (a mix of beef, pork, beers and onions) and the Harissa Hottie with pork beef, apricot, harissa, habanero and coriander. All are $7.25, with some fancier concoctions running $8.75. The lineup also includes two chicken sausages, a Nathan’s Famous hot dog for kids and a third-pound locally-sourced beef hamburger called the Smash burger ($8.75) served on a pretzel bun.
When you’re the Wurst, the details that make all the difference. Fresh buns from nearby Costeaux Bakery, five different types of dipping sauces for hand-cut fries (truffle aioli, Liar’s Dice BBQ sauce, peppercorn ranch) and a stellar lineup of condiments including curry ketchup, sweet mustard and several types of pickle relish delight. Somehow we missed out on the Beer Cheddar sauce, but hopefully it will return to the menu shortly.
Endings are sweet, with simple homemade milkshakes and an ice cream puff filled with vanilla ice cream, milk chocolate fudge from Detroit-based confectionary Sanders, and crushed peanuts.
It’s the best of the Wurst in Healdsburg.
The Wurst, 22 Matheson St., Healdsburg. Open daily at 11am for lunch an dinner.
I ate there last night and here is the negative. The pretzel bun could have been warmer, and tarragon aioli doesn’t belong on french fries. The positive: EVERYTHING ELSE! The service was great, the burgers were awesome, the sausages were juicy and delicious and the french fries are divine. The dipping sauces for the fries were all really good but the Maytag blue cheese one and the liars dice BBQ were reason enough to come back. The espresso malt was also a must try. This place is a definite repeat!
Erin, I beg to differ regarding the tarragon aioli. Over in Europe, fries are eaten with mayo or mayo-based sauces. That’s how fries are meant to be eaten.
I can’t eat fries without aioli anymore. Too delish.
3
This place is one of the best places in N. Cali. Great prices for great food. The staff is awesome too. We had lots of questions and they answered each one. Love the location and the all the happy faces.
This place is one of the best places in N. Cali. Great prices for great food. The staff is awesome too. We had lots of questions and they answered each one. Love the location and the all the happy faces.
Way overpriced for this type of food. Came in for lunch with a coworker, we each had a sausage meal with a soft drink and the bill was $28. WHAT? $28. Thats nuts. Doubt it will not last long at these prices.
Food was just ok. worth a try but thats it.
Way overpriced for this type of food. Came in for lunch with a coworker, we each had a sausage meal with a soft drink and the bill was $28. WHAT? $28. Thats nuts. Doubt it will not last long at these prices.
Food was just ok. worth a try but thats it.
Went for lunch this past Sunday with my wife and three kids and it was great! I didnt think the price was unreasonable, if something is good, Im willing to pay for it, and this was good. The Polish sausage had a snap you wouldnt believe when you bite into it, and the burger my son got was fantastic, it had me second guessing my choice of a brat. I will definitely be going back, only next time, I am not going to get too many condiments, the sausages and burger are too good to cover up. Nice selection of drinks other than the routine fountain sodas, and they had Arrogant Bastard on tap!! And the owner is super nice and really wanted to know what we thought of the food. Only thing I would change is the onion rings, they were a bit bready, but thats my opinion. Will be returning very soon!
Went for lunch this past Sunday with my wife and three kids and it was great! I didnt think the price was unreasonable, if something is good, Im willing to pay for it, and this was good. The Polish sausage had a snap you wouldnt believe when you bite into it, and the burger my son got was fantastic, it had me second guessing my choice of a brat. I will definitely be going back, only next time, I am not going to get too many condiments, the sausages and burger are too good to cover up. Nice selection of drinks other than the routine fountain sodas, and they had Arrogant Bastard on tap!! And the owner is super nice and really wanted to know what we thought of the food. Only thing I would change is the onion rings, they were a bit bready, but thats my opinion. Will be returning very soon!
Overpriced, great service, great location, nice menu, unfortunately the prices will keep us from returning.
Overpriced, great service, great location, nice menu, unfortunately the prices will keep us from returning.
This place is great, I had a good meal and the service was top notch. Am hoping they will start selling some of the uncooked sausage to go because it’s hard to have just one, want to try the others.
My only complaint is that I wish they had more comfortable seating, the stools aren’t great for aging Boomers, LOL.
This place is great, I had a good meal and the service was top notch. Am hoping they will start selling some of the uncooked sausage to go because it’s hard to have just one, want to try the others.
My only complaint is that I wish they had more comfortable seating, the stools aren’t great for aging Boomers, LOL.
Good job, Heather — Thanks for keeping us on our toes here in Healdsburg. I too dropped by Wurst yesterday, Charles has done a great job implementing his vision. Fun place — smells were enticing, great brews on tap, good vibes all around! (BTW the beef is grass-fed as well as local, a big plus for meatheads!)
Good job, Heather — Thanks for keeping us on our toes here in Healdsburg. I too dropped by Wurst yesterday, Charles has done a great job implementing his vision. Fun place — smells were enticing, great brews on tap, good vibes all around! (BTW the beef is grass-fed as well as local, a big plus for meatheads!)
The BBQ slaw burger is awesome. I talked to the owners and the burger meat is from J Brand in Chalk Hill (local), the buns are from costeaux, liars dice sauce (locaal Murphy Goode) and some of the sausages are locals. In regards to the kids dog. My son loved it and he actually ate the whole thing which is rare for him. The dill/tarragon dipping sauce I liked. I thought it was a nice switch up for the fries. The dessert is really really good and the chocolate chip mint shake is really really good. Thinking about it makes me hungry. I wish they delivered.
The BBQ slaw burger is awesome. I talked to the owners and the burger meat is from J Brand in Chalk Hill (local), the buns are from costeaux, liars dice sauce (locaal Murphy Goode) and some of the sausages are locals. In regards to the kids dog. My son loved it and he actually ate the whole thing which is rare for him. The dill/tarragon dipping sauce I liked. I thought it was a nice switch up for the fries. The dessert is really really good and the chocolate chip mint shake is really really good. Thinking about it makes me hungry. I wish they delivered.
I ate there last night and here is the negative. The pretzel bun could have been warmer, and tarragon aioli doesn’t belong on french fries. The positive: EVERYTHING ELSE! The service was great, the burgers were awesome, the sausages were juicy and delicious and the french fries are divine. The dipping sauces for the fries were all really good but the Maytag blue cheese one and the liars dice BBQ were reason enough to come back. The espresso malt was also a must try. This place is a definite repeat!
Erin, I beg to differ regarding the tarragon aioli. Over in Europe, fries are eaten with mayo or mayo-based sauces. That’s how fries are meant to be eaten.
I can’t eat fries without aioli anymore. Too delish.
I assume they are making their own sausages, correct? -less of course Nathan’s famous (yuck) for the kids.
They are shipping them in from Wisconsin. When I asked Charles, he said that for what it cost to have it made here, it was more cost effective to get “the real thing” from Wisconsin. With that said, the beef for the burgers is local, as are many of the other products (Liar’s Dice BBQ sauce made from wine from their next door neighbor). I think in this case, having an “authentic” product outweighs the “local” factor.
Also I think I read their rolls are from Costeoux just down the street.
Oh, I don’t mean the local thing, I just mean I can get some GREAT sausages from Martindales and sautee my own bell peppers, onions and sauerkraut and make a great dog, for way less than 8 dollars…just saying, in fact we do this meal almost weekly!
8 bucks is a pretty cheap deal in Healdsburg – of course it’s going to be cheaper at home. They gotta pay the rent. Speaking of rent, The Wurst is in a really smart location, just a few steps from the HBG.
I went there and enjoyed my low brow meal there. It’s a bit sterile of a place to hangout, but the sausages were tasty and fries were well done. I’ll be returning.
I assume they are making their own sausages, correct? -less of course Nathan’s famous (yuck) for the kids.
They are shipping them in from Wisconsin. When I asked Charles, he said that for what it cost to have it made here, it was more cost effective to get “the real thing” from Wisconsin. With that said, the beef for the burgers is local, as are many of the other products (Liar’s Dice BBQ sauce made from wine from their next door neighbor). I think in this case, having an “authentic” product outweighs the “local” factor.
Also I think I read their rolls are from Costeoux just down the street.
Oh, I don’t mean the local thing, I just mean I can get some GREAT sausages from Martindales and sautee my own bell peppers, onions and sauerkraut and make a great dog, for way less than 8 dollars…just saying, in fact we do this meal almost weekly!
8 bucks is a pretty cheap deal in Healdsburg – of course it’s going to be cheaper at home. They gotta pay the rent. Speaking of rent, The Wurst is in a really smart location, just a few steps from the HBG.
I went there and enjoyed my low brow meal there. It’s a bit sterile of a place to hangout, but the sausages were tasty and fries were well done. I’ll be returning.