SONOMA
COUNTRY
by Rich Rubin
With some of the country’s richest
harvests readily available to local chefs, it’s no
surprise that the culinary scene of Sonoma County is so
alluring. Stretching from the Pacific Ocean through the
fabled Russian River area to such upscale towns as Sonoma
and Healdsburg, there’s a Northern California mellowness
to the restaurants, and a devotion to using the freshest
ingredients. Visitors to this area will experience firsthand
where “California cooking” originated while
also having the opportunity to enjoy some of the best
wines produced in America. From new agey Sebastopol to
tres gay Guerneville, Sonoma County is a gourmet’s
dream come true.
APPLEWOOD INN (Guerneville)
Applewood Inn is a haven of low-key refinement
in the heart of the Russian River area. Just minutes
from the bars and shops of “downtown” Guerneville,
fountains, archways, courtyards, and statuary create
an Old World feel in the heart of Russian River. Yet,
the wonderful food at this top-notch restaurant is very
California: creative without being indulgent, with just
a hint of the Continent. For a prime experience, do
the five-course tasting menu, where you might enjoy
such delights as apple/endive salad with creamy, light
blue cheese dressing, halibut with squid ink risotto,
or succulent duck breast with celery root and tiny,
pinkish onions. Soft music makes conversation easy,
as does the wide variety of wines, which you can pair
with your tasting menu selections if you like. “Tout
va Bien,” proclaims a plaque on one wall, and from
your first spoonful of chilled fresh pea soup to the
final bite of blueberry clafouti with Grand Marnier
ice cream, you’ll be inclined to agree—particularly
if all you have to do after dinner is float back to
your handsomely-designed room just steps away. Even
if you aren’t staying here, though, pay a visit
to Russian River’s nicest restaurant. 13555 Highway
116, Guerneville. Tel: 707-869-9093. www.applewoodinn.com
K & L BISTRO (Sebastopol)
This classy little spot, right on Sebastopol’s
Main Street, looks like the quintessential French bistro:
brick wall, bentwood chairs, a casual, clean feel. It’s
a fairly small room, with a cheery feeling, and the
food is top-notch, featuring such bistro classics as
mussels marinière and steak frîtes. Try
the Meyer lemon and asparagus risotto, flavored with
these wonderful sweet/tart California lemons, or the
roasted Alaskan Halibut with baby artichokes and tomato
confit. Even the burger, with beef from Meyer Ranch,
comes with a gruyere topping. With a Michelin star to
its credit, it’s Sebastopol’s top dining spot,
and somehow manages to be both classy and comfy at once.
119 S. Main St., Sebastopol.
Tel: 707-823-6614.
ZAZU RESTAURANT (Santa Rosa)
Zazu is, simply, one of my favorite spots in Sonoma
County. It’s a long, narrow room, casual, low-key,
with copper-topped tables, wood floors, and an eclectic
assortment of mirrors lining the walls. The no-frills
look hardly prepares you for chef Duskie Estes’
amazing food, bursting with fresh flavor and put together
in combinations that are intriguing without being overly
clever. You know the food’s going to be fresh when
you enter past gardens overflowing with lettuce, herbs,
chard, fennel, fava beans, and strawberries. Estes tries
to get all ingredients from within fifty miles, and
the result is delicious. Start with grapefruit and beet
salad, tossed in light vinaigrette and arranged among
greens from their garden. Continue with a flatiron steak,
accompanied by little ravioli stuffed with blue cheese,
or perhaps a vegetarian lasagna featuring their house-made
ricotta, freshly-prepared pasta, asparagus, and the
leaves of the fava plants. Love seafood? Monterey Bay
calamari is tossed with a freshly-made tomato sauce.
Whatever you do, save room for dessert, whether it’s
goat’s milk panna cotta with lavender blossoms
from the plant that greets you at the entrance, or the
signature dish, peanut butter cookies and bananas dipped
in a rich, dark chocolate fondue. 3535 Guerneville Rd.,
Santa Rosa. Tel: 707-534-4814. www.zazurestaurant.com
RIVER’S END (Jenner)
With the view from River’s End, you really
don’t need anything else. Overlooking the point
where the Russian River flows into the Pacific, through
your window (or from the deck, in nice weather) lies
a wonderland of water rushing over rocks, sea lions
cavorting in the sun, and the wind rustling through
overhanging trees. What a pleasure, then, to discover
that the food does more than live up to the setting.
It tops it. While the concentration is on seafood, there’s
much more on offer here. Beet salad, bursting with flavor,
is arranged in a tri-color tower, packed with goat cheese,
dotted with nuts, and given a color/flavor hint of orange
zest. Clam chowder is amazingly light and delicately
seasoned, not at all the glumpy commodity you might
be used to. Halibut comes encrusted with almonds, while
“kicking ahi” features rare-seared tuna over
a bed of fresh greens, with avocados and Mandarin oranges.
Sonoma county duck breast is served with a cherry/brandy
sauce, with the leg confit served over wilted spinach,
while dedicated carnivores go for filet mignon smoked
over apple wood. Perfect setting, perfect food. 11048
Highway 1, Jenner. Tel: 707-865-2484. www.ilovesunsets.com/restaurant
UNDERWOOD BAR & BISTRO (Graton)
 In
the blink-and-you-miss-it town of Graton, Underwood
Bar & Bistro is a winner. Bright, airy, and casual,
these two rooms (one includes the long bar, one is purely
dining) have a northern California/Continental chic,
with lemon-hued walls trimmed in darker yellow and wainscotted
in dark gray, whirring ceiling fans, and tulip-shaped
sconces. They serve a wide variety of menus, with tapas
filling in between lunch and dinner, and a late-night
menu for those enjoying the voluminous nightlife of
Graton (population around 2,000). Soups change daily,
though you should demand they make the amazing fire-roasted
eggplant and pepper soup, with pomegranate molasses
and crème fraiche, a regular. The tapas menu
holds such delightful small plates as an anchovy crostini
with an interesting combination of tastes (quince paste,
capers, and peppers), or a wonderful goat cheese/caramelized
onion tart. Courses from Catalan fish stew to ceviche
span the globe. The beautifully prepared, creative cuisine
is belied by the low-key approach. 9113 Graton Rd.,
Graton. Tel: 707-823-7023. www.underwoodgraton.com
RAVENOUS (Healdsburg)
The minute you enter Ravenous you know it’s
going to be fun. Walls are tangerine-hued. Blackboards
hold chalked “paintings” of landscapes and
flowers. A long wooden table lets you meet fellow diners.
Fixtures are shaped like twigs. A massive flagstone
patio makes a restful setting under the trees. The bar
is lime green. The food is equally fun, with the daily
menu written in curvy script and featuring such dishes
as buttermilk-brined, fried “little chicken,”
lime-grilled mahi mahi with cumin/tomato vinaigrette,
or Dungeness crab cakes with ginger/lemon/cilantro aioli.
Salads can be many-layered, like the goat cheese, organic
lettuce, toasted pecan, and blood orange combo, or as
simple as a classic Caesar. The bar’s a popular
late-night gathering spot for an eclectic Sonoma County
crowd. 420 Center St., Healdsburg. Tel: 707-431-1302.
EDK (Sonoma)
EDK, located in the town of Sonoma’s elegant
designer El Dorado Hotel, has a chic, unfussy black-and-white
look and an airy feel. The large room boasts windows
opening onto the quiet Sonoma street and an open kitchen
at one end, while a massive patio makes for shady dining
under the overhanging fig tree. The cuisine is similarly
clean-lined, from a “feast of olives” to a
warm artichoke tart or house-made charcuterie. Chicken
breasts from nearby Petaluma are served with a squash
blossom risotto, while their gazpacho, with prawns,
clams, and avocado, is a meal in itself. Dessert? You
can’t lose with a passionfruit mascarpone mousse,
which graciously blends two of the best foods on earth,
while a chocolate sea salt cake makes for an unusual
and winning combination. Then again, you might want
to try a trio of yogurt panna cotta with a toasted coconut
cream “lollipop,” almond financier cake, and
vanilla bean-passionfruit tart. 405 First St. W., Sonoma.
Tel: 707-996-3030. www.eldoradosonoma.com
CENTRAL MARKET (Petaluma)
It’s no coincidence that this lovely restaurant
is called Central Market, as it could be a showcase
for Sonoma County’s bounty of ingredients, from
local cheeses to artichokes and arugula grown nearby.
“Slow food” is the clarion call here, and
chef Tony Najiola combines his New Orleans roots with
extensive experience in New York and San Francisco.
From a saffron-tinged fish soup to scallops with a vegetable/bacon
hash, the combinations of flavors and textures are creative
without being overdone, fascinating without getting
crazy. Pork confit and pan-roasted peppers rest nicely
on a bed of cannellini beans, while slow-cooked lamb
shank feels at home atop basil mashed potatoes. The
airy, earthy feel of the restaurant contributes to the
market-fresh, lovingly prepared nature of Najiola’s
cuisine. 42 Petaluma Blvd. N., Petaluma. Tel: 707-778-9900.
www.centralmarketpetaluma.com
[Published:
November, 2008]
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