Want to go for morning coffee. Photo via @ulteriorepicure (Instagram).
Want to go for the new restaurant from Momofuku alums.
Wonderful, wonderful fresh Mexican food. Heart coffee, Unti wine, in-house tortillas and chips from organic corn. Come for chilaquiles before 11am!
Napa meets LA meets outer space. You’ll know what I mean when you step foot on the grounds. A striking new winery with beautiful modern spaces (indoors and out) to meet friends and get a new taste of the valley.
Great new producer, and I believe the only ones with estate-grown gruner veltliner in Sonoma. On the wine list at Frances, State Bird Provisions and other SF favorites. Fun barn for tastings, very relaxed and friendly. Email them to schedule a visit since they're not open to the public quite yet.
Rustic hipster-chic vineyard on the site of an old Spanish farmstead. The tented bluff overlooking the vineyards is an incredible setting for a tasting, reservations required. During member pickup parties they often collaborate with guest chefs, a special experience. Need to get back to see the hacienda now that it's been restored to its former glory.
Sounds like a fun estate and tasting room. Can't complain with an espresso bar built out of a Vespa either. Want to go. Photo via @tablehopper (Instagram).
Private tasting room in a new, modern space - by appointment. Want to go. Photo via @bayareawinecompany (Instagram).
Established in 1882, the winery is anchored by a true chateau. It's also the winemaker at the heart of the famous Paris Tasting of 1976, in which their 1973 Chardonnay was ranked above the top white Burgundies. Open 9:30 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. daily. Walk-in tastings available, though some require reservations. Photo via @bucketlistbums (Instagram).
Consistently some of the best sparkling wine in CA. Photo via @schramsberg (Instagram).
Delicious izakaya. So glad to see the culinary bar being raised in downtown Napa.
One of my favorite farm stands - complete with a 1930s refrigerator and a grind your own flour station.
Sounds like a great farm stand. Also recommended by Deborah Loris. Want to go.
A great place for a hike in rolling hills under the shade of oak trees. A mix of flat and more strenuous trails.
Want to go.
Want to go. Via Alex Tieghi-Walker.
Want to go.
Luxe farmhouse cottages dangerously close to San Francisco, with a pool that you won't want to leave.
Cool spot downtown, well curated wine and beer list. Feels like a place you'd find in the city. Ryan Harris and Kevin Folan have done a great series of pop-ups here for A Proper Sandwich.
Simple northern Italian, small cozy feel.
Want to go.
So much amazing meat. I made Momofuku ramen from their pork belly and shoulder, and there were some very happy people that night.
Want to go.
Enjoyed the spa. Definitely want to check out the rooms.
Enjoy something delicious by the pool. Not sure it really earns that Michelin star, but I'd like to go back after their Jan 2015 remodel.
Great spa and pool area.
Beautiful winery, cult Cabernet blends. The members' open house each year is quite an event. Bottles not for the faint of wallet.
Two generations of Kongsgaard. John and Alex. Father and son create the best single vineyard Chardonnay in Napa Valley.
Want to go.
Some of my favorite wines being made in California today. Their Merlot shows what beautiful things you can do with under-appreciated varietals. They also do some much more adventurous bottlings, like a dry furmint and a refosco (both of which I can't wait to try).
Sounds delicious! Want to go.
That pool.
Want to go.
Fantastic oysters (many of which they farm themselves in Marshall) and small plates.
#remarkable sandwiches, everything cured, pickled, prepared in-house. Currently available only for delivery at select vineyards, or occasional pop-ups at Cadet. Keep an eye out, you'll want to remember these guys...
A gem in sleepy Glen Ellen. Ex-TFL Ari Weiswasser offers wood-fired pizzas, pastas, and salads. Housemade ice cream sold by pint (not their forte). Delicious, cozy. A great find and option in this quiet corner of Sonoma.
Sounds like a good place to know in Glen Ellen, especially for wood-fired pizza.
Great wine shop in St Helena, also does tastings. Thoughtful collection of local and old world. Via Erin Sullivan.
A remarkable hospitality experience in Napa.
Family winery on a gorgeous mountain top. Private tastings available on request.
Beautiful winery tucked away in the Howell Mountain appellation. Tastings by appointment. And they make olive oil too!
Want to go.
Ryan says it's one of the better options in downtown Napa, just hold the truffle oil on everything. Service was spotty, boquerones, tuna and gambas were good.
Well respected wine merchant with a mix of smaller-production Californian bottles and imports. Via SF Chronicle.
Best selection of bitters I've ever seen. Almost absurd.
Want to go.
Recommended.
Want to go.
A delicious (and ridiculously popular) bakery and cafe, brought to you by Thomas Keller and Co.
Thomas Keller's Yountville bistro just down the street from French Laundry.
Refuel yourself and your car (literally). Nice selection of wine and snacks inside.
Nice tasting room in Yountville. Open 10am to 6pm daily.
*707.944.8523
Exquisite food, service and setting. A well-deserved legend of the restaurant world.
Organic, biodynamic winemaker; beautiful tasting room and grounds. Big fan of their vin gris.
Upmarket barbecue, not bad. Ribs are tender but could use more smoke.
Their rosé is one of Jon Bonné's top 100 wines of 2013 - "one of the mainstays of this beloved Napa property since Joe Heitz bought it in 1961, and it's better than ever." Open daily 11-4:30, no appointment necessary.
Via SF Gate - Larkmead's Napa Valley cab was one of their Top Wines of 2013, "a great example of modern Napa done right."
I was given a bottle of 1984 Joseph Phelps Insignia for my 21st birthday, and it was a spectacular wine. Hope to visit the vineyard soon!
Via Matt Brimer.
Want to go.
Small winemaker on a beautiful historic estate, producing Cabernet, Chardonnay, Sangiovese, and a Bordeaux-style blend. Tastings by appointment only ($60), available through the website.
As I remember it, a step above your average Napa tasting room, though experience still felt more commercial than I'd like. The actual vineyard tour sounds interesting (off-site, this address is the tasting room and cellar); reservations only, $40.
Well-regarded winemaker in the Stags Leap district. Tastings by appointment, weekdays only (!) - $45 per guest.
*merge with Factual listing (Factual geocode is better)
American, Californian restaurant. Bit of an institution in the Napa area.
*Website should be http://www.mustardsgrill.com
*merge with Factual listing on 1st St
Highly rated by New York Times, nouveau French country cuisine
One of my favorite wine merchants, bar none