12 Best Hotel Breakfasts in Napa and Sonoma
Inveterate wine tourists like to make the most of their time. One way to squeeze in that extra winery is to fortify yourself with a full breakfast so you only need a quick light lunch—or a tasting that includes a food pairing—before happy hour or dinner. Whether that's your goal or not, these dozen lodgings will get the day going with a beautifully presented morning repast. At a few you'll meet and greet other guests and chat with the innkeepers in traditional bed-and-breakfast style, but at most you'll either have your own table or dine in-room. Unless noted otherwise, the room rate includes breakfast.
Inn at Occidental
Why it made the list
Each morning the inn's patrons descend below the lobby for coffee, pastries, juices, and house-made granola preceding a hot entrée. A few items, including the orange-cream-filled French toast and the creamy polenta with fruit compote, are so popular the inn supplies the recipes on its website.
Meadowlark Country House
Why it made the list
The two debonair gents who run this inn just outside Calistoga dazzle guests daily with full sit-down breakfasts accompanied by civilized conversation. When the weather cooperates, which is often, the magical meal unfolds on the main guest house's wide veranda.
River Belle Inn
Why it made the list
The chef at this 2017 Healdsburg property bakes a special pastry each day to break guests' fasts before the main course. The choose-one menu always includes an egg dish and items like Belgian waffles. You can breakfast in the dining room or your room as you please; in good weather many guests enjoy the meal on the patio or a lawn edging the Russian River.
The Inn on First
Why it made the list
Chef and co-owner Jim Gunther's morning repertoire includes more than 150 recipes. Corn-dog omelets and other specialties, along with partner Jamie Cherry's congenial conversation, make the two-course breakfast at this downtown Napa inn a most agreeable way to begin the day.
Gaige House + Ryokan
Why it made the list
Inn guests congregate for breakfast in the back of the creekside Glen Ellen inn's main 1885 Victorian, where the innkeepers set up a grand buffet. The longtime chef always cooks a hot entrée or two as part of the ensemble.
Black Rock Inn
Why it made the list
On most mornings the sun streams into the St. Helena inn's dining area, where owner Jeff Orlik serves guests a full sit-down breakfast, including scones he bakes daily. In between fixing and serving the meal, Jeff checks in with guests about their plans and makes last-minute suggestions.
Inn on Randolph
Why it made the list
Gourmet gluten-free breakfasts served in sit-down style in the dining room or on an outdoor deck have distinguished this downtown Napa inn since its 2012 debut. Chef Dianne King's recipes are so beloved she turned them into a cookbook.
Embrace Calistoga
Why it made the list
Breakfast is a cheery affair on the wraparound veranda at Embrace Calistoga, where host Brent Riedberger whips up a four-course meal in the back kitchen. If it's too chilly outside, guests take the meal in Embrace's 1873 Victorian's dining room.
Auberge du Soleil
Why it made the list
The morning meal at Auberge in Rutherford is à la carte, but the choices are vast, with everything from huevos rancheros and salmon pizza to Chinese congee with crispy pork belly. And that doesn't count the three-course weekend brunch, for which reservations are a must.
The Farmhouse Inn
Why it made the list
Except with lodging packages that include it, breakfast comes à la carte at this Russian River Valley inn. A freshly baked pastry starts the meal, followed by an entrée of, perhaps, Akaushi (Japanese beef) hash eggs Benedict or brioche French toast. Reservations are recommended, especially for summer weekends.
Poetry Inn
Why it made the list
When the weather permits, Poetry's guests take breakfast on their valley-view decks, on many days witnessing the morning fog burning off. If it's too cool, the meal is served in-room as the same view unfolds. The Yountville inn's two-course affair begins with fresh fruit, juice, coffee, and pastries from chef Thomas Keller's Bouchon Bakery. After a suitable pause, a cooked entrée follows.
SingleThread Farms Inn
Why it made the list
SingleThread is known for its destination restaurant's prix-fixe multicourse dinners, but the morning chefs prepare breakfasts with similar precision. Daily choices range from traditional American and British dishes to French and Japanese, served in-room, in the Healdsburg inn's communal "study," or, in fine weather, amid the rooftop garden that supplies some of the meal's ingredients.
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