176 Best Restaurants in Napa and Sonoma, California

Ernesto Martinez, this easy-going eatery's Mexico City–born chef and co-owner, often puts a Latin spin on farm-to-table American classics. Although he plays things straight with the Caesar salad, champagne-battered fish-and-chips, and baby back ribs, the organic fried chicken comes with cheddar-jalapeño corn bread, and the fried calamari owes its piquancy to the accompanying peppers, nopales cactus, chipotle aioli, and avocado-tomatillo dip.

Thanks to multiple plugs by Oprah, each day's fresh batch of English muffins here sells out quickly, but the scones, croissants, breads, and other baked goods also inspire. Breakfast brings pastries and sandwiches with scrambled eggs, cheddar, and bacon between a buttermilk biscuit; the lunch menu expands to include soups, salads, pizzas, and more sandwiches—turkey-pesto focaccia, ciabatta chicken-Asiago panini, and vegan veggies among them.

Not to be confused with chef Masaharu Morimoto's flagship sushi palace a few doors south, his pan-Asian restaurant serves dim sum, spicy Szechuan mapo tofu, orange chicken, and a slew of other Chinese-inspired apps, soups, salads, and entrées in a light-filled space with Napa River views. This culinary concept, which worked well for the chef in Orlando and Waikiki, proved a Wine Country hit, too.

Iron Chef star Masaharu Morimoto is the big name behind this downtown Napa restaurant where everything is delightfully over the top, including the desserts. Organic materials such as twisting grapevines above the bar and rough-hewn wooden tables seem simultaneously earthy and modern, creating a fitting setting for the gorgeously plated Japanese fare, from straightforward sashimi to more elaborate seafood, chicken, pork, and beef entrées.

Cindy Pawlcyn's Mustards Grill fills day and night with fans of her hearty cuisine, equal parts updated renditions of traditional American dishes—what Pawlcyn dubs "deluxe truck stop classics"—and fanciful contemporary fare. Barbecued baby back pork ribs and a lemon-lime tart piled high with brown-sugar meringue fall squarely in the first category, and sweet corn tamales with tomatillo-avocado salsa and wild mushrooms represent the latter.

Bookended by culinary gardens and constructed of corrugated-metal former shipping containers, redwoods felled by wildfires, and other ingeniously recycled materials, this 3½-acre open-air hangout has a block-party feel, especially at weekend brunch or when area musicians perform. The gardens inspire the seasonal comfort-food menu—summer tomatoes give way to fall beets in the burrata salad, for instance—with staples like fish tacos, grilled chicken wings, tri-tip, and plant-based variations appearing year-round.

An architecturally significant century-old bank now houses an artisanal ice cream parlor, a wine bodega, and a room with exhibits by the Russian River Historical Society. Along with the expected cups and cones of ice cream handmade from local organic dairy products, the former bank's main event, Nimble & Finn's, also sells pies, cakes, candy, shakes, floats, and coffee drinks.

Regionally farmed fish and other foraged and cultivated Northern California ingredients go into this restaurant's shareable seasonal plates, turned out in an open kitchen that faces a bar serving large-format cocktails as well as wines by up-and-coming producers and Wine Country mainstays. St. Helena–based designer Erin Martin supplied the mildly offbeat interiors, though most patrons dine on the Tuscan-theme courtyard patio in good weather.

Built in 1881 as a general store, Oakville Grocery carries high-end groceries and prepared foods. On summer weekends, customers stocking up on picnic provisions—meats, cheeses, breads, pizzas, and gourmet sandwiches—pack the place, but during the week it serves as a mellow pit stop to sip an espresso out front, picnic out back, or taste wines at Oakville Wine Merchant next door.

Often spotted at local farmers' markets and his restaurant's gardens, Oenotri's ebullient chef-owner and Napa native Tyler Rodde is ever on the lookout for fresh produce to incorporate into his rustic southern Italian cuisine. His restaurant, a brick-walled contemporary space with tall windows and wooden tables, is a lively spot to sample house-made salumi and pastas, thin-crust pizzas, and entrées that might include seared fresh fish or grilled rib eye.

Chef David Bush, who achieved national recognition for his food pairings at St. Francis Winery, owns this barlike small-plates restaurant inside an 1890s storefront, erected as a livery stable, that incorporates materials reclaimed from the building's prior incarnations. Starters often include oysters, ceviche, and deviled eggs with Dungeness crab and homemade yellow curry, meant to be enjoyed before moving on to braised-pork-shoulder tacos, shrimp and cheesy grits, or an achiote chicken sandwich.

Building on the success of Sushi Koshō across the street, chef Jake Rand opened this "Champagne and bivalves" sidewalk café specializing in raw and cooked seafood accompanied by sides like marvelously crispy duck-fat fries and an iceberg salad Louie with rock shrimp, avocado, smoked bacon, and confit tomato. Straddling two garagelike industrial spaces with indoor and outdoor seating, Oyster opens at 2 pm, making it a good stop for a late lunch or early dinner.

Best for lunch but also open for dinner, Palooza pleases with many beers on tap, jazzed-up pub grub, casual decor, and an often-packed covered outdoor patio. Pulled-pork and crispy-chicken sandwiches and beer-battered fish and fries are among the popular items, with prawn and braised-beef tacos and shredded-kale salads with sliced apples for those seeking lighter fare.

As the name suggests, the chefs at this restaurant with an expansive patio often packed on weekends are willing to experiment, starting with sushi plates that include spicy hiramasa (yellowtail kingfish) rolls with rainbow-trout caviar. Rotisserie chicken, wild-mushroom meat loaf, the buttermilk fried-chicken sandwich topped with Swiss, and a slow-roasted pork sandwich served with coleslaw are perennial favorites.

Inside a tall-ceilinged, brick-walled, industrial-looking space with reclaimed wood from a coastal building backing the bar, the chefs at Ramen Gaijin turn out richly flavored ramen bowls brimming with pork belly, wood ear mushrooms, seaweed, and other well-proportioned ingredients. Izakaya (Japanese pub grub) dishes like donburi (meat and vegetables over rice) are another specialty, like the ramen made from mostly local proteins and produce.

Crystal chandeliers and fountains worthy of a French château supply the pizzazz at Restoration Hardware's street-side café, and the all-day menu's starters (charcuterie, shrimp cocktail, crispy artichoke), salads, and mains (from a burger modeled on one from Chicago's Au Cheval restaurant to delicate Atlantic sole in brown butter) easily live up to it. The prosciutto is flown in from Parma and the burrata from Puglia, the greens are ever-so-fresh, and the plating impresses.

Ask local wine pourers where to get the best pizza, and they'll often recommend Rosso, a sprawling strip-mall restaurant whose chefs hold center stage in the large open kitchen. Two perennial Neapolitan-style pizza favorites are the Moto Guzzi, with house-smoked mozzarella and spicy Caggiano sausage, and the Funghi di Limone, with oven-roasted mixed mushrooms and Taleggio and fontina cheese.

The makers of Pliny the Elder and the Younger operate this cavernous brewpub with a vast lawn and outdoor patio on the site of their state-of-the-art brewing facility. Choose among 20 beers on tap to wash down beer-compatible pub grub—chicken wings with Pliny sauce, a malted-bacon burger with cheddar fondue, fish-and-chips, pulled-pork sliders and sandwiches, and a few salads.

Dark-wood walls, subdued lighting, and red-leather banquettes make for a perpetually clubby mood at this Rutherford hangout where the patio, popular for its bar, fireplace, and rocking chairs, opens for full meal service or drinks and appetizers when the weather's right. Many entrées—steaks, burgers, fish, rotisserie chicken, and barbecued pork ribs—emerge from an oak-fired grill operated by master technicians.

The menu at this upscale roadhouse with a sloping wood-beamed ceiling focuses on seafood and meat—beef, lamb, chicken, duck, and other options—with many dishes in both categories grilled. Start with the classics, perhaps a martini and oysters Rockefeller, before moving on to well-plated contemporary entrées that might include crispy-skin salmon or duck breast, a fish stew, or grilled rib eye.

Tourists, locals, and spa guests—some of the latter in bathrobes after treatments—assemble inside this casual resort restaurant or on its extensive patio for breakfast, lunch, bar snacks, or dinner. Lunch options include thin-crust pizzas, sandwiches, a cheddar burger, and entrées such as chicken paillard, with the burger reappearing for dinner along with fish, steak, the house-made pasta of the day, and similar fare.

Elegant Santé is the Fairmont resort's restaurant for haute cuisine focusing on seasonal local ingredients. You can dine à la carte, but the intricate dishes on the chef's tasting menu make it worth trading up.

The owner of this combination restaurant and marketplace escorts her customers on a round-the-world journey via artisanal sausages—traditional links and savory pork, beef, duck, and chicken variations. In her bright storefront edging Sonoma Plaza's southern edge (there's also a patio out back), sausages also appear in sandwiches, tartines, and impressively moist biscuits with creamy sausage gravy.

Join Peruvian locals enjoying a taste of back home at this strip-mall restaurant whose name means "flavor" or "seasoning." Several ceviche appetizers—including one with ponzu sauce for a Japanese twist—show the range of tastes the chefs conjure up, as do the empanadas, lomo saltado (steak and fries), and arroz con mariscos, a velvety, turmeric-laced seafood paella.

The initials in this open-air mall bistro's name stand for "Southeast Asian," reflecting the cuisines beyond Thailand's the chef prepares. Glass chandeliers of jellyfish and schools of fish glow softly above patrons who sit at dark-wood tables, the rectangular onyx bar, or on the patio, enjoying comfort food like spring rolls and "street fair" rice noodles with chicken, bacon, and vegetables before moving on to distinctively spiced entrées.

Decorated in shades of brown and white and softly lit at night, the Grille is the type of spot where old schoolers start a meal by washing down oysters on the half shell with a stiff gin martini or cut to the chase with vodka oyster shooters. The menu at lunch and dinner skews heavily surf but covers all the turf bases with grilled, baked, or roasted beef, lamb, pork, chicken, and fish dishes, plus risotto and pasta plates.

"Gorgeous, mouth-watering, over-the-top incredible" pizzas are the mission of this casual-contemporary, wide-windowed restaurant in downtown Forestville. The two types of pies—thicker ones cooked in a wood-fired oven and thinner ones with cold-fermented dough baked in an electric oven—live up to their billing, with tapas, meatballs, salads like the seasonal burrata-and-beets, and other small plates among the nonpizza alternatives.

The low lighting, well-spaced tables, and gas fireplaces at this Railroad Square Historic District restaurant create a congenial setting for dining on steak, raw-bar seafood, and sustainable fish. With entrées including 20-ounce prime rib and dry-aged rib eye—plus a shareable 56-ounce rib eye—there's no chance meat eaters will depart unsated, and nonsteak options like ahi tuna tartare and tamarind barbecue prawns surpass those at your average temple to beef.

The Petaluma-based owners of this hip-homey counter-service restaurant pay homage to Swedish street food, whose influences, it turns out, include Middle Eastern cuisine. Seasonal ingredients, for the most part locally produced and raised, find their way into kebabs, Swedish meatballs, Wiener schnitzel, gravlax, herring done "grandma's way" (and a few others), and korv kiosk (grilled frankfurters or sausages), all prepared with élan.