44 Best Restaurants in Napa and Sonoma, California

Skilled baristas churn out a dizzying array of coffee drinks—drip, cold brew, all the fave espresso options—in a clean downtown space with white walls and teal wainscoting. Pastries, avocado toast, quiche, and egg-inflected sandwiches (some vegan or gluten-free) are the breakfast hits, with banh mi and the like added for lunch.

No cheese is made at the factory, but the 2024 resurrection of this Sonoma Plaza fixture for picnic fixings surpassed previous iterations with the addition of The Butcherman, whose executive chef, Oscar Gomez, held the title of head butcher at Thomas Keller’s The French Laundry. Gomez and his team prep brisket, tri-tip, pulled-pork, turkey, and other smoked meats (there are also non-smoked options) for sandwiches or plates.

Two chefs who've starred at fine-dining restaurants shifted gears to open this informal eatery where everything's made from scratch, either by them or their vendors. The ingredients are all of the highest quality, which explains the long lines at breakfast for the Ham & Jam (buttermilk biscuits with molasses-brined ham and seasonal jam) and at lunchtime for sandwiches that usually include mortadella, chicken Parmesan with heirloom tomato sauce, and pimento cheese.

A bright-yellow slice of France in downtown Glen Ellen, this combination pâtisserie, boulangerie, and café takes its name from its husband-and-wife owners, Pascal and Pascale Merle. Pascal whips up croissants, breads, turnovers, and sweet treats like napoleons, galettes, and éclairs, along with quiches, potpies, and other savory fare; Pascale creates a cordial environment for customers to enjoy them.

Christopher Kostow gained fame as the award-winning chef of the Restaurant at Meadowood, the essence of Napa Valley haute fine dining, but the fare and mood are more down-to-earth at the order-at-the-counter deli he and his marketing-whiz wife, Martina Kostow, opened at the Oxbow Public Market. Bagels and bagel sandwiches anchor the breakfast menu, with pastrami and smoked-whitefish-salad sandwiches appearing for lunch and early dinner, along with matzo ball soup, latkes, and other stalwarts.

Seasonal pies that include Meyer-lemon-blueberry baked custard are the specialty of this white-walled, brightly lit pie palace with a few tables and barstool window seating. The bakers use heritage grains like buckwheat and farro in the crusts, filling them with local fruits and other ingredients, and, if desired, topping the ensemble with ice cream in flavors from Swiss chocolate and vanilla bean to Thai tea, salted caramel, and cornflake maple.

Longtime resident and community favorite Mags van der Veen runs this bakery and gourmet shop, for years called Big Bottom Market, where she serves soups, salads, and sandwiches with well-thought-out flavor combos. The sweet and savory biscuits are her variation on the recipe of a previous owner whose mix made Oprah's Favorite Things list.

A wife and husband with upper-echelon fine-dining credits run this bakery (set to relocate during 2025 from its original site at 149 Healdsburg Avenue) that the New York Times lauded as one of America's best. The recognition confirmed what locals have known since the shop opened about the ingredients, craft, and imagination that go into creating the bread, cakes, cookies, and pastries sold here.

Chef-owner Rachel "Ray Ray" Williams's Southern background, education at the Culinary Institute of America, stint at Meadowood resort, and experience as a graphic designer all inform the Austin-style gourmet tacos she serves in a stone-walled old building. Williams first gained notice at the St. Helena's Farmers Market for breakfast tacos whose novel combinations, high-quality ingredients, and balanced flavors and colors inspire pilgrimages from fans throughout the Bay Area.

Pick up town gossip along with your beverage—regular, espresso, and cold-brew coffees; various teas, enlivened kefir, and wellness beet, matcha, and turmeric lattes—at this combination shop and café committed to green and sustainable practices. Gluten-free bread and bagels (regular, too) are available for all sandwiches.

Pink on the outside, with tutti-frutti walls on the inside, Sebastopol’s hands-down favorite for all-natural ice cream and sorbet often appears in feature stories listing the nation's best shops. Mimi's Mud (espresso ice cream, cookies, chocolate chips, and homemade fudge) and strawberry made from local fruit are among the popular ice creams, with lemon, raspberry, and mango among the palate-cleansing sorbets.

Chef Efrain Balmes attracted such throngs for his "real Mexican food" truck specializing in his native Oaxacan cuisine that he finally went full brick-and-mortar, creating a colorfully casual order-at-the-counter space with wooden-top tables and pastel blue metal chairs (there’s also a covered outdoor patio). The tacos—fish, shrimp, potato, mushroom, pork, and an outstanding lamb one—and the signature mole Oaxaqueño sauce are the must-tries here, the latter with either an enchilada or a burrito.

A French-trained chef with Napa Valley haute-cuisine chops transformed a cavernous auto-repair shop on downtown's periphery into a clean-lined, order-at-the-counter homage to the Kansas City–style barbecue of his youth. Chef Darryl Bell Jr.'s access to the area's best protein and produce purveyors ensures steady lines for lunch and dinner (after 1 pm and right at 5 pm are good times to dodge the wait).

Lemon-ricotta pancakes, tiramisu French toast, an acai berry bowl, and avocado toast with feta and pickled shallots score high with patrons of this light-filled, order-at-the-counter brunch-all-day café that debuted in late 2024. Seasonal salads, chipotle steak, and teriyaki fried chicken sandwiches are good lunchtime choices, enjoyed indoors on the large front patio with plaza views.

There's almost always a line outside the bakery next door to Thomas Keller's Bouchon Bistro. The textbook golden-brown croissants star, and the brownies, macarons, kouign-amanns, artisanal breads, and savory sandwiches are equally alluring.

The efficient chefs at this down-home diner churn out comfort food with a touch more flair than the zingy Cal-hippie decor might lead you to expect. Huevos rancheros and other egg dishes top the breakfast (until closing) menu, along with pancakes, waffles, French toast, and vegetarian and corned-beef hash; burgers (beef, fish, black bean), tuna melts, sandwiches, wraps, and several salads headline at lunch.

Calistoga's flashy 19th-century entrepreneur Sam Brannan built the depot in 1868 to receive well-to-do spa patrons, but it was looking careworn until a 21st-century equivalent restored the wood-frame building, connected by a boardwalk to vintage railroad cars. One of four dining options amid the Calistoga Depot complex, which includes a few bars, the deli serves plant- and meat-based sandwiches, salads, and wood-fired pizzas.

Although it occasionally ventures out for special events, this walk-up food truck serving Italian-inflected fast food has a steady gig outside the Clif Family Tasting Room. From 11:30 to 4 (until 6 on Wednesday), order soups, salads, panini, or a mushroom, porchetta, or vegetarian bruschetta to go or to enjoy in the tasting room or on its back patio.

Two microbrewing brothers' longtime dream, this gastropub serves their ales and other area craft brews, plus kombuchas, ciders, stouts, seltzers, and sours. The beverages beguile, as do the flavors in dishes that might include a farro salad, a smoked brisket sandwich, a roasted mushroom melt, vegetable toast, and meatball sliders (good with the house IPA).

Breakfast, served through lunchtime at this bright-yellow French-style bakery and café, includes the signature omelet (sun-dried tomatoes, bacon, spinach, and Brie) and French toast made from thick slabs of cinnamon-walnut bread. French onion soup and cranberry-turkey, chicken with Jarlsberg, and (on the cinnamon-walnut bread) Monte Cristo sandwiches are among the lunch favorites.

The goodness at Karen Waikiki's roadside restaurant, which has more tables outside than in, starts with high-quality ingredients and authentic techniques. The stars include tamales (chicken mole, Niman Ranch pork, and seasonal vegetables), tacos filled with beer-battered fish or crispy beef, ahi tostadas poke style, and enchiladas and burritos.

A 1950s-style outdoor hamburger stand goes upscale at this spot whose customers brave long lines to order breakfast sandwiches, juicy burgers, root-beer floats, and garlic fries. Choices not available a half century ago include ahi-tuna and Impossible burgers and kale and Vietnamese chicken salads.

An homage to Jewish delis, Grossman's plays the greatest hits—blintzes, latkes, lox, chopped liver, and knishes, plus pastrami, corned beef, and Reuben sandwiches all on house-made breads—but mashes things up with quinoa tabbouleh, chicken shawarma kebabs, fish-and-chips, and other atypical deli dishes. The retro-eclectic decor (black-and-white ceramic tile floors, colorful tropical-bird-print wallpaper, chunky stone fireplace) feels nostalgic yet of the moment.

Sebastopol’s former Fosters Freeze location, now a 21st-century fast-food palace, won design awards for its rusted-steel frame and translucent panel-like windows. The menu, a paean to coastal California cuisine, includes oysters, fish tacos, ceviche, tostadas, vegetarian and beef burgers, and, honoring the location's previous incarnation, chocolate and vanilla soft-serve ice cream.

The fuel is more than petrol at this gas station–convenience store whose redbrick exterior recalls the heyday of Route 66 travel. The shop inside sells hot dogs, fresh scones from nearby R+D Kitchen, gourmet chocolates, and (in summer) ice cream—gas up, grab some picnic items, and be ever-so-merrily on your way.

The morning fare (some served until closing) at Occidental's neo-hippie go-to breakfast and weekend brunch spot includes order-at-the-counter huevos rancheros, omelets, eggs Benedict, waffles, pancakes, French toast, and "healthy alternatives" such as oatmeal, house-made granola, and quinoa and brown rice bowls with kale and eggs. Soups, salads, burgers, and sandwiches are among the lunch items at this laid-back space with seating inside a 19th-century gingerbread Victorian and on its wooden front porch and covered back patio.

A casual order-at-the-counter restaurant (affiliated with Priest Ranch Winery’s tasting room next door) serves filling comfort fare for all-day breakfast and lunch. The novel variations on morning cuisine include gnocchi replacing hash browns in an egg dish flavor-balanced with pickled onions, wild mushrooms, and chili aioli; the hit for lunch is a brisket-and-chuck smashburger on a Bouchon Bakery bun.

A longtime Bay Area caterer opened this retail shop serving soups, salads, sandwiches, and a few entrées to go or eat indoors or on the front patio. Supplementing staples like turkey, tri-tip, and roasted portobello sandwiches—the Caesar salad is a town favorite—are surprise items, says the owner, "we just feel like cooking, like pot roast when it rains or Thai wraps on sunny days."

The burritos, tacos, and quesadillas here will fill you up before wine tasting or help absorb what you've imbibed. The Super Burrito laden with cheese, beans, sour cream, guacamole, and your choice of meat provides a day's fuel in itself (wine workers also swear by the crispy carnitas); for breakfast (before 11), there's a burrito with eggs, your choice of meat, and potatoes, beans, and salsa.

Colorful on-a-stick natural fruit bars and ice cream bars known as paletas in Mexico are the main draws at the equally brilliant-hued roadside building where they and a few other sweet frozen delights are made. Mango, pineapple, lime, and guava are popular among the fruit-flavored items; rice pudding's the sleeper hit on the ice cream side.