707 Scout

It’s that time of the year when San Franciscans escape to Wine Country for the weekend if we hope to encounter any chance of sun (at least that’s my M.O.). I thought you could all use a little roundup of what’s new and happening in the…

Some quick 707 tidbits for you, starting with the opening of MIMINASHI in Downtown Napa from Curtis Di Fede, previously Oenotri. This izakaya restaurant is a departure from his Italian cookery (while still sourcing top-quality ingredients), with a menu featuring ramen, yakitori, noodles, rock cod karaage (deep-fried) with…

There are a lot of things happening in Wine Country, so let’s do a quick review. First, the name has been revealed for the restaurant Christopher Kostow and the Meadowood team (including restaurant director Nathaniel Dorn and chef de cuisine Katianna Hong) are opening in the former Tra Vigne…

By 707 correspondent Heather Irwin. Sign up for the BiteClub Newsletter. Napa’s recently opened NINEBARK will begin brunch service this weekend, featuring a lineup of sweet and savory dishes including bread pudding with crème anglaise, a fried oyster po’boy, smoked seafood Benedict, and the Ninebark burger. Morning cocktails…

By 707 correspondent Heather Irwin. Sign up for the BiteClub Newsletter. Yountville is abuzz with the news that chef Michael Chiarello will shutter his NAPASTYLE store and open a food hall in the space, with a mozzarella bar, meat-curing area, wood-fired pizza oven, nanobrewery, and a café that…

By 707 correspondent Heather Irwin. Sign up for the BiteClub Newsletter. The big news in Napa Valley this week: Chef Christopher Kostow of THE RESTAURANT AT MEADOWOOD will be opening a yet-to-be-named restaurant in the St. Helena space being vacated by TRA VIGNE. He will be joined…

By 707 correspondent Heather Irwin. Sign up for the BiteClub Newsletter. And…action! The NAPA VALLEY FILM FESTIVAL lights up Napa Valley from November 11th to 15th with more than 120 indie film screenings, plus glittering galas and plenty of food and wine events. This is Napa, after all. Food-…

By 707 correspondent Heather Irwin. Sign up for the BiteClub Newsletter. Farm-to-Table Dinner: I’m always a sucker for a dinners in a vineyard—the kind of stuff people from Milwaukee think is a daily thing for us Wine Country people. And while it happens often enough, there…

A report by Dana Eastland: As previously mentioned on tablehopper, the former Fagiani’s/The Thomas in Napa will now be NINEBARK, and the doors are now open. Hospitality and design group AvroKO has brought chef Matt Lightner (New York’s Atera) on to run the kitchen, and they’ve…

By 707 correspondent Heather Irwin. Sign up for the BiteClub Newsletter. Longtime Sonoma County restaurateurs Mark and Terri Stark have finally (finally) opened their sixth restaurant, BIRD AND THE BOTTLE, in Santa Rosa. It wasn’t without some labor pains, which included everything from permitting and ABC challenges to managing…