You don’t have to understand impressionism to admire a Monet painting. Consider every doctor’s office or freshman dorm room they grace with blurry beauty. The chaotic overlapping drips of a Jackson Pollock, however, require a little more context to appreciate. Both are beautiful, but one takes a little more effort to understand. Fern Bar, which opened in October 2018 in Sebastopol’s Barlow, is beautiful and is a spot that needs a little context.

Part lounge, part restaurant, it’s the latest addition to restaurateur Lowell Sheldon’s lineup of disparate eateries including Lowell’s and Handline. Each has a distinctive point of view — casual Latin-inspired, seasonal Italian or New American — bound together by Sheldon’s unwavering commitment to hyperlocal ingredients. 

While Lowell’s was my favorite restaurant of 2018 and Handline has become a family favorite for homemade tortillas and fresh seafood it’s taken me longer to understand the ambiguity of Fern Bar.

With its lush greenery, elevated craft cocktails, flea-market chic and ambitious menu from Chef Joe Zobel, it’s not a simple bar. There are no throw-away bar snacks or burgers, no plain-Jane cocktails. Fern Bar is something entirely of its own. But it’s also not exactly a restaurant.

Sitting down with Zobel, who is a co-owner of Fern Bar and the former chef of Lowell’s, a clearer picture emerges. For one, the chef was eager to spread his culinary wings on this menu after more than a decade of cooking rustic Italian.

Zobel’s menu makes a trip through American cuisine with Indian Fry Bread inspired by his native Southwest, along with California-inspired chicken liver mousse with dehydrated beet chips, spiced crumble and pistachios, brilliant pink pickled quail eggs, or the Umami Bomb with an array of mushrooms and nutritional yeast. Fried chicken with hot sauce crema nods to the South. And it keeps going: Asian chive pancake with charred cabbage ($10), green curry trout ($23) comingle with and French panisse fries making the menu’s point of view a little hard to discern.  Zobel, however, likes the idea of branching out, and separating himself from what he’s done in the past.

“I like to start with something and then spin it,” he said, “We want to surprise people with what’s on the plate. With Fern Bar we want to do something that Sonoma County has never seen.”

Within that context, Fern Bar, and it’s constantly evolving menu, feel like an adventure in eating and a window into the wildly creative mind of Zobel. While there are spectacular wins and daring misses, but overall, I consider us lucky to have the ambitious risk-taking and passion of a culinary Pollock in a sea of hazy Monets.

Best Bets
Prices range from $6 nibbles to $12-15 small bites, $12-$22 entrées and $8 desserts. Craft cocktails and mocktails are $13, beer and wine by the glass are available along with homemade sodas and shrubs. There are many vegan, vegetarian and gluten-free options along with meaty fare.

Umami Bomb, $27: True to its name, mushrooms are at the heart of this savory, meaty (though meatless) dish. Shiitake cream, fried broccoli, sticky rice and balsamic reduction join the umami party with a dusting of nutritional yeast as the guest of honor. Vegan and gluten-free.

Chicken Liver Mousse, $22: Zobel says this is one of his best dishes, and he’s dead right. A quenelle of rich mousse made with all of the cream and butter is framed by shards of sweet-salty beet crackers.

Beef Tartare, $17: What seems like a simple dish of raw beef is elevated to an art form with savory bits of diced beef flap sprinkled with cured egg — an ingredient having a moment in chef circles. Made by dehydrating an egg yolk in salt, shaved over meat it adds a delicate creaminess without overpowering the tang of meat.

Fry Bread, $20: Indian fry bread has a slightly sweet, yeasty crispness similar to a doughnut. Topped with shredded beef in a chile sauce, it’s elegant street food.

Candy Cap and Bourbon Semifreddo ($8): The maple flavor of candy cap mushrooms with orange is a grownup version of a creamsicle with candied walnuts and slightly bitter coffee salt.

Needs Work
Fried Chicken, $15: There’s a lot to like about this comforting dish, but the gluten-free crust just doesn’t get crisp enough to make it a complete winner.

Cocktail Time
The term craft-cocktail has become as meaningless as farm-to-table, with lackluster mixologists vainly stealing the mantle. Here, however, the cocktail program is a standout, headed by Sam Levy, former bar manager at three Michelin-starred Restaurant at Meadowood, mixing exotic juices, herbs and foams with artisan spirits with a chef’s creativity. The prices aren’t cheap, but this also isn’t a dive bar serving up off-brand margaritas. We love the idea of equally impressive nonalcoholic drinks for non-imbibers. Our favorite: The Frond or Foe with piquant fennel, cucumber soda, bitter absinthe and vodka.

Fern Bar is at 6780 Depot Street, #120, The Barlow, Sebastopol, (707) 861-9603, fernbar.com. Open Thursday-through Monday from 4:00pm-12:00am, Tuesday-Wednesday closed.

The post Daring Fare at Fern Bar in Sebastopol’s Barlow appeared first on Sonoma Magazine.

Crowdsourcing restaurant review site Yelp has revealed the top 25 wine bars in the U.S., based on votes by Yelp reviewers. Coming in on #8 is Sigh, a champagne bar in the town of Sonoma.

Sigh, owned by Sonoma local Jayme Powers, was the first bar to specialize in sparkling wine and champagne in Northern California and remains the only one of its kind in the region, outside of San Francisco.

The bubbles bar posted on Facebook saying they’re “incredibly proud” to have made the Yelp list.

Sigh has 125 reviews on Yelp and a five star rating. According to Sigh’s website, the bar is named after “the sound of the cork escaping from a bottle of Champagne,” which “should mimic the SIGH of a contented woman.”

Sigh reopened in mid-2017 after a relocation to a new space in downtown Sonoma. The wine bar has garnered the attention of locals and visitors, who flock to the stylish space. With its cream and light pink shades, fluffy pillows and expansive marble bar, the interior design makes you feel as if you’re inside a bottle of blanc de blancs. Yelpers call it “beautiful,” “tasteful,” and “a comfortable and relaxed atmosphere.”

Yelpers also praise the service, describing the staff as “great and so personable,” and of course the bubble selection, which includes big names (Dom Perignon, of course), independent producers, and local favorites (Gloria Ferrer, Iron Horse Vineyards).

Sigh is located at 120 W. Napa St., Sonoma. (707) 996-2444. sighsonoma.com.

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Petaluma is a tale of two towns: by day, it is the cute corner of Sonoma County with quaint buildings, bakeries, bookstores and boutiques. But when the sun sinks and shadows lengthen, Petaluma gets edgy with dimly lit speakeasies and fringe music venues. We’ve found five moonlit must-stops for your next nocturnal visit to Petaluma:

The Big Easy

The Big Easy, with its no nonsense speakeasy vibe, has been jazzing up Petaluma’s live-music scene since 2014. Located in historic downtown Petaluma, this hidden gem is not easy to spot: its neon sign is nearly invisible, its facade dark and almost dungeon-like. The dim and dusky theme continues inside the venue; this is not a place for people watching, instead, the music takes center stage – along with a 1957 Hammond B3 organ.

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Looking for a local urban-feel dance party to avoid the nighttime commute to the city, the extreme San Francisco hills and the competitive parking? Super Saturday, an event at outdoor bar-meets-Italian restaurant venue Campo Fina in Healdsburg, serves up killer cocktails to DJ beats — with a side of bocce ball to break the ice.

Last Saturday, Campo Fina DJs kept the crowd happy by bringing a mix of dance-disco nostalgia and contemporary electronica-hip hop to the deck. First time Super Saturday attendee and Healdsburg resident Kelsey Walsh enjoyed the atmosphere. “It’s a really fun thing for the community,” she said.

Although the Super Saturday crowd consisted of mostly locals, Marline Trevino, in town visiting friends, said she enjoyed the friendly environment. “So far, just being here in the last 15 minutes, it seems really cool…I love the atmosphere,” she said.

Part of Super Saturday’s appeal is that it offers a little something-for-everyone — a relaxed California-backyard-vibe, but with an urban edge. And the something-for-everyone extends to the drink menu: for a little sophistication in your shaker, try Campo Fina’s Moscow Mule — a pink vodka cocktail with angostura bitters and Fever Tree ginger beer, served in a tall glass — and for the down-to-earth brew crowd, its the $4 Pabst Blue Ribbon.

For more information about upcoming Campo Fina events, visit: facebook.com/campofinahealdsburg. 

Check out the weekend vibe at Campo Fina in the gallery below… 

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After 17 years of boot scootin’, line dancing, honky tonk, Thirsty Thursdays, bull riding, and the infamous Miss KJ contest, Kodiak Jacks Honky Tonk & Restaurant is packing up their mechanical bull and calling it a day come mid-July. In their dust, many are left feeling disappointed by the loss of the country bar, especially since it was the only nightspot open for the 18+ crowd at the end of the week to dance the night away.

But the loss won’t be felt for long.

While the owners are bidding farewell to their Petaluma location, they’re starting fresh with Mavericks, their new nightclub in Santa Rosa. Mavericks is slated to open July 19th, and is boasted to be the largest nightclub and live music venue in the North Bay with a capacity of 700. They’re amplifying their dance lessons with workshops and couples dancing, and also introducing a new menu with non-traditional pizzas – think “taco pizza”, “Reuben pizza”, or “Mac-and-Cheese pizza”.

But while they’re expanding their restaurant, music genres, dance floor, and hours they are open, many of the things we love about KJ’s will be carried over to the new Maverick’s. There’s still the 18+ nights, karaoke, country line dancing, Friday night live band nights, and the all ages Family Night on Sundays. Plus, Monday nights you can sing karaoke with a live band, and Tuesday caters to the LGBT crowd.

Located at 397 Aviation Blvd, Ste E in Santa Rosa, Mavericks is easy access from the freeway, and centrally located from anywhere in Sonoma County. For more information visit their website at maverickssantarosa.com (website still in progress), or keep informed on all the changes at the Kodiak Jack’s Facebook fan page at facebook.com/kodiakjackspetaluma.

– Crissi Dillon, 707 Entertainment

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CLOSED

Wandering into Space XXV, you can’t help but feel like you’re in someone’s living room. Scratch that: Someone with amazingly good taste and very expensive furniture’s living room. There are crystal chandeliers and faux fur throws on velvet chaise lounges for goodness sakes. Are we still in Santa Rosa? The lovechild of a designer showroom and a chef-driven cafe, this spanking new downtown lounge seems almost too good to be true, as does its refreshingly earnest chef, John Lyle.

Nestled into a narrow strip of space between the new La Rosa Tequileria and the local police outpost in Courthouse Square, owner Kendrick Rustad’s concept for XXV was for a relaxing, upscale lounge where folks could chill, read, sip and eat really good food. Mission accomplished.

Lyle (formerly a personal chef and Fresh by Lisa Hemenway alum) has taken the mantra of good food to the extreme, handpicking produce at his favorite local farms at 4:30am, getting Della Fattoria bread deliveries at 5:30am, then concocting salads and sandwiches to match the luxe decor (but at refreshingly reasonable prices…most everything is under $10).

On the menu is a whole leaf Caesar (using the original recipe from Caesar Cardin, $8.95); a seasonal roasted beet salad that turns root vegetables into jewels of sweet candy ($8.95); roast beef sandwich with black truffle aioli; ($8.95) a reuben with local kraut and Russian dressing ($10.50); Umami Grilled cheese with St. Georges cheese, bacon, tomatoes and mushrooms ($8) and, wait for it…a BLT on soft white bread with a snap of crispy chicken skin. If you get it, you get it. If you don’t, well, just move along.

“I just want the best food, and it’s all from here,” said Lyle, who literally gushes about his favorite local purveyors without a hint of irony or pomp. “What brought me to Sonoma County? St. George Cheese. Really,” he adds.

For dessert, Lyle does a trio of sorbets using Nancy Skall’s Middleton Farm strawberries and two types of melon. But expect the menu to change up with Lyle’s most recent farm finds — meaning what you loved one day may not be on the menu the next. Breakfast pastries, coffee plus beer and wine. Open until 10pm daily.

Space XXV, 25 Old Courthouse Square, Santa Rosa, 284-3120.

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Where to go for tequila in Petaluma? Tres Hombres. There’s a separate margarita menu, featuring everything from blended fruit sippers to traditional shaken margaritas made with their premium tequilas, making this a weekend hotspot. Tres Hombres’ menu ranges from quick bites at the taco bar to Tex-Mex classics (nachos, quesadillas, burritos), to more intriguing entrees like the Mojito Chicken (a marinated chicken breast topped with mint and lim glaze) and Argentine Hangar steak. Expect a casual, but refined vibe at this Theater Square spot in Petaluma. BiteClub was actually pleasantly surprised that the feel was less Chico State (their other outpost is in the bustling party town) and more, well, the carefully cultivated urban feel of Theater Square. The interior is much more luxe than your standard taco bar restaurant, with cozy booths,
lots of wood and an extra long bar for tequila tasting flights.
151 Petaluma Boulevard South
Petaluma, CA 94952
(707) 773-4500

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