What's New January 2020
SONOMA COUNTY, CALIFORNIA — Begin 2020 with a getaway to Sonoma County, where the winter months offer an opportunity to discover and explore this world-renowned destination without the peak season crowds. New tasting rooms let you sample established wine labels and craft brews, and new restaurants offer a delicious way to savor the best this lush and fertile region has to offer.
Pamper yourself in one of Sonoma County’s more than 80 spas, wellness facilities, and retreat centers. Hike along the stunning coastline, keeping an eye peeled for migrating whales and other coastal wildlife. Eat your way through fresh and delicious farm to table cuisine. Stroll through serene vineyards, taste wines with a winemaker, or just enjoy a glass snuggled up in front of the fireplace.
Here’s a quick look at just a few things that are new in Sonoma County in January 2020.
FEATURED
Ziro brings socially responsible ride sharing to STS airport
Passengers arriving or departing from Charles M. Schulz – Sonoma County Airport (STS) now have the option of catching a ride with Ziro (pronounced z-eye-row), a socially responsible ridesharing service.
Ziro promotes its services as “smarter, safer, greener, and cheaper.” The company does not charge its drivers (called “captains”) any per-trip commissions, so the drivers get 100% of all fares, tips, and fees charged to users. Ziro covers its costs with a nominal booking fee, which it says is lower than market prices, and will generate profits by offering advertising solutions to its partners. For details about Ziro, visit rideziro.com.
Offering a hassle-free experience with shorter lines, STS is the only airport offering scheduled air service into the North Bay region. For details about STS airport, visit sonomacountyairport.com.
Charles M. Schulz - Sonoma County Airport
2290 Airport Blvd. Santa Rosa, CA 95403
707-565-7240
https://sonomacountyairport.org/
Media Contact Jon Stout, airport manager
707-565-7243
WINERIES
Paradise Ridge Winery reopens
Rebuilt and better than ever, Paradise Ridge Winery is once again welcoming guests to its ridge-top winery in Santa Rosa, in central Sonoma County.
The new $6 million building includes a catering kitchen, a new private tasting room, and an expanded upper deck that allows for a tremendous amount of natural light. The modern, two-story events facility replaces the one destroyed in the October 2017 wildfires.
Founded by Walter and Marijke Byck in 1994, Paradise Ridge Winery sources its grapes from 15 acres of planted vineyards on its 155-acre property in Santa Rosa. The vineyards were largely untouched by the 2017 fires, so the winery was able to continue using its own fruit and to make its wine at other local wineries. Paradise Ridge Winery produces 10,000 cases annually, with a variety of wines from Pinot Noir to a sparkling Blanc de Blancs.
During the rebuilding process, guests were able to sample Paradise Ridge wines at its second tasting room in Kenwood, in the northern end of the Sonoma Valley. Guests can now taste Paradise Ridge wines at both locations.
Paradise Ridge Winery
4545 Thomas Lake Harris Drive
Santa Rosa, CA 95403 707-528-9463
Media Contact
Paradise Ridge Winery
707-528-9463
RESTAURANTS & EATERIES
Ayawaska Restobar features authentic Peruvian with modern twist
Taste the rich and vibrant cuisine of Peru presented with a special modern twist at the new Ayawaska Restobar in Petaluma, in southern Sonoma County.
Ayawaska is a variation of Ayahuasca, a mystical spirit plant native to the Amazon rainforest. Ayawaska Restobar is modern, bright, and airy, offering a party-like atmosphere with lots of large windows and a bar backed with colorful glass bottles. There’s a long menu of specialty cocktails, and the wine and beer list is impressive, with both Sonoma County and international labels, as well as Peruvian beers.
The food menu includes cold and hot appetizers, and plates designed to be shared, with choices like a variety of ceviches, yucas rellenas, grilled octopus, and flat iron steak skewers. Choose from a variety of entrées, like traditional Peruvian-style beef tenderloin, stuffed cannelloni with beef, Peruvian-style paella, slow cooked pork, and ravioli stuffed with pumpkin, almonds, and Parmesan cheese. Vegan and gluten-free options are clearly marked on the menu.
Ayawaska Restobar
101 Second St. #190
Petaluma, CA 94952
707-559-3519
Media Contact
Ayawaska Restobar
707-559-3519
Huria’s opens Bodega Bay eatery
After years spent offering mobile wood-fired catering and pop-up dinners throughout Sonoma County, chef Mohaimen Huria and his wife Adriana Huria recently opened a brick-and-mortar restaurant in Bodega Bay.
Huria’s specializes in New York-inspired, brick oven pizza Napoletana and Mediterranean-influenced cuisine. With more than 10 years experience in the food industry and the fast-paced New York City restaurant scene, chef Mohaimen offers a unique understanding of dishes cooked by natural flame.
The menu blends the couple’s Latin and Arabic roots with modern innovations. Appetizers include Gravlax (cured and thinly sliced salmon, olive oil and garlic, dill, Wild Flour Bread’s grilled sourdough, house ricotta, and black sea salt) and Stracciatella (wood-fired butternut squash, stracciatella, thyme-roasted grapes, micro greens, and brown butter).
A variety of pizzas are on the menu, including The Bodega (Béchamel, clams, fresh mozzarella, roasted garlic, green onion, panko bread crumbs, fresh parsley, and lemon), The Brooklyn (San Marzano tomato, meatball, dry and fresh mozzarella, shishito peppers, fresh basil, parmesan, and house chili oil), and The Vegan Chick (San Marzano tomato, arugula, fresh basil, oregano, sea salt, and olive oil).
Huria’s
1400 N. Highway 1
Bodega Bay, CA 94923
707-377-4721
Media Contact
Mohaimen and Adriana Huria
707-377-4721
Kamura Sushi offers varied menu
Whether you want sushi, ramen, udon, tempura, or even Korean fare you’ll find it at the new Kamura Sushi in Santa Rosa, where chef-owner Andy You presents a variety of delicious dishes.
Choose from a variety of ramen dishes, such as the tonkatsu ramen, with black garlic-infused pork broth stocked with chasu, soft-boiled egg, menma fermented bamboo shoot, kikurage wood ear mushroom, corn, green scallions, and tempura nori. Whichever bowl of ramen you pick, you can ask that your noodles be made from kale instead of traditional wheat noodles.
Maybe you’re in the mood for classic sushi, or one of the chef’s creative specialty sushi rolls, like the Stony Point with tempura shrimp and crab topped with ebi, mango, avocado, limejuice, tomato, cilantro, and unagi sauce. Or the S Cube, a panko-fried California roll topped with escolar, Hamachi, spicy tuna, kaiware sprouts, and tobiko.
Consider one of the great udon dishes, like fish cake and mushrooms. There are many vegetarian options, including avocado-mango sushi, tofu skin sushi, seasonal veggie nigiri, and crispy fried veggie-potato croquettes. The menu also includes Korean dishes like bulgogi, which are soy-garlic barbecue ribs. And the small and colorful eatery serves Ramune, a Japanese brand of fruity carbonated soft drinks, as well as Japanese beer and sake, and local wine.
Kamura Sushi
3800 Sebastopol Road
Santa Rosa, CA 95407
707-526-2652
https://sushichefandy.wixsite.com/mysite-1
Media Contact
Kamura Sushi
707-526-2652
Boxcar expands as Lou’s Luncheonette
With an expanded menu and longer hours, the former Boxcar Fried Chicken & Biscuits in the Sonoma Valley is now Lou’s Luncheonette.
The casual, family-focused, and dog-friendly setting is the same, as are the people running it, but the place is now open from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday to Thursday, and 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, serving both breakfast and lunch.
The menu changes daily, with a focus on locally sourced seasonal ingredients. Biscuits, burgers, and fried chicken are still featured, with items like buttermilk biscuits and sausage gravy for breakfast and a variety of chicken platters and sandwiches for lunch. There are also items like buttermilk waffles, fried oysters, oyster loaf, classic hot dogs with sauerkraut and creole mustard, and sides like potato salad, mac and cheese, and crinkle fries.
Lou’s Luncheonette
2698 Fremont Drive
Sonoma, CA 95476
707-938-7370
Media Contact
Lou’s Luncheonette
707-938-7370
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Experience Sonoma County, where Life Opens Up. Just as wine “opens up” when it’s allowed to breathe, Sonoma County inspires visitors to open up to new experiences.
Just 30 miles north of San Francisco, Sonoma County is one of California’s top food and wine destinations, home to more than 425 wineries ranging from rustic to regal. Hike among towering redwoods, cruise along rugged Pacific coastline, and get to know inviting small towns. Or, just sit back and take it all in. Because here, you’re free to go your own way.
Sonoma County was named Wine Enthusiast magazine’s Wine Region of the Year. Discover why by visiting it yourself. Start planning today at www.sonomacounty.com or call 707-522-5800.
Birgitt Vaughan
Director of Global Media Relations
Sonoma County Tourism
400 Aviation Blvd., Suite 500
Santa Rosa, CA 95403
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