Napa Valley: 3 amazing new restaurants in wine country
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Yountville’s dining options have expanded dramatically this year with the renovation and re-opening of Brix Napa Valley, Thomas Keller’s much-anticipated Mexican restaurant, La Calenda, and RH Yountville, an opulent, one-of-a-kind restaurant from the company formerly known as Restoration Hardware. Here’s the scoop on what to eat and where.
Brix Napa Valley
Recently re-opened after a three-month, down-to-the-studs remodel, Brix has a fresh look and updated menu with eclectic California dishes and craft cocktails inspired by the estate gardens. Grab a minty, alcohol-free It’s Berry Refreshing ($10) to sip as you roam around the 25 raised herb and vegetable beds overlooking Kelleher Family Vineyards. Come summer, settle into Adirondack chairs with friends for a bowl of punch paired with savory eclairs.
Inside, the new design centers around a buzzy bar — with phone charging stations — and circular leather booths offering expansive views of the Mayacamas Mountains.
Among our favorite dishes: Fire Roasted Cauliflower with dates, pine nuts and chimichurri crumble with a lemon-brown butter vinaigrette ($13) and dry-aged Liberty Farms Duck Breast with turnips, savoy cabbage and huckleberry-hoisin sauce ($32).
Regulars can still cozy up to Brix’s fireplace, but with revamped wood and tile floors and fabulous wine-bottle chandeliers, the restaurant now has an undeniably hip yet inclusive vibe. Did we mention the Barking Lot, where your dog can relax in a shady grove while you dine?
Details: Open from 11:30 a.m. Monday-Saturday (10 a.m. Sundays for brunch) at 7377 St. Helena Highway, Yountville; www.brix.com
La Calenda
Thomas Keller fans, rejoice: The French Laundry chef’s foray into modern Mexican cuisine is every bit as delicious as you’d expect. Under the leadership of chef du cuisine Kaelin Ulrich Trilling, La Calenda serves up humble, delicious tacos, tamales and enchiladas made with thoughtfully-sourced ingredients, including heirloom corn (for the stone-ground tortillas) from multigenerational growers in Central and Southern Mexico and heirloom beans from Napa’s Rancho Gordo. The French Laundry Culinary Garden supplies traditional Mexican chiles and herbs, like epazote, which show up in the tasty charred butternut squash tamales ($6).
La Calenda scores points for its patio which, like the colorful indoor dining room, is casual and first-come, first-served. The breezy downtown setting is the perfect place to feast on flavor-packed tacos — braised short rib Tacos de Barbacoa (2 for $13) with watercress and spicy salsa avocado is our fave — and sip margaritas served in hand-blown recycled glassware from the Oaxacan studio Xaquixe.
Details: Open from 11 a.m. daily at 6518 Washington St., Yountville; www.lacalendamex.com
RH Yountville
After a significant re-branding, the company formerly known as Restoration Hardware has unleashed food and wine programs in select galleries around the country. This indoor-outdoor restaurant in the heart of Yountville is one of a kind.
A soaring glass roof, trickling stone fountains and heritage olive trees evoke a formal garden cafe. Add in lavish rococo chandeliers, supple gray pillows and an ingredient-driven menu by chef Brendan Sodikoff, and you may be tempted to cancel those impossible-to-get wine country reservations for a meal here.
RH Yountville’s food is simple, but very good, from truffled grilled cheese on sourdough ($20) to crispy artichokes with lemon and rosemary aioli ($16). A salad of Little Gem lettuces is elevated with pickled radishes, avocado and creamy feta in a buttermilk herb dressing ($16). And when we were there, it looked like every table had at least one RH Burger, draped with sharp American cheese, thick onion and pickles ($24).
The RH compound, as it’s called, also offers wine-tasting experiences in the trellis-covered outdoor living room area or inside the historic stone Ma(i)sonry building, which has been transformed into a two-story wine vault. Craving espresso? There’s a Wine & Barista Bar just outside the tasting room.
Details: Open from 11 a.m. weekdays and from 10 a.m. weekends at 6725 Washington St., Yountville; www.restorationhardware.com/yountville.