Location: Healdsburg
Top Restaurants in Healdsburg
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Where to Eat in Healdsburg: The Best Restaurants and Bars
Beautiful Northern California has many fabulous destinations, and the town of Healdsburg in Sonoma County is at the top of the list. Small town charm, beautiful landscapes and outstanding weather are just a few of the trademark qualities that make Healdsburg so popular. Healdsburg combines five-star cuisine, rolling hills and world-acclaimed wine growing appellations for an experience you will never forget. If you love the vibrant outdoors and colorful festivals, you will love Healdsburg. In April, you can help harvest roses and distill them into fragrant rose oil and rosewater as part of the Classic Perfume Rose Harvest & Distillation Tours. An annual sea food dinner at the Healdsburg Fire Department is also in April. From February to June, enjoy the "Russian River Good Old Days" exhibit at the Healdsburg Museum. And on the first Friday of the month, Williamson Wines sponsors an Epicurean Dinner at the Dry Creek Kitchen at Hotel Healdsburg.
Things to do in Healdsburg
1. Costeaux French Bakery
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 735 reviews
A Healdsburg establishment since 1923, Costeaux French Bakery serves as a destination for residents, wine country enthusiasts & international visitors. Visit the open-air cafe for breakfast, lunch, or stop in for world class fresh-baked breads. Over the years, Costeaux has been honored with Sonoma County Harvest Fair Best of Show Professional French & Specialty Bread awards. Come visit our French-inspired cafe bakery & consider us for your next event. Inquire about special event catering, check out our breakfast & lunch menus. We also have a private meeting room for up to six guests. Be sure to eye our famous dessert case or browse our wedding cake book.
Reviewed By janvipd - Phoenix
Didn't like our hotel breakfast so we headed into Healdsburg for a nice breakfast. While not a large breakfast menu, the options were sufficient. My husband & I shared the quiche which was enough for two. There is a nice bakery on site but not a lot of French pastries to choose from.
2. Flying Goat Coffee
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 256 reviews
Reviewed By Ryan T - Flagstaff, Arizona
Who doesn't need a pick me up during a long day wine tasting in Sonoma. Had 12+ friends in Sonoma wine tasting. After a whole day of wine tasting and before dinner, we stopped by Flying Goat Coffee. Great coffee.
3. Baci Cafe & Wine Bar
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 705 reviews
Baci Cafe & Wine Bar invites you to enjoy its fine regional Italian and Mediterranean food, paired with wines from Sonoma, Napa and Italy, in a casual dining atmosphere. Baci's wine list is thoughtful and well-priced, and features many small artisan wineries. Baci's menu is creative and offers a large selection of dishes. It's focus and commitment to local fresh seasonal ingredients has made it one of our Sonoma County favorites.
Reviewed By bminaai - Pearl City, Hawaii
When we visit Sonoma on wine tasting trips, we always eat at Baci's. The ambience, service and food has been consistently great. My wife and I split their special salad of chopped Romaine, carrots, peppers and cucumbers sprinkled with a light lemon balsamic vinaigrette dressing. She enjoyed their Milanese veal while I thoroughly enjoyed their Tagliatelle Frutti di Mare, pasta with delicious seafood. The chef/owner came out and checked on us and other diners, while his hostess/wife recommended a reasonable local wine and replenished our bread and water. Again, there are many great restaurants around the Healdsburg Plaza, but we highly recommend this restaurant.
4. Downtown Bakery & Creamery
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 143 reviews
Reviewed By ChajuBenree - Illinois
We stopped here while walking around the square in Healdsburg. You stand in line to order and then pay at an adjacent counter. It was very busy but the line moved quickly. Huge selection of delicious looking baked goods. We ordered pain du chocolate and a sticky bun, as well as coffee. Excellent selection as well as excellent service. Great place to people watch...there is seating at a counter at the window or a bench outside at the front of the bakery.
5. Noble Folk Ice Cream and Pie Bar
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 156 reviews
Reviewed By Neal S - South Lake Tahoe, California
After dinner we took a little walk and inadvertently found this little shop at the end of the block…somewhat subdued lighting white walls and dark blue accents, and at that moment with only 2 people in line…but it looks interesting on the inside…paper menus hanging on clips, artwork on the wall, and a large counter with plexi-framed menus hanging above ---coffees, home-made pies & uniquely-flavored ice cream…Very unique because all of the ice cream choices are homemade combinations thought up by a very creative ice cream lover… Like blood orange and raspberry, pumpkin chocolate, and maple+walnut+bacon…. Large portions and delicious ice cream, and toppings. Choices for cones include unique ‘oreo cone’ as well as waffle..coffees include mochas, lettes, etc…I did not try the pies because no gluten-free option, but the are apparently delicious too. When we arrived there were two people standing in line by the Ice cream. time we got served there were 30 more behind us.
6. Valette
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 425 reviews
Reviewed By 2Avid_Travelers - Sonoma County, California
As local foodies, we had read quite a bit about Valette before booking our dinner during Sonoma County Restaurant Week. We couldn’t see the special $39 restaurant week dinner choices in advance, but figured at worst we’d just order off the menu. We ended up with one dinner from that menu (which would have cost about an extra $15 if ordered any other week) and one dinner was ordered ala carte from the standard menu, which sees changes regularly depending on the availability of fresh ingredients.
The appetizers, while small, were very good. A home made semolina pasta with broccoli rab pesto was perfectly prepared, with a great sauce, although neither of us are especially fond of the slight bitterness from the rab (which others might enjoy). A mushroom soup (special for the night) was very tasty and exceptionally well pureed – smooth as silk.
For entrees, a honey-brined pork porterhouse was very substantial, served on a bed of pickled red cabbage. The tenderloin side was juicy, but it only served to show how much the other side wasn't. A lot of meat, but nothing special . An olive oil poached steelhead was a small serving but it was cooked perfectly – very simple, focusing on the very flavorful trout rather than overwhelming it. The accompanying English pea relish was heavily peppered; very good dish.
A choice of two desserts was included in the restaurant week menu. We chose to just share that: a Meyer lemon olive oil cake with pistachio ice cream. The “cake” was tiny, as was the ice cream. We often share a single dessert because getting two would be too much – this dessert intended for one was much smaller than the halves we normally share in other high-end restaurants. We doubt the entire dish would fill two tablespoonful, and while the "cake" (more like a cookie) was tasty, the ice cream wasn't.
Other things of note: our server talked very quickly and always seemed to be in a very big rush. He was knowledgeable and answered questions, but it seemed as if he had better things to do. We ordered a side of baby vegetables to accompany the entrees, but it never showed up; it’s not clear whose fault that was, except that it shouldn't happen at this level.
The choice of wines by the glass was somewhat limited. We ended up sharing a glass of chardonnay with the appetizers and a glass of pinot noir with the mains. At $18 per glass, neither made much of an impression, but I will say that the pours were larger than we expected.
The place is exceptionally noisy. It’s not a large room, and it has hard surfaces everywhere --- it probably didn’t help that we were seated against a stone wall. It was impossible to have a conversation without shouting across the table. I cannot remember having that much trouble anywhere else.
Bottom line: it was nice to try another local restaurant, but we won’t recommend it to others or go back. In our experience, there are better dining experiences for $150 (and less) around wine country.
7. Moustache Baked Goods
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 108 reviews
Amazing, amazing, moist, totally delicious cupcakes!
Reviewed By 978deniseh - Ukiah, California
Stopped by twice, for a cupcake, chose the same one both time as it was soooooo good the first time! Incredibly moist and delicious!
It's a tad pricey, but not more than I expected, and worth it for a treat. Quite a few choices, even later in the day.
8. Guiso Latin Fusion
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 87 reviews
Reviewed By 729karynh - Arlington, Virginia
Spending just 3 months in Healdsburg we have been sampling many of the restaurants in town and hands down, the is the place. Carlos provides flavor profiles that are especially pleasing and comforting too - his version of his grandmother's prawn dish is exquisite. We also love the wine selection, which offers a good selection and many at a reasonable cost that pair with the food. Keep up the excellent work and we'll be back as soon as we can.
9. Cafe Lucia
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 369 reviews
Brother and sister team (Chef Manuel and Lucia as your host) share a passion for food and their Portuguese heritage in a full-service restaurant featuring Cozinha Nova Portuguesa - "new Portuguese cuisine" - celebrating the varied and complex flavors of Portugal, adapted to the immense offerings of top-quality ingredients from Sonoma County.
Reviewed By Geoff Y - Pennsburg, Pennsylvania
We dined here a couple weekends ago while visiting the Valley for the weekend. I made reservations and we arrived alittle early but we're seated right away. They have an outdoor courtyard seating area as well as indoor seating. We were greeted immediately by our server who opened the wine we brought right away (no corkage fee for the first bottle you bring). We started with the tasting platter. This is a great way to start because you can pick from a list of about 8-10 things and get a small taste. All of our choices were fabulous but definitely get the goat cheese.
The main meals were well presented and flavorful. Unfortunately we didn't have room for dessert. I was surprised it wasn't more crowded for a Friday night but it was the off season. Overall, a great experience.
10. Parish Cafe
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 167 reviews
Reviewed By Mary V - McKinleyville, California
We had asked where we might get a nice sit-down breakfast and were directed to this place in central Healdsburg. We didn't know it had a Cajun/Creole theme and may have chosen differently if we did - it's not that the food was bad, it's just that we are not the types to like spicy foods. That being said, we both found breakfast - mine was one of their basic scrambled eggs, sausage and toast combinations - plus coffee. My friend had a poached egg. I asked for wheat toast and the waiter, who seemed quite rushed (was he the only one handling that whole place? then I forgive him) muttered something about me getting the only kind of toast that comes with it. I understood when my plate arrived with one small piece of what looked like toasted/buttered french bread on top of my eggs - guess that's all they have. We were seated next to the bathroom door so had a lot of foot traffic going by us. So I gave it a 4 based on the fact that it appears they have a wonderful menu for any fan of spicy breakfasts. But truly I'd prefer to give it a 3 based on the rushed wait service and having to sit next to the bathroom. But don't listen to me - if you like Cajun/Creole cooking, go to this place. There were many diners smiling!
