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Giovanni Scala opened this boisterous roadhouse restaurant in the mid-1990s, and it's still a hangout of Napans who appreciate its Cal-Italian bistro cuisine, prepared with flair by Scott Warner, Scala's executive chef and partner. Warner augments the greatest-hits lineup—fritto misto (deep-fried calamari, onions, fennel, and rock shrimp), spinach ravioli with lemon-cream or tomato sauce, slow-braised lamb shank, and wood-fired pizzas—with daily specials based on seasonal ingredients.
4110 Howard La., Napa, California, 94558, USA
Known For
- Patio and garden dining
- Specialty cocktails and aperitifs
- Broad selection of Napa, Sonoma, and international wines
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Cookbook author and Iron Chef judge Domenica Catelli returned home to revive her family's American-Italian restaurant, a Geyserville fixture. Contemporary abstract paintings, reclaimed-wood furnishings, and muted gray and chocolate-brown walls signal the changing times, but you'll find good-lovin' echoes of traditional cuisine in the sturdy meat sauce that accompanies the signature lasagna paper-thin noodles and ricotta-and-herb-cheese filling.
21047 Geyserville Ave., Geyserville, California, 95441, USA
Known For
- Three-meat ravioli and other pasta dishes
- Festive back patio
- Organic gardens
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Mon. and Tues.
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A curved marble bar spotlit by contemporary art-glass pendants adds a touch of style to this downtown restaurant whose northern Italian cuisine pleases with understated sophistication. Mussels with house-made sausage in a spicy tomato broth, chopped salad with pancetta and pecorino, and the daily changing risotto are among the dishes regulars revere.
1310 Main St., St. Helena, California, 94574, USA
Known For
- Top-quality ingredients
- Reasonably priced local and international wines
- Intimate dining
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed weekends
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The brightly lit dining room's mural map of the Naples coastline signals the chef's focus on frutti di mare (seafood) at this downtown homage to southern Italian cuisine the folks behind valley-fave Bistro Don Giovanni opened in 2023. Raw oysters, cooked whole fish, skillet-sautéed mussels, and halibut soup were among the early hits, along with pizzas hot out of a wood-fired oven.
1141 1st St., Napa, California, 94559, USA
Known For
- Late-night pizza, small bites, and desserts
- Italian wine selection
- Shareable plates and pasta dishes
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A neighborhood trattoria with cream-yellow walls, zinc-top tables, and colorful artwork and banners, Baci bustles with tourists during high season, but after things die down, locals continue dropping by for pasta dishes, gnocchi, risotto, and osso buco, saltimbocca, and other stick-to-your-ribs Italian standards. The Iranian-born chef, Shari Sarabi, applies a pan-Mediterranean sensibility to area-sourced, mostly organic ingredients, and his dishes satisfy without being overly showy.
336 Healdsburg Ave., Healdsburg, California, 95448, USA
Known For
- Wine selection by Lisbeth Holmefjord, the chef's sommelier wife
- Enthusiastic owners
- Many gluten-free dishes
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Tues. and Wed. No lunch
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Recommended Fodor’s Video
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At his softly lit, exposed-redbrick downtown trattoria, which occupies sections of the 19th-century former Groezinger Winery, chef Michael Chiarello (Food Network, etc.) and his team transform local, seasonally changing ingredients into regional Italian cuisine. Staples like ricotta gnocchi with tomato sauce and smoked/braised short rib in espresso agrodolce (sweet-and-sour sauce) served with creamy ancient-grain polenta show the chef at his most rustic yet sophisticated.
6525 Washington St., Yountville, California, 94599, USA
Known For
- Romantic setting
- Soulful craft cocktails
- Italian and California wines
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After Napa Valley fixture Tra Vigne lost its lease, many staffers regrouped a few miles north at the restaurant (the titular Kitchen) of the Brasswood complex, which also includes a bakery, shops, and a wine-tasting room. Along with dishes developed for the new location, the chefs incorporate Tra Vigne favorites such as mozzarella-stuffed arancini (rice balls) into the Mediterranean-leaning menu.
3111 St. Helena Hwy. N, St. Helena, California, 94574, USA
Known For
- Mostly Napa-Sonoma wine list
- Bakery a good lunch stop for pizzas, salads, and sandwiches
- Patio seating
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After a lengthy closure, an insider favorite for modern Italian was scheduled to reopen by summer 2023 with vintners Frank and Karen Altamura remaining as owners and Napa Valley culinary star and longtime Ciccio patron Christopher Kostow of The Restaurant at Meadowood and The Charter Oak stepping in as executive chef. The seasonal growing cycles of Meadowood's herb and produce garden dictate the menu, with fried-seafood appetizers, pasta dishes, and several wood-fired pizzas among the likely offerings.
6770 Washington St., Yountville, California, 94599, USA
Known For
- Negronis lineup
- Pizzas' flavorful cheeses
- Napa and Italian wines
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: No lunch (check website for days closed)
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Although it ventures out for special events, this walk-up food truck serving Italian-inflected fast food has a steady gig outside the Clif Family Tasting Room. From 11:30 to 4 (until 6 on Wednesday), order salads, panini, or a falafel, mushroom, pork, or vegetarian bruschetta to go or to enjoy in the tasting room or on its back patio.
1284 Vidovich Ave., St. Helena, California, 94574, USA
707-968–0625-for tasting room
Known For
- Soups and salads
- Many organic ingredients
- Wednesday's international street food menu
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Mon. and Tues. No dinner
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Long a locals' favorite for traditional Italian-American cuisine, this restaurant has a warmly lit, often packed dining room and a heated back patio with Petaluma River views. The chef, who trained in Italy, prepares several pasta dishes a night, along with mains that might include veal scaloppini or saltimbocca, roasted chicken stuffed with arugula and pancetta, and pork tenderloin with Gorgonzola sauce.
114 Petaluma Blvd. N, Petaluma, California, 94952, USA
Known For
- Antipasti and salads
- Italian and Sonoma County wines
- Tiramisu, crème brûlée, and profiteroles for dessert
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Sun. and Mon.
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After three decades of serving Tuscan-inspired cuisine, this restaurant with a plant-filled heated and tented back patio has developed a homey patina enhanced by brickwork, a fountain, family photos, and other old-school touches. Likewise with the food, you won't find belabored technique or froufrou preparations, only soulful renditions of northern Italy's greatest hits—veal scallopini, mushroom ravioli, pappardelle with rich duck ragout—from two generations of family recipes.
133 E. Napa St., Sonoma, California, 95476, USA
Known For
- Pillowy gnocchi Nonna
- Italian and California wine selections
- Adjacent Enoteca Della Santina wine bar
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A dining area with hardwood floors, a pressed-tin ceiling, and exposed-brick walls provides a fitting setting for the rustic cuisine at this Geyserville mainstay. Chef Dino Bugica studied with artisanal cooks in Italy before opening this restaurant specializing in wood-fired pizzas and house-cured meats, with a few salads and meaty main courses rounding out the menu.
21021 Geyserville Ave., Geyserville, California, 95441, USA
Known For
- Talented chef
- Prime rib sandwich for lunch, chicken under a brick for dinner
- Outdoor patio
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Reservations not accepted
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A chef formerly with the Stark organization (Willi's Seafood and others) opened this casual restaurant—a good bet for families—whose decor of rich pastels sets a placid tone. Hits here include Parmesan arancini, fried calamari, and burrata with lemon honey starters, as well as shrimp diavolo pasta and halibut piccata entrées.
186 Windsor River Rd., California, 95492, USA
Known For
- Spacious patio
- Weekday happy hour menu (focaccia, sliders, oysters)
- Reasonable prices
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: No lunch
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Often spotted at local farmers' markets and his restaurant's gardens, Oenotri's ebullient chef-owner and Napa native Tyler Rodde is ever on the lookout for fresh produce to incorporate into his rustic southern Italian cuisine. His restaurant, a brick-walled contemporary space with tall windows and wooden tables, is a lively spot to sample house-made salumi and pastas, thin-crust pizzas, and entrées that might include seared fresh fish or grilled rib eye.
1425 1st St., Napa, California, 94559, USA
Known For
- Lively atmosphere
- Margherita pizza with San Marzano tomatoes
- Desserts with flair
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Mon. No lunch weekdays