Cook St. Helena

As the weather warms up and the leaves turn green, I'm reminded of one of my favorite places to visit in the Spring - Napa. After a tour of Castello di Amorosa, I used my handy Yelp app to research Italian restaurants in the area (I should probably add here that I LOVE Italian food). According to my phone, there was an Italian restaurant located about 6 miles from the castle. Less than 10 minutes later, my date and I arrived at Cook St. Helena on Main Street in St. Helena. 

A quiet Friday late afternoon.

The dinner menu consisted of appetizers, salads & soups, house made pastas and entrees (including sauteed dayboat scallops, roasted airline chicken chop, braised shortrib and seared bistro filet).

Fettucine alle vongole with clams, spicy white wine broth and mixed herbs.

Spaghetti & meatballs with sun dried tomatoes, mushrooms, parmesan broth and basil. Definitely my favorite of the two dishes we tried.

Cook St. Helena is located at 1310 Main St. in Saint Helena, CA.

Revolution Wines

Thanks to Yelp (frequent user over here!), my co-worker and I found a restaurant that's been in town for a few years, but one that neither of us had heard of. After venturing over to their website, we discovered that Revolution Wines did not have their bistro menu posted online. We decided to wing it and check it out anyway. Glad we did because the French BLT was delish!

Lunch options consisted of wine pairings, small plates and large plates.

"French BLT" with bacon, green apple, brie and balsamic-caramelized onion on a baguette.

Arugula salad with candied cashews, poached pear, crispy prosciutto and feta-honey vinaigrette.

     

Craig Haarmeyer, winemaker at Revolution Wines, gave me a tour of what goes on backstage. He described the restaurant as farm-to-table and vineyard-to-table. The restaurant prides itself on serving local and seasonal food.


Revolution Wines is located at 2831 S Street in Sacramento.

Pushkin's Bakery

Watch out, Sactown! There's a new bakery in town, and this one's gluten/dairy free. When my co-worker and I read an article in the SacBee about a new bakery that had just opened a month prior, we immediately scheduled a lunch date for later in the week to check it out.

I was totally feeling the name, especially since I have Eastern European roots!

There were two cases loaded with gluten-free goods - everything from cupcakes to zucchini bread to cookies.

                  

I present to you the chocolate raspberry cupcake on the left, and to your right, a chocolate crinkle and a S'more sandwich. 

Pushkin's Bakery is located at 1820 29th Street in Sacramento.