One of the many joys of this daytime cafe in Petaluma’s wharf district is the ability to order a Turkish coffee with a splash of milk to go with a zhoug trout BLT. Or a cold brew-spiked Mediterranean fizz to savor alongside a traditional Spanish tortilla served in a cast iron pan with romesco. The menu changes frequently but a shakshuka with griddled halloumi and lamb burger with fennel tzatziki express the California-by-way-of-Marakesh cuisine. Enjoy it all on the sun-splashed patio or inside the small dining room.

In a quaint little dining room that sits just 26 people, chef Jevon Martin and bar expert Marjorie Pier serve comforting food that packs huge flavor punches — with or without a scotch-infused cocktail. Choose from mains like root vegetable Bolognese and fried chicken marsala, and always save room for dessert, especially when bergamot ice cream with brown butter crumble is on the menu.

An homage to chef-owner Cristina Topham’s Lebanese roots, this restaurant leans into California’s fresh and local ethos. In keeping with the wintry season, Topham’s tabbouleh swaps quinoa and apple for the usual bulgur and tomatoes. Grain bowls are fragrant with saffron rice and apricots, and “dirty fries” are dusted with za’atar and jacked up with pickled onions and yogurt-tahini sauce. Extra points for a shaded, dog and kid-friendly patio and a tight wine list focused on Lebanon, Tunisia, and other less-common regions. 

Hailed by New York Times wine critic Eric Asimov, this unpretentious, locally beloved restaurant does everything right — from crispy chicken roasted beneath a brick to wood-fired branzino to Brussels sprouts coated with a brown sugar bacon marmalade. Helmed by chef Ari Weiswasser and chef de cuisine Bryant Minuche, the open kitchen restaurant sources most of its produce from nearby biodynamic Glentucky Family Farm, and the extensive wine list includes categories for “interesting” whites and reds.

Brought to Sebastopol by the same team behind nearby Sushi Koshō, the oyster bar at the Barlow knows its way around seafood, delivering American-style food in a chic French-style bistro setting. Grilled Spanish octopus gives way under your fork, kampachi tartar glistens under dollops of white soy and dijo, and crispy oysters arrive in a paper-lined basket atop duck fat fries. A short list of French wines seems well-suited to match the vibe.

With seven rotating, family-run food trucks in the Latinx neighborhood of Roseland, this is the place to nab a variety of Mexican street eats, such as rich birria, succulent goat meat stewed with ancho chilies; crunchy Yucatan panuchos; Oaxacan tacos; and spicy seafood stew from Pezcow, which also has a permanent restaurant in Windsor. Picnic tables are arranged beneath a well-lit tent for outdoor dining, and a shipping container-turned-bar slings mezcal and tequila cocktails to keep you warmed up from the inside out.

For more than a decade, chef Liza Hinman has kept a warm light glowing in Santa Rosa’s artsy SOFA district six evenings a week, serving hyper-seasonal fare that’s updated even more frequently than the dining room walls, which are hung with the output of local artists. Wintry offerings spotlight Dungeness crab, wedded with kale in a baked dip and fried into fritters offset with frisee and grapefruit. Orange wine and house-made shrub sodas are standout libations.

This cozy, two-story dining room conjures a charming Italian vicolo, complete with laundry hanging over a balcony and warm blankets for your lap, presided over by a giant wood-burning stove where classic Neapolitan pizzas emerge blistery and fragrant. Whether smeared with pistachio pesto or butternut squash cream, topped with smoked fior dilatte and Roman mortadella or oyster mushrooms and spicy salami, the only problem with these wonderfully thin and crispy pies is settling on which to order.

It’d be hard to miss the Matheson, with its premier location just off the Healdsburg main plaza and tall three stories. Step inside and you’ll be welcomed by a wine wall, complete with 88 by-the-glass options, and a view into the open kitchen where the team pushes out plates like wagyu beef tartare, wild mushroom risotto, and king salmon with guanciale and blue lake beans. Upstairs, a rooftop bar and a more casual restaurant Roof 106 serves pizzas and small plates.

With the goal of educating and cultivating community, this vast two-story space dedicates its first floor to a cafe, bakery, and market with communal seating, grab-and-go options, and rotating small-batch drip coffees. Upstairs the team serves a multi-course prix fixe menu ($120) of entirely plant-based courses sourced in part from the restaurant’s own farm. Choose from more than 500 bottles of sustainably grown and packaged wine or try one of the “closed-loop” cocktails, which reduce kitchen waste.

For a seriously luxurious experience, Cyrus delivers a progressive dinner during which diners move between various rooms including the Bubbles Lounge, Kitchen Table, and the Chocolate Room. The many-coursed meal will cost a cool $295 for the tasting menu, plus $280 for an accompanying wine pairing. But chef-owner Douglas Keane has a vision to make the restaurant industry more sustainable for workers, which may have helped him earn a Michelin star just two months after opening — which he retained at the awards in July 2023.