This past weekend, we celebrated our 12 year wedding anniversary in Sonoma. We hadn't visited since 2011...10 years ago and it was every bit as charming as we remembered. Here's a quick recap of what we did!
Stay:
We stayed at the El Dorado Hotel + Kitchen, which is right on the Sonoma Square and across the street from The Girl + The Fig. We loved the location and the vibe of the hotel. It was always buzzing with people coming in to dine and the rooms were well appointed. Our had vaulted ceilings, which made the modest-size rooms seem larger, and it overlooked the pool area.
Dine
Our first stop was Folktable at Cornerstone Sonoma, which is about a 10 minute drive from downtown Sonoma. It's a casual eatery with counter service. The food and atmosphere was excellent! We also found out that they host live music on the weekends in their courtyard! Lots of cute shopping nearby too.
We made reservations at the Walt tasting room, which is a few steps from our hotel. Walt is a sister wine of Hall Wines...and if you're ever in Napa, their winery is definitely worth stopping by!
A couple doors down from our hotel is a hidden speakeasy called The Beacon above The Taub Family Outpost. The whole property is gorgeous and well-appointed. The cocktails use all fresh ingredients and it was a great spot to stop by before dinner!
Probably the most special meal of the weekend was at EDGE, which is part of Stone Edge Farm, and the location is just a block off of Sonoma Square, which is key since it's a 4-course wine pairing menu and they are very generous with their tastings! ;) The service was top-notch and so memorable! We tried food that we would normally never order, like duck pate, but it was all delicious!
We loved having the Sunflower Caffe next door to our hotel. We would stop in for a quick coffee between meals and also enjoyed brunch there Saturday morning. It's counter service and they have a large back patio for those that want to dine-in.
My Dress + Hat + Stemless Champagne Glasses that I am now coveting...
We spent Saturday wine tasting at Gloria Ferrer. It was a last minute change as we felt a light sparkling was more palatable in the heat than day drinking red wines. I was really blown away by the property! It sits high on a hill and overlooks the valley (see first photo!). I'd highly suggest the cheese pairing too!
For a sweet treat, post-wine tasting, we stopped by Sweet Scoops, which is also conveniently located right on Sonoma Square.
Dressed for dinner outside our hotel!
There were too many amazing dinner options to choose from, so we decided to get drinks and appetizers at The Girl + The Fig, since it's right across from our hotel and we love their food from our trip before. We get the charcuterie and the peach + burrata salad. Both were hits!
For dinner, we almost skipped Layla at Macarthur Place since it's a little bit off the square but I am SO glad we didn't! It's in the gorgeous MacArthur Place hotel and had an amazing ambiance...probably our favorite of the weekend. They greeted us with sparkling rose wine and we enjoyed a ton of small plates, cocktails and dessert. Would highly recommend!
As I said above, we loved the buzz of our hotel and stopped by the bar for a nightcap before calling it a night!
On Sunday, before we headed out, we sat out on the patio at Taub Family Outpost and had this amazing acai bowl! Which was just what I needed after an indulgent weekend! Like I said above, the whole property is super charming and they even have a little wine shop you can peruse for gifts!
Shop + Experience
If you have time to shop between wine tasting and meals, I enjoyed checking out the following:
Sonoma Loop for High-end Women's Clothing
Sign of the Bear Kitchenware for an amazing collection of kitchen items
G's General Store for a curated selection of clothing and household items
Fairmont Spa for an indulgent massage experience!
We hope it's not another 10 years before we go back! We had an amazing time!
xo natasha
PS...for additional wine country posts:
