St. Helena
Restaurants
Paul Franson
[work in progress]
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St. Helena Restaurants
Paul Franson
[work in progress]
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St. Helena is the reserved, upscale heart of the California premium wine business. It's a quiet community that wants to stay that way. Residents fight every change, whether chain restaurants or new tourist-oriented businesses, and they have succeeded in maintaining the town's charm. There are a number of excellent restaurants in town, some very difficult to get into with short notice. Those with national reputations include Terra, Tra Vigne, Press, Go Fish and the Restaurant at Greystone Cellars of the Culinary Institute of America. Most of the restaurants are on the same street, variously called Main St., St. Helena Highway or Route 29, depending on where you are.
A&W Root Beer/KFC
Old enough that it snuck through the prohibition on chain restaurants, A&W and its sister fried chicken franchise is right next to the high school, and teenagers and workers stop by for burgers, fries and root beer. It also has other soft drinks besides root beer. Reasonable, of course. 501 Main St, 963-4333
Ana's Cantina
Ana’s Cantina offers a wide selection of authentic Spanish tapas, many vegetarian and seafood, and mostly familiar Mexi-Californian favorites. 1205 Main St., 963-4921
Armadillo's
Armadillo's is an attractive and colorful California-Mexican-American restaurant, and if the food isn't outstanding or authentic, the tourists love it. It's a good place for families or someone who wants a comfortable if heavy meal, though service is a bit slow. Prices are a little high for the offerings, but the beer is cold. 1304 Main St., 963-8082
Cc Blue Japanese Restaurant
Cindy's Backstreet Kitchen
Cindy Pawlcyn’s
1327 Railroad Ave., 963.1200
Cook
1310 Main St., 963.7088
Culinary Institute of America
The Greystone Wine Spectator Restaurant is one of the most attractive and interesting restaurants in all the Napa Valley. Situated in the imposing Greystone Cellars that once housed Christian Brothers Winery, the restaurant is stunning yet cozy. With a number of open food preparation areas for patrons to view, it's a suitable showcase for the Culinary Institute of America, which operates a professional cooking school on the magnificent premises. The open fires are especially welcome in winter, but even in summer, the massive stone structure insulates the dining room from the heat outside.
Not surprisingly, the wine choices are excellent, and a unique treat is "flights" of wines to compare and contrast. These tastes might be three small portions of the same Rhône variety, perhaps from California, or rare and dear treasures you'd have a difficult time finding in bottle elsewhere, much less to taste. Whether you eat a special dinner there, or simply taste wines and appetizers, the CIA restaurant is a must stop for any visitor to the Valley.
2555 Main St., 967.2303 www.culinary.edu/restaurants/wsgr
Dean & Deluca
A trendy branch of a famous New York deli makes sandwiches and features other delicacies you'll rarely see anywhere else. The cheese selection is amazing, as is the rest of the charcuterie. In the back of the market, real chefs turn out appetizers, main courses and sides the equal of most fine restaurants in the Valley. Many locals stop on the way home from work to pick up gourmet dinners, and you can do the same for a memorable picnic lunch or dinner on your patio. The prices are infamous, but after all, it doesn't claim to be Trader Joe's. Produce, dairy products and many other offerings are competitive with everyone else, and the high prices for many products offered reflect their rarity and quality.
In good weather, you might get some food at D&D, buy a bottle of wine at the Flora Springs tasting room next door, and picnic at the tables behind the tasting room in its attractive patio.
The wine selection is immense, and includes most available wines from Napa Valley. Prices are comparable to supermarkets, but it may not seem that way because so many are rare wines you won't find at Safeway.
607 South St. Helena Highway, 967-9980
Gillwoods St. Helena
St. Helena's premier breakfast place, Gillwoods is popular with locals and tourists alike. Classic breakfasts with many interesting omelets, scrambles and baked goods. Don't miss the special breakfast potatoes but be sure to ask for the onions.
One feature is a communal table for singles or others; the host won't always suggest it, particularly if you look too conventional or too weird, but it's a great place to meet anyone from a local wine maker to a student from Iceland.
Unfortunately, Gillwoods' popularity creates long lines on weekends, though there's a back room so it holds more people than you'd think.
Gillwoods also serves the usual and well prepared diner favorites, from meat loaf and chicken-friend steak to chili and club sandwiches. Sometimes they open for dinner, apparently mostly on holiday weekends. They charge big city prices; there are no Denny's $1.99 breakfasts in St. Helena. There's also a Gillwoods in downtown Napa. It serves dinners.
1313 Main St., 963-1788
Giugni
Long-established Italian-inspired deli and market. Great place for large, inexpensive sandwiches, with so many choices some people can't deal with them and order a standard. There's a claustrophobic back room with seating as well as the few tables up front. 1227 Main St., 963-4321
Golden Harvest Chinese Restaurant
St. Helena's only ethnic restaurant; Italian and Mexican places are indigenous food around here, after all. 61 Main St., 967.9888
Go Fish Grill
641 Main St., 963.6191
La Prima Pizza
Excellent middle-American pizza, the type every pizza parlor should make, with chewy crust, tasty sauce and plenty of toppings. No chèvre, arugala or porcini pizzas, just good ol' pepperoni, sausage and button mushrooms. The best normal pizza in town. It also serves sandwiches and basic pastas. Beer by the pitcher - no more than one pitcher per customer, says the sign - but no atmosphere. The ideal choice in St. Helena when you can't take any more yuppicity. Reasonable.
1010 Adams St., 963-7909
Market
Martini House
Famed San Francisco restaurateur Pat Kuleto has teamed with chef Todd Humprhreys to create a comfortable restaurant and wine bar in an old house.
1245 Spring St., St. Helena, 963-2233. www.martinihouse.com
Meadowood Grill
The Grill at Meadowood is a nice casual hotel restaurant and bar overlooking the croquet course. It's really for guests who aren't up to the fancy restaurant at the resort, but offers good uncomplicated meals like steaks and simple fish. Martinis are big. Save room for the apple bread pudding, which is closer to apple pie and the best you'll ever taste. A perfect answer when you want to have a nice meal on weekends and forgot to call Tra Vigne two weeks ago.
900 Meadowood Lane, St. Helena, 963.3646
Meadowood Restaurant
The fancy restaurant at Meadowood Resort. A fancy, special-occasion place. Definitely not cheap eats. 900 Meadowood Lane, St. Helena, 963.3646
Model Bakery
Great bread and some pastries, perfect for Continental-type breakfasts, coffee and mid-afternoon snacks. A few sandwiches and mini-pizzas are available at lunch, but it would be stretching to call it a restaurant.
1357 Main St., 963-8192
Napa Valley Coffee Roasting Company
St. Helena's answer to Starbucks, which has already been rejected by the town as part of its "no-chain" policy. Well-made coffee drinks at medium prices and morning pastries and afternoon sweets. Very strong and bitter coffee, not like Starbucks'. Try the coffee before you opt for the espresso! Inside and outside seating, excellent snooping on the movers and shakers.
1400 Oak Ave., St. Helena, 963.4491
Press
Sunshine Market Helena's local market (There's also a Safeway hidden away from tourist eyes) carries many interesting gourmet items as well as great produce. It has a meat section with real butchers and a deli that carries prepared foods and makes excellent custom sandwiches.
1117 Main St., 963-7070.
Terra One of the most-renowned places in the Valley.
1345 Railroad Ave., 963-8931
Taylor's Refresher
The local hamburger stand, but being St. Helena, it's quite upscale and even serves wine and beer. Nice picnic tables in the trees behind for patrons.
Tre Vigne Pizzeria
La Prima Pizza a few blocks away has great Eastern pizza, but sometimes you want a California yuppizza. They can be superb here - thin crusts, imaginative toppings, including roasted eggplants (though it's mushy), Sonoma goat cheese and arugula, and of course, organic tomato sauce (I'm still looking for those non-organic tomatoes. Do they synthesize them in a factory?). They also put salads on pizza crust, an interesting idea, sort of an Italian tostada, and have basic pasta.
Service can be spotty, especially when local high school help starts visiting with their buddies. Reasonable, including a unique approach to glasses of wine: Each glass of costs the same $4, but don't expect Opus One. A casual, unpretentious place for dinner when you don't want to try too hard. Good for families but please don't bring your kids if they can't behave. I may be there. Same owners as Tra Vigne.
1020 Main St., 967.9999
Tra Vigne
For many people, Tra Vigne is wine country cuisine. The popular St. Helena restaurant has deep roots in Tuscany, Napa Valley’s psychic sister in Italy, and its food is an inspired marriage of Tuscan techniques and recipes with fresh local ingredients.
The restaurant — the name means among the vines — features one large
spacious room in an old brick winery with a elegant old bar along one side.
Most meals start at the bar; the restaurant is very popular and even if
you have a reservation, you may spend some time there. That’s not bad;
in fact eating at the bar is more fun for singles or pairs who aren’t couples,
for you’re sure to meet others at the bar. They could be other visitors,
local winemakers or even Joe Montana (It’s happened to me, and not being
a football fan, I talked to him for half an hour about wine making and
schools before someone told me.)
1050 Charter Oak Ave., 963.4444
V. Sattui Winery & Deli
V. Sattui winery is a very successful deli and picnic spot as well as a winery — the only one in the valley. Many of the wines are excellent, but Sattui also offers un-chic sweet wines for those like them. All wines are available only at the winery. Obviously, you taste the wines (for free, unlike many other local Napa wineries), choose a bottle and stock up at the deli for lunch. It has a huge variety of cheeses, prepared delicacies and sandwiches, which you can enjoy at the tables on the attractive winery grounds. The food matches any take out in the valley, including the more expensive Dean & Deluca across the street. No wines except theirs allowed. Don't be put off by all the tourists; they've discovered something special!
White Lane at Highway 29, 963-7774
Yountville/Oakville/Rutherford Restaurants Return to main restaurant review page
August 2007
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