By 707 correspondent Heather Irwin. Sign up for the BiteClub Newsletter.
Cyrus 2.0: BiteClub broke the news last Tuesday about chef Douglas Keane’s plans to build Cyrus 2.0 somewhere in Alexander Valley with the support of Jackson Family Wines (hint: the deep-pocketed Barbara Banke). According to an email sent to members of the Alexander Valley Winegrowers Association, locals and potential neighbors of the new project have been contacted by Keane and his business partner, Nick Peyton, to discuss the top-secret plan. Some are supportive, while others haven’t yet embraced the project.
Previously, Keane operated the Michelin-starred Cyrus at Healdsburg’s Les Mars Hotel until 2012, when a dispute with the hotel’s owners resulted in the closure of the restaurant—and a huge loss to Sonoma County’s dining scene.
There are still plenty of questions and zoning issues to be resolved, but for those of us who’ve lamented the disappearance of Sonoma County’s top dining spot, it’s very good news.
Heirloom Expo: Harvest celebrations kick into full swing this week with the arrival of the National Heirloom Exposition, one of the largest gatherings of sustainable food, farmers, and pure food activists in the world. The internationally acclaimed event, founded by the legendary Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds, can be a head-scratcher to locals, but attendees know there’s a mind-boggling lineup of food vendors, nationally recognized speakers (such as locals Bob Cannard and Albert Straus), and family fun. If you eat food (and we’re pretty sure you do), it’s well worth the modest $10 entry fee to see the giant pumpkin and gourd tower, visit lush garden displays, view hundreds of heirloom vegetables, listen to great music, and get educated on why eating well is about more than just tasty food. Tue Sept. 9th-Thu Sept. 11th at the Sonoma County Fairgrounds. Tickets online or at the fairgrounds box office. 1350 Bennett Valley Road, Santa Rosa.
Celebrity Chef Tour Dinner at Rodney Strong: Hold onto your forks, folks, this is a biggie. On Saturday September 20th, Healdsburg’s RODNEY STRONG VINEYARDS hosts a four-city, 20-chef dinner to celebrate 25 years of Klein family ownership. Simulcast throughout the evening via social media (#noms!) and streaming video at RSV25.com, it’s a five-course dinner, and each dish is paired with a recent Rodney Strong release. In Healdsburg, Duskie Estes and John Stewart of Zazu Kitchen + Farm will be joined by chefs from Seattle’s legendary RN74, Massachusetts’ Harvest, and New York’s Blue Ribbon Restaurants. There will also be dinners the same evening in New York, Miami, and Austin. The Healdsburg event is from 5pm-9pm, and tickets are $225 per person; details online or by calling 866-779-4637. 11455 Old Redwood Hwy., Healdsburg.
CIA Chef Pop-Ups: Culinary superstars return to their alma mater, the CULINARY INSTITUTE OF AMERICA AT GREYSTONE, for a pop-up dinner series debuting Thursday September 11th. Up first is Matthew Dolan of Twenty Five Lusk in San Francisco. He’ll be serving a stellar lineup of dishes (cauliflower crème brûlée, schnitzel of sturgeon with tarragon spaetzle, Maine lobster risotto, chicken-fried quail, and peach tarte Tatin with cocoa “pop rocks”) at the CIA’s Wine Spectator Restaurant in St. Helena. The prices on the à la carte menu range from $16-$42. The dinner will be from 5:30pm-9pm, and future dinners will be held throughout the year. For details and reservations, call 707-967-1010. 2555 Main St., St. Helena.
Get Ready to Mangia: Calistoga’s SOLAGE RESORT AND SPA will host its first harvest season celebration on Friday October 10th from 5:30pm-8:30pm. Mangia! Mangia! will be a family-friendly event featuring chef Brandon Sharp’s Cal-Italian dishes. The menu will include locally grown heirloom tomatoes with burrata, grilled artichokes with aioli, bruschetta with pumpkin and guanciale, salumi, housemade grissini and focaccia, panzanella, rigatoni al sugo, pollo alla spiedo, and, for dessert, apple crostata with vanilla bean gelato. Guests will also toast the harvest with grappa and locally produced Italian-style wines, such as Shypoke charbono, Jelly Jar barbera, and Heitz Cellar grignolino; Nil Zacherle’s Mad Fritz seasonal ale will also be poured. General admission is $85 (Club Solage members receive a 10 percent discount), and tables of 10 are available for $750; children 12 and under are $35. Tickets include dinner, beverages, and games and entertainment. Reservations are required and seating is limited, email vmuromoto@solagehotels.com or call 707-226-0806.
