The
1.5 hour road trip to reach downtown Healdsburg made me realized that
there is more to this quaint town than cheaper (read: free!) wine
country. They even had a new tea room that offered tea tasting-
something that is rare in the more popular Napa Valley.
The most magical revelation of this gastronome tour is Chalkboard's cocoa rigatoni,
an adult version of cocoa puffs of sorts. Sweet and savory, the soft
shredded duck confit swimming in al dente housemade rigatoni with foie
gras butter and caramelized hazelnuts was a home run. This lifted up my
spirits after driving over to the Michelin-rated Madrona Manor only to
find out that they were closed for a wedding. It also didn't hurt that
Chalkboard is situated in the former highly-acclaimed Cyrus but now with
a more affordable, bistro vibe.
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| Chalkboard's cocoa rigatoni to die for. |
Our
first stop took us to Williamson Wines, one of the very few wineries
that doesn't sell bottles anywhere else but at the winery. I was
surprised with our pre-booked complimentary tasting since it came with
cheese pairing mostly in a form of Irish cheese topped with their
homemade jams. The jam mixed with truffle salt was a standout indeed!
Extra kudos to our server who also manages their social media. He
encouraged us to take more photos and tweet them.
No food tour would be complete without a pit stop to an ice cream shop. At Healdsburg, the popular
Noble Folk
doesn't only attract ice cream lovers but also those looking for
freshly baked pie. I am not a big fan of pie to begin with so I ordered
the quiche instead, while my eating buddy got the blueberry pie with
cardamon ice cream topped with balsamic vinegar.
We
were sugared out so while passing by a new tea shop, we immediately
decided that a cup or more of tea was exactly what we needed.
The Taste of Tea has
a cute interior decor with knowledgeable tea barristas who were more
than willing to chat with us, while we took out our dslrs for a photo op
and started our tasting flight of black blend teas. They even gave free
matcha covered pocky sticks, my fave!
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| Stay loose. |
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| Black bend tasting flight- sunburst orange, luscious cranberry, vanilla bean |
Thank
goodness for palette cleansers, we were able to nibble once more on
baked goodies. This time from Noble Folk's sister bakery called Moustache.
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| Love the logo and branding for Moustache. |
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| The Mustache-O. Super sweet oreo cookie. Never again. |
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| Passed on the cupcakes but looking good nonetheless. |
Going
full circle as we head to Chalkboard for dinner. Most wineries close at
5 or 6 pm so we were early for our dinner reservation. While waiting
for our seats, we were able to peruse the luxurious lobby of Hotel Les
Mars, Relais and Chateaux.
Finally, our dinner started with a tasting flight of rose (for me) and red (for him).
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| Here is the actual chalkboard. |
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| Hamachi crudo drizzled with meyer lemon, white soy, chives |
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| Chilled english peas |
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| Healthy kale bucatini with poached egg. |
That's it folks! Our day tour at Healdsburg was so
worth it- an under $100 dinner with a mind blowing cocoa rigatoni, free
wine tasting with cheese pairing, a little bit of baked goods and ice
cream, and tea tasting ($15 to share for 2). What more can you ask for?
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