this review is for the restaurant..not the bar. Â some good food, inventive menu but they really got knocked down on service. we were promptly greeted, shown to our reserved table, all seemed good and then....ugh. Â had to keep asking for things, water wasn't re-filled, the specials were announced without prices ( c'mon- are you embarrassed by the price??) and the many waitstaff wandering around just did not seem focused at all. Â with all the great options in town, really no excuse for spoonbar service not being stellar to match the food. maybe they simply don't care about locals and figure they will get the tourist $$ no matter what..
Review Source:Menu is weird. Cocktails are confusing. The saving grace was a nice girl Tara in the bar. She guided us thru the drink menu with  friendly ease.  Such a hip shwanky place. Ill come back but I would like to see some new normal food on the menu.
PS: Front desk guy Wade was hot. too bad hes married. That cost you a star. LOL
This place was delicious! We had our server pick our menu for us and she didn't disappoint. You could tell there were amazing chefs in that kitchen. Lara was our server and she was amazing, knowledgeable and managed our table of 6 (tipsy) women very well. I wish I could say the same about the young men working there. I realize this place is called spoonbar indicating a 'small plates' venue, however all of us were still hungry when we left. The food portions are very very small so order more than you think, just be prepared for your bill at the end of your meal.
Review Source:I love this BAR! Â The drinks are amazing!
I am a huge fan of the Jalapeno Bizness. Â It boasts the sweetness of a raspberry and spicy kick of the jalapeno pepper in the foam dancing on the top. Â The cucumber Collins is refreshing but I always go back to the tried and true Jalapeno bizness as it never disappoints.
If you are in town and want a great place to enjoy a hand crafted cocktail make sure you stop by and enjoy.
I do not write many Yelp reviews, but had to give this place kudos for their bar excellence.
There is no better place in the entire Bay Area for unique and exceptional specialty cocktails including all the great upscale bars in SF.
My wife and I were in the area on our anniversary yesterday in the Dry Creek Valley and decided to finish the day at Spoonbar. This is our fourth visit back in the past several years and the place is so consistently good.
A few unique things about this place:
1. It is the only open air bar in Healdsburg that opens right on the main sidewalk and
  street.
2. Their cocktail menu is highly specialized, well thought out and very diverse which
  explains the 14 foot by 20 foot wall of spirits .
3. They infuse carbonation naturally into the carbonated drinks so they do not have
  to use seltzer water, 7-up or the like which waters down the drink . Very
  interesting and entertaining to watch as they make your drink.
4. They augment/accent many of their drinks with herbs or organic edible flowers
  for a topper.
5. The bartenders are very serious and it might seem like they are snubbing you
  but they are mad scientists back there experimenting with new concoctions
  between orders.
The best cocktail I have ever had is at this bar. It is called the Carbonated Sidewinder's Fang and is exceptional (My wife even ordered one because she loved mine so much and she never orders hard alcohol drinks- she usually sticks with wine).
Follow that with their "traditional" Mai Tai which they make old style before the Trader Vic's recipe took over. Very different and subtle tastes but not with the overwhelming hit of 151 rum throughout.
Drinks are fairly priced around $10 each and a great break from wine if you are spending time in Healdsburg or the Dry Creek/ Alexander Valley area and want something different.
On the food side, they made The Chronicle's Top 100 in 2013.
We will continue to return in the future. Check it out.
I love Spoonbar! Â I have eaten there about four times (we have a second home in Healdsburg) & the food keeps getting better & better! Â The cocktails are outstanding - always featuring seasonal produce.
The menu features "small bites" so it is fun to share the different & creative dishes. Â I guess the cocktails have always been noteworthy, but the "semi-new" chef is doing a great job. Â I see why they were added to the SF Gate Top 100 Restaurants for 2013!
There are many charming places to eat in Healdsburg, but few as fun and energetic as Spoonbar. Â The bar (and restaurant) open onto downtown Healdsburg's main street, making the space more active and lively than most of the town's restaurants. Â As other reviewers note, its hard to go wrong with the specialty cocktails, especially after a day of tasting wine. Â The food and menu fit a welcome spot between the low end casual and 'event' dining spots in town.
I was most recently there for the 4th of July BBQ event; if you are ever in that part of the world on the 4th its a great event - you can even see fireworks from the restaurant (or at least from the street out front).
I have been twice. Â Each time I leave, I have spent a lot more time and money than I had budgeted. Â This is a very positive comment, in that I also have a lot more fun and have tasted a lot more new and wonderful treats than I had expected. Â Also, the cocktails are pieces of art. Â The bartenders take their jobs very seriously, and the result is a cocktail experience I will not soon forget. Â I will be back anytime I have the need to have a food and drink adventure that is sure to be a success.
Review Source:Updated Review since my last negative one. Still not really sold on this place.
Had dinner there a week ago. Some of the items were good and others not so.
Kanpachi Sashimi - Pretty Tasty.
Spanish Octopus - Not happy with this dish. Not much octopus and the bonito brioche tasted like bad croutons...didn't even realize they were made with fish.
Beef dish - looked a bit bloody but was good.
Soft Shell Crab - Tasted burnt so the cooking oil was probably too hot.
Lemon Meringue Cake - Great way to end the meal - delicious.
Spoonbar and their catering director Lindsay Rudell did an amazing job with our wedding reception dinner! We rented the Green Room and ordered a 4-course chef's menu. The ambiance was lovely and the food was AMAZING!! The chickpea-encrusted avocado and braised short ribs were especially divine. Service was good. When we simply could not drink another glass of champagne, the manager was very accommodating and took off of our contract the reserved bottle. Since we were under contract, they did not have to do this but they did it anyway, and we all were grateful. Instead, we all ordered coffee to go with our wedding cake. (And they did a beautiful job of setting up and placing flowers on our cake!!) Spoonbar staff and Ms. Rudell helped to make our wedding day complete. I cannot recommend this place enough, whether you just want a delicious meal or have an event/party that needs feeding. This is the place to go in Healdsburg!!
Review Source:If there were 10 stars they would get 10 Stars .....
After being turned away from BarnDIVA! we went accross the road to Spoonbar and we are so glad we did. It was wonderful. The food was unbelievable. The food was so different it awoke all the taste buds we never knew existed. The Kanpachi sashimi + avocado on toast, radish, urfa chili - well what can I say - we ordered it three times !!!
The wait staff was so great and knew their menu inside out. The bathrooms are stunning and the whole decor was right up my alley. Will be back for sure.
Thanks so much for such a great night !!!
We were on our way to my sister's birthday party being held at an estate in Healdsburg and we had not yet had the chance to have dinner. It was almost 10pm and we got to the restaurant and to our disappointment we were told that the kitchen was closed. We were out the door when the amazing manager of the night stopped us and said the chef would still make us dinner. He made our night. Out of all the restaurants that we could have gone to in Healdsburg I think we went to one of the best. I had the hen which was amazing- it came with lentils and some veggies. The bread appetizer with 2 types of breads and 2 different spreads was amazing. Every dish that everyone had to eat was amazzzzing. And we were educated that the chef previously worked at French Laundry. Could it have been more perfect of a last minute dinner?
Review Source:This was a failed attempt to have a nice lunch. The only good thing about this restaurant was our server. The menu is terrible. 2 apps, 3 salads and one sandwich - that is the entire menu. Everything we ordered was bland and gross. The bacon sandwich, which is hard to screw up, couldnt have been more disgusting. We ended up going to a taqueria on central after this meal.
Review Source:Drinks here are amazing, as all the reviews will tell you. Â Very creative and fun. Â The food is ok. Â We tried the following:
--Gougeres-- yummy
--Lavendar honey glazed chicken wings-- pretty good
--Branzino with crispy Speatzle-- Â Just ok. Â The spaetzle was REALLY crunchy and there wasn't enough sauce for my taste.
--My sister-in-law had the sweat-breads and she deemed them inedible. Â To the restaurants credit, they didn't charge her for the plate. Â
Nice wine selection. Â We tried the Banshee Pinot Noir, which was nice to see on the menu and is delicious. Â
Overall, the meal was just ok. Â I would stick to having drinks here and eat elsewhere in town. Â There are other restaurants that are MUCH better.
I had popped in to SpoonBar once before on a quick tour of the hotel, but never eaten there. Â I knew that they were famous for their craft cocktails, but their wines were great as well (we had two very local wines with our dinner - both were still being talked about the next day). Â Staff was great, and while I was a little bit nervous about my menu being a little too. . . "foodie" for the group, everyone raved about it. Â It was probably one of the most successful business dinners I've had to date.
Review Source:Well, this place is great in so many ways (great cocktails, wine list, service, ambiance, etc.) but for the menu, I was not impressed. Nothing on the menu sounded good to me or to anyone in my entire party (of serious food people). Everything we ate was ok, but just weird! Nothing was really that satisfying and our vegetarian friends left hungry. Very hungry. Who wants to eat porridge for dinner? Not me. I'm sure the menu is really exciting for those looking for something really unusual in a dining experience, just not what I seek out after a day of wine tasting or hanging out by the pool.
Review Source:Newly added to the SF Gate Top 100 Restaurants for 2013. I was in Healdsburg the other weekend for wine tasting, and decided to check out Spoonbar for lunch. The doors were open and the "Open" sign was up, but they weren't quite ready, and seemed strict about the 11am opening time. We ended up taking a walk around downtown Healdsburg and were seated right away when we returned. They keep their doors open during the warmer months, which is great for fresh air, but it also means a lot of insects/bugs fly in. We had this huge bug next to our table and the bf had to kill it with the linen napkin. In any case, we ordered:
-Crushed Avocado on Toast, Kanpachi, Urfa Chili + Radish (2/$8, <a href="http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/spoonbar-healdsburg?select=wQ8_Qz-5kWql7Blo_sZ8bw#wQ8_Qz-5kWql7Blo_sZ8bw">http://www.yelp.com/biz_…</a>): Yum- a must order. The kanpanchi was super fresh and buttery tasting, and I loved the layer of avocado.
-Tuna Tartare on Toast (<a href="http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/spoonbar-healdsburg?select=wQ8_Qz-5kWql7Blo_sZ8bw#ycacoJLkmu4Kpk-qKiwg9Q">http://www.yelp.com/biz_…</a>): Yuck. This was completely opposite of the kanpachi toast. The tartare was a mushy consistency, and very bland. Also, the toast it was served on was huge, and there wasn't enough tartare to go around. Skip!
-Crispy Rock Shrimp + Seeded Granola ($6, <a href="http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/spoonbar-healdsburg?select=wQ8_Qz-5kWql7Blo_sZ8bw#vwdn1oxca5qPp4bOrN3E_A">http://www.yelp.com/biz_…</a>): Yum! The shrimp were cooked perfectly, and I loved the granola that was served with it. The granola was a little greasy, but I would still recommend this dish.
-Braised Bacon + Toasted Dutch Crunch, Avocado, Mustard Greens, Tomato Marmalade, Cucumber ($12, <a href="http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/spoonbar-healdsburg?select=wQ8_Qz-5kWql7Blo_sZ8bw#dm0KtN5ofVjFFAgMhtIrgQ">http://www.yelp.com/biz_…</a>): Just ok. The bacon was too dry, but I loved the taste and texture of the toasted Dutch Crunch. They also gave you a TON of avocado, which was great, but I didn't like the tomato marmalade and would've preferred a more traditional vinaigrette.
-Complimentary Salted Caramels (<a href="http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/spoonbar-healdsburg?select=wQ8_Qz-5kWql7Blo_sZ8bw#i8i5mPBUPubt3wsgsumIFQ">http://www.yelp.com/biz_…</a>): Yum! The caramels were nice and chewy, and they added the perfect amount of salt. This was the perfect end to a good meal.
We actually ended up dining here twice, since we had our initial light lunch, and were going to meet up with friends in Geyserville for wine tasting after. They decided they wanted to eat at Spoonbar as well, so we ended up sitting with them and ordering a glass of wine. The service for our lunch was great, and our server was very attentive and the food came out quickly. However, when we sat down with our friends, our server (same person) seemed stretched thin, and our food took FOREVER to come out. They also ran out of the kanpachi dish, which I thought was strange since we just ordered it less than an hour ago. The restaurant wasn't super busy at either time, so it was strange to have such a different experience with the service on the same day. In any case, my review is based for my initial lunch at Spoonbar, and I would highly recommend dining here. Parking can be difficult to find in this area, but free street parking is available, but I would recommend you come early to beat the rush.
An awesome little bar outside the Healdsburg Square. What more could you want? A good looking crowd, friendly people and fun well made drinks. The crowd is mostly 30 something singles, rather than couples. Also, a nice mix of locals, professionals, and tourists. It is classy yet laid back, elegant yet casual, friendly yet not pretentious. A fun, well laid out open air space to enjoy an evening of good drinks and conversation. Have not tried the restaurant yet, but if the bar is any reflection on the food, will be back!
Review Source:Stopped by Spoonbar for a drink before heading off to dinner. Â Spoonbar is THE place for high end cocktails in Healdsburg, with a cool vibe, great selection, and bartenders who know their stuff. Â I ordered the Miller's Negroni, an interpretation of my favorite drink without the characteristic bitterness of Campari and with enhanced orange notes. Â Prices are a bit high and I can't comment on the food, as I was on a liquid diet until 7pm.
Review Source:Spoonbar is located just dow from the plazs inhealdsburg. It is one of those one stop places I always take tourists to when we want just one drink rt snack before we go other places in our search for all things Tourist.
It is contemporary and trendy. Glass paneled walls open up letting the world in at a glance. The wine list is good, soemthign not always found in marin where I am located these days. I am just learning what is taken for granted in Healdsburg is not the standard elsewhere.
Scotty and all the bartenders know there way around a drink an dthe appetizers are just enough to get you moving along to the next place in the search for all things Burg..You will find food, service and ambience in spades at Spoonbar..JJ has done well to make this a destination point of many in downtown Healdsburg..
Spoonbar is awesome for drinks. For dinner, I wasn't as impressed. We had a complimentary dinner for two with our recent stay at H2Hotel. I started with the olives, which were served warm, with quail eggs. They were okay. I don't think I've ever had olives served warm before unless they were in a pasta dish or on pizza, and I likely wouldn't go out of my way for this particular preparation again.
Next up was the roasted romaine heart salad. Once again, it was okay, not my favorite grilled romaine. My final dish was the shellfish medley. For what they were charging, I thought the portion size was fairly paltry. There was one whole shrimp, split in half lengthwise. Weak. I definitely did not like the squid, which was rubbery, very strange texture-wise and nothing like any squid I've had before. The menu describes it as "big fin squid" so perhaps that's why. Either way, not for me.
To be honest, the creative cocktails are what prevent this three star from sinking to two. I've enjoyed libations at the bar a couple times now and have enjoyed them, especially the mai tai on my recent visit. It was presented really beautifully! I'll pass on dinner in the future, but I'd consider a small plate or dessert if I were jonesing for a snack.
If you are staying at the hotel, or the area in general, this restaurant is worth a visit. The food and cocktails are fantastic.
I had the Cornish game hen, which was cooked to perfection and paired with delicious vegetables and garlic puffs. For drinks I had the "Boom Goes the Dynamite", a whiskey drink with egg and all spice.
Everything was great, and because we were staying in the hotel we wanted to go again, but had to force ourselves to branch out a bit and try some other things in town....that's how good everything was.
This is one swanky joint. The doors open all the way so you're indoor but it feels like you're dining al fresco. Â Before I launch into my experience I'll give you fair warning that the restrooms are unisex. Yes, that means you will walk in the restroom and see all sexes in the same room. It's cool, though.
When we went it was during Sonoma Restaurant Week so we took advantage of the prix fixe menu. My first dish wasn't very memorable. So much so that I can't remember what it was. There was a long wait in between our first and second courses so they brought out some olives (my favorite) for us to snack on until our entrees arrived. Yay for that! But those olives went fast and we were starved! Finally our entrees arrived. I ordered the chicken which was ok. There wasn't anything spectacular about it, but I did appreciate that it was white meat. Kudos to them for that! TMy bf ordered the pork belly and he said it was the best pork belly he's ever had. The actual portion size was generous without being Claim Jumper status.
What blew me away was my dessert. I obviously made the best choice. It was graham cracker crust with delicious warm chocolate and sea salted caramel. Man, I'd go again just for that and a glass of wine. My boyfriend and my uncle got something that I don't remember. I do remember their forks dipping into my plate. I wasn't having that. *side eye roll*
This review is for the perfect gin and tonic. My husband, Generalissimo, is a gin and tonic expert. They have the best selection of gin he has seen in Sonoma County. He had the St. George gin and they have a special tonic- didn't catch the brand. What made the G & T even more spectacular were the perfectly clear, over-sized ice cubes that filled the glass vertically. Beautiful to behold and delicious to drink.
Review Source:Was trying to find some of the cooler places to eat in Healdsburg in advance of a quick mini-vacay, and this was one of the main options that came up. Â Decided to check it out for dinner on our first night there, and am very glad that we did.
Part of the Healdsburg Hotel, this spot is just cool. Â They have doors that slide out to make the restaurant open air out to the sidewalk and street, which was perfect for the rather warm day and the hour (we arrived at about 5:30 PM, before it started to cool off). Â There is a lounge area in the back of the restaurant for those who might just want to enjoy a cocktail or a glass of wine. Â Interesting artsy fartsy type decor around the restaurant here and there. Â Included in that is the very cool spoon fountain outside.
Mostly, the food was very good. Â We had apps of the fingerling potato chips with trout mousse and the chicken cracklings with buttermilk and dill (and CHILI, !!!!!). Â The chips were crispy and salty, and the mousse was a nice compliment. Â Great beer food. Â The chicken cracklings were, erm, crispy and salty. Â And HOT...I think they were a little aggressive with the chili flake on this. Â Still very good though. Â For entrees, my gf had the black cod with cornbread, chicories, and chili sauce, while I had the pork belly with Asian pear, radishes, black garlic sauce and basmati rice with Jidori hen egg. Â Her fish was nicely cooked and cornbread griddled and crispy. Â Chicories, however, were oversalted and EXTREMELY bitter. Â My pork belly had a nice contrast of the tender fat and the meaty, well, meat...very well cooked. Â All other accompaniments were good as well.
Service was good if a bit slow at times. Â We sat for some time before ordering, and time between getting the various courses seemed a bit long considering we were having dinner quite early, before the restaurant was half full. Â However, our servers and busboys were very courteous and informative and our waters were kept full at all times.
Overall, a very positive experience - good service and good food. Â Out the door for about $70 after tax and tip, which is not bad at all. Â Why can't we have something AWESOME like this here?
Come on South Bay, step it up! Â It feels like we're behind in this whole food revolution thing.
Great little hip bar and restaurant on the south end of Healdsburg. Â After dinner in Campo Fina a few wanted to have the specialty "Chocolate Martini". Â Not really my thing, but if you like sweet with a kick it might fit your need. Â Needless to say afternoon of wine tasting then dinner with more wine (some of us defected to beer) who would of thought we would have closed this place! Â The bartenders keep the drinks coming, a couple times I think they wanted to know when we would leave. Â Most weekday nights I guess this place closes by 10pm. Â At 1am or so somehow I got final bill for 15 for 2 and half hours of beers, shots, wine, water just about any liquid they could sell. Â Next time I will leave earlier to miss the bill......
Review Source:Do yourself a favor, ignore the negative Yelp reviews and try the Spoonbar experience for yourself. I'm sorry that some people didn't have a good time, but this was our second visit here in the past 6 months and we had a blast.
Wonderful ambiance and service. Superb cocktails, perfectly mixed. An amazingly creative menu, very well executed. Last week we ate at Chez Panisse and agreed that Spoonbar compared very favorably to that experience. Highly recommended.
Disclaimer: This is purely based on the drinks, I have never eaten a meal at Spoonbar.
Their drink selection is vast with a bounty of local, fresh, homemade elixirs, fresh juices, mixes made in house, and edible garnishes that make the most developed and delicious drinks in town!
My personal favorite no matter what else I try, Jalepeno Bizness. Â It is sweet with a kiss of heat from the pepers. Â Absolutely divine!!
If you are in Healdsburg for any reason, hit up the bar for a drink. Â I promise you won't be disappointed.
Very pleased we tried this place and ignored the poor reviews on yelp. Â Everything was delicious from the fabulously inventive cocktails to the wonderfully delicious plates. Â Portions run on the smaller side.
1. The Great Pumpkin - wonderful...just wonderful. Â If I hadn't been stuck driving that night, I would have ordered 3 of these - 5 stars
2. Jalapeno Business - another delicious cocktail. Â I only got a few sips but enjoyed ever sip - 4 stars
3. Chicken crackling, buttermilk, dill - yum but a bit pricey - 3 stars
4. Sunchokes roasted in brown butter, savoy spinach, red onion - 4 stars
5. Bok choy dressed with lemon oil, warmed sheep's milk cheese, red radish, urfa pepper - 4 stars
6. Kanpachi, hazelnuts, grapefruit, avocado - Kanpachi, hazelnuts, grapefruit, avocado - 4 stars
7. Sauteed Bristol Bay scallop, kumquats + matsutake mushroom bisque, trout roe - 4 stars
8. Branzino, chickpeas, chorizo, big fin squid - 3 stars (everything was tasty but the fixh was a touch over cooked)
9. Slow cooked pork belly, black garlic vinaigrette, radishes, asian pear + rice - 3 stars (everything was tasty but rice was underwhelming)
10. White chocolate torte, passion fruit ice cream, kiwi, almond tuile - 4 stars
11. Maple cheesecake, fresh cranberries, brown butter, oats - 3 stars
I am very glad that I decided to re-visit Spoonbar last weekend. My first visit was early last year, before Louis Maldonado became the new chef some time last spring. Back then, it was good, but as I'd heard around town, the drinks were fantastic but the food was overpriced and overrated.
Now? The menu is COMPLETELY different. So different, in fact, that at first I doubted my decision to make reservations there with my boyfriend and my sister. The menu is similar in price to Dry Creek Kitchen, maybe slightly lower. We weren't necessarily looking for something fancy that night, but boy am I glad we ended up there!
We all decided to just go for it, and each got the $45, 4-course meal. Coincidentally, we all wanted to order the same things. We got:
- Broccolini cooked on the plancha, crushed potatoes, puffed brown rice, tomatillo jus. I did not want this dish to end - everything on the plate was absolutely delicious. The combination of texture and the contrast of flavors was just a party in my mouth. Amazing.
- Loin of beef, quinoa, red wine jus, cider braised root vegetables. Oh, my sweet lord. The beef was cooked absolutely perfectly, and along with the veggies and quinoa with the jus were packed with flavor.
- Slow cooked pork belly, black garlic vinaigrette, radishes, asian pear + rice. This was just totally sinful, just as it sounds. Incredibly delicious.
- Maple cheesecake, fresh cranberries, brown butter, oats. Absolutely incredible!
So yes, the food is worth every penny and I am dying to go back. The service was good - the server was attentive and knowledgable and didn't outwardly judge me for not knowing what a few things on the menu were.
Of course, you have to buy a cocktail or two at Spoonbar - they are truly masters of their craft, and every cocktail is like a piece of art.
If you weren't happy with the old Spoonbar, please give the new chef a chance!
went here for NYE revelry, so this review is purely based on ambiance & booze.
INCREDIBLE mixed drinks. I tried 4 different ones (don't judge) & they were all delish.
the bar is a huge mix of folks-- young, old, hip &.... well, decidedly NOT hip. all friendly. Â
this is a SLEEPY town in terms of nightlife & this is as good as it gets. which is still pretty zzzzzzzzzzzz
3 stars for the service and the wine list - Â from my perspective the food was uninspired.
Go here if you're craving "trout mousse" and deep fried "chicken skin cracklings".
We each did the $45 dollar tasting menu (+$50 dollar bottle of local wine and an excellent glass of port to finish) which is essentially gnome sized portions on small plates - they choose some, you choose others - for example - I'm not big on fried chicken skins so I declined the cracklings dotted with aioli they chose for us and the day I crave fish mousse has not yet arrived, #imjustsayin. The bok choy dish - made my companion and I laugh, it was the smallest, wee-est, inner hidden hearts of baby bok choy, in it's defense it was tender and sweet. There were 3 of those diminutive bites to ponder...I was hosting a friend from London and the bottom line - I wish I had gone there for the bar and gotten dinner somewhere else. Skip it.
This was a nice experience but I'm marking a star down because of the drink mishap. I hate to do that, but I felt like I was being pressured into drinking something I didn't like.
The pros:
We were quickly and delightfully able to park in the valet spot. Very quickly seated. The waitress came and took our drink orders quickly. We all ordered cocktails. I got an Old Fashion style house cocktail (whiskey, orange, special house bitters) with some kind of fancy bitters, and the rest of the party ordered martinis of varying types.
The overall:
We started with marinated olives, I absolutely love Castelvetrano Olives. They were marinated with citrus peels and olive oil. We also had the fried polenta [sticks]. OMG, it was exactly as polenta should be. Fried on the outside, and oh so creamy-forget-the-calories-you're-eating-on-the-Âinside. It was served with a nice creamy spicy sauce drizzled on the plate. I wished we had more sauce, but the polenta was gone before I could order it.
We had two orders of burgers, which the women loved (who wouldn't after a day of wine tasting?) that was served with house made ketchup and awesome french fries (I had to taste them). I must admit the juicy burgers looked divine. But I was in the mood for something lighter so I went with the raw ahi syle salad. The waitress was nice enough to let me know that the serving was only x amount of ounces and inquired if that was enough for me. I told her it was. The sashimi style fish was very fresh and tender, but the bitter greens in the salad overtook the delicate flavor a bit. The other was a braised short rib style dish that the other person in our party loved.
The con:
We ordered another round of cocktails to round out our lunch. The other girls stuck with what they had original ordered but I was told that the bar had run out of the special bitters used for my original Old Fashioned style drink. Would I like something else? I said I would welcome something that wasn't spicy as most of the drinks either had gin or tequila which I couldn't drink, or they had a spicy element like ginger I wasn't in the mood for. I told her the previous drink without bitters was fine.
I was then brought the Dark n Stormy "to try" which has a blend of rums, lime, ginger beer, and a different house made bitters of ginger instead of my original drink. This was far too overpowering and I wondered if it was just my palate. I passed it around to the other girls (one of which also had a very powerful drink she liked and was drinking) and all said it was just too undrinkable. The ginger house made bitters, was my guess, the ginger took over all of the other flavors completely. I don't normally send back anything, but I simply couldn't drink this drink. I know it was not the waitress' fault, but likely the bartender or a confusion of communication in between. It was a nice try, but to final that out she actually asked "Are you sure you can't drink it?"
Um, maybe it was the way she said it ... like I was a child but I felt like I had come up with the nerve in the first place to say so, so um, yeah. I honestly felt affronted. I would have even paid for the drink I couldn't drink despite their mistake but now I was just slightly offended. I can't explain exactly why other than that but politely replied "Yes, I am sure I can't drink it."
Astonishing, all of a sudden they were able to make the previous drink I asked for. Had someone just misplaced the bitters? By the time I got my drink, everyone else had finished theirs and it was time to go. So I didn't even get to drink much of it. Poop.
The deal:
Overall the food was wonderful, the service decent (minus the drink deal), and I think I would go back. But just be more firm about what I order.
So, I went in solely on the curb appeal. Â I was with friends and excited that there was room at the long bar and that the night was warm and inviting to sit with the doors open. Â Then I waited 15 minutes to order a drink from the pretentious bartender. Â Ok, I"ll give him the one slight, but then I waiting another 20 minutes to order the second round some 30 minutes later, (after never being asked for an order). Â He was snotty about the ingredients and thought he could mke judgements about what I should be drinking. Â
The food is miniscule and service for that was also slow. Â
So many other amazing places to go in Healdsburg, skip the Spoon Bar.
What a delicious place! Located inside the H2Hotel, this restaurant has some seriously tasty options. We had purchased a package deal through the hotel that included $90 towards food at Spoon Bar, and we thoroughly enjoyed everything we tried.
The menu changes often, but they have smaller sized plates that, when shared, are a few bites per person. We ordered some paprika fingerling potatoes, a cobia dish, hamachi collar, and albacore with crushed garlic, avocado, and coconut milk. Each dish was better than the last, and since the portions were small, we still had room for our main courses. We tried the pork and the chicken, and both were excellently prepared. The pork flaked apart with a fork, and the chicken was incredibly moist and juicy. For dessert, they brought us the strawberry and rose sorbet which was sweet without being too sweet. A good way to end a great meal.
The downside to this restaurant is the ambiance. While it has a few interesting details like the Spoon art installation outside and a cool community table made of unfinished wood, it is very open and connected to the hotel lobby with no visual separation which ends up making it feel a little like a cafeteria. For the price of a meal there, I'd prefer a bit more of an intimate setting. Also the bar can get rather loud, and the noise spills into the large dining area. Despite this we had a great time, but I don't know if we would have chosen to eaten here without the package deal.
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