The GREAT Dives in NAPA VALLEY

[dccd]

New Yorker/Texan uprooting to the Napa Valley.

We will be moving to the area and loved to seek out the hidden gems of NY and the little shacks with great Q and Mex in Tex.

Just wanted to know if any of you could suggest any great dive-type or off-the-beaten-path-type places that serve really good food ... any style or ethnicity.

Any recommendations appreciated ...

Thanks,

D

[Carolyn Tillie]

Sorry -- couldn't help myself. Sadly, the "dives" in Napa are the hideously bad Chinese joints. Will you be here in time for the NoCal Potluck???

Once you get here, we'll show you where to eat. Trust us.

Edited to add -- where are you moving to? Napa Valley is big and you might be close and/or far away, depending.

Edited August 5, 2004 by Carolyn Tillie (log)

[melkor]

There are a couple of good dive bars in Napa (green door & green lantern - I don't think they are related) both are good for that authentic dive-bar experience.

The endless supply of Taco Trucks would be your best bet for Mexican food. There are a couple of BBQ places in Vallejo, but I've only driven past them so I can't comment on their food. Good Asian food is lacking in the valley, you need to drive to the east bay or San Francisco for that - Oakland has an endless supply of great places to explore.

There are a few good greasy spoon diners in the area - one in American Canyon (The Canyon Cafe) which seems to be open for a few hours a day completely at random, if you happen to be there when they are open you can get the authentic breakfast-all-day diner meal, I'd avoid the rest of the menu. There's another diner in Napa that's good on Soscol by 6th street called the Soscol Cafe, you can order pretty much anything there and it's good.

The Foothill Cafe is an out-of-the-way place near the outlets off highway 29, it's fairly generic California cuisine, but the food is good, it's not really a dive so much as it's off the beaten path and mostly free of drunken tourists. Zinsvalley on browns valley road is another good spot off the beaten path, no corkage, huge outdoor patio, reasonable prices, friendly people, and it's quiet.

There are a huge number of restaurants in the area, most of them cheap - but it's hard to explore all of them when the produce from the garden is taking over the kitchen.

[dccd]

Once you get here, we'll show you where to eat. Trust us.

Edited to add -- where are you moving to? Napa Valley is big and you might be close and/or far away, depending.

Thanks ... can't wait .

We'll be living in Napa City, I believe.

To Melkor:

Thanks for the info, we'll try to check a few of them out ... "free of drunken tourists" is definitely what I would prefer.

[samgiovese]

Hey, Guys, don't forget Pancha's in Yountville. Hard to believe it's only 2 blocks from the FL!

[tanabutler]

It doesn't look like a dive, but what about the Latino store right when you turn off the highway into Rutherford? I didn't have time to stop there a couple of weeks ago, but was curious. It looked like The Real Deal. Info?

[cmvnapa]

Rutherford market is La Luna. I haven't been there in years but when I worked at Mondavi, the quesadillas were cheap, greasy, and not very authentic (ham or pepperoni, cheese, peppers). I know they now have a taqueria and turn out tacos and burritos. There used to be a great place near the Rutherford Post Office called the Corner Bar. Unisex bathroom with both male and female nekkid centerfolds. At one time, when Robin Williams was still a wild man, he'd supposedly drive down from his ranch and hang out there. He and Chris Reeve once came by RMW; Reeve was wearing awfully short shorts and had these pasty white legs. Poor guy (I mean now).

Soscol Cafe is great, there's Mrs. McDonald's, we have a Nation's Burgers & Pies - that probably covers the grease. And the Depot on 4th is always a trip back in time. Can't beat those malfatti. During her first visit to pick up malfatti and ravioli, a friend of mine saw someone looking out the back window at her and she asked, "Oh, is this where I get the malfatti?" and the response was "No, this is the men's room."

In re bars, someone has already mentioned the Green Door and the Green Lantern. Lou Scaruffi, who owned the bar in the days I used to go there (when I drank AND smoked and a beer was a buck - circa 1991), recently passed away. I hear it's closing down in September. No drunken tourists - only drunken residents. Lamplighter used to be fun when it was downtown; now it's up on Trancas, IIRC.

I keep editing this...there's also Henry's Cocktail Lounge on Main Street - there's no sign and it's between Pilar's and Zuzu. Henry died a few years ago but the lounge lives on.

Edited August 8, 2004 by cmvnapa (log)