Paella from Vineyards Inn.
Is it paella you prefer? Or, perchance, potstickers?
Either way, you now can get both at Vineyards Inn of Kenwood. Chef-owner Steve Rose has combined his love of the tapas served at his Spanish restaurant on Hwy. 12 with his appreciation of Chinese dim sum.
And why not? Both foods mean little bites, lots of flavors.
Actually, rather than real Chinese, it’s a new tapas tasting dinner, but served dim sum style. Called Tapas Tapas Tapas, it offers guests an array of small plates, in Spanish flavors like ceviche, lemon-garlic calamari, and grilled homemade Spanish chorizo on tomato baguette.
The specialty meal is presented on the fourth Thursday of each month; sign up now for the Aug. 26 feast. The next one takes place Sept. 23.
Servers walk the restaurant with trays and diners point at what they want. At meal’s end, tabs are calculated by the plates piled on the tables, with dishes priced at $4, $6 and $8. For a more dramatic Chinese touch, Rose said he hopes to add cart service at some point.
If you like Vineyards’ regular menu, you’ll like these favorites, presented in smaller portions. The “fish sticks” are actually skewered and flame-broiled fish in Spring Hill
Organic tomatoes from Rose Ranch.
butter, while fire-broiled artichoke comes with dipping sauce, and lamb-beef meatballs are slathered in sofrito.
Vineyards Inn owners Steve and Colleen Rose
The family-owned Rose Ranch gardens that supply much of the restaurant’s organic produce play a big role here, too. Chef Esteban Rose creates uncommon Cal-Spanish bites like kale rolls stuffed with ground lamb, rice, roasted garlic, fresh herbs and mushrooms in lemon-basil pesto sauce, or gnocchi made from organic sweet potato and Dungeness crab tossed in basil pesto.
There’s even a full vegan menu including paella, plus unique nibbles like pizzetta of whole wheat tortilla crust, basil pesto, roasted garlic, organic mushrooms and house made cheese.
If you simply still must have dim sum, chef Rose has you covered. Fill up on his homemade Chinese potstickers plump with organic chicken over roasted Rose Ranch organic tomatillo salsa.
Crowd at a recent Basque dinner.
It’s worth keeping the second Thursday of each month open, too, for the ever-popular Chef’s Basque Dinner series. Rose rolls out seven courses complete with wine for a remarkably low $40, and it’s a real party. Food is served family-style, on platters and in tureens for all to share at one long table.
Reservations are required, with limited seating promptly at 6:30 p.m. But plan ahead – in the year-and-a-half the Basque meal has been offered, it has sold out every time, with seats booked up a few months in advance.
Details: Vineyards Inn, 8445 Sonoma Highway, Kenwood, 707-833-4500, vineyardsinn.com.
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We had dinner there recently with a group and everything was fabulous. Both of these specialty dinners sound great, they sound like an overall dining experience. Nice photos – I’ll take some of those tomatoes!