3 Best Restaurants in Napa and Sonoma, California

From pintxos and paellas to Iberian cheeses and fish à la plancha (flat-grilled), the chefs at this Wine Country offspring of Michael Chiarello's successful San Francisco restaurant Coqueta reimagine Spanish classics with a 21st-century farm-to-table sensibility. The frenetic pace in the flame-happy open kitchen, inside Yountville's redbrick former railroad depot, keeps the mood lively in the relatively small dining space, with the vibe on the patio out back even more so.

The owner of this four-storefront empire touts it as a "mid-block party": ZuZu for paella, tapas, and other northern Spanish favorites; next door a gin bar (the spirit is big in Spain); third, a takeout window; and finally La Taberna for beer, wine, and pintxos (bar bites). The anchor, which opened in 2002, is still drawing crowds, who come for shareable plates that might include flounder ceviche, tender wood-fired octopus, jamón ibérico, and lamb chops with Moroccan barbecue glaze.

Spanish-style tapas and an outdoor patio in perpetual party mode make this restaurant, headquartered in a restored 1920s bungalow, a popular downtown perch. Contemporary Spanish mosaics set a perky tone inside, but unless something's amiss with the weather, nearly everyone heads out back for flavorful croquettes, paella, jamón ibérico, pan tomate (tomato toast), grilled octopus, skirt steak, and crispy fried chicken.