Owning a restaurant in Wine Country the past few years has come with considerable challenges, but in an ironic yet edifying turn of events it was these very challenges which have provided the building blocks to navigating the difficult months of Covid-19. By staying open and pivoting to a To Go only menu we initially pulled on the skill set that got us through two fires and an evacuation. Owner Lukka Feldman, manager Cathryn Hulsman and wine director Chappy Cottrell are used to landing on their feet, damn the mind boggling logistics. With the arrival of Jordan Rosas to lead our kitchens a renewed sense of mission around the kind of food we want to source and cook, and how we want to serve you, our valued customers, neighbors and friends, has emerged.
Despite what you read in bucolic magazine profiles that seem to tout the proliferation of small farms, 30-40% of small independent farms nationwide are facing bankruptcy*. Going into this pandemic, purveyors that supply restaurants like ours were especially threatened with a catastrophic loss of revenue just as they were contemplating the spring planting season. With Jordan’s passion for local sourcing we are doubling down on our seminal Eat the View mission. We also view this moment as a crucial time to address inequities built into the hospitality industry at the most basic and structural levels.
This pandemic has revealed many weaknesses to the social systems we depend upon. Weaknesses to our healthcare systems, to big government, to the entire retail industry, to access to a just and healthy food system. It’s up to all of us to challenge and re-envision the pieces of our lives and businesses we have control over. As we pray the resurgence of the Black Lives Matter movement will teach even the most recalcitrant among us, when it comes to the social contract we all depend upon, ultimately, we rise or fall together.
Restaurant dining may never be the same. But what if this is an opportunity to make it even better?
To be sure, we miss the Barndiva dining room vibe - cocktails shaking in time to the music, extravagant floral arrangements, candlelight, multiple conversations studded with laughter. All that will soon return inside. But as we go into a summer with a safe distance dining model, we do so with a new approach to the food we serve and the desire to make all the pieces that contribute to that experience more equatable. We are talking full healthcare insurance and a better living wage. Strengthening the teamwork between front of house and back of house that too often divides instead of unifies.
This will not change the relationship we hope to have with you, our diners, except to enrich it. Our first Saturday serving customers on property again was notable not just for an appreciation of Jordan’s food, the beauty of the gardens, the pared down but focused professionalism of our returning staff, but in the kindness shown by diners who returned with a new appreciation of how important restaurants like ours are to a shared cultural experience.
For the time being, to minimize direct interaction we will rely on cell phones to provide the depth of service we usually provide at the table. Credit card information will be taken with your reservation and a 19% service charge added to all bills - you may tip above that if you wish and while greatly appreciated it is not necessary. Once your temperature is taken by a host at the door and you are shown a table, all you need do is go to our website for the menu, then call or text us to discuss or place your order. Our bartenders have been busy concocting summer cocktails and a full bar experience is available. You can talk to our sommelier about a great bottle of wine. Talk to the chef through our restaurant manager about ingredients, sourcing, technique. We will have a number of staff on the phones at all times. Because we will have your table number once you are seated, all you need do is text or call to add to your order or pay your bill.
A rising star in Los Angeles before he made the move North to inspire and lead our kitchens here in Healdsburg, Jordan Rosas’ approach is light and elegant, deeply satisfying, thoughtful, gorgeous, and utterly delicious. We are thrilled to welcome him to the Barndiva family. Dishes like celery root, turnip and nettle soup with slivers of pickled onion, drizzled with herb oil and seared Liberty Duck with first of the season cherries, Russian kale and forest namekos have already become favorites. Our desserts, by the wonderful Sarah Ellsworth, change daily, but will always include her macaroons, the most popular item (along with Auntie Lynn’s carrot cake) of the desserts on the To Go Menu, which is still going strong for all those who wish to continue sheltering in place. Lunch menus will feature Barndiva burgers, fried chicken sandwiches, teriyaki glazed salmon, house made pastas and wonderful salads. But to discover the depth of this young man’s remarkable talents we encourage you to dine with us at dinner. He’s just getting started.
Seared local halibut with Manila clam broccoli ‘chowder.’
Mastering the Smize: behind masks as they deliver dishes were Jessica, Hayden, Isabel - and Natalie and Terra (not shown)
It was most gratifying to see the number of families with children and dogs out on Saturday, along with Barndiva To Go regulars who walked through the gardens in a post quarantine daze. The gardens are blooming. Summer is here. We would love to see you soon!
In this bucket from the farm: Azaleas, Mock Orange, green flowering Tobacco, Knautia, Artichoke, Foxglove. To keep up with what’s growing in Philo we encourage you to follow our farm manager and brilliant gardener Daniel Carlson @daniel.james.co.
*For more information on the challenges small farmers are facing, click here.
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