joy on the menu

It’s easy to complain how living online has reduced the number of meaningful interactions we have nowadays. Language has become weaponized at the same time the experience of Covid has made us reticent to express ourselves with ease in casual social settings. Shellshocked by technological ‘progress’ that has been busily re-wiring our brains along with our social systems, “across multiple platforms,'“ it’s hard to escape the sense that we are unwittingly dumbing down real life, losing the visceral connections we so need from one another. Even the concept, the experience of “real’ has become suspect. And don’t get me started about facts. We’re parched, especially from the lack of honest connection that once served as a conduit to genuine community.

Sunday was a group quenching. Almost like a fragrance, joy floated through both gardens as past and present co-workers, industry friends, artists, friends and family gathered to celebrate Barndiva’s 20 years in Healdsburg. Geoffrey, Lukka and I were truly delighted with the memories that everyone shared at the ways the Barndiva experience holds a fond place in their lives.

There was a wonderful randomness to the crowd that made delightful sense. Let’s face it, Barndiva has never known for being just one thing: we started life as a Euro-jazzy bistro, then a gallery, then morphed into a Michelin fine dining restaurant. This year we are back into the studio with the films and soundtracks we love where you can come and dine a la carte, in larger groups, or just slip in for a cocktail or the perfect glass of wine. While the heart of our business has always been our beloved wedding programs, and that hasn’t changed, barndiva has also always been a place for vital community forums, annual collaborative wine tasting events, fund raisers. All the many programs we have invested in over the years to stay engaged, afloat, and relevant have been a reflection of the same desire: to celebrate life as we share conversations worth having around food and drink, social issues. We tilt towards the philosophy that even in spaces where great food and drink and beautiful things surrounding you are deliverable, they are not what you remember years later. It’s the experience. We have created and filled our spaces to reflect what we ourselves would love to discover if we wandered in as a traveler, or frequented as a regular.

Restaurants are the most transactional of high stakes entities, from sourcing - be it from ranch, farm or sea - through the many hands in the kitchen, to that last interaction when someone places a glass or a plate on the space in front of you and invites you to ‘enjoy’. We hide that it’s bloody hard. We delude ourselves but know it will never gets easier. So many pieces need to be in play often at the same time. A sense of urgency is always present. So to see the incredible mix of past and present staff on July 14 was a special pleasure. The same for being able to hug and catch up with artists we have supported, favorite winemakers, spirit makers, farmers, earliest customers, wedding couples… and a good dose of family friends, all commingling, gorgeous drinks in hand, on a perfect summer day in gardens which have grown more beautiful around us over the past two decades.

It was the perfect anniversary gift we could have given ourselves at 20. The flowers were glorious, cocktails divine, (with Scott very much in his element), Legacy libations ‘Steamy Windows’ and ‘On the Beach with Fidel’ brilliantly re-interperted by Charles. All the wines we asked Emily to pour reflected the talents of winemakers who passed through the barn at some point before the start of their careers. David and the team grilled succulent pork carnitas with bowls of vibrant spicy condiments that he and Erik had conspired over, and there were delicious fluatas that alas, I missed, in all the hubbub. Everyone leaving could snag a bag of Lynn’s homemade oatmeal and raisin cookies and vegan fudge brownies.

Thank you to all who attended, and big love to those out of town or who live far away and could not be with us, but sent messages of congratulations suffused with delicious, funny, beautiful, ’I don’t give a shit how this sounds I just gotta say it‘ truly remarkable memories. We love ya.

Above, Chef David Morales and his beautiful family. Below, some of our incredible staff both past and present

Below: Our who’s who of Barndiva’s Healdsburg, then and now. We have been blessed with the friendship of many talented local artists, fine winemakers, artisan spirit makers, & farmers over the years, and seeing some of them on Sunday meant the world to us. A wellspring of emotion at the memories we all shared, of a Healdsburg much transformed. Nothing stays the same, nor should it. But the value of real, personal connections built over many years from the respect and profound enjoyment of the work we have all chosen flowed through the gardens in way we rarely see anymore. The nominal ticket price we asked was all donated to FARMpreneurs, a new non-profit focused on guiding and empowering climate-smart small farmers with education and resources to enable their success. Eat the View writ large.

Stay tuned as we move through the year with more celebrations that speak to our remarkable two decades in Healdsburg!

Jil, Lukka and Geoffrey

As it turns out, Photographer Chad Surmick who shot all these images on July 11, 2024 was at our opening on July 11, 2004, though it would be another decade before we really came to know one another, and quite a few more before I was finally able to hand over photographing all things Barndiva and hand it over to him. He moonlights from an all encompassing job at the Press Democrat and Sonoma Magazine, where he has brilliantly captured the full monte of life in Sonoma County for going on 34 years. Beloved by our staff, his ability to capture a moment without affecting the people living through it, with empathy and artistry, is remarkable. We are so grateful for his talent and his grace. Image above: Chad and dear family friend Mindy and her beautiful family, shot by Lukka Feldman.

Celebrating 20 years on July 14!!

On July 14 we will celebrate a Milestone it’s fair to say we never envisioned achieving - 20 years since the day we opened Barndiva. Over the past two decades we’ve been a local bluesy Bistro Bar, a fine dining Michelin Star Restaurant, hosted thousands of wedding related parties and significant community events, celebrated artists, and worked to strengthen the bonds between farmers and chefs (even helping create a web-site for them). We’ve worked through multiple fires and inventively and safely stayed open through the pandemic. We’ve had the joys of seeing many of our staff grow their families and cherished past employees go on to create wonderful businesses of their own.

It’s been an exhilarating, challenging, frustrating, marvelously engaging life… And on July 14, from 4-6, we're throwing a party to celebrate.

If you are able to come raise a glass with us we will fill it with new versions of the Barndiva cocktail classics, "On the Beach with Fidel" and "Steamy Windows," along with remarkable wines made by vintners who once upon a time polished a glass or two here at the start of their careers. The Chefs will be grilling and the soundtrack will be curated from a 20 year playlist of our favorites. And of course, floral arrangements galore from our farm and some of our slo flower friends.

We know this newsletter goes out to many who live far away, so if you cannot join us on the 14th, please know you have our gratitude. In some way, large or small, you have made this journey with us. Loyal customers, wedding families, farmers, vintners, artists, The City of Healdsburg, and most especially past and present employees - we simply wouldn’t be here without you.

It’s an elusive but significant connection we long to make over food and drink and when it works, that moment when everything comes together, it hits all the high notes of a diva moment . We have never stopped striving for that moment - but even when we miss, we’ve felt the love. Thank you.
 
Follow the link 🥳 to join us. The $10 ticket will go in support of a game changing new nonprofit that builds farm communities -- something that's always been close to our "Eat the View" hearts.
(100% will be donated to FARMpreneurs}  

We hope you can come! 

Of the thousands of images I’ve taken from the day we opened on July 14, 2004 of every aspect of this world we’ve created, at the end of the day what has meant the most to us as a family are the people we have worked alongside, through the good times and bad. This is a stressful industry, with hundreds of moving parts. It takes tremendous effort - physically and emotionally- to stay the course and be true to a vision, especially one as idiosyncratic as Barndiva’s. What has always pulled us over the swells when they got too high has been the dedications of relentless kitchen and front of house teams. When you see the joy of a food or drink moment that has truly landed, especially if that day is significant in a families life, you know why what you do matters.

This no means a complete rogues gallery, just some of the memorable moments we have shared on our way toward writing the barndiva story over the years.

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Coming July 5th ...
Cocktailing in the Gardens begins!

We are excited to be expanding our wine and cocktail menus
so they can be enjoyed in the gardens even if you aren't joining us for dinner

View the expanded cocktail and wine menu, here!

Studio Barndiva is open for dining Thursday - Monday from 5pm.
Walk-ins are welcome, reservations are encouraged.  

We book parties! 8+? Contact us here.

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The 'official' Pink Party Album

A familiar complaint we’ve all heard around town of late is about the dearth of genuine community in Healdsburg. It’s a grumbling refrain that holds particular meaning from anyone that remembers Healdsburg when the words quaint and small town charm could be said about it with a straight face. The usual culprits are a mind boggling collection of new businesses, hotels and restaurants that have opened over the past few years to capitalize on the town’s ‘success’ as a destination location, but the quickening pace of our lives, and the emotional distancing of technology certainly contribute to the disconnect at the heart of the discontent.

The way we see it, community isn’t stagnant, is should and must accommodate change. It’s a layered human construct that is constantly telegraphing across the web of seemingly random connections we make with the people whose paths we cross as we go about our lives, working, shopping, dining out, walking the dogs or, yes, coming out on a beautiful afternoon to taste wine.  Of course It can be locational, found in the church hall, a sporting event, working alongside neighbors at the local food pantry, but we are creating it all the time, with every interaction.  It starts with a desire to connect, is sustained by courtesy, respect, and common interests, and, if you are lucky enough to find them, shared goals.

If the only goal is to make money, if you don’t truly care about your product, respect or spend the time getting to know the people you live and work alongside, you cannot sustain genuine community. Especially in small towns like ours, relationships reverberate in subtle ways when you pay attention; good will resonates whether you’ve known someone for years, or just met them by chance. Community can happen in an afternoon – as it did on Pink Party Sunday. The thing that makes it real is the genuine presence you bring to it, no matter what role you play.

The winemakers who gathered in our gardens to pour their Rosé’s at this years Pink Party, who charmed and educated the guests who came to meet them and admire their craft, are a community with like minded goals, just as the slow flower farmers who grew the blooms we sourced to help create dazzling displays, and the food purveyors like Chef Mike Degan, The Healdsburg Bagel Company, Chef Anderson. Our wonderful staff here at Barndiva, the amazing Corazón crew lead by Ashley Mauritson, Alexis Ioconis who steered the wine ship for us for this years Pink on top of everything else she does, Amber Kneally who sewed our Pink Party Pirate flag at the last minute simply because we asked her to - these are the members of our community we depend upon who bring quality and meaning to our lives as we work through them. Dawnelise and Ari Rosen, last seen leading a joyous if bittersweet progression at the closing of campo fino with patrons who very much considered themselves a community - came to help raise funds and awareness for Corazón, the community organization they founded that focuses upon strengthening families at the very heart of hospitality in Healdsburg. Community is everywhere you choose to see it, and engage with it.

I want to give a special shout out to the many beautiful women in their pink dresses who danced together at the end of the day, as the rest of us looked on beneath the wisteria enjoying the same breeze and listening to the music. It felt so good just to be together and celebrate spring, and the abundance of Healdsburg.

The fabulous Pink Party Line Up for 2023:

@bloodrootwines, @almafriawines, @prestonfarmandwinery, @raftwines, @mauritsonwines, @idlewildwines, @jolielaidewines, @drinkseppi, @cruxwinery, @amistavineyards, @bricoleurvineyards, @brickandmortarwines, @stephane.vivier.wines, @reevewines, @daniel_sonoma, @handleycellars, @flowerswinery, @roedererestate, @grosventrewines, @breathlesswines, @dunstanwine, @tberkleywines, @marinelayerwines, @scharffenbergercellars, @hirschvineyards, @domainesott, @matanzascreekwinery, @liocowineco, @cruesswine, @leosteen_wines, @theharrisgalleryandwine, @ernestvineyards, @rootdownwines, @county_line_vineyards, @copainwines, @drinkkally, @altaorsowinery, @captûrewines, @untiwines.com, @guv_hales, @natalienelsonkirby

Special Friends who always bring it: Chef Francisco, Alexis Ioconis, Ari Rosen & Geoffrey Hales, Scott Beattie (in search of a cocktail no doubt), the irrepressible Susan Preston, Lukka Feldman in from London, Releigh and Asijah, Barndiva’s wine Director Emily Carlson, Eric Sussman, Dan Fitzgerald, Jil Hales & Chappy Cottrell, Dawnelise Rosen, and another belle of the ball in her pink frock, Birdy.

Our thanks to all the winemakers for donating to the raffle benefiting Corazón.

Healdsburg has an abundance of vital community organizations that welcome new energy - join one!

All photographs by the incredible Chad Surmick can be shared. TM us @barndivahealdsburg. And heads up: If you are one of many who missed attending when The Pink Party because it sold out so early, consider signing up to receive our newsletter, Eat the View, so you are first to know about future public events. we’ve got some doozies up our sleeves.

Tickets are now on sale for Fête Blanc, August 20.

@dragonfly_floral, @singlethreadfarm, @longertablefarm, @filigreenfarm, @frontporchfarm, @whodoestheflowers!

@airick72, @franciscoa_, @healdsburgbagel, @chefdegan

Pink Party 2023!

We throw fabulous parties of all kinds and sizes; It’s what we do to earn our crust and something we love - there is nothing quite like the energy of beautifully decorated rooms filled with fabulous food and drink, and the energy that comes when guests arrive wanting to have a great time. Parties open us up to an experience, they connect the dots between milestones, achievement, our desire to have fun. At a moment in time when there seems to be diminishing reasons to celebrate, gathering together (again) in larger groups reminds us why we need the powerful strength we get from community.

The Pink Party holds a special place for Barndiva. Started with Alexis Ioconis and a small group of winemaker friends many years ago as a way to showcase wineries that did not then have a presence in Healdsburg, it has grown exponentially to fill both our gardens as the penultimate party signaling spring is here and summer is about to commence. Healdsburg has changed quite a bit, and many of those fledging winemakers now have international followings, but the heart of the event is still very much about this community doing what it does best. Alexis is back at the helm again this year, and we are thrilled with the line up of winemakers she and our wine team have chosen to join us and pour. The Rosé will flow!

Barndiva Pink Party 2023 will take place on Sunday April 23, from 2-5. There will be music, there will be food - expanded this year to include several street food stations and a pizza oven. We’ll even have a snow cone machine with some inspired flavorings to refresh your palate as you make your way around the gardens tasting through 40 of Sonoma and Mendocino County’s best rosés. As it is every year, the Dress Code is Think Pink!

The wine raffle will benefit Corazón Healdsburg, whose efforts to create a more just and compassionate community includes a bilingual family resource center, and cradle to career education. Their work now stretches across Healdsburg, Windsor, Cloverdale, and Geyserville. Corazón’s inimitable founders, Dawnelise and Ari Rosen have agreed to lead the auction this year, a total treat for us and the community. So you know the drill: Each winemaker graciously donates 2 bottles of their Rosé making it possible to raffle off multiple cases. Corazón benefits from 100% of the proceeds. Great fun for a good cause.

Tickets are now on site for Barndiva’s Pink Party 2023 and friends, they will sell out, so we encourage you to purchase them now.

Join us as we once again fill the gardens with flowers, music, laughter, and a Rosé loving community.

Come, Drink the View with us!