Think San Francisco’s Ferry Plaza Marketplace, but on a cozier scale. That’s what Napa, a once-sleepy town of 75,000, now boasts in the Oxbow Public Market.
The similarities are only natural. Steve Carlin, founder of the Oxbow Public Market, also was project manager for the Ferry Building Marketplace. He has the goods on all things gourmet, too, having co-owned the Oakville Grocery stores for 20 years.
Situated along the Napa River and next to Copia on First Street in downtown Napa, the 40,000-square-foot Oxbow Public Market is a block-long foodie’s playground that opened in December. Eighteen merchants and restaurants already have settled in, including a branch of the ever-popular Taylor’s Automatic Refresher, the Fatted Calf (an artisanal charcuterie), Whole Spice Company (where you can buy a multitude of spices in any amount you wish), and Five Dot Ranch (the first retail site for sustainable beef raised by the Swickard family, seven generations of cattle ranchers in Northern California).
May 2, the marketplace’s 10 farmstands will officially open, selling everything from figs from Knoll Farms in Brentwood to citrus from Guru Ram Das in Esparto to cherries from Frog Hollow Farms in Brentwood. The farmstands will be open 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily.
Still to come are a branch of the Hog Island Oyster Bar (with fresh-as-can-be oysters harvested from Tomales Bay), and Kanaloa Seafood (a market run by a Santa Barbara seafood company owned by a biologist and oceanographic researcher that will sell only sustainable seafood).
It’s definitely worth a detour off of Highway 29. If you visit, here are a few things not to miss:
Folio Enoteca & Winery: At 80-square-feet, it may very well be the world’s smallest bonded winery. No crushing or bottling are done here, but wine is indeed aged in barrels on site. Enjoy a taste, along with a grilled panini or crisp salad.
Model Bakery: The original bakery has been a landmark in downtown St. Helena for more than 80 years. Carb lovers will swoon over the Asiago cheese bread, piles of fresh-pizza slices, and chewy ginger molasses cookies. It’s the housemade English muffins that steal my heart, though. Made from ciabatta dough then griddled with cornmeal, they toast up crispy on the edges and pillowy in the nooks.
Tillerman Tea Company: Former Clos du Val Winery Chief Executive Officer David Campbell has joined with China scholar David Wong to open this striking tea cafe and emporium. Each day, a different “house flight” of five teas is offered for tasting. Customers also can book private tea tastings.
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