The Café Beaujolais in the village of Mendocino is one of the Mendocino Coast’s premiere restaurants, with a storied history, a legacy of incredible food, and top-notch service. This is a local and visitor favorite, and is ideal for the special moments in your life – from anniversaries to birthdays to the holidays.
The story of the Café Beaujolais begins in 1969, when the Pitzenbarger family started a small rustic French restaurant in what would be the downstairs of their house. In 1977 Margaret Fox purchased the restaurant, and transformed it into one of the Northern California’s preeminent dining destinations. The wood-fired brick oven bakery was opened in 1990, bringing the taste of authentic brick oven bread to Northern California. This bread is still served with your meal, and also sold at the bakery and local restaurants in the area – and is one of the ‘must taste’ experiences of a visit to Mendocino.
Although the Café Beaujolais stopped serving breakfast after Margaret Fox sold the restaurant, her cookbook still offers recipes for these generational favorites. The restaurant still offers lunch and dinner menus. Lunch here is a fairly casual fine-dining affair, with French inspired California cuisine featuring local and sustainable ingredients. Prices range from $11 to $16 for entrées.
Dinner has a slightly more formal feel – but this is Mendocino, so the dress code is still quite loose. Some people dress to the nines for a night out at the Café Beaujolais, while others stay in more relaxed day attire. The dinner menu ranges in price from $23 to $35 for entrées. During local crab season be sure to try their award winning crab cakes. Other regular favorites include the day boat scallops or the sturgeon fillet with truffle emulsion.
The wine list is a highlight of the Café Beaujolais. It offers a wide sampling of local Mendocino County wines, as well as favorites from Sonoma, Napa, France, and the rest of the world. Notably for the Mendocino Coast, the Café Beaujolais has a truly extensive by the glass selection, with more than 60 wines in rotation – letting guests sample an assortment of local award-winning wines.
If wine isn’t your passion, don’t miss their beer list – easily the best in the area, with more than 100 incredible selections, ranging from small-production California crafts to aged Belgians.
Be sure not to miss their incredible brick-oven fired pizza, which they serve Friday, Saturday, and Sunday at lunchtime out of the Brickery in the back garden. It’s delicious, affordable, and the perfect treat on a busy day.
Great for Local Wine, Romance
961 Ukiah Street, Mendocino, CA 95460
(707) 937-5614
www.cafebeaujolais.com
Lunch: Wed – Sun, 11:30am – 2:30pm
Dinner: Mon – Sun, 5:30pm – 9pm
Brickery Pizza: Fri – Sun, 11:30am – 3pm