White truffle shavings rained onto Comté gougères at the Cyrus table. A chef from Press whisked French fry-flavored soft serve in a haze of liquid nitrogen. Guests went back for second, third, even fourth helpings of Slanted Door’s yellowtail crudo with Thai basil and lime.
On Nov. 9, more than 500 San Francisco Chronicle readers gathered at the CIA at Copia in Napa to taste bites from the inaugural list of Wine Country’s Top 25 restaurants chosen by Chronicle food critics MacKenzie Chung Fegan and Cesar Hernandez.
Contimo Provisions serves tastes at the San Francisco Chronicle’s Wine Country’s Top 25 event at the CIA at Copia in Napa on Nov. 9, 2025. (Brian Feulner/For the S.F. Chronicle)
The party, supported by official accommodation partner Andaz Napa, welcomed a selection of the best restaurants in Napa and Sonoma counties under one roof alongside more than a dozen local wineries and distilleries.
Guests sipped and savored all afternoon, sampling pours from wineries like Di Costanzo, Auteur Wines and Saintsbury Winery and tastes from restaurants on the top 25, including chicken nuggets from Joella’s Deli, XO eggs from Valley and 10-hour braised oxtail from Carabao, fried into a crunchy croquette.
Mustards Grill chef Cindy Pawlcyn demonstrates how to make ahi tuna poke at the San Francisco Chronicle’s Wine Country’s Top 25 event at the CIA at Copia in Napa on Nov. 9, 2025. (Brian Feulner/For the S.F. Chronicle)
Between all the eating and drinking, attendees gathered around a demo kitchen to watch some of Wine Country’s best chefs get to work.
Mustards Grill icon Cindy Pawlcyn mixed up ahi tuna poke with Chronicle wine writer Jess Lander, pairing the ruby-colored fish with Lewis Cellars’ Sauvignon Blanc.
Bazaar Sonoma chef Sean Quan talked all things dumplings with Fegan, then dished up saucy bowls of Sichuan-style zhong dumplings for a line that stretched away from the stage.
Bazaar Sonoma chef Sean Quan makes Zhong dumplings at the San Francisco Chronicle’s Wine Country’s Top 25 event at the CIA at Copia in Napa on Nov. 9, 2025. (Brian Feulner/For the S.F. Chronicle)
His restaurant burned in an electrical fire days after it was named one of the best in Wine Country, and in front of the crowd at Copia, Quan shared how he’s been feeling in the aftermath and where diners can find his food while Bazaar Sonoma rebuilds.
By the time Troubadour Bread & Bistro chef Sean McGaughey joined senior wine critic Esther Mobley to demonstrate the restaurant’s elegant steak tartare, guests had gone from watching at a polite distance to gathering around the kitchen countertop. Which meant they had a front row seat as he attempted the tricky art of frying up a dainty tuile as garnish. After a few false starts, McGaughey pulled a jet-black, butterfly-shaped crisp from the press and a cheer went up from the crowd – a moment of culinary appreciation at an event dedicated to it.
Guests photograph Troubadour Bread & Bistro’s steak tartare at the San Francisco Chronicle’s Wine Country’s Top 25 event at the CIA at Copia in Napa on Nov. 9, 2025. (Brian Feulner/For the S.F. Chronicle)
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This article originally published at Truffles, wine and French fry ice cream: How the Chronicle celebrated Wine Country’s top restaurants.
Dining and Cooking