Hazel - Occidental

Hazel is a real gem--starting with the location in the charming Occidental downtown, with the tasteful decor, the friendliest staff ever and finally with the most refined menu created by Chef Jim and his lovely wife who's the pastry chef. The ingredients are always fresh and the dishes are so wonderfully creative...not to mention how generous the portions are... We had to go back to Occidental mainly for the exceptional dining experience at Hazel restaurant.

Outstanding dinner! The beet/goat cheese salad was the best salad I ever had. The octopus was wonderful; I stopped eating octopus in the USA because it was never prepared as well as in Spain.
This was! I would go back to Occidental just for the octopus! Great service. Everyone friendly. Nice atmosphere.

THE FOOD IS VERY GOOD. SERVICE IS GREAT. FREINDLY STAFF

Upscale dining in a lovely intimate spot in Occidental.

Hazel is a destination and worth the drive from the Bay Area. We came this time to celebrate our anniversary. We love the food by Chef Jim. We had the halibut this time and it was outstanding. The desserts by Chef Michele are yummy. We love Jim and Michele. In addition to their menu, they are what makes this place with their warm and inviting personalities. You feel like part of the family. If you're lucky you'll get a glimpse of their adorable son, Graham.

Occidental has some good restaurants, but Hazel has the finest food in town plus great home made style deserts. Everything is absolutely delicious. Get out here and try Hazel...

Have enjoyed weekend brunch many times. Cheerful interior, Occidental is nice location for a Sunday drive. Excellent pizza and other baked goods such as baignets. Locally sourced ingredients.

This is a local hot spot while in the Occidental area it is a must visit!

Hazel's replaces Bistro des Coupains, an ideal location due to its proximity to the Occidental Center for the Arts. The menu has enough variety to suit most and dishes can be adapted in the kitchen in case of food allergies/sensitivities. When we arrived, the place was half filled and quiet enough to converse, but within one hour we had a hard time hearing each other across the table. We both ordered the octopus starter plus a salad each, asking if this would be sufficient for a meal. We were assured by our server that it would be enough; however, the octopus plate turned out also to be a salad and we would have ordered differently had we been given some guidance. The octopus dish was fabulous! Tender, flavorful morsels grilled to perfection complemented by fennel, citrus, and a pile of dressed arugula. The other dishes, both salads, were OK. Next time we may try the pot roast. The fried Brussels sprouts were tempting until we learned they use canola oil in the deep fryer.

Delicious meal! Hazel is a wonderful restaurant and dining destination for the town of occidental. Food was amazing, especially the brussel sprouts! Wine selection was terrific. We will be back soon.

Great food! Great service. Definitely worth the drive.

Excellent starters and Pizza as well as other main courses which are very large. We always wish we had shared the main courses. Wonderful local wine selection. The service is exceptional.

Love this restaurant! The food is delicious and everyone is so warm & friendly. This was my second visit and I loved it even more that the first time. The Brussel Sprout appetizer is my absolute favorite. The Lemon Bars for dessert were "melt in your mouth" delicious. I will definitely be returning to try the pizza -- which looked scrumptious -- and other items on the menu.

Been here many times and has always been a satisfying experience. The passion of the chef shows in each dish, the servers are very friendly and accommodating.

Wonderful restaurant with excellent menu choices. Large portions and high quality, creative dishes - we even had delicious leftovers the next day too! The staff were extremely friendly which made for an extra special evening.

Very nice small restaurant in the quaint town of Occidental. Great pizzas, and we had a great pizza baker in our group, who said so himself!!
Ribeye steak was big and perfectly cooked. Home baked bread was very good as well.

Our starters - the brussels sprouts, arugula salad, sourdough bread - and pizza - egg & sausage and pepperoni - were so great that our party of three couldn't resist trying three separate desserts instead of splitting. I think I won with the chocolate pot de creme, but the olive oil pistachio cake and hazelnut sundae were close-close-close seconds. Most friendly and helpful waitstaff, even on a busy Saturday night. Multiple wines available from Preston, my favorite local winery. Their Zin was the perfect accompaniment to everything we ordered, just like our server said it would be. Will definitely be making this a regular stop.

It was A M A Z I N G ! The service was great as well

We were there for our anniversary and Hazel felt like a sweet spot for date. We left super satisfied! The atmosphere was cozy and welcoming. And the food was terrific! We shared a couple of appetizers. The brussel sprouts were a bit! Next was the sausage and egg pizza. It was perfect! And we finished with both pistachio olive oil cake and salted honey pie! The cake was very good but I could have eaten an entire salted honey pie! We will definitely be back!

Hazel is a small gem of a restaurant in Occidental. The seasonally appropriate salads full of local ingredients, wood oven pizza cooked to perfection, large portioned comfort food entrees (seafood stew and slow cooked pot roast) were all mouth watering delicious. Save room for homemade dessert ( Pot de Creme and Strawberry Rhubarb Crumble Crust Pie). All was served with attention and smiles.

Excellent They source local ingredients For example the arugula salad featured a blue cheese from point reyes cheese maker that I, a hater of blue cheese found delectable. Friendly atmosphere where you can chat with neighboring tables A pleasant dining experience

Loved the food, great atmosphere, very good service

This place never disappoints! Great food, warm and friendly, the new Occidental gem!

Another visit to this great restaurant. My only complaint is they didn't serve soup on a very rainy night.

We had a lovely dinner at Hazel, before we went to a concert. Service was fantastic, paced perfectly. We shared the octopus salad, which was well composed (tender octopus, tender lettuces, well balanced veggies), with a very subtle vinaigrette. Then we had the best rib eye of my life - large, perfectly cooked (rare), flavorful and juicy. It came with roasted potatoes (excellent!) and kale. For dessert we had the Hazel Sunday, which was just delicious, with caramalized almonds and homemade fudge and caramel sauces. We will definitely be back!

We were a party of four...one of whom have very serve food allergies...our server went far above to explain how meals were served...she checked several times with the chef to also check ingredients used during the cooking progress. Thank you to our server for taking time to make sure our evening was pleasurable and food safe!

The roasted chicken, the pizza and the arugula salad were all excellent as is their wine list.

We love having this little restaurant in our tiny town. The menu continues to be pretty limited although the dishes are well prepared. Pizzas are the best value here, but sometimes we want something more unique so we look to the salads and entrees. The beet salad was good, but there were too many beets and we couldn't finish it even though we shared it. The pot roast and fish (halibut) stew were excellent, but once again the proportions were inconsistent. The pot roast serving was huge, but the fish stew was too small. A small amuse-bouch such as tepanade/toast or olives before the meal would be well received. The service was warm and efficient.

Our meal was delightful; service was timely and friendly; cuisine was tasty and original. My husband had a halibut stew which was outstanding and I had a rice risotto - very tasty! We shared an arugula salad and roasted brussel sprouts - excellent. The only thing that I would like to be different is the noise level in the restaurant; it was very energetic!

Love Occidental and love Hazel's. Have only been there with girlfriend's but I recommend for couples and families as well.

We had a great New Year's Eve dinner here! Brussels Sprouts is a must!

Love Hazel, this was our second time and we'll definitely be back. Brought some friends for New Years Eve dinner and Hazel didn't disappoint. Pizzas are awesome, risotto was delicious, and my personal favorite are the Brussel sprouts. Love Hazel!!

Someone had recommended the chicken , which I ordered, and it was excellent. I've been to
Hazel several times and it was excellent every time I went. The Ribs are killer and
the Pot Roast is excellent. Nice wine selection. This time I tried Jigar's Cabernet which
is also excellent. Next time it will be the Rib Eye which I hear is excellent.

Fantastic!

Wonderful food. Exceptionally favor full and interesting pizzas. Good selection of local wines. Highly recommended.

Loved this little place. Food was wonderful and the staff very friendly and helpful. One caution, if you are coming from Guerenville at night don't take Green Valley road. It is very dark and dangerous. It may be longer but take the Bohemian highway. It will be a much more pleasant meal. My husband had two large glasses of wine to recover from the drive.

Delicious wood oven pizzas, roasted Brussels sprouts that would convert the vegie haters, and fun atmosphere. Rustic Occidental is a drive through the redwoods ending with the delicious aromas of good food and tasty cold artisan beers. Delicious but make sure you have a reservation!

Hazel is extraordinary. They use local Farmer's produce, and the food is always amazing. They keep vegetarians and meat lovers very happy!

Always great sides, pizza, entrees, and desserts plus wonderful service.

This is a wonderful place to eat. Delicious food, great service and located in a beautiful location this is a great place to start or finish your day in Sonoma county. I just wish it was in my town 😉