Diners' Choice: Lively restaurants in Wine Country

OpenTable

Updated June 05, 2025

Looking for restaurants that have the most vibrant bar scenes in Wine Country? You’re in the right place. Each month, OpenTable analyzes nearly 2 million global diner reviews from the past four months. We sort the results by location and category to help you discover new favorite restaurants. It's a great partnership: you reserve, eat, and review. We listen...and deliver the results for all to benefit. Enjoy!

The Shuckery

4.8

4.8 (1074)

$30 and under

Oyster Bar

Petaluma

About the restaurant

Indulge in seafood the way it was meant to be—fresh, seasonal, and delightful. Experience The Shuckery, where we offer raw oysters and a range of creatively crafted, ocean-inspired dishes. Beyond just an oyster bar, The Shuckery embodies a culinary journey rooted in genuine hospitality and dishes that both comfort and exhilarate.

Best of The Bohemian Northbay Winner "Best Restaurant for Oysters" 2024 & 2025 and "Best Sommelier" and "Best Wine List in Sonoma County 2023"

Currently, all our seating is indoors, and we provide a unique experience in the heart of downtown Petaluma, nestled in the historic and beautiful Hotel Petaluma.

To ensure we can accommodate all of our guests, we kindly ask that table seating is limited to 1 hour and 45 minutes for parties of 2-4 and 2 hours for parties of 5+ or more.
While reservations are recommended, we do have an 18 seat first come, first served bar and hightop table selection for walk-in guests.
Chef; Matt Meyer
Owner; Jazmine Lalicker

Top review

Natalie

Dined on Jun 15, 2025

The Shuckery has some of the freshest oysters. The Happy hour menu is a good value. However, the seafood cocktail had rubbery and bland tasting prawns and crab claws. The Caesar salad was over dressed with an overly acidic dressing. I recommend sticking with $2 oysters and a bread basket with grilled bread and a tasty olive garlic dipping sauce. The pickled mussels in a tin with pickles and bread were a winner as well. Service was excellent.

Brewsters Beer Garden

4.7

4.7 (1285)

$30 and under

American

Petaluma

About the restaurant

Brewsters Beer Garden is located in the historic district of downtown Petaluma. We are an open-air dining restaurant with over 350 seats. Our cuisine is focused on technique driven dishes influenced by Southern Carolina BBQ and a smattering of locally sourced and sustainably raised Petaluma producers and ranchers. Think southern BBQ meets California produce with a refined touch of explosive flavors.

The dining space compliments the food perfectly as guests are treated to outdoor seating in a historic setting, with the comforts of large heat lamps, fire pit, and live music stage. We offer an array of over 30 revolving local craft beers on draft, Sonoma and Napa Valley wine, and a full selection of spirits and cocktails. Brewsters was built for people that want more than just a good meal when they eat, they want a dining experience. We are laid back, kid & dog friendly, and like to have fun.

Top review

RoseVIP

Dined on Jun 15, 2025

Atmosphere is relaxed, service good as well as the food.

Paradise Sushi and Hibachi

4.7

4.7 (95)

$31 to $50

Sushi

Santa Rosa

About the restaurant

Paradise Sushi strives to offer customers a family-friendly service and the best ingredients ranging from our homemade sauces to the freshest fish.

Always looking for a way to innovate its sushi, and the atmosphere to give customers an experience to remember.

Here at Paradise Sushi, our goal os ti provide good food, good service and a place where family and friends can come together to have a great time.

Thank you for choosing Paradise Sushi

Top review

Maribel

Dined on Jun 24, 2025

It was a better experience with out cook Alejandro!Food was amazing!

Fern Bar

4.6

4.6 (398)

$31 to $50

American

Sebastopol

About the restaurant

As a bar-focused restaurant, we craft garden-to-glass cocktails served alongside Chef Joe Zobel's modern American cuisine inspired by West Sonoma County's abundance of biodiversity. Along with our menu of innovative and delicious dishes, the bar features house-made beer and spirit-free elixirs, as well as locally-sourced and small-production wines by the glass. Fern Bar's airy, plant-filled space can be found within The Barlow, Sebastopol's popular shopping and dining destination. Our outdoor dining room is covered with a heater next to every table, it still gets cold so bring a layer.
Awards:
The Bohemian
Best New Restaurant in 2020
Best Bar 2020, 2021, 2022
Best Cocktails 2021, 2022
Press Democrat
Best Bar 2021, 2022
Best Craft Cocktail 2021, 2022

Top review

GeorgeVIP

Dined 3 days ago

What a nice surprise this place was! Excellent service and the food was amazing. Also, they have an expansive cocktail and spirits list. The wine list is good as well. I will go back the next time I am in the area!

Ausiellos Homeslice

4.6

4.6 (75)

$30 and under

American

Santa Rosa

About the restaurant

What up Homeslice! Welcome to your Neighborhood Restaurant & Bar. We have wood fire pizza, an amazing smash burger and shareable plates for all to enjoy. We are family friendly but cocktail forward . We pride ourselves in offering great food and crushable cocktails, but more importantly, in offering an atmosphere for friends and family to gather here, in our neighborhood: Rincon Valley.

Top review

Michael

Dined on May 11, 2025

What a great place! We wanted to try a new restaurant for Mother’s Day brunch and they had tables available with a wonderful menu. We were seated and served quickly. The food was delicious and had good portion sizes.

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Popular dish

Smash Burger

Downtown Joe's

4.5

4.5 (162)

$30 and under

Pub

Napa

About the restaurant

Downtown Joe's Brewery and Restaurant has been a staple of Napa Valley since the 1990s with a historic brewery dating back to the 1800s. Our focus is on providing customers with delicious food sourced locally and great beer brewed right here by our passionate brew masters. Locals come to our Napa restaurant to have a good time and visitors come to feel like a local. We feature live music almost every night, sports viewings, and holiday parties. We're proud to have one of the most beloved Napa restaurants dubbed a classic by all who come by. Enjoy family-friendly restaurant dining, a pet-friendly heated patio, locals brews, and a good time.

Top review

Mary

Dined on Jun 23, 2025

This is a great bar! Very welcoming and comfortable w lots of different seating areas. The quesadilla and wings are great. Also have enjoyed the beet salad and French dip. When you want casual, this is a great choice.

The Forge - Napa

4.4

4.4 (427)

$30 and under

Pizzeria

Napa

About the restaurant

Urban Industrial Restaurant with Large Patio, Patio Games, 12 Craft Beers on Tap and Features and Informal Vibe with Award Winning Wood-Fired Pizza and American Comfort Food

Top review

Liza

Dined on May 11, 2025

It was Mother’s Day. There were 6 adults and a well behaved 3 year old and 1 1/2 year old old. We wanted to sit outside! it worked perfectly. Everyone was able to get what they wanted. 2 people were very happy with the fish tacos, 3 enjoyed the burgers and 1 enjoyed the mushroom pizza and the kiddos liked the cheese pizza. Very casual and great service. Beer and wine was good too Everything made for a wonderful afternoon!

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Popular dish

Pepperoni

The Garden by Tannery Bend Beerworks

4.4

4.4 (16)

$30 and under

Beer Garden

Napa

About the restaurant

The Garden by Tannery Bend Beerworks is an indoor/outdoor beer garden and full-service restaurant with beers on 20 tap and an extensive cocktail list. This classic brick building is an exciting addition to the new life of Downtown Napa’s WEST END district. First Street just got one block longer! Opened December of 2023, “The Garden” features coffee & fresh pastries in the mornings, delicious food, live music, and fresh beer, proudly brewed down the street at our brewery on Action Ave seven days a week!

Come on over and see what all the buzz is about!

Top review

ElizabethVIP

Dined 4 days ago

Everything we ordered was excellent. All hits, no misses.

Napa Yard Oxbow Gardens

4.3

4.3 (107)

$30 and under

Farm-to-table

Napa

About the restaurant

Welcome to Napa Yard Oxbow Gardens - where garden-to-table meets garden-to-glass! Our restaurant and micro distillery, Concordia Spirits, offer a unique experience in the heart of Napa.

We pride ourselves on being a family and dog-friendly establishment, with plenty of outdoor seating and a beautiful garden to explore. Our menu is carefully crafted using locally sourced ingredients, ensuring that every dish is fresh, flavorful, and sustainable.

In addition to our delicious food, we also offer a wide selection of craft cocktails made with spirits distilled right here at Concordia Spirits. Our micro distillery uses the ingredients from our gardens for every batch we make.

We are a large restaurant and we have a lot of space to come in without a reservation.

If you'd like to book a reservation for a large party please email events@napayard.com.

Join us at Napa Yard for a truly unique dining experience that celebrates the best of Napa Valley. We can't wait to welcome you!

Top review

JoanVIP

Dined 5 days ago

We had the sliders for lunch & was good. Nice outdoor seating areas. The only thing we didn’t like was having to order by QR code. Finally the waitress got us a menu and took our order.

Mama Por Dios - Fairfield

4.3

4.3 (105)

$50 and over

Mexican

Fairfield

About the restaurant

Mamá por Dios is a restaurant that highlights the best of México, with its flavors, aromas, colors, traditions and art. Bringing it closer to its customers and every drink in every corner. Mamá por Dios is a Mexican gourmet restaurant where you can celebrate every moment.

We do not offer a corkage fee service. We encourage you to enjoy the selection of wines on our list.

We understand that some customers may want to bring their own cake for special occasions. While we welcome this, we do charge a small cake fee for slicing, plating, and handling the cake.

Top review

Gilbert

Dined 4 days ago

Staff was amazing and our waiter (Javier) was very attentive and made sure we were taken care of at all times, with our food and drinks. It’s a must try restaurant.

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