8 Cozy Restaurants With Wood-Burning Ovens or Fireplaces

Sonoma County restaurants know that the sound and aroma of crackling wood on a fall or winter day is like magic, whether from a fireplace or a wood-burning oven, leaving its blistering kiss on your meal. The warmth makes you feel all cozy inside, and the flames – burning up to 900 degrees for a bubbly-crust pizza – impart extra delicious flavor.

Stark’s Steak & Seafood, Santa Rosa 

This destination is hidden away in downtown Santa Rosa on the edge of the railroad tracks, but it’s well worth seeking out for some of Sonoma’s best steaks and seafood. The red neon Stark’s marquee shines like a beacon, guiding you to a dark, clubby, ultra-friendly retro haunt that wows with a thoroughly modern vibe to the food and drink. 

Choose from the polished wood and black leather-decorated front room with its cozy, roaring fireplace and busy bar or the more formal dining room with red lamps, white linens, and high booths while you enjoy your meal with a perfect, chilled martini.

Diavola Pizzeria & Salumeria, Geyserville  

A growling, tusked pig sculpture tops the wood-burning oven in this Geyserville restaurant that celebrates the seasons of California in an Italian state of mind. The house’s specialties are Neopolitan-style pizza, handmade pasta, house-cured salumi, and daily specials from a wood-burning oven. 

Chef Dino Bugica hand-pulls the pizza dough, scatters on artisanal toppings, and feeds his creations to the oven, emerging charred, golden, crisp, and pillowy. The menu changes daily, featuring consciously sourced meats, fish, and produce from local farms, ranches, and fisheries guided by sustainable principles.

Rosso Pizzeria and Wine Bar, Santa Rosa

Inspired by the Slow Food movement of Italy and local Sonoma County farmers, this Santa Rosa pizzeria & wine bar boasts more than 100 wines from around the world.

The food menu focuses on rustic Italian fare like salumi, antipasti, piadine (salad-topped flatbread), and nightly specials like oven-roasted Dungeness crab or risotto, but the spotlight is on pizza baked in a wood-burning oven to a puffy-edged finish. Locally sourced toppings include McEvoy Ranch EVOO and Sonoma-grown greens and eggs.

Glen Ellen Star, Glen Ellen 

Chef Ari Weiswasser offers just 24 seats in his Cal-Mediterranean bistro, where the star is a big, fire-breathing wood oven. Weiswasser previously worked at French Laundry and Picholine, Daniel, Gilt, and Corton in New York. He perfectly captures the uncomplicated essence of Wine Country cooking with dishes like Brussels sprouts in brown sugar bacon marmalade; crispy spaetzle tossed with celery root, huckleberries, and Parmesan; and exquisitely crisp and golden brick chicken paired with creamy polenta, lemon and Spanish caper jus. Reservations are a must.

Gourmet au Bay, Bodega Bay

Part wine shop, part restaurant, and part gift shop, Gourmet Au Bay is home to a 900-degree wood-fired oven. Their seasonal menu can include wood-fired prawns, crab cakes, roasted mussels, creative flatbreads, and rich and tasty house-made clam chowder. Check selections off on the deli-style menu, drop them off at the bar, and then sit at the comfy bar tables or on the protected outdoor patio and taste a flight of wines served on a mini-surfboard.

Campo Fina, Healdsburg 

Small plates are the backbone of this venture from Dawnelise and Ari Rosen. This stylish eatery often uses a wood-burning oven on the back patio to celebrate authentic, rustic Italian food and showcase local, seasonal ingredients. From its seasonal bites like beautiful roasted cauliflower sprinkled in pine nuts with currants and anchovies and hand-crafted pizzas like pork belly topped in smoked mozzarella, squash, chanterelles, and arugula or pitch-perfect Margarita laced in melty-pure mozzarella, fresh basil leaves, tomato, and golden olive oil.

Cibo Rustico Pizzeria, Santa Rosa

Enjoy authentic Italian thin-crust pizza made with local and organic toppings in a casual, friendly, family-style environment. Start your meal with breadsticks and a complimentary taste of wine. In addition to delicious wood-fired pizza, the menu includes mouth-watering appetizers, a variety of fresh salads, authentic pasta, and beautiful desserts, including an Italian gelato bar. The wine bar features local wines and craft beers.

Jackson’s Bar and Oven, Santa Rosa 

Jackson’s Bar and Oven is the kind of place chef/owner Josh Silvers wanted to go to. This reliable hangout is kid-friendly and casually sophisticated, emphasizing quality ingredients. Jackson’s is centered around a wood-fired oven and features artisanal cocktails and comfort food favorites.

From oysters to wood-fired pizza, from small bites to big eats, the ever-changing menu is inspired by the freshest seasonal ingredients and the abundance of quality foods available in Sonoma County.

Other Possibilities

Of course, this is Sonoma County, so there are always more delightful options.

Gold Coast Coffee & Bakery, Duncans Mills

Gold Coast Coffee & Bakery in Duncans Mills is where you can enjoy one of their many homemade pastries (and pizzas!) baked fresh daily in an authentic wood-fired oven while relaxing on their lovely deck surrounded by lush gardens. This sweet homestyle eatery is where you can sip on some good coffee while eating your baked delights and take in the bounty of West Sonoma County in beautiful Duncans Mills.

Wild Flour, Freestone

Wild Flour Bread in Freestone is renowned for its bread and baked goods. This celebrated bake shop features brick oven-baked sourdough bread, scones, and coffee drinks. Working with a wood-fired brick oven, Wild Flour produces beautiful hard-crust bread that folks come from miles around to taste. It is located in charming Freestone Valley, a village of just 26 houses. The view from the bakery looks out onto fields, barns, and often a herd of cows.

Franchetti’s Kitchen, Santa Rosa

Franchettis’ Gasthaus + Biergarten in Santa Rosa creates thin-crust wood-fired pizzas that are properly moist in the middle with crisp bubbled edges. This festive, contemporary eatery features wood-fired pizzas, Italian pasta & eclectic entrees in addition to its full breakfast, lunch, and dinner menu.

Central Market, Petaluma

Central Market in Petaluma cooks up farm-to-table rustic California-Mediterranean cuisine, with bread baked daily in its wood-fired oven. This modern farm-to-fork restaurant with a local focus uses fresh, seasonal ingredients from local farms and purveyors to create its dishes. You can enjoy a variety of Chef Tony Najiola’s seasonal dishes, including wood-fired pizzas, fresh pasta, crisp salads, small bites, and hearty entrees.

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Written by Sonoma Insider Carey Sweet