Food and wine news, events around Sonoma

ST. HELENA

Goose & Gander opening in late April

Goose & Gander, a new gathering place for cocktails and rustic, American cuisine, is expected to open in late April in the former Martini House in downtown St. Helena.

The 90-year-old craftsman-style bungalow will feature a newly renovated upstairs dining room seating 65, a Basement Bar seating 32, a private dining room for 12, and garden seating around the koi pond for 66.

Heading up the kitchen team will be executive chef Kelly McCown, who was the opening chef de cuisine at the former Martini House. He has cooked for nearly 25 years on the West Coast, crafting rustic, American menus using the bounty of Northern California.

Bar manager Scott Beattie, formerly of Spoonbar and Cyrus in Healdsburg, will be serving up his signature seasonal cocktails at the Basement Bar. Beattie worked as a bartender in the former Martini House.

Wine director Christina Merrigan, a certified sommelier, comes to Goose & Gander from Morimoto Napa to head up the wine program.

The upstairs dining room will be open daily from 4 to 10 p.m. The Basement Bar will be open daily from 4 p.m. to midnight. Lunch is expected to begin in May and the Garden will open after Memorial Day.

Goose & Gander is located at 1245 Spring St. 967-8779. goosegander.com.

HEALDSBURG

SHED market-cafe taking shape

SHED, a market and seasonally-driven cafe on North Street in Healdsburg, is taking shape this month with the arrival of its prefabricated walls made of recycled steel siding.

The 9,700-square-foot building will come together this spring and summer, with an opening scheduled for the fall.

"SHED is our vision of a modern grange, a community resource where locals and visitors gather," said owner Cindy Daniel. "We will set a new standard for food and retail, sourcing and selling quality food .

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. as well as beautiful, enduring tools for the kitchen and garden." SHED will feature a cafe with al fresco and indoor dining, wine bar, coffee and pastry bar, larder, pantry and shops.The centerpiece of the second story will be a 1,400-square-foot room designed for public meetings, community events and workshops on food crafts and rural traditions. SHED is located at 25 North Street.GLEN ELLENEnjoy March madness at B.R. Cohn WineryB.R. Cohn Winery will celebrate March madness with an array of special events, including new Wine & Cheese Trail Pairings held Friday through Monday.The pairings feature cheese from local, artisan cheesemakers, paired with B.R. Cohn wines. The winery will showcase the purveyors on Friday through Monday. $25 includes four wines paired with four different cheeses.In addition, March Madness Magnum Tasting will be offered in the VIP room, and you can try B.R. Cohn gourmet mustards, vinegars and olive oils in the Gourmet Shop. A special tasting of specialty sausages with mustards will be offered this Saturday and Sunday.Reservations and a fee are required for some of these events. Call (800) 330-4064 ext. 124 or go to brcohn.com.HEALDSBURGDaVero offering winery sunset supperHere's the quintessential Wine Country adventure - a winery sunset supper. Healdsburg's DaVero Estate Wines is offering a family-style supper and educational tour of its biodynamic gardens on March 29. The event is from 6:30 to 9 p.m. and the fee is $85. For more information, call 431-8000. The winery is at 766 Westside Road.SAUSALITOTry a Portuguese cracked-crab dinnerThe Sausalito Portuguese Hall will hold a traditional Portuguese Hot Cracked Crab Dinner at 5:30 p.m. Saturday.The feast includes appetizers, salad, pasta made with Sao Jorge cheese and Dungeness Crab Stew made by chef/owner Manuel Azevedo of La Salette restaurant in Sonoma. The fresh Dungeness crab is braised with sweet onions, garlic, Portuguese spices and white wine.Tickets are $40, $20 for kids 6 to 12, free for kids 5 and under. 511 Caledonia St. To purchase tickets, go to idesst.org.SAN FRANCISCOCelebrate the wines of Rhone RangersMaverick wine anyone? A San Francisco tasting on Sunday will celebrate the wines of the Rhone Rangers, a band of bold vintners who are making American Rhone-style wines. More than 500 Rhone wines will be poured at the Fort Mason Festival Pavilion, Buchanan Street and Marina Boulevard, and general admission for the grand tasting is $75 a person. The event is 2 to 5 p.m. For more information, visit www.rhonerangers.org. CORTE MADERASweets to talk about old friend Molly IvinsEllen Sweets will talk about her longtime friend and fellow reporter, the late Molly Ivins, at 7 p.m. Friday at Book Passage in Corte Madera.Sweets is the author of "Stirring it Up with Molly Ivins: A Memoir with Recipes," which gives a glimpse at the culinary passions of the fiery newspaper columnist.Book Passage is located at 51 Tamal Vista Blvd. To order a signed copy of the book, go to bookpassage.com.WEST COASTFoster Farms looking for chicken recipesFoster Farms invites home, amateur and professional chefs to enter its third annual Fresh Chicken Cooking Contest.Residents of California, Oregon and Washington state can submit their favorite, original, fresh chicken recipes before midnight June 3.The grand prize is $10,000 plus a one-year supply of Foster Farms fresh chicken. The judges will reward contestants whose recipes highlight fresh and local ingredients.The regional semifinals will be held in San Diego; Portland, Ore.; and Seattle in August and September.Six regional winners will go to the finals on Sept. 28 at the Culinary Institute of America at Greystone in St. Helena.For complete contest rules, go to fosterfarms.com/cookingcontest. Contestants must be over the age of 18.Compiled by Staff Writer Diane Peterson, who can be reached at 521-5287 or diane.peterson@pressdemocrat.com, and Peg Melnik, who can be reached at 521-5310