I had heard about how terrific Rosso Pizzeria was in Santa Rosa and visited last week with a friend to enjoy the fire baked oven pizzas and the extensive local wine list.
It was a lovely meal. On the way into the restaurant we ran into friends and local Sonoma County celebrities Cinnamon Metcalfe and Darren Mcronald.
Cinnamon works with Claypool Cellars in Sebastopol making yummy Pinot Noir and Rose. Darren is a Chef most recently known for his West County Grill fame in Sebastopol or also leading the kitchen at Cindy’s Backstreet Kitchen in St. Helena.
Yum. You know you have picked the right restaurant spot in Wine Country when a chef and winemaker are taking up a table.
The following week, I was visiting downtown Petaluma’s Theatre District with my girls and we found ourselves starving. We found a beautiful courtyard setting admist the retail shops and apartments and lo and behold…Rosso Pizzzeria. It was 81 degrees on this beautiful March day so we opted to sit outside on the patio terrace.
Although owned by the same company, each restaurant is independently run and the menus and wine lists differ. Although both spots give you the great Italian feel, ambiance and food of course.
As we sat down and were served our drinks…water for the girls and sparkling for myself, no ice, they brought everything quickly. The waitress also brought two plates with a slice of pizza dough and flour on it.
At Rosso Pizzeria, they let the kids roll out their own shape for breadsticks… then they throw them in the fire baked oven… the dough that is…not the kids …hardy har. I’ll be here all week folks…
We had a few dishes and met the kids father in Petaluma, he is looking at office spaces nearby for expanding his insurance territory. It is nice for the kids to get to see their father and all eat together to show that co-parenting does work and also let our kids know that we adults can still get along.
Service was great but there were only 4 other tables at the time, we often dine in between lunch and dinner hours because I think staff is more attentive and also crowds are lessened.
It was about 2:00 and me and girls were on our way to a hike around Point Reyes outdoor areas on Sonoma’s Coast. Our food arrived quickly and I appreciated that 3 servers brought the food out to us to make sure it all arrived at the same time.
Cassidy’s Fried Chicken meal was perhaps the BEST fried chicken I have ever had. The breading and sauce has a sweet but savory aspect that was amazing on a fried chicken.
I’d almost say that the breading had to have some sugar on it or added as soon as it came out of the fryer to obtain that sweet aftertaste. This would be AWESOME for southern style chicken and waffles.
The chicken was served with Pancetta Agro Dulce, Creamy Smashed Potatoes and Green Onions. Try it folks…you won’t regret it.
Aaron and I had the Funghi Pizza which was oven roasted mushrooms, fontina and tellegio cheese, shaved artichokes, thyme and lemon oil. Wow again….perfectly crisped in the fire baked pizza oven and the lemon oil really added a acidic edge to the whole dish that I loved on top of the meatlike mushrooms.
I also had the chopped napa cabbage and mixed greens salad with dry cranberries, apples, toasted pecans, rogue creamery smoked blue cheese and blue dressing. Guess what….yum again and I wish I had ordered a whole salad instead of half. My salad also came out in less than 10 minutes which was great.
Aaron had the Chef’s Whim pasta dish which was a fettucine pasta with asparagus, parmesan, EVOO and a little lemon juice. This was a nice dish, simple and elegant and you could taste each one of the flavor profiles. The lemon citrus edge was a great finish for the mouth.
Carly, my 9 year old had the Caesar salad and finished almost all which for her size was quite impressive. She said she really enjoyed it too and she is picky about her caesar dressing. It was a creamy caesar, her fave.
Overall all and for the price, it was a terrific meal that left us completely satisfied but not overstuffed. It always helps the price when mom is the driver too….because then no wine is ordered, leading to a smaller bill.
Haha. After saying goodbye to Aaron, we walked through the courtyards and stopped at the frozen yogurt bar on the way to the car. Those kids always bat their eyelashes and convince mom of their dire need for treats and most of the time, I comply. Time for me and these girls to go hiking through the forest to work off those extra Italian calories we just devoured.
*Clink *Clink
Cheers until the next visit to
Rosso Pizzeria in Petaluma, California.
Rosso Pizzeria & Mozzarella Bar – Website Here
in The Theater Square
151 Petaluma Blvd, Petaluma
Contact: (707) 772-5177
The hike after the meal was tons of fun and I love enjoying the outdoors with my two favorite girls.
Great quote for the hiking photo:
“Man is most nearly himself when he achieves the seriousness of a child at play.” – Herodotus, Greek