HEALDSBURG

Indulge in decadent pastries, a unique wine-tasting experience and dinner at a glitzy multistory restaurant

Just over an hour’s drive from the Golden Gate Bridge (without traffic, that is), Sonoma County’s buzziest city, Healdsburg, has transformed in recent years from a sleepy Wine Country enclave into a bustling tourist destination with food and wine options that are truly world class.

There’s been an especially high volume of newcomers, with the openings of the high-profile Matheson restaurant and the cocktail spot Burdock Bar. It has also gained charming new wine tasting rooms like Marine Layer, Aeris and the Drink, the latter a collaboration between two cutting-edge wineries, Leo Steen and Rootdown. The highly anticipated Little Saint, a plant-based restaurant from the team behind acclaimed SingleThread, arrived in April. Our guide offers a mix of old standbys and new favorites, including awe-inspiring pastries, a unique wine tasting experience and dinner at Healdsburg’s glitziest rooftop restaurant. This itinerary sticks mostly to the downtown square, and many of its stops are within walking distance of one another. For anyone who’s up for a bit of driving, however, there’s no shortage of excellent wine tasting options on the outskirts of town. Check out our list of Top Sonoma County Wineries (sfchronicle.com/projects/best-sonoma-wineries) for ideas about where to go tasting in the nearby Russian River, Dry Creek and Alexander valleys. There are also recommendations for activities including kayaking, shopping and cycling in between meals.

We have options for morning, afternoon and night here — but this merely scratches the surface of what Healdsburg has to offer.

John Storey / Special to The Chronicle The bar at Roof 106 at the Matheson in Healdsburg has a more casual menu than the main restaurant, including pizzas.