Zin Restaurant & Wine Bar, Healdsburg

Last week was Sonoma County Restaurant Week. Various restaurants offered 3-course menus for $19, $29 or $39. We went to Zin Restaurant & Wine Bar in Healdsburg on Monday, the 1st night. They offered 3 courses for $29.

Zin is located at 344 Center Street in downtown Healdsburg. Since we were eating at Zin, we tried the flight of 3 zins for $18--2010 De La Montanya, Felta Creek Vineyard, Dry Creek Valley--smooth and peppery--my husband's favorite, 2010 Portalupi, Russian River Valley--our least favorite of the 3 and 2010 Kelly & Young "Robert Young Vineyards," Alexander Valley--very smooth and my favorite.

 

When we walked in, we saw a couple eating these string beans and they looked so good, we ordered the appetizer as well. The string beans were served with a mango salsa which didn't do much for the beans. I would've preferred garlic aioli or at least Ranch dressing. This was a huge portion for $8.

 



 

The soup of the day was Black Bean with Cilantro Cream. This was delicious and tasted even better after adding just a little salt. The soup was flavorful, a little spicy and just the right consistency. The beans had been smashed but not pureed.

Mixed Baby Salad Greens with Maple Pecans and Pickled Onions in Mustard Vinaigrette. This was delicious. The vinaigrette was light and worked well with the sweetness of the pecans. Loved it.

For the 3-course offering, you could choose the usual Blue Plate special, which on Monday was St. Louis Ribs. This was a huge plate--5 ribs cooked perfectly tender and smothered with a BBQ sauce. The sauce had wine in it and needed a little more vinegar zing. The accompanying fries were okay--could have been crisper but the coleslaw was delicious. It had just the right amount of vinegar and was not overloaded with mayo. The portion was so large, we took 1/2 of it home.

 



The other offering for the entrée was Zin "Pork & Beans"--Marinated & Grilled Pork Loin with Red Wine Fig Jam, Swiss Chard and White Beans with Roasted Tomatoes. The pork was tender and not overcooked but was too salty. The Swiss Chard was delicious though.

 



 

For dessert, one of the choices was New Orleans Bread Pudding with Bourbon Sauce. I'm not a bread pudding fan but my husband liked this.

 

Homemade "That's It"--The ice cream and oatmeal cookies were good but the chocolate drizzle was too bitter for the cookie. At first, I mistook it for the ink on the paper but realized it was the chocolate. Overall, I enjoyed it though.

 

 

 

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