Miminashi - Wine & Spirits Magazine

Miminashi


photo by Bob McClenahan

Paitan Ramen

What do you do when famished and thirsty in Napa at 10 p.m. on a Friday night? A lot of local winemakers head for chef Curtis Di Fede’s izakaya-influenced spot. Beyond the robatayaki chicken skewers—thigh, heart, gizzard, wing, etcetera—he puts together more California-fied options, like poached salmon salad and fried rice with asparagus and zebra tomatoes. There’s local juice, like Massican Sauvignon Blanc; more than a dozen rieslings listed from dry to sweet; and plenty of great sake, plus a lineup of hard-to-get Japanese whiskies.

821 Coombs St., Napa Valley, California

Izakaya, Japanese

707-254-9464

Longtime senior editor at Wine & Spirits magazine, Luke now works for the Stanford Technology Ventures Program.


This story appears in the print issue of October 2019.
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