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Doce Lunas Restaurant & Antiques 8910 Sonoma Highway Kenwood (707) 833-6060
Eclectic Cuisine |
With a name like Doce Lunas, I’d pictured an Italian restaurant run by astrology buffs. I probably couldn’t have been further off the mark. Turns out the name comes from a conversation owner/chef Alex Purroy had with his Spanish grandmother—he said he’d just bought a restaurant on Highway 12 in the Valley of the Moon; she heard “Twelve Moons.”
Alex and his wife Jackie opened Doce Lunas in September 2001. Six and a half years later, the place is serving up home-style meals that blend Alex’s 20 years’ of global culinary travel with Jackie’s Japanese roots. Its L-shaped dining room has a casual, friendly feeling. The tables have dice and various ceramic salt and pepper shakers. The open kitchen is separated from the dining area with hanging stained glass, above which is a large chalkboard listing the daily specials. The walls feature local artwork and plates from the many places Alex has worked. Upstairs, you’ll find an antique loft (mostly furnishings) that doubles as a group dining area.
My friend Brennen and I sat in the middle of the room, surrounded by diners chatting happily. He ordered a Kona Mocha Porter on tap (it’s actually made with coffee!) and I had a lucious St. Francis Merlot. Our meal began with Macadamia nut-crusted brie served with pineapple chutney. It came with several slices of toast for spreading all the sweet and earthy items. The cheese round was hot and the nuts formed a thick, toasted crust. It was a multi-textured mouthful of mmm.
Next came crab cakes with spinach salad. The two large cakes came with shaved carrots, crispy noodles, green and red onions and a ginger lime dressing. Combined with the generous amount of fresh spinach leaves, this could be a meal in itself.
For an entrée, I ordered Auntie Carrie’s braised Pakkar pork ribs. Carrie is Jackie’s 89-year-old aunt, and her recipe calls for the ribs to be braised all day. They arrived at the table in a cast-iron skillet and the smoky, earthy, sweet and incredibly moist meat fell right off the bone. Accompanied by squash, red cabbage, mashed potatoes, green beans and carrots, it was a stick-to-your-gut meal.
Brennen ordered the Hawaiian Opaka Nakayama Katsu. The mild, white fish was lightly breaded and came with a sweet ginger, soy, sake-based sauce and sticky rice. He finished every last bit of it. Luckily he gave me a few bites first so I could enjoy it too.
We had to rest before dessert because the food was so filling. So after some coffee and conversation with Alex and Jackie (who told us they have a guitarist on weekends), we ordered the five-star “sticky toffee pudding.” Served à la mode, it was hot and had a cake-like texture and a thin, delicious sauce. We also tried the Irish cream Frangelico gelato, which was served in a small silver gravy boat and pleased this ice cream lover just perfectly.
