The Culinary Works

We have stayed at this unique Russian River get away two times - the first summer they opened for business (3 years ago) and most recently, Memorial Day weekend in 2010.

What a wonderful find nestled in the California redwoods and close to one of my fave hippie enclaves - Guerneville. (LOVE the 5 and Dime on Main Street!) The rooms are ultra modern and spacious but still comfy with a emphasis on green products - the floors are gorgeous! We had a private porch and fireplace both times and Sue left the fire pit ready for us FRI night when we returned from dinner to enjoy the hot tub. I did a massage on both visits and they were wonderful!

The owners Jill, Krista and Sue are wonderful.. Then there are the property doggies - Paris (I have a soft spot in my heart for Westies) and the namesake, Boon (total lover doggy) - so sweet!

I have to say on our 2nd visit, it was still as good as ever and made even better with the addition of boon eat+drink.

I am in love with their mattresses - I am going to order one for home. No joke, I emailed them for the brand. And they use EO brand mint grapefruit products. I use it at home and it takes me back to the boon every time I smell it.

There is such a great group of diverse peeps that have discovered this place. It makes conversation around the pool and hot tub very interesting. The pool is definitely one of the main attractions during the warm months and it is awesome. Comfortable lounge chairs, umbrellas, and tables - add in a fully stocked honor bar and you can stay for hours. We were lucky enough to also experience a wine tasting poolside by a local winery and some nibbles that was a nice added touch.

The newly opened boon eat+drink restaurant on Main Street in Guerneville is a welcome edition. In a word? Amazing! Locally sourced products and a nice touch to the food scene in town. We ate there every meal except for one over the course of 4 days!

Our dining experiences in the restaurant were wonderful. We had solid service every time. It is a small place and gets pretty packed as it is one of the few "foodie" destinations in town. But they were always super accommodating on getting us in. We also did take out a couple of times. The last time i was in Guerneville, we ate 2x from the taco truck at Safeway, it was a great taco truck but i'm just sayin'...

The food was great. The fries are to die for. I was surprised to see black eyed peas on the dinner menu - i thought they were a great touch with the pork belly i had for dinner one evening. We also tried the burger (awesome), the prosciutto fig panini, the chicken panini and the pork belly panini (my fave). For brunch we tried the boon benedict (asparagus and tarragon hollandaise), the baked eggs and the french toast (love the lemon zest here). Chef Krista and her team have come up with a great concept and super good food - it was exciting to see a dream come to fruition (Krista shared with me on my 1st visit, it was her desire to open a restaurant). Well dreams do come true it seems -- between the blissful experience at the hotel and the wonderful culinary treats, I am once again dreaming of my next visit to the boon family!

http://www.boonhotels.com/

http://www.eatatboon.com/