The Farmer & The Fox
3111 St. Helena Hwy North, St. Helena, CA
Dinner nightly: 5-10 PM
(707) 302-5101
Update Spring 2016. The Farmer and the Fox is temporarily closed. We understand that the culinary talents previously at Tra Vigne are cooking up some great new dishes for a reopening later in the year. We will post a new review once they open.
We emigrated from England many years ago and absolutely love living in the beautiful Napa Valley, but one thing that we miss is a good pub meal. Naturally, we were very excited when we heard that a gastropub was opening just 10 minutes down the road. The Farmer & The Fox is located on the Cairdean Estate in St. Helena, right off Highway 29.
The menu takes a Napa Valley approach to classic Scottish pub fare. It is reasonably priced with entrees ranging from $12-25. Be sure to start your meal with one of their deliciously creative cocktails, and there is no corkage fee so you can bring one of your finds from your days’ tasting to enjoy!
Their indoor seating is casual and comfortable with bar seating available as well. We enjoyed our meal on the outdoor patio, a perfect way to dine on a mild summer evening.
We tried a variety of items to begin our meal, starting with the popovers. These are what we would call Yorkshire Puddings and are served with a sweet fruity sauce.
*Kite family tip: Ask for the peppercorn steak gravy instead to enjoy with these yummy morsels. This is the more traditional savory serving.*
Our favorite starter was the smoked duck wings, perfectly crispy and very moist. The Scotch eggs and beer battered pickles were other highlights along with the typical British pub fare, potted shrimp.
Moving on to the mains, the game pie had a nice flaky crust with deliciously savory gravy and meat filling. The lamb tartare was a very generous portion and came with curry brioche and fried shallots. For the more adventurous eaters, the special that evening was a “tete de porc,” which is French
headcheese. It was delicious! The Farmer and the Fox also offers a nightly roast dinner special.
Veggie lovers will delight in the vegetable offerings. Our picks were the sweet peas with burrata and mint 
and the roasted baby eggplants with raisins.
If sweets are your wheelhouse, their desserts are creative and unique. Pairing flavors you may not think to match, but somehow they work! Roasted peach rice pudding with cardamom spiced fresh doughnuts and granita was so refreshing and the butterscotch mousse cake with homemade coconut ice cream was to die for!
Overall, we thoroughly enjoyed our meal at our new local gastropub and we hope you can try it out soon on your next stay at our Calistoga bed and breakfasts.
