The Boone Fly Café is a good choice when looking for casual dining when visiting wineries in the Carneros wine region. It is just about the only casual choice unless you want to head into to the town of Sonoma or Napa to find a good lunch spot. The Boone Fly is located in the Carneros Inn. This inn reopened a couple of years back and has become a very chic and fashionable place to lodge.
Getting to the Boone Fly Café can be difficult if approaching it on Highway 121 heading east. The Boone Fly is the big red barn structure and as soon as you see it you will need to turn left. There is a left turn area, but it is much too dangerous to approach from this spot. A better choice is to enter at the stop signal at Highway 121 and Old Sonoma Road and park near the lobby of the Inn. Then walk about 400 yards to the Boone Fly.
On the inside the Café is very cozy. As you walk in the door, straight head is the open kitchen with cooks furiously making good food. To the left is a cool looking bar where you can drink and eat, and to the right is the main dining area, open, spacious, and very inviting.
We ate lunch here after visiting a couple of Carneros wineries. The menu is varied with several good choices, including some delicious flatbread with various toppings. The wine list is good, except for the wines by the glass; they could use a few more choices. Both our meals were terrific, a juicy large hamburger and a tasty flatbread with blah and blah. Service was good and relaxed.
The Caneros Inn is quite the spot or so it seems. The Inn is nearly full during the week and on weekends; forget about it unless you book ahead. The Carneros Inn is an expensive place to stay, but the Boone Fly is a comparatively good bargain for meals for guests and outside visitors.
The Good: Cool place, looks like it just has to be fun.
The Bad: Terrible left turn to get to the Boone Fly.