Mini la quercia ham sandwiches with pepper jelly, LMR grass-fed steak tartare with farm egg, capers, cornichons, tabasco and toast, 2 Glasses of Sparkling, 2 more after that and call it a lunch!

That’s what it was anyway on Superbowl Sunday, for us. With me being neither a New England nor Seattle fan, and Johannes a European football fan, we day-tripped it up to St. Helena to enjoy lunch on the patio of Farmstead at Long Meadow Ranch, your legitimate from our farm to our table set for you restaurant in the middle of Rutherford. Many menu items including grass-fed beef, eggs, olive oil, veggies and fruit (not to mention beekeeping), in addition to their wines, come from the short drive away on the 650-acre ranch settled in the Mayacamas. Everything is done by the CCOF standards.

La Quercias

While everyone was inside chowing down on guacamole and jalapeno poppers and beer, we soaked up the sun and the quiet scenery at Farmstead.

Rustic wooden tables paired with old farm equipment accents makes the modern farmhouse look to LMR immediately comforting and homey. While based at a Rutherford winery during a previous we often met friends of the winery’s owner there. This is a true Napa Valley locals hangout, but right on hwy 29 so tourists are not to miss it. And it is something not to be missed!

Not much more I can say about Farmstead at Long Meadow Ranch except the service is fabulous, the setting is cozy in summer or winter and the raw egg yolk on the steak tartare is the yellowest you’ve ever seen.

When you’re done with lunch, stroll about 20 yards over to the tasting room for a coffee on the house and some great wines.