Wit & Wisdom
1325 Broadway Sonoma 707-931-3405 Witandwisdomsonoma.com Email: info@witandwisdomsonoma.com
Happy Hour in the Lounge Wednesday to Sunday, 4 to 5 p.m. Dinner: Wednesday to Sunday, 5 to 9 p.m.
promise—and, yes, Mina’s special lobster pot pie ($129, and meant to be shared) is there. We went with the roasted salmon ($39), which comes accompanied by an unforgettable jalapeno creamed corn, and New York strip ($70), 14 ounces of perfectly cooked-to-order beef topped by a touch of horseradish and sided by a black garlic vinaigrette. We left nary a crumb, but still saved room for the “candy bar” off the dessert menu (all items $15)—a caramel, fudge, peanut butter concoction accurately described by our server as like a Snicker’s crossed with a Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup, only way better. And that it was. The Lodge at Sonoma is Mina’s second go-round with the Wit & Wisdom brand. The concept first rolled out in 2012 in Baltimore, where the original Wit & Wisdom served “modern American” fare, also focused on grilled meats and seafood, before closing in 2018. On its website, the Sonoma restaurant describes its menu as “American comfort food”—but there’s no confusing this with a Mel’s Diner, it’s upper-echelon Sonoma. Next year it will surpass the lifespan of the original Wit & Wisdom and, by the bustling vibe of restaurant on the night of our visit, looks like it’s going to be around for a long time. t
Did You Know? Parker House rolls were first baked in the 1870s at the Omni Parker House Hotel in Boston. Legend goes that an ornery baker at the hotel argued with a guest and, in a fit of frustration, stuffed a batch of unfinished doughballs in the oven. When the rolls finished baking, they had a unique folded shape, and a soft, buttery interiors topped by a golden-brown crust—and the famous Parker House roll was born.
Jason Walsh is editor in chief of NorthBay biz magazine and northbaybiz.com. A North Bay native, he’s spent his career covering the news, lifestyles and people of Sonoma, Marin and Napa counties. When not up to his elbows in page proofs, you can find him and his family exploring all corners of the North Bay from their home base in Novato.
Wit & Wisdom’s focus on its meats pays off in tantalizing ways. [Photo by Catherine Dzilenski]
September 2025
NorthBaybiz 75
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