Camellia Inn, Accommodations for All in Downtown Healdsburg

(This story was previously published in Discovering Sonoma)

When you are looking for a place to stay, location is always an important factor, but you also want something clean, comfortable and with lots of amenities for a reasonable price.  Although that can be a tall order in a lot of wine country, Camellia Inn fits the description quite nicely.

Camellia Inn is located just a few blocks off downtown Healdsburg, the center of Sonoma. You can reach restaurants, shops and tasting rooms within a five minute walk.  Innkeeper Lucy Lewand and her staff keep the place running like as well as a major hotel, with a feel like you are visiting a friend’s home.

The nine rooms at the Inn are each beautifully decorated, varying a bit in size and shape.  You can find some with extras such as a Jacuzzi tub or fireplace.  There is even a family suite that testifies to the fact that children are more than welcome here.

 

I had the pleasure of staying at Camellia Inn for three nights recently. Everyone here goes out of their way to make you feel at home. The room was country-cozy. Lucy shared my love of chocolate and there were treats left for me.  In fact, the Inn has declared “Chocolate Covered Wednesdays.”

Complimentary amenities include an evening wine and cheese spread (a nice assortment) as well as a hot breakfast in the morning that offers a huge array of fruit, baked goods and cereals.  There is also internet available and a swimming pool available for guests to use. 

One of my favorite things about the Camellia Inn was the reception each night. Guests sat around and talked about the wineries they loved (and didn’t like) and the restaurants they discovered.  Everyone enjoyed sharing, but also felt comfortable to go off on their own as soon as they desired.  I would definitely stay here again.

The Camellia Inn also has cottages and apartments available outside the main inn. I had a chance to stay in one of those last year.  It was also in downtown Healdsburg, but offered two bedrooms with lots of room.

A Special Sunday in Chicago at CDA and Driehaus

 

I live two hours from downtown Chicago, so I almost always stay overnight. Occasionally, the time is too short and the opportunity too great, so I make an exception. This was the case on the day my friend, Kim, and I went for brunch at Sofitel’s CDA and checked out the Driehaus Museum.

The CDA Restaurant at Sofitel Magnificent Mile Hotel in Chicago is the epitome of modern elegance. The decor and service are first class, yet it feels very comfortable with the large windows and white design. 

The brunch menu is most definitely French, though they do have their version of the Mexican breakfast favorite Chilaquiles. Named “Sofitel Chilaquiles Rojos,” they are made with sunny side eggs in a crispy corn tortilla and served with a cilantro yogurt.

It was difficult to decide as everything sounded so good. After my initial excitement at the Ricotta Pancakes, topped with bananas and cocoa nibs, then drizzled with Cinnabon topping, I decided to save my sweet tooth for dessert and order the Chicken and Waffles. These were covered in whipped Boursin cheese and spicy honey. 

Kim picked the Sofitel Breakfast Croissant. It was a fresh baked croissant, filled with gruyere cheese and prosciutto. It was served with herb roasted potatoes. Both our dishes were as good as they were described. We had plenty left to go home with.

Everything on the dessert menu is tempting. We looked it over a few times and couldn’t decide between three. Our waiter encouraged us to get all of them. Why not?

 All of the desserts were presented beautifully. They were (almost) too nice to eat. Within a short time, we had Pecan Sticky Buns with a caramel sauce and crème anglaise, French Macarons, and

Crème Brulee with a berry compote. 

We enjoyed them all, but I would say the Sticky Buns were my favorite, though they were very rich. One was more than enough.

We stopped at the bathroom before leaving Sofitel. I was impressed with how big and wheelchair friendly it was. It was just a short wheel to the museum. The walk and the entrance were also easy to access with my powerchair. 

I always wanted to go to The Richard H. Driehaus Museum, but it never worked out. It probably was best because it wasn’t made completely accessible until just last year.

Driehaus was a Chicago philanthropist who founded the museum in what once was the Nickerson Mansion. It would be five years of renovations before it opened to the public. Then, in 2022, the Museum purchased the John B. Murphy Auditorium next door and expanded the museum campus. 

The museum is filled with art in nearly every form. There are photographs, urns, fireplaces, portraits, sculptures, lamps, tables, stained glass (some from Tiffany’s), chandeliers, candelabras… all you can imagine in precious metals and exquisite design. It is floors of stunning artifacts from the Gilded Age.

It was a too short Chicago trip, but I discovered two places I most definitely want to return to.

 

 

A Unique Wine & Food Experience at Cooper’s Hawk

 A few years ago, I had a wine tasting and dinner with friends at Cooper’s Hawk in Indianapolis. It was my first experience at one of their restaurants and it was a great one. I was recently invited back to check out a contest they were running.

This time I went to the Springfield, Illinois, location. It was larger than I had remembered the other had been. I found a lot had changed with the brand, and all of the changes were positive.

 The tasting was my first clue Cooper’s Hawk has really upped its game. The number of wines they now produce, as well as the variety, rivals the largest wineries in the country. I also found they have invested in some other options, such as sangrias and sparkling wines.

Cooper’s Hawk outsources grapes from around the world. They have a plant for bottling and a winemaker, Emily Wynes, for blending in the Chicago area to create the wines they sell at their nearly 80 locations.

My friend, Amanda, was with me and chose the sweet selections and I chose them to do the contest blind tasting (I actually did quite well on my guesses). Our favorites were the Blood Orange Sparkling Sangria and Cooper’s Hawk Lux Sparkling.

After the tasting, we sat for lunch. Cooper’s Hawk describes their restaurant as “upscale casual.” I think it’s a good description. The atmosphere is welcoming and the menu ranges from flatbreads and burgers to surf & turf.

While Amanda continued with her sangria, I enjoyed a glass of the Mango Dragon Fruit Sangria as we nibbled on a warm pretzel bread and waited for the Roasted Vegetable & Goat Cheese Flatbread. I could have made a meal from that alone, with the roasted grape tomatoes, basil, and pesto, drizzled in balsamic dressing.

We put the flatbread aside (to bring home) when our entrees came. I chose Short Rib Risotto, which I had with a crisp Pinto Gris. It was incredibly good, and the portion was large.

Amanda decided on Surf & Turf. At Cooper’s Hawk, you can choose your meat and fish. She picked the Drunken Shrimp, and the Parmesan Crusted Filet Medallions. It was served with roasted vegetables and loaded mashed potatoes. She loved it all.

We had to pack up part of our lunches because the dessert menu was too good to resist. We shared the Salted Caramel Crème Brulee and the Reese’s Ice Cream Cookie, a made to order warm jumbo cookie with Reese’s peanut butter cup and ice cream.

 

I left Cooper’s Hawk stuffed and more than satisfied with the food and drink. I would definitely recommend going to check both out.

 

 

I was hosted for this experience, but opinions are my own.