Gladstones Malibu – Pacific Palisades, CA
July 19, 2025Français Fantastique
Brigitte Bistro – Petaluma, CA
Visited: August 2025
Friends Kim and Mary have joined us for many dining experiences in France, so when visiting them recently in Northern California, they took us to their favorite French bistro in Petaluma, which is located in the heart of Sonoma wine country.
We knew we had reached our destination when we saw the medieval citadel, La Cité, from Carcassonne, France, painted on the side of the building.
Tracy and I instantly recognized La Cité, as we visited Carcassonne in 2016, while traveling along the Route des Cassoulet.
Brigitte Bistro, named after the mother of its renowned French chef, opened in 2024. Chef/Owner Nick Ronan worked under some of the best chefs in both London and Paris before venturing to the San Francisco area where he opened his first restaurant in Forest Hills in 2008. I read that his motto is “Love. Food. Wine. Passion. Life. People.” Brigitte has an intimate dining room, which includes a baby grand piano, where diners sometimes tickle the ivories. The space, with its open kitchen, instantly transported us back to France.
The service throughout the evening was impeccable, and the gentleman who took our order was not only quite knowledgable, but he had a great sense of humor. That makes sense because that gentleman was Chef Ronan himself.
The corkage fee at Brigitte is very reasonable so we brought a bottle of wine we’d purchased in Sonoma earlier in the day. However, I told Chef Ronan my pallet was yearning for a fine French vin rouge, and he said not to worry. Before I could even peruse the wine list, a phenomenal glass of Château de Bellevue Saint-Émilion was magically delivered to our table. Tres magnifique!
Chef Ronan remembered Mary (everyone remembers Mary) from her previous trips here. Since there are posters of Chef Remy (you might remember him from the delightful Disney movie) …
… Mary now brings her own Remy each time she dines here. As a matter of fact, Remy is the mascot of the Brigitte kitchen. Our beautiful, late corgi Remi was named after him, although obviously not spelled after him.
Never one to pass on steak tartare, I started with the Traditional Tableside Steak Tartare, knife hand cut flank steak, quail egg, cornichons, capers, olive oil, Dijon mustard with a side bowl of Pommes Gaufrette (delicious super crunchy thin-sliced fries). I love when steak tartare is prepared at the table. It makes for a fun experience.
Keeping with the beef theme, next up, the Wagyu Steak Frites, perfectly cooked Wagyu flat iron steak with hand cut French fries and a most delicious tarragon Bearnaise sauce.
Mary started with the special heirloom tomato salad and, as she often does, went fishing and decided upon that evening’s special of Mussels and Frites.
Tracy and Kim both ordered the Le Poireau, leek fondant with Marcona almonds, Farm Valley micro leeks, red radish, celery in a chive vinaigrette.
They must have been in the mood for leeks, as they both ordered the seared scallops with leek fondant, purple cauliflower puree, salsify chips, crème fraîche and garlic butter sauce.
For dessert, we tried Nick’s highly recommended Ile Flottante (Floating Island), meringue floating on a bed of creme anglaise drizzled with caramel. Although we shared, since I am much more a dessert person than the others, I got more than my fair share. Poor Remy was shut out.
On a prior visit, our fish friend Mary swam with the Black Cod seared with olive oil, julienne of celery root fondant, fried leeks and crème de Meyer lemon and chives, along with Onion Soup Gratinée, both of which she said were excellent and would definitely order again.
I spied the Beef Bourguignon (another of my favorite dishes) at the table next to us, and I will definitely have to order that next time. On the other side of us were a couple celebrating their 20th wedding anniversary. Everything delivered to their table made my mouth water and I was full! But the Pistachio Tiramisu prepared table side? Oh là là!
I will indeed need to try the Escargots and Marrow Bone on our next visit. Maison De Choix 1958 Burgundy Snails, Garlic, Parsley, Butter, Shallot, Garlic Parsley Butter Tartine and Garlic Confit (one can never have too much garlic) sounds wonderful.
We’ve always enjoyed visiting Petaluma on our visits to Northern California, and now that we’ve (well, Kim and Mary) found Brigette, we have a great excuse to drop in again. Terrific food along with meeting the owner made for a merveilleuse expérience culinaire.
Brigitte Bistro
841 Petaluma Blvd North
Petaluma, CA 94952
707.981.8381
Tuesday – Thursday: 4 pm – 9 pm
Friday & Saturday: 4 pm – 9:45 pm
Sunday: 4 pm – 8 pm
Parking Free
Brigitte Bistro
