The Fig Pantry

The Fig Pantry was the cutest little country store. They had a delicious selection of gourmet treats and beverages for wine tasters. You felt like you were finding a hidden gem when you stumbled upon it driving around the country roads of Sonoma. Such a bummer that it’s closed!

Unfortunately, The Fig Pantry will not reopen. This wonderful establishment will be missed, but hopefully new owners will take the opportunity to create something spectacular in its place.

i’m normally very skeptical of gourmet markets, but i really liked the Fig Pantry. We went in looking to stock up on picnic food. Aside from the triple chocolate cookie, we got two beers (LaGunitas at $ 2 a bottle), a made-​to-​order turkey sandwich w/​fig chutney (so good), and a made on-​the-​spot salmon nicoise salad (a good sized salad at that). we could’ve gone the full nine and included some cheese and crackers, but by then, our stomachs were begging us to ease up. I wish we had more stores like these in DC (and Marvelous Market does not count).

for my friend’s bridal shower and bachelorette bonanza (BBB) weekend, we had our brown bag lunches catered from the fig pantry and they were divine! delicious sandwiches, salads and sides. i had the turkey with aprioct chutney on baguette with couscous salad and a heavenly dark chocolate brownie. others had the salami with pear sandwich which seemed to be the crowd favorite. the chocolate chip cookie is also awesome!

When I was very little, aye a wee curly blond lass of say 4 – 6 I remember walking into this store. Back then it had wooden plank flooring, dust, a horizontal freezer in the corner to pick out push pops and whoopee pies, a dirty counter with bubble gum ciggies and soda. No lie, it’s like my Mamma had walked me into a western movie prop from the 50’s.
Those days are looong gone, and this building stood vacant, alone and cold for many a year. Secretly I used to wish that my Mom would move in and start her own bakery/​shop, sigh.
I saw someone had started spiffing, why they’re uplifting! I shouted (purely in my head). Surely they will make it a shop again so I can go in and have a see? And that, my friend is just what they did. Turned out it was the Girl from the Girl & the Fig that was doing all the upgrades, and this place would be their pantry.
Having turned up my nose at the Girl & the Fig restaurant downtown, now I was saddened. But grocery shopping is one of the best things in life if you ask me, so I couldn’t stay away.
The place is adorable, tiny and perfect. There’s a little bakery counter, a jams & spreads, kitchen goods, dry goods and even a deli off to the side. It’s a little more than you would normally pay for fare such as this, but I enjoy the place. Way off the beaten path, it’s on your way to Napa and you would swear it’s your little secret. Solid baked goods, very smart little delicatessen with a wide range of cheeses and drinks, wine too of course!
It’s cute, it’s clever.
p. s. around the shop’s corner are bungalows that have been fixed up for the out-​of-​towner to stay. They’re so adorable I want to stay in one and I freakin live here!

Great value, great location (smack dab in the middle of nowhere, right between the sonoma wineries and the napa wineries). Proximity to Buena Vista Winery and Gundlach Bundschu makes picnicking a no-​brainer.
A few hours of wine tasting on an empty stomach makes for a cranky, hungry, tipsy AK. Fig Pantry to the rescue!!! My equally hungry partner-​in-​wine (tasting) and I got in and out of The Fig Pantry in about 15 minutes, only down $ 20 and loaded up with a sandwich, two cheeses, bread, roasted garlic, a beet-​cheddar gratin big enough to feed two, and chocolates. More than enough for two people and WAY less expensive than Oakville Grocery or similar gourmet market/​delis in wine country and elsewhere.
A full deli, TONS of prepared and hot foods, a pretty decent cheese case with many small cuts, an espresso bar, and a gift shop means you don’t need to make multiple stops. Which is good, as there isn’t much around here.

You won’t walk out empty-​handed. There’s plenty of take away food items (aioli!) in addition to a full deli and gift shop.

I’m always in a hurry passing by the Fig Pantry and it’s a great place to pop into and grab a premade sandwich and salad.
The best thing about their sandwiches is that they don’t put a ton of extra junk on them. A pear and brie sandwich will be just that, and the bread is delicious and fresh. The turkey is another good ‘un. The salad dressings could use some work-​some are way too vinegary in a bitter kind of way.
I usually swoop through and try the samples of oils and mustards and other condiments they have around, think to myself it would be a great place to come do some gift shopping if I had a moment, then fly out the door.

Bullet points:
* Great snack and lunch stop
* Fattening gourmet goodies
* Five stars for awesome selection
A nice find, just outside Sonoma.
Good espresso, a nice gelato bar, and a nice selection of prepackaged and freshly made lunch and snack items.
Everything we’ve tried has been delicious.
Something I especially like is the line of gourmet aiolis, which include lemon, saffron, caper, and other flavors. Very handy, and made from eggs and oil, and not pre-​made mayonnaise.
The gift shop also has a nice selection of gourmet products.

One of my very best friends works just down the street, and so she gets to grab lunch from here practically every day. I’m insanely jealous of this fact.
The sandwiches are amazing– the best quality ingredients, really creative, and great tasting. And actually not horribly expensive either at about $ 7 each. Same goes for their salads. Totally recommend the grilled cheese with caramelized onions or the turkey with fig chutney.
Why isn’t there a place like this in San Francisco?
The staff is super nice too, and they don’t mind if you pig out on their samples of bruschetta topped with brie and slices of pear and practically make a pre-​lunch out of it. Speaking of which, the array of sandwiches, drinks, cheeses, and prepared side dishes all make for a perfect picnic lunch to pack along to one of the nearby wineries.

Update 11÷07÷07:
I am changing my tune re: the Fig Pantry (and upgrading from 3 to 4 stars)… although, I stand by my original review of their sandwiches.
I picked up a mish-​mosh of their «prepared food» for dinner last night, and everything was fantastic. The beet and cheddar gratin is my new cracky food — I could live off of that dish. The brussel sprouts with pancetta and caramelized onions were divine, and the peach and berry «cobbler» was a unique and fantastic surprise (it really wasn’t a cobbler at all — it was a tiny, individual, moist, dense cake, covered with a yummy compote of peaches and berries).
That’ll do, Fig.
Original review 09÷10÷07:
Surprisingly, not that great for a «Girl and the Fig» production. The menu looks fantastic (creative and seemingly mouthwatering sandwiches and salads), but everything we’ve had from the Pantry is just so-​so.
They do have a very cute gift shop on-​site and a great gelato bar.

After driving past The Fig Pantry every day on my way to work for over six months, I finally decided to head over there with my friend Courtney. We picked up a salami & brie sandwich, as well as a chinese chicken salad to split for lunch. Both items were to die for, and fairly reasonable in price. They also carry my favorite drink in the world — honest tea’s pomegranite white tea with acai.
Needless to say, I’ve already been back several times, and even put together a fabulous gift basket for my step-mom’s birthday last week. The youthful staff was incredibly helpful, and very tolerant of all of my questions. Great place for food, wine country gifts, or even just a drink or small snack. Don’t miss it!

After having dined at the Girl and the Fig, and not being overly impressed, I hesitated a bit to try this, but the Unilocal reviews I remembered reading seemed so good that I figured it would be worth a try. We really did like the fig compote on the appetizer at TGandTF, so I thought I should at least bring back few fig products. Going to wineries, it is nice to have a picnic lunch along, so my son and I had the job of procuring that. I took Tiffany L.‘s advice and we got the salami and brie sandwich. It very well might be the best sandwich ever. What she didn’t mention is that it also has sliced pears, fig jam and onion confit in it as well. We bought some little jars of the fig jam and onion confit, on our 2^nd visit there in two days, so we could all have a little taste of some of the best of Sonoma when we got back to our respective homes.

Sure it’s pricey, but worth it. Every time I am in Sonoma I have to stop here to get their pear and brie sandwich. Just thinking about it makes my mouth water. They also sell wonderful little sweets and treats!

This is THE place to get your wine country picnic food. Owned & operated by the Girl & Fig restaurant. All the food here is house made. Everything is scrumptious. This is high quality cuisine even though it’s salads, sandwiches, soups. Check out the cheese selection. Wine selection is great too, european bottles besides Sonoma valley labels. House made gelato is to die for. Also has a gift shop /​culinary tools section. Go!

I am not a huge sandwich fan… but The Fig Pantry converted me. I love Brie… I love it so much that I could eat it everyday. Anyways, I had the salami and brie sandwich and it was simply heaven. I went there about a year ago (I live in LA), and still to this day cannot stop thinking about the best sandwich EVER. If you haven’t tried the brie and Salami sandwich then you are definitely missing out.

We stopped twice here in one day; on our way to wine tasting, so we could ruin our wine-​tasting buds with some coffee, and on our way back so that we could treat them for lunch.
The latte was OK (too hot, c’mon, these taste buds need to do work today!), but the chocolate croissant I had was fantastic. Flaky with the right amount of high quality chocolate.
At lunch I had the pork loin sandwich with a dried fig spread which was OK, but not great. The bread was slightly tough and the sandwich could have used a slice of cheese for a little saltiness. I also had the beet gratin (slices of beets with a cheddar topping) which was quite good, rich and satisfying.
I finished lunch with two scoops of gelato (valrhona chocolate and fig & port). All gelato is made off-​site by someone local, and the fig and port flavor is their recipe. I really enjoyed that one.
This is a great little place to stop for refueling during your wine tasting expeditions and it felt, at least for now, out of the way enough that it’s not crowded.

I love sister deli of The Girl & The Fig. The happiest place ever, at least three people chirped HELLO! to me when I came through the door. And not in an obnoxious sales person way. But a genuine, country farm, good olé boy kind of way.
They have a grrrreat array of old school glass bottle sodas. I loved the sandwiches and paninis and salads (Oh My!)and just when I was at my sweatiest drunk wine tasting moment, you rescued me with a sample of the best smelling fig lotion.
I emerged from the Pantry, refreshed, fulfilled and happy. Plus I smelled great and was able to hit two more wineries.

2008 Update:
Fantastic gift shop (yes, locals shop here) with general store. Even grab some little grocery items at rates better than the local markets. Exquisite catering services from boxed lunches to platters as well as full-​blown event catering.
My favorite — Pre-​order dinner menus as well. Gourmet dinners for a fraction of the price of eating at a restaurant.
— — — — — — — —
My new Sonoma craving!
Where 8^th Street East dead-​ends, you’ll find the girl and the fig’s latest spin-​off. Featuring killer gourmet sandwiches, desserts, and picnic fare for an excellent value. Skip the sandwich shops at the local markets and stop by here instead. For $ 6.95, I had a grilled tri-​tip sandwich with everything from roasted artichoke hearts to olive tampenade. Yummies such as Lavender Crème Brulee and Chocolate Pot de Crème are already packed in some of my favorite re-​usable mini container designs. Exquisite box lunches available as well as platters for 4 or more.
That’s not all. The store is split into a gourmet food area, sweets and ice cream area, local wine theme and spa gifts, and of course a wine nook with thoughtfully selected offerings.
Call ahead to save some time and call the night before if you want larger platters prepared. Grab your food then swing by the area wineries to have some of their wine while enjoying their picnic areas: Ravenswood, Gundlach Bundschu (GunBun), Bartholomew Park, Buena Vista, Sebastiani.