Penngrove

Located just east of the Highway 101 corridor in central Sonoma County, tiny, bucolic Penngrove (pop. 2,522) offers a slice of small-town life in the heart of Sonoma Wine Country. Penngrove's downtown Main Street — only a few blocks long — boasts an eclectic array of local shops, restaurants, coffee shops, and bars, in a variety of historic buildings.

Pop into Mack's Bar & Grill, where the dark wood paneling glows with neon beer signs. Enjoy a quick drink, a hearty burger, or other American pub fare favorites. From its clapboard building to its old-style vertical sign above the stoop, this popular gathering place looks exactly like the small-town joint that it is. And the place rocks with live music on Saturday nights.

Don't miss the organic artisan rolls and loaves from Full Circle Bakery. And — housed in a bright and spacious 1870s-era building that over the years has served as a railroad station, general store, post office, and hardware store — Penngrove Market offers locally sourced groceries, a selection of beer and wine, a variety of prepared foods, home goods, and gifts.

Penngrove has a lot to offer — and a lot of history. Once a freight station on the Northwestern Pacific Railroad, at the start of the 20th century Penngrove was the second largest egg and poultry producing area in Sonoma County, second only to Petaluma.