Yountville

Commercial winemaking anchored the village first: the Groezinger Wine Cellars, built in 1870 on land bought from George C. Yount's estate, were later recycled into the retail-and-restaurant complex known as Vintage 1870 and now V Marketplace. Modern restaurant history begins across the highway, where Moët et Chandon established Domaine Chandon in 1973 as the valley's first French-owned sparkling wine house; The Restaurant at Domaine Chandon opened in 1977 under chef Udo Nechutnys at a moment when, by Wine Spectator's account, there was no fine dining between Napa and Calistoga. It became étoile, held a Michelin star, and closed on January 1, 2014.

In 1974 Don Schmitt, then mayor, and Sally Schmitt bought a 1900 river-rock saloon that had operated as a French steam laundry in the 1920s; The French Laundry began service in 1978. Sally Schmitt built her menus around local, seasonal produce over a sixteen-year run and is credited as a figure in Northern California's farm-to-table turn. Thomas Keller purchased the restaurant in 1994 and reopened it that July with Laura Cunningham directing the dining room.

Keller's subsequent additions — Bouchon (1998), Bouchon Bakery (2003), Ad Hoc (2006) — concentrated the trade on Washington Street. The 2011 Michelin guide recorded six stars within six blocks in a town of roughly 3,000.