Viola Pastry Boutique and Café

Deep-fried apple pie at Viola Pastry Boutique and Café (photo Jeff Kan Lee)

Many folks acquired their love of cooking as children, when they spent time in a warm and loving kitchen with their grandmothers — women who, by that time in their lives, had learned to cook really well, didn’t have the distractions of parenthood and could spoil the heck out of their grandkids.

One such grandkid is Jennifer McMurry, chef and owner of Viola Pastry Boutique and Café in Montgomery Village in Santa Rosa. As she says on her nicely designed website, “My grandmother Viola was the heart and soul of our family. I’ve always known I’ve wanted to share her love for food with others. I am so thankful to be able to share my grandmother’s love for food and cooking with you.”

With a steady stream of pastries, coffee drinks, lunches and dinners from her open stainless steel kitchen, McMurry’s out to spoil Sonoma County. In a touching display of family affection, the west wall of her restaurant showcases about two dozen framed family photos, many showing Viola herself, ranging in time from the 1940s to the 1970s. Three crystal chandeliers hang from the center of the long room. Specials are chalked on a board near the front of the restaurant and coffee drinks on a smaller board in back.

On the regular menu, Heirloom Tomatoes and Burrata Cheese ($11 ***) is classic. Tomatoes are perfect right now, singing their juicy, sweet-acid song that pairs so well with mild cheese. Dark red, orange and green tomatoes — all dead ripe and luscious — are joined by burrata, a ball of soft, mild mozzarella filled with even softer mozzarella dissolved in cream. (The server said that BLTs only appear on the lunch menu when the tomatoes reach late-season perfection.) McMurry sources hers from The Patch in Sonoma.

The Gravenstein Apple Salad ($10 ***) is also a fine way to start a dinner at Viola, with tender young loose-leaf lettuces in burgundy-red and green colors, thin slices of sweet local apples, curls of Italian grating cheese and a tangy apple-cider vinaigrette for a dressing. On a second visit, a generously proportioned Fig and Goat Cheese Salad ($9 ***) brought forth thoughts of the isle of Crete, known for its wild goats and plentiful fig trees. Again, the fresh spring mix of lettuces, but now joined by chicories, lots of crumbly chevre and chunks of sweet black mission figs, was given the light vinaigrette.

The wine list consists of nine whites and nine reds by the glass or bottle. Prices range from $22 for the house white or red to $46 for Wilson Winery’s “Tori Vineyard” Zinfandel from the western hills above Dry Creek Valley.

An appetizer of Point Reyes Blue Cheese Fries ($7 *½) sounded like an awkward combination, sort of like Canada’s horrid poutine (French fries covered with melted cheese and brown gravy). The blue cheese was made into a thick, liquid sauce and poured over house-made fries. Frankly, the dish ruined both good Point Reyes blue cheese and the fries in a reverse synergy in which the whole was less than the sum of its parts.

As for entrees, Pot Roast ($15 **½) consisted of a hefty chunk of chuck roast browned and braised until it easily fell apart into chewy, stringy, oh-so-flavorful pieces. The meat perched on a bed of mashed potatoes surrounded by a moat of rich pot gravy, the better to soak up the meat drippings and gravy. Five little baby carrots were placed neatly atop the roast. The only problem with the dish is that chuck is on the tough side of chewy.

Beef Stroganoff ($18 ***½), on the other hand, was superbly tender. This dish is usually made with a tenderer cut of beef, such as sirloin, cut into small, thin strips and quickly pan-cooked. The beef, mixed with onions, mushrooms and sour cream, is poured over house-made egg noodles and dares you to stop eating.

Viola is a pastry boutique, and Deep-Fried Apple Pie ($10 ***) didn’t disappoint. The “pie” is like a large empanada where a round of dough is folded over a sweet filling of apple slices, the edges of the dough crimped together, and then plunged into hot oil to cook. It’s then dusted with powdered sugar. Surprisingly, given that it’s deep-fried, the pastry was not at all greasy.

On the second visit, I tried the Ho-Ho ($6 **), chocolate cake filled with whipped cream and rolled into a cylinder that’s dipped into melted chocolate that hardens into a coating. The Ho-Ho, though, was ho-hum.

On both visits, a refrigeration unit’s loud industrial hum nearby soon became annoying. If you worked there, you’d probably learn to ignore it. But for an infrequent customer, it’s intrusive.

To sum up: Viola is a sweet little restaurant with good home cooking and a family-friendly atmosphere.

Jeff Cox writes a weekly restaurant review column for the Sonoma Living section. You can reach him at jeffcox@sonic.net.