Cox Review: Café Lucia

Caldo Verde, potato thickened beef consomme, at Cafe Lucia in Healdsburg. (BETH SCHLANKER/ The Press Democrat)

The first question about Café Lucia, the new Portuguese-flavored restaurant in Healdsburg, is how to pronounce its name. Is it loo-see-ah or loo-chee-ah? While you ponder that (see below), be aware that this comfortable and comforting new spot is named for its host and owner, Lucia Azevedo Fincher.

If her middle name seems familiar, it’s because she is the sister of Manuel Azevedo, the restaurant’s executive chef and part owner. He’s also the executive chef and owner of LaSalette, the popular Portuguese, Azorean and Mediterranean-style restaurant in Sonoma. Chef de cuisine Jason Santos, a Culinary Institute of America graduate, learned to cook this brilliantly flavored food at LaSalette.

The “Traditional” dessert at Cafe Lucia includes arroz doce with braised figs, malassadinas, and an almond ice cream sandwich. (BETH SCHLANKER/ The Press Democrat)

The brother and sister team call their cuisine “cozinha nova Portuguesa.” What’s new about it is that while it’s based on their family’s Azorean roots, they’ve incorporated other elements of Mediterranean cooking and lifted the dishes to a level that has earned LaSalette — and should earn Café Lucia (loo-see-ah)- a Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand award, presented to lerre-known, nicely-priced restaurant gems.

If you’ve eaten at LaSalette, you’ll recognize the cooking at Café Lucia. Like any Portuguese restaurant worthy of the name, the Café serves Caldo Verde ($9 ****). Steaming bowls warmed the Portuguese fishermen who worked both sides of the cold North Atlantic coast and they’ll do the same for you. The base is beef consommé thickened with potato, with shreds of kale or collards swimming like little green fish in the sea. Pieces of garlicky, spicy sausage called linguiça add substance and nourishment. Do not miss it.