The California Restaurant That's One Of Guy Fieri's Favorite Hangouts

Guy Fieri may have been born in Columbus, Ohio, but he grew up in California and still makes that state his home. He's currently domiciled in Santa Rosa, Sonoma County, and has several favorite restaurants in the area, serving a variety of cuisines, including Italian, Mexican, and Vietnamese. One of his favorites, however, is the Russian River Pub in nearby Forestville, an establishment that has featured in three of his TV shows. Most recently, he showcased it on a 2021 episode of "Triple D Nation" called "California Comfort," while he'd previously covered it during the pandemic-era "Diners, Drive-Ins And Dives: Takeout." The first time it was featured, however, was during Season One of the OG Triple D, where he called it "One of my favorite California hangouts for the last ten years." This was back in 2007, so he must have been a fan since the '90s.

The Russian River Pub was established in 1972, but was taken over by new management in 2005. The woman who bought it, Wendy Gause, was an old acquaintance of Fieri's. He liked what she did with the place once she took over, so he wanted to feature it on his new Food Network show. The restaurant has been closely associated with Fieri ever since, which may have helped it survive not only the 2008 recession but also the Covid-prompted closures a dozen years later.

The Food Network website features an archival collection of the best things Guy Fieri tried on "Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives." This greatest hits list includes two items from the Russian River Pub: a pot roast entrée and a beef tri-tip sandwich with caramelized onions and blue cheese crumbles. (Fieri is a big fan of tri-tip and feels it's the best budget-friendly steak for grilling, a sentiment with which Andrew Zimmerman concurs.) During the "American Cookin'" episode where he first featured the restaurant, he also gave a shout-out to grilled chicken with pesto and ahi tuna salad.

However, a lot has changed since 2007, including the menu at the Russian River Pub. There's no more tri-tip — instead, this sandwich seems to have been replaced by one made with prime rib, Swiss cheese, and sauteed mushrooms, as well as a prime rib French dip. The only salad these days is a garden one that can be upgraded with grilled chicken or a crab cake, but not ahi. The pot roast, too, is gone, although it has been known to return in sandwich form as a special. You can, however, still get the BBQ chicken wings that were shown on "Takeout: Bold Bites Brought Home" (which is a slogan we'd have adopted ourselves if Fieri hadn't beat us to it).