Oxbow Public Market

We went to check out the Copia Museum which was an amazing place. We had many meals at Julia’s Café and brought out-​of-​town friends to their classes and organic farm. I don’t know when it closed but everything’s still there… like a plague swept through and removed all of the art but left the grounds and exterior intact.
Ironically this Oxbow public market blossomed at some point. It’s a gourmet foodie’s paradise, certainly the kind of upscale person Copia would draw.
We weren’t hungry though there were many tantalizing culinary vendors but we did lay down some cash at The Spice shop and the Napa Valley Distillery which had perhaps the best selection of bitters I’ve ever seen.
I’d give Oxbow 5 stars when they get a super-​friendly veggie place in there. Up for that challenge?

We finally made it to Oxbow Market — although I only had just seen an ad in one of those local free mags the last time we were in town, and made it a point to check it out this time. It was worth the 5 minute drive across the river from downtown. Cool place, upscale, and super crowded on a Sunday afternoon. Wow.
We were impressed by the overall look and array of options here. As a vegan, I felt limited though, but was very happy that I found a veggie sandwich with hummus on a mini baguette (from CATE Café?). It was delicious and was topped with pretty shredded carrots-​a lot of them! I also got in line for a coffee/​llatte from Ritual Coffee (my first time with them). My latte was done right, and the design was a heart in the foam. So nice on my Birthday, too!
My hubby had a taco of some sort, he had finished it by the time I got my latte. He said it was good. It was hard to get a table in the super crowded back sitting area, but he scored us a high top table. I attempted to find myself a B-​day Vegan dessert, but I could not here. Sigh. They do have lots of sweets though, which just about killed me, since I can’t eat them. I found a cupcake later at bakery in town that I knew had them.

Anyway, this is THE place to be for fancy food and even fancier gifts of food related things (Spice shop, Liquor shop specialty items, olive oil, chocolates, OMG) Be prepared for sticker shock, cause this IS Napa, after all. If you can’t find anything to eat here, Gott’s Roadside is next door. There are also a few small tasting rooms. We went to one cause I knew about it having vegan wine. There’s even a day Spa across the side street from Gott’s.
One more thing, just remembered — there is also a sit down restaurant inside the market, I walked in to check it out. I think it’s Italian food and wine, and looked like casual chic. I forgot the name, but it may be a good bet if you don’t like fighting for a table in the market. Its a bit hidden towards the back of the market INISIDE, and to the LEFT aisle, past the Three Twins counter.

If I would have known about this place earlier, I would have skipped the restaurants we went to in Napa and just came here instead! This place is like food heaven and they also serve Gotts Roadside. They have plenty of casual places to choose from and also a sit down restaurant if you’re looking for something fancier. Plenty of dessert places to pick from too! We got gelato which was so amazing and took cupcakes to go.

If you’ve ever been to the Ferry Building in SF, this is pretty much a smaller, more cramped version of that. Cute little indoor market that’s worth checking out at least once when you’re visiting Napa.
Highlights:
+ Small produce/​grocery section
+ Various vendors selling things balsamic vinegars and oils, pastries and desserts, spices and wine and cheese. A lot of the vendors have samples for you to try!
+ Good selection of food to eat: like seafood at Hog Island, Mexican at C Casa and sushi at Eiko’s
+ Ritual Coffee!

Oxbow Public Market is a gourmet food emporium in the spirit of the Ferry Building, a complex with a several restaurants, a grocery, and a food court, all of it quite nice and rather expensive. It fits beautifully in the heart of downtown Napa, and when we stayed at the Westin nearby a few years ago, we took a couple lunches here, at the Fatted Calf/​Model Bakery and Gott’s Roadside. It’s a good place to grab a quick, casual meal. Lots of options for everyone.
We came back for lunch with two friends on our way out of Napa Valley a few weeks ago. We tangled with a pretty nastily full parking lot and walked through the heart of the market, checking out the various stalls. Everything was tantalizing and beautiful – I’d eat here quite often, I think, if I lived in the area. We ended up eating at the Fatted Calf/​Model Bakery again, just because people wanted sandwiches. I had a solid pulled pork sandwich while my friends had porchetta and pastrami. We split some cured meat and pork rinds, too. We got a table on the patio outside and lunched at our leisure.
Next time I come here, I’ll explore the other options. I know I like Hog Island Oyster Co., and there were at least a half dozen places that piqued my interest in the main food court-​like area. Oxbow is a great spot for an easy lunch in a vacation zone filled with super high-​end sit-​down restaurants. I guess, Napa being Napa, this yuppie mecca is one of the cheap places in town.

Three twins, and tons of dessert, spices, lots of wine tasting and food. Cheese and meat boards, oh my…
There’s oysters and kara’s cupcakes, there’s just a lot of selection of nom noms and I would love to go back.
I think you can just chill here and wine taste and just keep munching away.

I probably could have spent an hour at the spice shop smelling all of their spices. I did try the pizza with the good reviews and did not like it, at all. I love all their little shops and it was crowded but not like DTLA’s Grand Central Market where you can’t even sit and long lines for food with overhyped restaurants. Anyway back to this review. Did not have time for Hog Island, but I just thought this was a great little spot to hang out at while in Napa. I could have kept very busy looking at each shop. There was so much to see in each little shop and I did not have the time. I like the boutique feel to each shop. Hopefully next time I can explore more!

Oxbow is an easy drive off of Hwy 80, in to Napa, and with their large lot, we had no problem finding parking. There are a few restaurants and shops across from the main market and their anchors are Hog Island Oyster Co, Ca Momi Pizzeria, and Kara’s Cupcakes. Between all of those are little shops where you can find spices, coffee, chocolates, fresh produce, books/​magazines, smaller restaurants, and cheese and wine. It’s smaller than the SF Ferry Plaza; but for some reason, there seems to be more to look at, find, discover… Maybe because it’s in Napa, it just seems to be a leisurely browse through «stuff». You can expect the market to be crowded and wait times to be long during the weekends. However, I could almost guarantee that you can’t go wrong with any of the restaurants!
I personally love looking through unique market items (i.e., my latest find… quinoa chocolate), sipping on some coffee or wine, taking a cheese break… basically putting on your grown folk hat. I look forward to every visit; but it really is just a market.

The Oxbow Public Market exceeded expectations. It was a rainy Sunday in December and the streets were empty. Many downtown stores and restaurants were closed as it was barely 11am. I walked up to the Oxbow Public Market to check it out and was shocked when I walked in. Though it was cold and rainy outside, the market was crowded and filled with open stores. People were milling about ordering food and just perusing.
Upon entering I noticed a wide array of seating, some public for the market, and some private for specific restaurants or eateries. Anything that wasn’t public seating was clearly marked as such. Some of the restaurants also had their own private outdoor seating, though this wasn’t popular on such a cold day.
There are free samples at many of the stores (everything from olive oil and balsamic to pastries and spirits at the distillery). In true Napa fashion, there were a few wine bars at Ca’ Momi and the Oxbow Wine and Cheese Merchant (the latter also had charcuterie boards build-​your-​own-​style). Everything was lively, but not so busy that you couldn’t move around. We spent 2 hours wandering the Oxbow Public market, sampling everything and eventually stopping for a pizza at Ca’ Momi. We also grabbed an ice cream at Three Twins which was delicious.
I was thoroughly surprised and impressed by the Oxbow Public Market and will absolutely go back next time I’m in Napa.

The Oxbow Marketplace being up in the Napa region is an artisan marketplace, so the prices are on par with their peers, which always tends to be on the higher side compared to standard grocery stores, bakeries and stores you shop for staple food items.
This is more of a bunch of boutique sellers who are specialists, which is unique.
They have public parking lots and the overall energy and vibe is positive here.

I do really enjoy the Oxbow. They are constantly changing, updating and are hip and trendy. I brought visiting friends there and we liked the new Spirits shop. Pizza place (C’omi?) was really tasty. Annette’s chocolates is always a staple. The meat shop is a bit high priced and lost in the crowd (makes me want to go to Wholefoods). Loved the Olive Oil location. It’s just like a huge indoor farmer’s market but with nicer, higher end experiences.