Fall gets even autumn-ier around Mendocino County as mushrooms take center stage

THERE'S ALWAYS A DEPTH... to any dining experience in Mendocino County, a real sort of lovely layered feel that says to the curious mind that there's more to the savory story. A meaty dish boasts a complex sauce with a bouquet of rich spices, a warm drink offers several cocoa-deep notes, and digging deeper into a colorful casserole, the kind that uses all of the vegetables that grow so famously well in the verdant area? It's a piquant pleasure. But there is no Mendo-marvelous food as deep, literally, as the mushroom, and it is fabulous fungi that take the spotlight each fall. It's a golden spell when several celebrations come to full flower around the region, from decadent dinners to chances to forage with a guide at the lead, and, oh yes, the oh-so-beloved Mushroom, Whiskey & Wine Train, a foodie dream that materializes aboard the oh-so-beloved Skunk Train in Fort Bragg (so make that a double-beloved kind of bash).

HARVEST MENDOCINO 2023... shall sprout and unfurl its tasty tendrils from Oct. 28 through Nov. 12, and even if you're not a true mushroomie, you'll find a number of regional dining experiences that appeal. There is the aforementioned train on Nov. 4 — booking your ticket ahead of time is a mushroom-scented must — and special suppers, like the meal themed to mushrooms and beer at Little River Inn on Nov. 10. Stanford Inn by the Sea is the spot for aspiring mycologists, for an expert talk, and a fanciful "foray" into nearby forests and meadows, are on the calendar. Jug Handle Creek Farm has mushroom-seeking saunters, sweet, and a Candy Cap Mushroom Old Fashioned will be on the intriguing pour at HarborView Bistro at Noyo Harbor Inn.

MUSHROOMS AND MORE: Like suddenly encountering a whole aisle of the produce section bursting with mushroom-tinged beauty, sorting through all you want to do during Harvest Mendocino 2023 can be appetizingly overwhelming. Before you set sprout, er, out, best start here. Gills to stalks to caps, Mendocino County is not just a mere mush-room but a huge mush-realm as October opens the door to November each year.