Mendocino Flavors: Smash burgers in Hopland, restaurant openings and closures, local chef feeds firefighters and more

MENDOCINO Co., 8/15/24 — Last weekend I went to McNab Ridge Winery’s tasting room in Hopland for a Johnny Young concert. Johnny is a talented country western musician who drew a nice crowd on a hot day to enjoy music, McNab’s tasty wines and smash burgers from the Smash Daddy’s. Not only was the music and wine excellent, but the burgers blew me away.  

I grew up eating smash burgers at diners in Indiana – ground beef rolled up into a ball and smashed onto a griddle. The meat’s edges get crispy while the inside is moist, and then it’s topped with cheese and sandwiched between a bun. Sometimes the finished burger is stacked – two or three smashed patties on top of each other – plenty to fill a hungry belly. So, when I heard three of my favorite things (music, wine and smash burgers) were going to be in Hopland, I knew I could not miss out.