SingleThread is a restaurant, farm, and boutique hotel in Sonoma County, California, offering an immersive farm-to-table dining experience that has earned three Michelin stars and an impressive array of further recognitions. It was created by husband-and-wife co-owners Kyle and Katina Connaughton, who are Executive Chef and Head Farmer respectively. SingleThread is the realization of their long-shared dream to combine culinary excellence, sustainable agriculture, and authentic hospitality in an isolated Californian setting far from the city, off the beaten track.

The heart of SingleThread

The restaurant’s name refers to the humble onion, the one constant in an ever-changing array of ingredients— the majority of which are grown on the SingleThread farm—used to compose its exquisite, ultra-local, micro-seasonal tasting menus.

The guiding philosophy behind SingleThread is rooted in Japanese principles of cooking and hospitality such as kaiseki and omotanashi, concepts absorbed by the chef during the years he spent working in high-level Japanese restaurants both in Los Angeles and in Japan, and complemented by his experience at The Fat Duck in Bray, England. It was here, says Connaughton, that he learned about creating the ultimate dining experience using more than food and service, but involving “sight and sound and context and nostalgia and storytelling.”

This holistic approach is reflected in subtle lighting and sound programs that adapt to the energy in the room and contribute to personalizing the dining experience. The absence of visible technology (computer screens, headsets and phones, for example) helps to further consolidate the natural, intimate atmosphere.

California born and bred, Kyle Connaughton began his culinary career in a series of LA restaurants including Spago Beverly Hills, The Dining Room at the Ritz Carlton, Lucques, Hama Sushi and A.O.C. Some of the most formative experiences in his professional journey, however, happened overseas. In Japan he worked for several years with celebrated French chef Michel Bras, then in the UK, he was Head of Research and Development for The Fat Duck Experimental Kitchen, working closely with multi-sensory cooking pioneer Hester Blumenthal.

Connaughton and his wife’s dream of opening a farm-to-table may have been many years in the making, but after they opened SingleThread in 2016, success came quickly. By 2018, it had earned two Michelin stars, the third coming the following year. By 2023 the husband-and-wife duo were included Robb Report’s list of the 50 Most Influential People in American Fine Dining.

SingleThread has been on The World’s 50 Best Restaurants list since 2021. In French publication La Liste’s Best Restaurants in the World list, it has taken second place among US restaurants, while tying for second place in the worldwide list. The restaurant also boasts a four-star review in the San Francisco Chronicle, while the SingleThread Inn took second place in the Global Tastemakers list of the best hotels for food and drink and earned Three Keys from Michelin.

This farm-driven, local produce-focused restaurant has also received recognition for its commitment to sustainable practices, in the form of an Ethical Sustainability Award from La Liste and a Michelin Green Star.

The Chef

Kyle Connaughton was brought up in California, beginning his culinary career as an apprentice in one of the oldest Japanese restaurants in Los Angeles. This was followed by stints in other top LA eateries from Spago Beverly Hills and The Dining Room at the Ritz Carlton to Lucques, Hama Sushi, and A.O.C. He then spent several years in Japan working for legendary French chef Michel Bras before joining Heston Blumenthal at The Fat Duck in Bray, England, as Head Chef of Research and Development.

He returned to California to open SingleThread in 2016 with his wife and co-owner Katina, who runs the nearby farm that provides around 70% of the ingredients used in the restaurant. It now boasts three Michelin stars.

In 2023, Connaughton and his wife were included in Robb Report’s list of the 50 Most Influential People in American Fine Dining.

He was awarded an honorary Doctorate by the Culinary Institute of America for his significant contributions to education, having helped develop the curriculum for the Institute’s bachelor's degree in culinary science and the first master's degree in culinary arts.

Connaughton is co-founder of the culinary development firm Pilot R&D and, alongside wife Katina and CEO Tony Greenberg, co-owner of the hospitality development and management company Vertice.

Restaurant

SingleThread is the fruit of the Connaughtons’ long-held dream of running a farm-to-table restaurant with rooms. Located in Sonoma County, California, the restaurant and inn offer an authentic, seasonal taste of the region via a dining and hospitality experience rooted in Japanese principles and made possible by the depth of experience Connaughton accumulated during his years working with some of the world’s finest chefs in Japan, the UK, and the US.

In its relatively short existence, the restaurant has garnered a long series of awards and recognitions, starting with its three Michelin stars. It has featured on The World’s 50 Best Restaurants list since 2021, and also enjoys a podium position in the ranking of the best restaurants in the world by La Liste. It took second place in the Global Tastemakers list of the best US hotels for food and drink and received a four-star review from the San Francisco Chronicle.

What’s more, it is not only the quality of the cuisine that is widely recognized. SingleThread has also received an Ethical Sustainability Award from La Liste and a Michelin Green Star based on the Connaughtons’ commitment to gastronomic sustainability.

Recipes and dishes

SingleThread’s cuisine, like its entire approach to hospitality, is heavily influenced by the time Connaughton spent in Japan, where he learned about the kaiseki tradition of composing carefully sequenced tasting menus based on the freshest, most seasonal, most local ingredients available. The idea, in the chef’s own words is that guests will “really experience the best of Sonoma County on that particular day, at that particular moment." Naturally, this means the ingredients are continuously changing, although there is one constant: the onion, which they grow and use all year round. This is, in fact, the ‘single thread’ that gives the place its name.

The restaurant serves three different 10-course tasting menus, for omnivores, pescatarians, and vegetarians respectively. It is known for growing much of the produce it uses at the SingleThread farm, which is the heart of the whole operation and serves as the creative inspiration behind the menus. Certain specialty ingredients—such as Duclair duck and wagyu beef—are sourced from local partners, selected not only on the basis of quality but also for their sustainable and ethical practices.

Connaughton is co-author of the book Donabe—Classic and Modern Japanese Clay Pot Cooking and was a contributing editor to the series Modernist Cuisine.

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