Paso Robles has never lacked for reasons to visit — and few places in California have had more of our attention over the years. We wrote about DAOU Vineyards and its family tradition back in 2018, stayed and dined at the Allegretto Vineyard Resort, and in 2020 we told our readers that “Paso Robles California and Its Iconic Wines Have the World Taking Notice.” Just last month we were back for harvest, walking the old-vine Zinfandel rows at J Dusi Wines with the Dusi family. So when we say Paso was missing one thing, we say it with love: a third place. Not a tasting room with a closing time, not another reservation to rush to — a place that is neither work nor home, where the evening can simply unfold. That place now exists, and it is called Club 7970.

The club takes its name from its address, 7970 Vineyard Drive, on the west side of Paso Robles, about twenty minutes from downtown, where Vineyard Drive winds through some of the most beautiful vineyard country in California. The clubhouse is an eye-catching modern barn, all casual rustic luxury outside and moody, chic warmth inside — the kind of room that makes you settle in and stay a while.

Club 7970, Paso Robles. Photo courtesy Club 7970.

The idea will sound familiar: the polish and eclecticism of Soho House, reimagined for wine country. What the founders say they are adding is the part the famous clubs often miss — a supper club’s personal warmth, where you walk in and feel utterly at ease, among people aligned with your interests. As they put it, it is “an intimate place where new relationships can bloom.”

As two certified sommeliers, the programming is what has us leaning in. There are culinary evenings led by a roster of rotating chefs. There are “Hot Stove” cooking classes, where members help prepare a dish together before sitting down to eat it as a collective meal. There is afternoon tea service, a piano bar, a full bar, and a curated wine list pouring local, national, and international wines — precisely the bridge between the tasting room and the dinner table that wine country visitors have always wished for. The club has already been hosting events that speak our language, including wine-education picnics built around a dozen rosés from around the world and flights of 100-point white wines, each followed by an eight-course picnic.

Club 7970, Paso Robles. Photo courtesy Club 7970.

Beyond the table, there is a working art gallery exhibiting and selling work by international artists, networking evenings, running clubs and other athletic pursuits, cultural events and exhibitions, a pool table, and cozy meeting spaces. A swimming pool is scheduled to arrive in mid-2027.

Membership is by invitation only, in two tiers. Founding Members, at $15,000 a year, receive a legacy distinction and a real hand in shaping the club: a two-year term on the governing board, member-approval voting, and — our favorite wine country touch — founding members who are winery owners will have their wines featured at the club. We can think of a few Paso families whose bottles belong on that list. Regular Membership is $5,200 a year, with full access to all events and facilities, guest privileges, reciprocal privileges with other clubs, and the option to add a spouse or partner for $1,000 a year. The grand opening was October 17, 2026, and the club is drawing members from Paso Robles and San Luis Obispo County, the San Francisco and Los Angeles metro areas, and Central Valley towns like Bakersfield and Fresno.

We split our own lives between Las Vegas and Cayucos, just over the hills from Paso, and we have believed for a decade of covering it that the Central Coast is one of the great food and wine stories in America. Club 7970 feels like the region growing into itself — a gathering place for the winery owners, chefs, makers, and devoted visitors who give Paso its character. It is, as we said the moment we found it, right up our alley. You will find it at club7970.com — and you may well find us there on our next stay over the hill.

Club 7970, Paso Robles. Photo courtesy Club 7970.

Club 7970, 7970 Vineyard Drive, Paso Robles, CA 93446. Membership by invitation only.