Climbing the Mountain

I'm very lucky to live and work in close proximity to Mt. Tamalpais. I don't take advantage of that often enough. But yesterday I did, and remembered some mouth watering Niman Ranch burgers that I had on the deck of the Mountain Home Inn. And it didn't hurt to also see that the weather gods were cooperating and giving us a clear day. So up Mt. Tam I dashed for some lunch. It was VERY sunny up top, and I didn't realize how over exposed my photos were until it was too late. So my apologies for the pale ones.

Honestly, the best thing about this was the trip up and 'vacation time' feel it evoked. Look at those beautiful flowers blooming on the way up!

On to the restaurant and food. The staff was quite friendly, and I had the sweetest waitress. And who could complain about anything with this view of the Richmond Bridge from the deck were all the patrons were sitting (there is some remodeling going on in the building proper). I got a slight sunburn from the brief exposure this high up, clear and at dead noon, despite my sunblock protection.

I started with the carrot ginger soup. My first impression was - WOW - what a nice mouth feel! It had a creamy and full body and was very flavorful. I'd go back just for this soup again.

I have to admit, I ordered for the visual appeal, but then I failed to capture it because of the bright sun's reflection. The fennel slaw with oranges and watercress was very tasy. The salmon was good, well-done as I like it. The couscous was a little questionable as it was quite cold, it even had a refrigerated taste in the middle. But it was infused with pistatio nuts and would have been perfect for the dish had it been a little warmer. The service was in 'vacation time', some would say slow, but very friendly and pleasant, and who cared when sitting in the warm sun and having a panoramic view of the bay.