Oh what a beautiful day!

Winding up at the beginning of Saturday's mini-trip, Dad and I headed from Mill Valley to Thepmanggon Thai on the Bay in Inverness. Door to door,it was a 58 minute ride through hills, around a mountain and through redwoods to the west side of Tomales Bay. A Scotsman, Judge James Shafter, came here and named it after a place in Scotland. Some of his family still remain in this peaceful spot on Tomales Bay.

We arrived after usual lunch hours and so there was only one other party in the restaurant. Lucky them had been kayaking and their package included lunch at Thepmanggon. Noticing that it would not be a problem, I requested that our meal come in courses, and slowly so that we could savor the meal with the view. The staff timed the courses perfectly, starting with the Thai iced teas we ordered.

As we sipped we noticed how the interior, which had previously been a seafood restaurant called Barnaby's, had been transformed to a Thai hideaway. I also picked up a take out menu, and noticed that the restaurant had thoughtfully listed the health benefits of Thai ingredients:

Galangal (Thai ginger)
*Assists in digestion
*Cures hiccups

Lemongrass
*Reduces fevers
*Reduces headaches

Coconut Milk
*Lowers bad cholesterol while promoting good cholesterol
*Boosts immunity

Turmeric
*Helps those with arthritis
*Improves cardiovascular (heart) conditions

Thai Chilies
*Helps you sleep better
*Keeps your heart healthy

So we were definitely psyched for the meal! And soon our Taro Egg Rolls arrived. Stuffed with bean thread noodles, cabbage, taro, and carrot these light and crispy rolls were a hit with us.

The Tom Kha Soup served next transported me back to a very enjoyable time in my life when I first tasted this soup. I was spending a fun weekend in Pt. Townsend, WA and discovered it in a Thai restaurant there. This has to be the best one I've had since. The spices were so well blended and it was brimming with fresh and flavorful ingredients, with the protein choice being tofu. Dad and I savored this one especially slowly. I also loved the presentation in a traditional clay pot.

And while we were sipping we enjoyed the lovely view outside the window next to us. Dad was reminded of his young teenage years being a helper at a local resort, the Purple Pennant in Lake Steven, WA which was within walking distance from his home. I listened intently as he brought up details I hadn't heard before. Apparently, along with doing some room and boat cleaning, he helped guide guests to the parts of the lake that had the most fish.

As we were musing, the next dish arrived with a bowl of rice. The Asparagus Prawns sauteed in red curry sauce with Thai herbs and bell peppers was absolutely divine. The server had inquired about the spiciness level we liked, and the chef got it prefectly, mild yet with a hint of spiciness. Everything was so fresh and easy on the eye!

The other dish we tried wa Masaa Mun Curry, and we requested it with tofu instead of chicken. It also contains potatoes, carrots and onions with a topping of peanuts. The sauce seemed to be peanut based, and was quite good, and rich. We thoroughly enjoyed our leisurely, relaxing meal that was well-paced and given with thoughtful service. Thepmanggon is on the north end of Inverness, but well worth the extra way to enjoy.

Restaurant Inspection Results
Critical: 3
Noncritical: 11
Last inspected: 1/15/2009

Beautiful day in Inverness

It was one of those days that was planned over a week ago, but plans changed completely at the last minute. Since a trip with a friend to the Orchid Show in Santa Rosa fell through, I was vacillating between a day of housecleaning, and a mini-trip to West Marin. Since I vacillated publicly on Facebook, my friends gave me a hand in deciding that a mini-trip was in order. So Dad and I headed off to Inverness around noon and spent a slow day driving, stopping and shopping there. I'm going to post out of order and start with the last part of our trip. On our way back down the Tomales Bay coast to go home, we stopped at the inviting Busy Bee Bakery in Inverness Park.

It was quite cheerful and charming, and so was the person behind the counter. We got a couple delicious peanut butter cookies and ate them on the deck outside. And it was warm enough to do so. This place is very much in the countryside, there was a herd of goats just across the street! The Busy Bee Bakery also has freshly made soups and quiche so it will be fun to drop in another day and try a lunch there.

We decided to drive down the coast all the way to Mill Valley, and we felt like stopping at a scenic stop just outside of Stinson Beach on the way to Muir Beach.

The sun was going down. It's interesting that I was standing in the same spot as when the previous photo was taken, I guess the camera just adjusted for the bright light in the sky. Still, I thought it came out in an interesting way.

Restaurant Inspection Results
Critical: 2
Noncritical: 4
Last inspected: 1/12/2009

Closing and opening

I knew there was a new Thai restaurant in West Marin, but I didn't know it replaced Barnaby's until this morning. Thepmonggon Thai On The Bay has replaced Barnaby's, and early reports are favorable. Obviously, it will have the same beautiful views! Bidding Barnaby's a fond farewell.

More of Sunday's outing to West Marin. So yesterday we left off with a couple of hungry kids, and a closed Drake's Beach Cafe. It seemed apropos to stop at the first restaurant we came across on our way back, which luckily happened to be open!

Barnaby's in Inverness is right on the bay (Tomales), and its windows maximize the advantage of the view. The staff was quite friendly and welcoming.

And some warm chips arrived immediately. We were also, for quite some time, the only guests. And then, only one other group showed up.

I started with some delicious clam chowder which was served promptly. It had lots of fresh, tender clams, and the soup was thin, yet very creamy.

Then the first glitch started. It took forever to serve the next course. Toran decided that he'd found a better way for scientists to study bubbles, by looking through a straw into Sierra Mist.

Aurelia soon imitated and they amused themselves spinning tales of scientific discovery. Thank goodness they had active minds and were patient as it was an unbelievably long wait to the next course.

Then Aurelia's well-done child's burger came. It was so well done it was BLACK all over. After the initial positive vibes from a well-rounded children's menu, this really threw cold water on the positive regard.

Toran's order of children's spaghetti was quite good, and he enjoyed every drop! It was also a very large portion, which fit neatly into his hollow leg ;-).

Dad's schnitzelburger was another disappointment. Rather than schnitzel between a bun, it was more like very tough chicken fried pork steak with a greasy slick. Dad had a hard time biting it.

I was also disappointed with my Toast Hawaii. It consisted of deli slices of ham topped with canned pineapple slices and with a melted processed Swiss cheese with a shiny surface. The toast was cold and dry (not 'Golden'). I think Barnaby's would be an awesome locale for drinks, but this experience leads me to believe a little menu and cooking tune-up is needed. This place has lots of potential, and it was my first and only visit. Hopefully next time round things will be different.

Fun in West Marin. Getting up to a cloudy sky, as someone born and raised in the Seattle area, I thought great! time for a trip to the coast! Locals everywhere love weather that discourages crowds of tourists, yet isn't so bad as to keep one indoors. I thought my young friends Toran & Aurelia might enjoy an outing as well, so quick as a wink, I was on the phone to their parents. All worked out well, so Dad & I were out the door in just a few minutes to pick them up. After a meandering ride, we ended up at Point Reyes, and had breakfast at the Pine Cone Diner. The friendly staff greeted us warmly, and we were soon seated at a bright yellow table. One of the most efficient waitstaff was a cute child who earnestly took our drink order. I think the people in this town must be very friendly with each other, as the menu states a caution "WE REQUEST YOU DO NOT SWITCH TABLES AFTER ORDERING." It is also a cash or check only kind of place.

Dad ordered a Ham and Munster Cheese Omelet which he said was worth coming back for.

When I saw that local oysters are used in the Hangtown Fry Omelet, my mind was made up. It was worth coming back for too. The breaded oysters were tender and fresh and neatly wrapped up with bacon pieces and cheese in a fluffy egg wrapper. The hash browns were great as well - nice and crispy on the outside and potatoes taste in a well-cooked inside.

Toran & Aurelia decided to share a regular 3-pancake order of Honey Whole Wheat Pancakes. The skin was a bit tough on these so they were not as impressed, however they enjoyed most of these nonetheless. The Pine Cone Diner was a hit all-in-all, and I would definitely recommend it if you are in the neighborhood. It also supports local farming and artisan foods.

At this point I diverge from food, to tell kid tales and talk about our other adventures in West Marin. And skip to the next paragraph if you have a queasy stomach as I'm about to report a cute but not appetizing kidism... As we were eating our most enjoyable breakfast, being in the country, a fly flew in the door with a customer and lighted on the rim of my Dad's hot chocolate. Toran asked if we knew that that wasn't just the fly's tongue that was touching the rim, but that the fly deposited a little fly vomit each time it touched the surface. ooohh. That was an image I could do without, however, I didn't have the heart to ask him what he thought honey was...

Being well fortified and energized by such a great breakfast, we decided to try the Earthquake Trail that the 'tall lady' (how the children described the waitress) recommended the kids would like near the Bear Valley Visitors Center at Point Reyes. So off we went, and the kids enjoyed it several times in fact as Dad was finding it slow going, and the high energy Toran & Aurelia would run back and forth along each stretch of the trail.

Toran thought the tree that had been cut into a bench must be thousands of years old, and he and his sister started counting the rings, and found it to be too many to complete!

They found a perfect climbing tree towards the end which was a natural photo op.

Aurelia is in the horse loving stage of her growing up, so we had to stop to visit the Morgan Horse Ranch. There were examples of a Blacksmith's shop and labels on everything for self-guided information on horses in Marin, and American horses in general.

And we had to greet Lance, the Morgan horse identified from the photos on the wall of the barn.

Then we took off on the next leg, up near the Lighthouse. We passed a lot of ranches with single letters as their name with cows enjoying the sunbeams breaking through here and there and chewing their cud. We also noticed vultures sitting in rows on posts at one point. A whole bunch of quail ran across the road while I braked quickly when we were least expecting it as well!

There were plenty of pretty seascapes with breaking waves.

And it seemed that there were nearly as many deer as cows enjoying the fields.

There were all kinds of warning signs about not walking on the hazardous cliffs along this road to the Chimney Rock trailhead.

Obviously someone forgot to inform the cows about this, or they simply don't care.

We traveled on to Drake's Beach, but didn't see the elephant seals we heard like to sit there. But we did see a hang-glider with red canopy land there after we followed his long glide down from the cliffs as we drove to the beach.

About this time, the kids got hungry and I thought we'd try Drake's Beach Cafe, but noticed it was closed. A call to its phone after arriving home found that it is closed between November 26-December 28th so no wonder. We'll have to try it another time, and I'll let you know where we ate lunch after all in tomorrow's post.