Former Mill Valley Champagne Space to Morph

Enjoy Mill Valley blog reports that the former space of Champagne in Mill Valley is the intended home of a new modern Mexican restaurant "Playa".  Karen Goldberg, owner of Mill Valley's TamalPie has big plans for it.  Read more at Enjoy Mill Valley.

Loco for Mole

Hungry after a work out at 24 HR Fitness at Marin Country Mart in Larkspur, I paid the neighboring El Huarache Loco a visit for lunch.

All the offerings are neatly listed on adjacent blackboards. I chose the Mole "El Huarache Loco" ($10). It is described as "Veronica's recipe for chicken mole comes from her family's restaurant in Mexico City". Veronica is the owner and started this in La Cocina in San Francisco, a nonprofit food business incubator. El Huarache Loco is one of its success stories.

The mole was deep, rich and very satisfying. I detected hints of dark chocolate. It was accompanied by rice and creamy beans as well as tortillas. The service was prompt despite a hungry throng in the restaurant.

El Huarache Loco

1803 Larkspur Landing Cir.

Larkspur, CA 94939

(415) 925-1403

huaracheloco.com

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LittleCo To Go

Sausalito's Friday night Jazz & Blues by the Bay is back and we have all summer to enjoy it.  Getting to Friday is an achievement, and getting out to a Friday night activity is some more effort. Sausalito's Copita Tequileria y Comida is making the effort way less stressful with its "LittleCo To Go" offerings that are just perfect for enjoying while kicking back and listening to the band.

For this summer, Copita has added some small plates and Mocktails for two to its already popular taco take out choices. From $5-10, the small plates include things such as salads, ceviches, and antojitos. The Cherry Margarita cocktail looks refreshing, and the El Diablo with cassis, ginger beer, fresh lime juice and ice look like an eye-opener.

Copita Tequileria y Comida

739 Bridgeway

Sausalito, CA 94965

(415) 331-7400

www.copitarestaurant.com

Tried and True

Daniel and I had dinner at Joe's Taco Lounge in Mill Valley a couple days ago.  Daniel had recently discovered  and asked me why I'd never taken him there. Why indeed?  The festive and casual atmosphere is still a happy one with intergenerational presence.  There are hundreds of hot sauces to choose from lining the shelf that encircles the inside of the restaurant.  Daniel enjoyed the Grilled Pacific Snapper Burrito with rice, black beans, cheese and salsa negra ($7.50).  He keeps coming back for this filling and healthy meal he likes it so much.

I was tempted by the chalkboard special- Pollo Adobado ($15.95).  The small print read tender chicken marinated in achiote, garlic, lime, salt and pepper, served with refried black beans, Spanish rice, sour cream and guacamole. Not mentioned was the bit of shredded lettuce and pico de gallo that completed the plate.  The chicken was tender and well marinated, and a taste of achiote, garlic and lime was distinguishable.  The servers were attentive and we enjoyed our meal.

Joe's Taco Lounge 

382 Miller Ave.

Mill Valley, CA 94941

(415) 383-8164

www.joestacolounge.com

Facebook

Previously reviewed:

July 11, 2009

May 26, 2007

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The Cantina

On a warm summer's day I dropped into The Cantina for lunch, and a few days later found myself there for brunch with family.  The Cantina was a long lived restaurant in Mill Valley that left for a bit, replaced by Maria Maria, then it came back with some reinvention.

 

Chips and salsa arrived soon after I sat down, and I found that the chips are gluten free and made fresh every day on premises.

 

I enjoyed an old favorite, and found a new twist.  This arroz con pollo had a pounded chicken breast atop Mexican rice.  Along with the ranchero sauce, there were chunky pieces of red and green bell peppers and onions.  Usually I've had this dish where the chicken was served over the rice in tenders, and not with such fresh and colorful peppers and sweet onion as toppings. Also my experience of this dish at other places is without the corn cake, refried beans and green lettuce.  This dish shined.  The only thing I would have changed is to have some kind of dressing or topping for the plain, yet crisp and fresh lettuce.

 

A second trip for brunch found me irresistibly drawn to the crab omelet. The omelet was accompanied by soft potatoes, sour cream and pico de gallo. I was happy with this dish.  The crab was very smooth and paired well with the egg envelope.

The latest food inspection reports can be found here.

The Cantina
651 E Blithedale Ave.
Mill Valley, CA 94941
(415) 381-1070

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An opening in Sausalito

I've been watching this place being constructed for months. Finally this afternoon I saw an 'open' sign as I drove by. La Hacienda Bar & Grill in Sausalito opened officially Thursday night, and tonight Dad and I had our first meal there.

We were given the freshest, crispest chips and salsa that was fresh and had a little bit of a kick without being overwhelming. It was refreshing to enjoy them in a new, very colorful decor.

I decided to try one of the house specialties, Arroz con Cameron. It was so hot and fresh, with plump shrimp and grilled onions and peppers over rice, smothered in cheese. Not pictured are the flour tortillas that came on the side. It was so good. The onions were crisper than I like, but that's a personal preference. The onions were still pretty sweet. The guacamole was also fresh, cool and went wonderfully with the dish.

Dad didn't feel hungry until he got a bite of his chicken tamale 'small plate', which wasn't small at all. He soon was scraping the plate for every morsel he liked it so well.

Dad asked for dessert, so I ordered one too. I went for the Mexican Flan, which was a great choice. It was one of the best I've ever tried. It was dense and rich and reminded me a little of ricotta pie.

Dad asked for strawberry ice cream and he said it was creamy and sweet and he polished it off too. Considering this was only the second night of operation this one has a bright future if the level of service and excellent execution stays in place.

Restaurant Inspection Results

This restaurant has not been inspected yet.

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Maria Maria closes

Oh well... and Maria Maria was right in my Mill Valley back yard. It happened rather abruptly and the scan I made of internet sources did not have any reasons why.

I'm still working away on my crashed computer.. have to save as much as possible (slow work) and wipe it clean :-(.

One rainy night

Cold and dark was the night I skipped through the puddles on the parking lot to get to the warm interior of Panchitos in San Rafael. I remember this place as the first restaurant that I tried taking photos of the actual meal that I ate for posting.

Of course the crisp chips with very red salsa comes out.

I tried the Vegetarian Burrito this trip. It was pleasing to the eye. I loved the whole pinto beans, and the rice was flavorful too.

The inside of the burrito was stuffed with fresh sauteed vegetables. It was slightly heavy on zucchini for my taste, but overall it was really good. I ordered it with guac and sour cream which melded the Mexican flavors. This is a nice neighborhood place with good service and solidly good food.


Restaurant Inspection Results

Critical: 1
Noncritical: 0
Last inspected: December 11, 2009

Previously reviewed:

July 7, 2006

Find address/phone number/directions on Anna's Map.

There goes another one

I liked Sam's Roadhouse in Novato. Now it's gone.

There is already a new establishment operating in its place, Points South. It advertises both Yucatan and Mayan cuisine. It also serves breakfast!

New restaurants popping up like flowers in spring

I received a tip that the new Antigua Mexican Grill that is in my Mill Valley backyard opened up! So that was my venue for last night's dinner. The place has absolutely been transformed! The space bears no resemblance to the previous Peking Wok that previously occupying the space. The color scheme incorporates warm oranges and orange leather chairs made in Mexico. It is a casual, yet upscale and warm feeling space. It must be a sign of an improving economy that a bunch of new restaurants are opening here in Marin.

First thing up was chips and salsa. I loved how the salsas were put into bottles that you poured from the amounts you wished into a bowls provided on the tables. You could taste the freshness in the green and red varieties. The chips were fine, but heating them would have taken these to the next level.

I decided to have a treat of some guacamole with these. It was fine, but for $7.50 I expected something a little more extraordinary.

The Prawn Fajitas were out of this world! The waiter recommended these, and he was right on the money! These came with three flour tortillas to wrap the goodness into. The portion was generous, so three didn't quite make it if you want to roll most of the grilled fajitas into a tortilla. Extra tortillas come in foil packet of three, and cost $.50 extra.

The side of rice, beans, pico de gallo, guacamole and sour cream was also generously portioned. The Prawn Fajitas are priced at $13.95 (before the extra tortillas). I was happy to find out that the whole pinto beans were cooked vegetarian style, and that there is a nice selection of vegetarian items on the menu. The couple next to me ordered one of their large shared plates, I think it was called The Molcajetel. It came in a bowl with legs and the pieces were artfully arranged such that it almost looked alive! The couple gave it a thumbs up, and it was HUGE. The service was prompt and friendly, and all the patrons were checked in on regularly by staff and even the friendly owner, Mike. He said that they have a restaurant called QuiXote Grill in San Francisco as well.

Restaurant Inspection Results

Antigua Mexican Grill has not yet been inspected.

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Double Header!

Keeping my eye on the old Samurai building in Sausalito, I noticed not one, but TWO notices. Hmm.. it was something I just had to check out.

The door on the left had a notice for "La Hacienda", a brew pub.

The second sign said "Taste of the Himalayas". Oh, cool! I'll be keeping my eye out for both of these to open!

Great taste, good bargain

Dad and I were near Scotty's Market in San Rafael at lunchtime, and noticed that the nearby Sonora Market was also a Taqueria (or vice versa). Being in the mood for a casual lunch, we stopped in Sonora Taqueria.

Once we ordered, we were promptly served some fresh chips with some red salsa with a kick, as well as a milder green salsa. The salsas were great, and tasted like these were just made.

I thought that Shrimp Fajitas for $9.99 was quite the deal, so decided to try these. It was a great choice! Lots of fresh shrimp with saucy vegetables, and the rice and beans were good too. There is choice of flour or corn tortillas to go with these, I chose the flour tortillas and was quite happy with the hot wrappers.

Dad wanted to try a small plate of a Chicken Tamale with Rice and Beans for $6.49. He said he liked it, and proceeded to eat everything on the plate as confirmation. Sonora Taqueria is very casual, but the price is right, the food is better, and the service was prompt and friendly.

Restaurant Inspection Results

Critical: 0

Noncritical: 1

Last inspected: 4/22/2009

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Authentic as I know of

I tried El Palmar in San Rafael for dinner yesterday evening. I had passed it when in the area before, but there is something about bars on the windows that makes one feel unsafe. And I don't really think the area is unsafe, it's just in an industrial area that is rather deserted after normal business hours, so I'm supposing that this makes places with big glass windows a little more vulnerable. It was worth the stop.

EVERYONE in the restaurant was speaking Spanish. Fluently. I took that as a sign of authenticity. The woman who took my order and served me was so sweet, and translated some of the menu, naturally it was in Spanish for the most part. And we had a cute interaction were I would ask her what "x" meant, and after responding she would point to something like a canister of straws and ask me what the English word was. She let me sample the red agua fresca which she said was made from a red flower called Jamaica. It was rather sweet, and it seemed similar to hibiscus. There were chips given me immediately, and there was a clean, well-stocked salsa bar to choose the accompaniment.

I ordered shrimp tacos. The plate was beautiful. There was style in the twist of the orange, the countertwist of the tomato and the artful arrangement of fresh avocado slices. And oh, the beans had flavor! The rice had flavor! The refried beans were creamy, and the rice had flecks of vegetables in it. The shrimp reminded me of the little brine shrimp that are served on tomato halves in Belgium or Holland. Small but with big flavor, and lots of them. I loved my tacos, and although I'm no judge of authenticity of Mexican food since I've never eaten in Mexico, the whole experience felt authentic somehow. It is a little hole in the wall, but well worth finding and enjoying.

Restaurant Inspection Results

Critical: 1
Noncritical: 1
Last inspected: 5/5/2009

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Gigantic burritos in Novato

Although I thought I only had a handful of restaurants left to review, when I counted up the number of Mexican restaurants I've yet to try.. it came to 19. That's more than a handful. So I'm putting emphasis for a bit on trying some of these. I meandered first to Novato, where I found Taqueria Mi Pueblo, which was chock full of people, while many of the other restaurants in old town were rather quiet. That's a good indicator. (It was a little cool for people to be outside).

What friendly staff. They oriented me, sat me at a table and smiled a lot. Before I knew it, there were the crispest warm chips and red salsa with a hint of heat in front of me to nibble. Good start!

I surveyed the menu, and decided to try the Burrito Vegetariano Mas, which includes broccoli, cauliflower and carrots. It was huge! And the other burritos flying by were gigantic too. Everything was fresh and well mixed. There was a nice red sauce covering the burrito. Unfortunately, I realized that I'm not fond of steamed vegetables in a burrito. The broccoli, cauliflower and carrot were steamed and it made the burrito rather watery-tasting and diluted the flavor. I could tell that the ingredients were high quality. It would have been better had the vegetables been grilled so that the flavors were intensified. Even so, I enjoyed as much as I could and thought that next time I'll have to try the seafood as everything that went by, and the happy faces on the customers gave me the impression that other menu items are top notch.

Restaurant Inspection Results

Critical: 0
Noncritical: 0
Last inspected: 6/17/2009

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Mexico and Points South

Marin is lucky to have so many Mexican and other restaurants from south of our border. I've tried to keep track, and keep up, however it's quite a task! There are also taco trucks seen around Marin that aren't listed, and I haven't tried yet. Let me know in the comments if any revision is needed.

Where I've been

Fairfax
Pancho Villa's

Greenbrae
Road Runner Burrito

Kentfield
Taqueria Mexican Grill de Marin

Larkspur
Burritoville Cafe

Mill Valley
Avatar's Punjab Burritos
Cactus Cafe
Grilly's
High Tech Burritos
Joe's Taco Lounge
Lucinda's Mexican Food To Go
Maria Maria
Shoreline Coffee Shop

Novato
Cacti
El Encanto
Fernando's
La Hacienda Taqueria
Las Guitarras Mexican Restaurant & Seafood
Maya Palenque
Sonoma Latina Grill
Tommy's Salsa

San Anselmo
Marinitas
Mi Pueblo
Taco Jane's

San Rafael
Celia's Mexican American Food
La Hacienda Taqueria
Las Camelias
Panama Inn & Restaurant
Panchitos
Picante
Playa Azul Mariscos
Puentez Taqueria
Sol Food
Sonoma Taco Shop
Taqueria Bahia
Taqueria el Farolito
Taqueria Mi Familia
Taqueria San Jose
Tekila's Taqueria
Yucachubi's

Sausalito
Anchorage 5 Restaurant
Salsalito Taco Shop
Saylor's Restaurant & Bar

Tiburon
Guaymas
Poncho's Casa Manana

Where I've yet to go (or blog)

Corte Madera
Baja Fresh Mexican Grill

Fairfax
Casa Manana
Grilly's

Mill Valley
Antigua Mexican Grill

Novato
Chevy's Fresh Mex
El Palmar
Mi Pueblo Taqueria
Taqueria La Fiesta
Taqueria Real

San Anselmo
Burritoville OBB
Tacqueria Mi Familia

San Rafael
Casa Manana
Churro Station
High Tech Burrito
Oscar's Tacos
Samperio's
Sonora Market & Taqueria
Taqueria La Herradura
Taqueria Las Calandrias

Burritos as you like them

A couple of cute girls, Zena and Zoe, put a bug in my ear about the great burritos at High Tech Burrito. Naturally, I had to check it out. Luckily there is one not far from me at Strawberry Village in Mill Valley.

I noticed that they make breakfast burritos, but they don't open earlier than ten, so that makes it brunch, not breakfast in my book. When I ordered my burrito at the window, I was offered chips and salsa for a quick 50-cent add. How could I resist? The chips were startlingly fresh, and the mild salsa went well with these.

I tried the braised tofu burrito. It consisted of braised tofu, fresh veggies, black beans, brown rice and mild salsa rolled in a grilled low fat whole wheat tortilla. It was fresh and hot and I liked the flavors! I'd have this one again in a heartbeat. The girls led me right. There are other High Tech Burrito locations in Marin at San Rafael and Novato.

Restaurant Inspection Results

Critical: 1
Noncritical: 1
Last inspected: 3/19/2009

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Translation problem?

I stopped by La Hacienda Taqueria in Novato a few nights ago. The staff was most smiling and welcoming. I seemed to have a communication problem. I wanted to order their Veggie Chimichanga. I asked for it. The woman behind the counter said "Steamed Veggies". Ah, no I'm not interested in a Steamed Veggie plate (the choice just below Veggie Chimichanga on the posted menu). Ok she said, and motioned for me to sit and enjoy my chips.

The chips were great and it was nice to have both green and red salsas.

Then my Veggie Chimichanga came. The board that I ordered it from said: "Flour tortillas with veggies, salsa, topped with lettuce, tomatoes, rice and whole beans on the side. Flour tortillas, check; rice, check; whole beans on the side -- whoah.. no these beans were refried. It got worse. Where is the lettuce that is supposed to adorn the top? Inside. I kid you not - deep fried lettuce! So the inside, besides lettuce had more rice, and voila! the whole beans. I'm sorry it was completely unappetizing and the tortillas were oil soaked. The sour cream wasn't listed, and I didn't mind having a bit, although it was quite a glop on the top. Beware of translation if you visit and don't speak Spanish!

Restaurant Inspection Results

Critical: 0
Noncritical: 1
Last inspected: 5/20/2009

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Slipped away

Peking Wok in Mill Valley, although quite near to me seemed to have slipped away some time this spring without me noticing. The Peking Wok in San Rafael is still open, and it even has a website now. This was a nice go-to place for take out or a casual eat-in. I suspect most of the businesses in that mall are trying to hold on waiting for the new Whole Foods to open, when the foot traffic will exponentially increase.

Walking by there today, I notice a sign for a new place, Antigua Mexican Grill. And there were workers busily building out the interior! I'll be watching for this one to open...