Pizzalina

I was intrigued by Pizzalina from the beginning.  I caught Louise Franz (owner) blogging all about the experience of opening a restaurant from scratch, and in particular, about Pizzalina in San Anselmo.  I visited in February for a bite when I was in the area.

When you walk in the cheerful vibe is noticeable, and the fact that someone cares about the place is evident.  Louise was on the floor, greeting pizza lovers and said hello to me too.

Having life interfere with my blogging, I seem to have misplaced the take out menu I brought home to prompt memory of the pizza I ordered, and since Pizzalina is in tune with the seasons, it isn't on the current posted menu.  I hope it comes back.  It was composed of some of my favorite things!

The pizza had a name after a train stop, and it was composed of prosciutto, figs, caramelized onions and bleu cheese topping the flavorful mozzarella cheese and perfectly crisp and bubbly crust.  I'm getting hungry all over again just describing this.

The pizzas range from $10-$18 currently, and there are salads, pasta, entrees such as wood roasted quail ($22) as well.  The emphasis is local and seasonal, there are wines on tap (Cal-Italian) and microbrews.

The latest Marin County food inspection reports are here.

Pizzalina
914 Sir Francis Drake Blvd.
San Anselmo, CA 94960
(415) 256-9780

For directions, try Anna's Map.

Pan Asian in San Anselmo. Dad and I stopped at May Lee's Asian Bistro for dinner one evening. We were entice by the "Asian Bistro" part of the sign, and wondered what surprises it may bring. Brightly colored, with friendly prompt service it brought the following dishes.

The Canton Ha Gow Dumplings were hot, fresh and delicious. You can see the steam rising! I tried to order sushi as an appetizer, but was told that 'no one eats sushi in the cold, we only have sushi during the summer'!

Next up was their Combo Fried Rice, this was great.

The Sizzling Salmon and Asparagus was exceptional!

The only misstep was the Singapore Curry Rice Vermacelli. It was, well, awful. It tasted like someone dropped the curry powder bottle in it and didn't stir it up. Dusty powder grains were distinguishable, clinging to the noodles and the dish tasted rather of concentrated curry powder, strong and grainy even though powder-like.

In general this was bright, cheery and the menu was pan-Asian with Japanese, Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese and Thai dishes represented on the menu. The proprietor said that his customers usually order Chinese despite the variety. It was good, other than the noodles just mentioned. There are two other locations in Marin, which only serve a Chinese/Japanese menu, in Mill Valley and Novato called simply "May Lee's".