Neighborhood Surfer Favorite

One more post about a meal shared with my nieces, Erika and her daughter Collette just before I started my trip back home last week. Collette suggested we eat at Woody's Diner in Seal Beach, and it looked like a winner from the outside.

Both Erika and Collette raved about the Hawaiian Omelet they ordered. Ham, pineapple, jack and cheddar cheese were enfolded in this one, and it came with hash browns and choice of bread - which happened to include biscuits and gravy! Both Erika and I tried these.

I ordered a Cottage Scramble which included a medley of tomatoes, mushrooms green onions with cheddar and jack cheeses scrambled in. I also ordered the hash browns, which were just right, crisp on the outside and shreds moist, well-cooked and holding their definition on the inside.

Here is a shot of the biscuits and gravy with a sprinkling of bacon pieces that was Erika and my choice of 'bread'. This was very good, very rich, and probably contained more of my week's fat allowance than I want to know. Woody's was a great place to enjoy breakfast!

A hiker's reward

The West Point Inn near the top of Mount Tamalpais is serving a special pancake breakfast occasionally (about once a month) through the summer and fall season. It sounded so appealing, and I was doubtful my father could hike in 45 minutes each way. A quick call revealed that there is a service road used for handicapped access, so we set off for a special pancake breakfast at the Inn yesterday. The Inn was the terminal point for the "Crookedest Railway in the World" which started in the town of Mill Valley and went up Mt. Tam.

I was a little worried as we hit wisps of fog on the way, but soon we were rewarded with spectacular views of San Francisco peeking out from above the clouds.

The service road is near the East Peak, and if you need this handicapped access you'll need to call ahead (preferably 24 hours in advance) to get more specific directions and the code to open the gate.

The handicapped parking is conveniently located next to a well maintained ramp entering the building from behind into the large cozy room with a fireplace.

As you wind your way to the veranda in front of the building, you are greeted by old-timers who are friendly and funny! There is a window on the veranda where you place your breakfast order with a warm and welcoming woman. She explains that you wait for your number to be called, then flag down the server to have it placed before you. The servers were all cute kids, and I mean something like 10-12 year olds.

And out came our jumbo pancake breakfasts. It was a breakfast made for those who had actually expended the energy to HIKE for 45 minutes here, or maybe the two hours from Mill Valley proper. The melon was perfectly ripe and juicy, and we appreciated as much of the pancakes as we felt reasonable to eat (the vegetarian version proffers 4 pancakes, while the regular version adds two sausage links with three pancakes).

It was a beautiful day, and we were rewarded by lovely scenic views from our seat on the veranda. Dad kept saying how much he LOVED the trip - he usually doesn't use such superlatives. Forest scenes along the drive reminded us several times of the forests near our home town (greater Seattle area), especially the ferns at higher elevations.

And how sweet! The Inn was quite dog friendly with a watering place and shade for canine hiking companions.

The West Point Inn is run by an association of members who have work parties to maintain and improve the buildings and grounds. You are not too late for breakfasts this season as there are more scheduled on September 7th and October 12th! Reservations for breakfast are not required, and the hours are from 9 - 1 p.m. In general the veranda and picnic tables are available for public use. The Inn is open Tuesday thru Sunday - Summer 11am/6pm, Winter 11am/5pm. Refreshments and water are available for sale at the Inn as well.

Chinese Restaurants in Marin and beyond

Chrysanthemum in San Rafael

Chinese restaurants in Marin - It's time for an update to the list. I've been eating my way through China in Marin and beyond, and in honor of the 2008 Beijing Olympics, here is the latest round up!

Please let me know what I've missed.

Chinese restaurants I've tried

Corte Madera
P.F. Chang's

Fairfax
China Village

Greenbrae
Hunan First

Larkspur
DJ Chinese Cuisine

Mill Valley
Chinese Deli
Fishman Village
Harmony
Lily Kai
May Lee's
Peking Wok

Novato
China Palace
Ming Yen
Jenny Low's
Panda's Cafe

San Anselmo
May Lee's Asian Bistro
Ming Garden

San Rafael
China Villa
Chrysanthemum
Confucius Restaurant
Little Mandarin
Peking Wok
Pier 6
Ping's Mandarin Restaurant
Szechwan 7 Chinese Restaurant
Three Dragons Restaurant
Tsing Tao
Yet Wah
Yu Shang

Sausalito
Feng Nian
Panda Express
Tommy's Wok

Tiburon
Ming's Restaurant

Chinese restaurants yet to try

Fairfax
Szechuan Chef

Kentfield
Kin Wah Restaurant

Larkspur
The Canton Restaurant

Novato
Bamboo Chopsticks
China Express
China House
China Village
Dragon Cafe
Fuzhou Super Buffet
Happy Garden
Royal Mandarin
Shanghai Garden Restaurant

San Anselmo
Chinese Kitchen
Hot Wok

San Rafael
Chopsticks Chinese Cuisine
Combo King Restaurant
King of the Roll
House of Lee
La China Restaurant
Tao Yuan

Tiburon
Dynasty

Other Bay Area Chinese

Richmond
168 Restaurant

San Francisco
Golden Gate Dim Sum
New Hong Kong
Superior Palace
Ton Kiang

The dishes demanded it

I didn't intend to blog about the meal at Be My Guest the other night with my friend Sachiko. But this Thai Bistro on Clement Street in San Francisco had dishes just demanding to be blogged.

Like this Garlic Edamame appetizer which just slid its juices over the tongue. If you like garlic, then this is one fine variation on a theme.

And what would Okonomiyaki served at a Thai restaurant taste like? It was great, and the Japanese pizza favored the fluffy pancake-like Osaka style.

And what a pretty presentation for a Green Papaya Salad. The grilled shrimp where just the right topping for this marinated fruit and crisp vegetable delight.

Finally there was the "Traffic Jam" with some brown rice and cool cucumber salad. The traffic jam consisted of red curry with gluten, yellow curry with chicken, and we changed the green curry with beef to substitute tofu for the beef. They were all good, and what a jam!

Previously reviewed:
October 10, 2007

No signage and hidden away

It takes effort to find Le Garage in Sausalito. But a lot of people are making that effort. I took one of the last two tables open for lunch the other day. Despite the economy people flock to excellence.

And the Mussels du Mistral were the temptation of the day. It was made with aioli, shallots, saffron and white wine. It was a HUGE bowl. I've never been given such a large serving outside of France or Belgium. And the last time I tasted mussels so delicious was in Brussels some years ago. I found strings of real saffron in the broth which was perfect for soaking some bread in for eking out every last bit of flavor.

Just in case you can't find Schoonmaker Point, were Le Garage is located.

And the view from the outside seating area was very relaxing. I felt I was on vacation though only a few blocks from my normal workplace.

Last reviewed:
May 3, 2008

After while...

Crocodile was what attracted Colin to the Lemon Tree Hotel in Santa Barbara. A peppy little place indeed. We enjoyed both a light dinner, and a breakfast there.

It was quiet, perhaps the big wooden crocodile on the counter was too scary for the kids? Or maybe it was because we were on the late side for dinner.

Colin loved his Coconut Prawns.

And I thought the Roma Spaghetti quite good as well. It was fresh and light with fresh tomato bits and tender basil leaves.

Colin was quite certain of his choice in the morning, Lemon Tree Benedict. He said the ham slices were particularly good, and the artichoke topping made him happy too. He chose some fresh and perfectly ripe fruit for the side.

I was attracted by the California Omelet, with tomatoes and other tasty bits inside with a fan of avocado topping the sour cream. It was good, and the potatoes had some spiciness which promoted them to outstanding status.

Could have been...

Another stop on the road down the Coast of Central California, in San Luis Obispo for an early dinner with Colin. We spied Sushi Kokku and thought it looked promising.

In fact, we were quite impressed by the clean and cheery interior.

The first sign of trouble was when it was evident that the edamame had been cooked in saltless water, then sprinkled over the top with salt. These perfectly good ingredients could have been well integrated if the salt had just been placed in the water before boiling the edamame. (Maybe these were nuked?) These failed the taste test as the little seeds you pop into your mouth were quite bland without benefit of salt.

I ordered 'Sushi in a Bowl' which was very reasonably priced at $9.25. I thought yeah! chirashi sushi! But alas, it was sashimi over steamed rice, sushi in a bowl - NOT! The fish was fresh and delicious, the rice -- whoah! No vinegar. Do you think the person compiling this just took the rice from the wrong pot? The other strange note was that between the fish and rice was a layer of cole slaw dressed in a sesame dressing. It would have been good by itself, but not in this combination. The dish made me wonder if anyone who had any connection with Japan at all had concocted it. It was so weird, I had to call my friends on the drive away and check their reaction. Yep, universally the reaction was - 'disgusting'. I think it's all in the expectation.

Colin ordered a couple rolls, the first, a Philly Roll with the requisite cream cheese. He said it was good.

Next up for Colin was a Dragon Roll, and I tasted a bit of it. The trouble with Americanized rolls is that they are usually sauced up before hitting the table, so it was difficult to tell if the rice had vinegar in it. It tasted pretty good. To sum it up, the ambiance was there, the fresh ingredients were there, but the savior faire was missing. Just a little fine tuning and this place could be great.

Stellar Clam Chowder

On the drive back to Long Beach Colin and I made a stop at Monterey's Old Fisherman's Wharf for lunch. Colin fell in love with the clam chowder samples given out in front of the Old Fisherman's Grotto, so guess where we went for lunch?

So we each ordered a cup of the Clam Chowder, and yes, it was stellar. I'd come back for it in a heartbeat. Creamy with a good clam aroma and taste, the clams were tender and plentiful as well.

Colin ordered the Lobster Ravioli. He said it tasted of clams, but it tasted like buoyant pillows of sweet lobster meat to me!

I enjoyed the Sand Dabs with freshly sauteed vegetables. The sand dabs were artfully arranged over some creamy mashed potatoes as well. A tangy lemon cream sauce finished off the flavors. I relished the dish!

I caught Colin in a perfect photo-op in front of the Old Fisherman's Wharf sign.

Delicious Ostrich

Driving into Fresno, I spoke with a number of friends who questioned my sanity in making it a stop along the way. Seems some consider it rather dull. I was rather excited about having an evening to myself in such a charming hotel as the Picadilly Inn (Shaw). The room was spacious, clean and looked even better than the photo. I was greeted in the room with some freshly baked chocolate chip cookies. It's true that I originally planned to go up the coast and stay near the sea, but San Luis Obispo, Cambria, Paso Robles and environs were completely booked save for one $289 room. The $109 room in Fresno was just perfect for a quick overnight stay and back on the road, and nice enough to linger if that had been my plan.

I checked around for dinner ideas, and heard that the teppanyaki artists at Zipangu in Fresno are friendly to all, entertaining, and even 'wild and crazy'. That sounded good after a long hot drive through rather dry country.

Meet Fel, the epitome of 'wild and crazy', friendly and entertaining. The patrons also added to the evening's enjoyment, especially the dashing Edward and his two cute-as-a-button boys who shared their teppan table with me (Edward's friend who joined later was also quite charming).

The first course was a simple beef based broth. Light and flavorful, it was unexpectedly refreshing for the hot weather.

The simple salad dressed with miso was crisp and refreshing as well.

My appetizer then arrived, a California roll with tobiko. It was very good, and quite a bargain at $3.95.

And while we were enjoying our starters, Fel was whipping up some fried rice at lightening speed!

I went on a holiday from being pescatarian - the fried rice had bits of ham as well as shrimp and vegetables. (Not to mention the soup, and what's coming later in the post).

And we had the flaming and steaming onion volcano display as he cooked the zucchini, mushrooms and onions for one of our sides.

Now this should put to rest any belief that Fresno is boring. I know of no teppan house in the bay area (or elsewhere) that has a combo choice of ostrich and alligator on its teppan menu! See that red piece of meat on the plate? It's ostrich. Tender as a filet and delicious, it's poultry! It is local as well, being sourced just one town over. I actually had the scallops and ostrich combo, that had the accompaniments listed above, plus a plump shrimp appetizer and moyashi (mung bean sprouts). The bean sprouts had a tad more black pepper than I like, but they were still tasty. Zipanzu is located in a strip mall, and is well-lived in. If you are looking for an upscale, mod appearance, keep on going. If you are looking for friends, fun and an inventive and tasty menu, be sure to include a stop here on your next trip through central California.

Pyschedelic Comfort Food

Colin wanted a different breakfast experience one morning, so I took him to Mama's Royal Cafe in Mill Valley. If the colors of this place don't wake and cheer you, nothing will.

The interior is historically colorful.

And it remains whimsical with only subtle shifts over time. With such a wild interior, I was puzzled as to how Colin could forget coming here with me and his mother and sister a few years ago. And it was nicer then to reintroduce him.

Colin had an eggs benedict which had a fanciful name that I have since forgotten. It seemed to be the standard with the addition of fresh avocados. Colin approved.

My benedict type was without meat, and included a sliced grilled tomato and sauteed mushrooms. I definitely approved. Mama's is still dependably good.

Previously reviewed:
October 24, 2006

As I write this I am staying in Fresno where I had quite an interesting dining experience. I can't wait to arrive home with photos of the fun places I've eaten on this trip.