RESTAURANTS
San Anselmo has an impressive list of acclaimed and award-winning restaurants and wine bars in its modest 2.4-square-mile footprint. Whether you’re in the mood for a casual lunch or an elegant dinner, California or exotic cuisine, or simply a fine glass of cabernet, these places are guaranteed to satisfy any epicurean or wine connoisseur.
Bubba's Diner
566 San Anselmo Ave.
San Anselmo
http://www.bubbas-diner.net
Info: ......................................415-459-6862
Style: .....................................Casual
Cuisine: ..................................American
Hours: ....................................
Wednesday - Friday 9am-9pm
Saturday & Sunday 8am-9pm
Comforts
335 San Anselmo Ave.
San Anselmo
Info: ......................................415-454-9840;
fax orders to 415-454-7590
Info: ......................................www.comfortscafe.com
Style: ......................................Casual
Cuisine: ..................................California, contemporary American
Hours: ..................................
Mon–Fri: 8:30 a.m.–2:30 p.m.
Sat–Sun: 8:30 a.m.–3 p.m.
This casual café serving breakfast, lunch, and weekend brunch is a favorite among locals. Its just-like-home comfort foods include full-flavored soups, salads, entrées, and house-baked pastries and desserts. The delightfully varied menu has specialties from Latin America, Asia, and Europe—a real California mix. And we defy anyone to find a better Chinese chicken salad anywhere in the nation. It’s really that good.
Cucina Restaurant & Wine Bar
510 San Anselmo Ave.
San Anselmo
Info: ......................................Reservations recommended on weekends, 415-454-2942 outdoor seating weather permitting; wine bar available for special events
Style: ......................................Casual
Cuisine: ..................................Roman
Hours: ..................................
Dinner, Tue–Sat, opens at 5:30 p.m.
Dinner, Sun, opens at 5 p.m.
A regular on Bay Area top-100 restaurants lists, this little trattoria’s exceptional fare and simple, rustic decor make you feel like you’re on the outskirts of Rome. Cucina is family owned and operated, a kid-friendly restaurant where chef Jack Krietzman (who also owns Jackson Fillmore, in San Francisco) is on premises most of the time. Favorites include the antipasto misto, stuffed artichoke, wood-baked fish, creative pizzas (try the Bianco: asparagus with fontina and white-truffle oil), house-made pastas, and Roman specialties such as spaghetti alla amatriciana or sea bass Fra Diavolo. An intimate wine bar boasts more than 250 wines on a 95 percent European list specializing in Italian vintages. While the menu may be small, Jack says, “We strive to do everything exceptionally well.”
Insalata's
120 Sir Francis Drake Blvd.
San Anselmo
Reservations: ..........................415-457-7700
Info: ......................................info@insalatas.com, www.insalatas.com
Cuisine: .................................. Mediterranean
Hours: ..................................
Lunch, Mon–Sat: 11:30 a.m.–2:30 p.m.
Dinner, Sun–Thu: 5:30–9 p.m.
Fri–Sat, 5:30–10 p.m.
Sun brunch, 11 a.m.–2:30 p.m.
Insalata’s fans feel they’ve hit the “‘unbelievably scrumptious’ Mediterranean jackpot, at this San Anselmo ‘gem,’” according to Zagat. A regular on the Bay Area’s top-100-restaurants and best-of lists, Insalata’s features soulful, rustic food inspired by the Mediterranean and Middle East. Tunisian chopped salad; ahi with zatar, peppers, asparagus and baba ghanoush; and seven-layer mocha torte are just a few of its delightful dishes. The restaurant also has an extensive take-out selection of similarly sensational fare.
Lanna Thai Restaurant
810 Sir Francis Drake Blvd.
San Anselmo
Info: ........................................415-455-8300
Style: ......................................Casual
Cuisine: ..................................Thai
Hours: ....................................
Lunch, Mon–Fri, 11 a.m.–2:30 p.m.
Dinner, Mon–Sun, 5–10 p.m.
What makes Thai food so hot? Chilies, for one. But Lanna Thai’s spice rack is chockful of other seasonings, such as coriander, ginger, lemongrass, basil, and mints—and the chefs clearly know how to use them. Subtly flavored duck, delicate fishes, the perfect Pad Thai—you can find all of these here. And frequent visitors to Thailand call the restaurant’s cuisine the most authentic Thai food around.
Lo Coco's Italian Pizzeria
638 San Anselmo Ave.
San Anselmo
Info: ......................................415-453-1238
Style: .....................................Casual
Cuisine: ..................................Italian
Hours: ....................................
Tue-Sun, 4p.m.- 10p.m.
Great classic pizza joint on a classic American street in San Anselmo. Thin crust (crispy) with excellent purist toppings as well as some California alternative toppings. Love the "tower" they serve the pizza on. Order a pizza and an Italian beer. Bring the kids as the restaurant is kid-friendly.
Marché aux Fleurs
23 Ross Common
Ross
Reservations: ..........................www.opentable.com, 415-925-9200
Info: ......................................www.marcheauxfleursrestaurant.com
Mail to: info@marcheauxfleursrestaurant.com
Style .......................................Provencal, French
Cuisine: .................................. California, contemporary American
Hours: ....................................
Lunch, Wed-Fri, 11:30 a.m.–2:30 p.m.
Dinner, Tue-Sat, 5:30–9:30 p.m.
The Marin Independent Journal calls Marche aux Fleurs “a real addition to the finest dining scene.” Taking its name from a farmers’ market in the south of France, the restaurant bases its cuisine on the best yields of the seasons and local green markets. The seafood is wild and sustainable, and the meats are range-fed and antibiotic-free. Seasonal menu items have included delights like hen-of-the-woods-mushroom crostini, lobster tagliatelle, grilled Cedar River hanger steak and butterscotch pot de crème.
Napoli Pizza & Pasta
869 Fourth St.
San Rafael
http://www.napolirestaurant.biz
Info: ...............................................415-459-3315
Style: ..............................................Casual
Cuisine: ...........................................Italian
Hours: .............................................
Mon-Thu. 11:30 a.m. - 10:30 p.m.
Fri-Sat. 11:30 a.m. - 11:30 p.m.
Sun. 4:00 p.m. - 10:30 p.m.
Pancho Villa's Restaurant
625 Sir Francis Drake Blvd.
Fairfax
Reservations…………………………415-459-0975
Info……………………………………….www.panchovillasrestaurant.com
Cuisine………………………………….Mexican
Hours……………………………………
Mon-Tue 4-10 p.m.
Wed-Sun 11:30 a.m.-10 p.m.
Pancho Villa’s has been serving mouth-watering Mexican food in Marin for nearly 30 years. Specializing in the cuisine of the southwest and old Mexico, you’ll find the freshest local seafood and meat, free range chicken, sizzling fajitas, Navajo ribs, veggie entrees, housemade tortillas and big bowls of Pancho’s famous guacamole. Their full bar and big screen plasma TV makes this the perfect spot to watch a game. And once per month, Pancho Villa’s donates 20% of your check to the YES Foundation (see their Web site for dates).
San Anselmo Coffee Roasters
546 San Anselmo Ave.
San Anselmo
Info: ......................................415-258-9549
Style: ....................................Casual, café
Cuisine: ................................American
Hours: ................................
Sun–Thur: 6:30 a.m.–7 p.m.
Fri–Sat: 7 a.m.–9 p.m.
Writers, bikers, shoppers, musicians, children, and others mix and mingle at this favorite café. The proprietors, Bryan Stubblefield and Ed Wall, serve up an impressive list of breakfast and lunch options, from hearty soups and salads to mouth-watering sandwiches. They also import and roast more than 20 different blends of organic coffee, and they know how to steam the perfect latte.
Wipeout Bar & Grill
302 Bon Air Center
Greenbrae
http://www.wipeoutbarandgrill.com
Info: .......................................415-461-7400
Style: ......................................Casual
Cuisine: ...................................Mixed
Hours: .....................................
Summer (Memorial Day - Labor Day)
Monday - Thursday 11am - 10pm
Friday & Saturday 11am - 11pm
Sunday 11am - 10pm
Winter
Monday - Thursday 11am - 9pm
Friday & Saturday 11am - 10pm
Sunday 11am - 9pm
Reminiscent of the classic beach restaurants and “surf shacks” that dot the California coast, Wipeout Bar & Grill is the Bay Area’s wildly popular surfing restaurant. With our wide-open patio and outdoor bar, roaring fire pit, celebrity-signed surfboards and world-famous beach signs, Wipeout Bar & Grill is Marin’s killer hangout spot.