The last few times I've been in Fairfax, I've noticed a 'closed' sign on Cafe Amsterdam's door. Anyone have the scoop on this? I've heard this is temporary, but no timing nor why...

Bon voyage breakfast. My frequent dining partner, and friend for more than ten years, Paul, is moving to Portland (this morning) so yesterday we had a little bon voyage breakfast in the city at the Curbside Cafe near on California near Fillmore in San Francisco. It was definitely a case of braving the elements as you can see from the photo, the storm had come back with some heavy rain.

Perkin' at Perko. Being in Delano, CA in the early morning Friday, my traveling companion suggested a quick breakfast at Perko's Cafe. It was a much more inspiring sight than the Denny's across the street or numerous fast food joints we passed earlier. I'm always game to try something new!

After a false start with a dirty coffee cum tea cup, replaced quickly, the Garden Omelet, although in need of some perking up on the plate styling side, was nonetheless genuine. Genuine and made to order were enough for this stretch of the road, although I might be a bit more strict on the place if it were in my neck of the woods or there were lots of other choices. A fine choice if you are in Delano and hungry!

Mellow and relaxing, a nice place to stop in the bustle. Champagne French Bakery and Cafe set in the middle of busy Corte Madera Town Center, was a great oasis to stop between dashes to The Container Store, REI and other such tempting places.

Despite having a car run into the front of the building and breaking the glass, Corte Madera Cafe is still open and serving its great food with charm. Coincidentally, Dad & I had breakfast their just a few days before the unfortunate incident. The above is necessarily the 'before' photo.

I delayed this post a bit until I could go and check out the damage myself. As you can see, the window is boarded up and there was some damage to the side wall.

Bright corner of San Rafael. Yesterday for lunch Dad & I stopped at Arrivederci Cafe in San Rafael. Housed in a brick building that looks like it has a delightful warm weather patio, the interior is light and bright and hosts a variety of art.

We opted to try some calamari fritti to start. Dad keeps forgetting that calamari is actually squid, and loves it until someone mentions the English translation, every time. Luckily, no one reminded him today and he liked Arrivederci's crisp version.

A friend of mine had a taste for Greek food and all I could think of in Marin County was Fair Fix in Fairfax. So we went to find that it was not Greek, but Mediterranean. Close enough for me, but not for my friend, so I made a mental note to come back and try it. Fair Fix has been a fixture (pun intended) for a long time in the community, and locals feel comfortable hanging out here with an eclectic mix of suits, barefeet in sandals and dreadlocks.

Bringing more sun in. I stopped by Willie's Cafe the other day for lunch, and found them in the midst of a reconstruction project. They are remodeling their deck area to be more enclosed, with sliding windows which will open up in the sunny weather, and can be closed and the spaced warmed more effectively for those colder days. That's the area I chose to eat in, and it was light and bright and I'm sure this place will be even more packed on weekends for a sunny breakfast. Willie's serves breakfast every day.

Don't judge a book. Hidden away in a strip mall in Larkspur near Fukuzuke is a new casual Italian eatery that opens early for breakfast every day! Cafe Lucano is so unassuming, but when you step inside the staff is friendly and the place is well cared for and you can just tell...

I was tempted by a watermelon Italian Soda. Each table had a clean, folded and squared up Examiner for your reading enjoyment. Everything was so orderly and inviting!

Max's Cafe in Corte Madera has recently rolled back breakfast time to an hour earlier, so you can enjoy a big Max's breakfast 7 days a week from 7 a.m.

There are encouragements to eat all around, so if you're dieting - beware!

Dad's fancy was the Ham and Four Cheese Omelet with Hash Browns. There was nothing skimpy about this huge fluffy omelet with chunky slices of ham tucked throughout the center.

Day-After Brunch. After Thanksgiving that is. Paul suggested we have brunch and after numerous phone calls finding most of our favorite spots and new ones closed due to the holiday weekend, Paul suggested we try Comforts Cafe. Bingo! I reviewed Comforts for the first time October 2006 on a visit with Paul as well. It's easy to go back to the tried and true.

Breakfast with Al Bano. Actually I was planning to go somewhere else for breakfast, but the place was closed and there I was in Larkspur. So I decided to try Cafe Lucano's breakfast offerings. I asked what the smooth Italian music was and I was shown an album of the popular singer "Al Bano". Giuseppe was serving this morning, one of the family who make your visit so friendly with his ready smile.

Sunny breakfast. Don't know how I missed this one. Dad & I had a leisurely breakfast at the West End Cafe Deli & Market after one of his appointments. Aside the deli area there is a large, narrow and very sunny dine-in room.

It's breakfast time again. Time flies, and I thought it time to refresh the Marin breakfast list. My definition for a 'breakfast' place is that they open before 9 a.m. on a weekday and have at least one protein choice on the menu (no American-style continental breakfasts count). Those restaurants who choose to open only on weekends or a weekend day for brunch are really not breakfast places in my mind, but I list them separately as they usually do a bit more upscale and interesting things on the weekends and make a nice round out to the week.

I welcome your comments to point me to other places for breakfast in Marin or your experiences with any of these.

Sunny Spot. No matter what's going on elsewhere, it always seems to me that Hamilton field is warm and sunny. I was reminded of that again when Dad and I stopped by the Hamilton Cafe for brunch last weekend. The interior of this cafe is warm, with paintings adorning every wall. There was Italian opera playing in the background, and it looked like local folk enjoy hanging out here. We did too.

Thai Restaurant Update. Marin is fortunate to have a large number of very good Thai restaurants. I've been very happy to discover that most of our Thai choices in Marin are consistently inventive, and delicious! I last summarized a list of reviews on September 13, 2007. Links to my reviews or other information about the restaurants appears organized by city below.

Thai Restaurants I've discovered

Corte Madera

Indian Restaurants in Marin. One of my favorite cuisines, I have been pleased to find a nice selection in Marin. If I've missed any, please let me know in the comments! I've included Indian Fusion restaurants as well. The above photo is the door leading into Lotus Cuisine of India in San Rafael. Beautiful isn't it?

Indian Restaurants I've explored

Larkspur

Daniel and I went out for a late dinner the other evening, and made it even later by traveling to Fairfax, a very relaxing town with lots of options for the veggie lover. We smelled the wonderful aromas coming from Cafe Lotus and made it our destination.

Daniel was quite exuberant about the smoke arising off of the Seekh Kabab, minced natural lamb kabab with crushed onions, cilantro, and roasted cumin seed. From experience, I knew that it could be difficult to capture the moment of billowing smoke well, but I think it actually photographed pretty dramatically. He was quite loquacious about the flavorful lamb.

Nice Touches. I stopped by Caffe DiVino for lunch last week; the last time I was there was for a very nice breakfast with Dad back in 2005. This Italian-inspired cafe bakes its focaccia fresh every day, along with its soup of the day.

I love nice surprises. I drove to Fairfax for the fun of it one rainy day last week, and happened upon a restaurant I hadn't heard of yet. And I seem to have a left-looking neck freeze as when I drive into Fairfax from the east, I'm always looking towards the big parking space in the middle, rather than the charming businesses on the other side of the road. Barefoot Cafe is one of them.

I'm always looking this direction, which also happens to be the view out the door of the Barefoot Cafe.

Gorgeous view, comfortable food. Dad and I dropped by Sam's Anchor Cafe for a casual dinner the other night. We were placed by a window with a beautiful jewels-aglow view of the San Francisco skyline. How fun!

There have been some changes in the Marin Persian restaurant scene in the last year as we've seen Hatam change hands, and Papillon cease operations. Hatam and Jasmine Market both have grocery sections for making your own Persian delights.

The Persian Restaurants in Marin are:

San Rafael
Apadana Restaurant
Hatam

If you are in Sausalito, and hungry for kabobs, the Bridgeway Cafe makes a kabob sandwich and some superb Perisan appetizers, although 99% of their fare is American. If you know of any Perisan delights I've missed in Marin, please leave a comment!

I couldn't believe that it has been over a year since I visited Table Cafe in Larkspur. The owner, Suzanne, was there making sure all the details were well in hand. And it is still superb due to the care and attention that permeates this peaceful stop on the quiet side of Larkspur. At the top of the specials blackboard it reads that all produce used is local sustainable and organic. You know that anything you order here is good for the body, good for the soul. Well, some may take exception to that description for the dense Scharffen Berger brownies, but it wouldn't be due to their pure ingredients. And hey, don't healthy eaters deserve a treat now and then too? And what better testament to the purity of the food than the visage of the clientèle. While I was there I only observed the most dewy fresh faced women and cherub children coming through the door.

Cafe Tibet has always been my favorite Berkeley eatery. Yes, I have been to Chez Panisse too. Cafe Tibet is literally like entering another world, from the moment you walk in and see the prayer wheel spinning on the front table, hear the Buddhist chants in the background and if you get close, feel the mist from the small fountain. You can peruse the menu page 1, and page 2 which is maintained on line by the Tibetan Association of Northern California, and see for yourself the myriad of authentic choices. I celebrated here in 2004 upon passing Ground School in pursuit of a pilot's license, which was much fun (both the food and the flying)!

Tiny and good. I've been driving by this "Little Mandarin" restaurant with curiosity for some time. Finally I took a chance to find parking and try it out yesterday for lunch.

You walk past some empty steam tables up front, but soon you see a busy and bustling section where you hope you will have a chance to sit after all. Where did all those people come from? As soon as I was seated a hot bowl of egg drop soup was placed in front of me, before I could even grab the menu!

I was surprised to walk down 4th Street in San Rafael and find that China Dynasty had closed.

But it was quite papered up.

Hidden around a corner. Where Ming's used to be, Mikado Sushi has set up shop in the Northgate area of San Rafael. I stopped in a few days ago to try their offerings out.

The meal started with a very rich tasting miso soup. The soy sauce containers were so cute I had to get one in the photo too.

Wise Chinese. I stopped in at Confucius Restaurant in San Rafael the other day when it was blustery but not raining. It's exterior may be drab, but it's clean and cheery inside.

I discovered a nice variety for a reasonable price in their lunch special. A small green salad and hot and sour soup start you off. Yes, these are not 'wow' items, but they are fresh and just fine.