Archive for Mill Valley
Beer in Mill Valley
Posted by: | CommentsI’m so happy Mill Valley finally has a brewery! I used to drive all the way to Fairfax to have beer in an atmosphere I enjoyed, a clean well-lit place with relaxed cool people (not a dive bar and not a high-end snooty place).
Thanks to @SFDoug I got to try Mill Valley Beerworks. Last night Doug and I were talking tweeting about what to do for the next Marin TweetUp and Doug said, ‘we could do a TweetUp right now’ and I said, ‘I’ve been wanting to try Mill Valley Beerworks’ and Doug said, ‘see you in a half hour’. That is how my evening began. (I love my Twitter friends!)
I’ve been wanting to try Mill Valley Beerworks since I learned about it from Doug. Here is what he had to say about it on his blog:
Mill Valley Beerworks has opened up at 173 Throckmorton, almost hidden from view but well worth finding. The house brews won’t be ready for another month, but the really long beer list includes artisan brews — including a healthy selection of Belgian ales and lambics. The casual vibe gives me hope that Central or Southern Marin may finally have a civilized place where many of us can grab an excellent beer without feeling out of place.
Photo by Doug Levy
I ordered my usual favorite beer: a Hefeweizen. I can’t remember what Doug had but it was good… maybe he can comment here and let us know. 
We also shared a fresh hot pretzel with spicy sweet mustard made in-house.
After awhile our group grew and we all decided to head over to Small Shed Flat Bread – which I believe has the best Flat Bread in Marin County. We started with the Bolinas Beet Salad and a Ceasar Salad to share. They were both delicious! We then ordered 3 Flat Breads to share among the 5 of us. We ordered the special that had anchovies (because Doug loves anchovies). We also ordered The Q made with Golden Farms all natural, nitrate free pepperoni, pancetta, mushrooms, mozzarella and grana cheese, tomato sauce and herbs. I don’t remember what the 3rd one was… I was too busy enjoying my Hoegaarden White beer.
Fun was had by all!
Mountain Bike Events in Marin
Posted by: | CommentsMountain bike enthusiasts lots of fun activities coming up in June!
Saturday, June 5th – 8 a.m. – Mill Valley Bike Swap
Saturday, June 5th – 6pm – Women of Dirt: The Film
A great night of Film, Fashion, Food and Fun!
Access4bikes and Bicycle Trails Council of Marin Present:
Women of Dirt: The Celebration
Fairfax Women’s Club,
46 Park Rd., Fairfax, CA, 94930
Celebrating the mountain bike while celebrating the women who love them!
A special screening of Awesome Land: Women of Dirt. A Bicycle Fashion Show-featuring some of the best bike fashions in the west, by Sheila Moon Athletic Apparel, LUNA Sport clothing and My Alibi Clothing. Q & A with bike celebs, Marla Streb and Rachel Lloyd. Come on down and party, have a brew and wine, sponsored by Lagunitas and Peleton Cellars, and tasty food treats. Also, raffle-drawing and local live music!
A party and fundraiser for Access4Bikes, your local voice for trail access in Marin.
$20-donation advance tickets $25- donation at the door.
For more information visit http://access4bikes.com/events.htm
Sunday, June 6th – Tamarancho Dirt Classic
Wednesday, June 16th – Coed Special Downhill Clinic – Youth Only with Mountain Biking Marin
Saturday, June 26th – Coed Cross Country Clinic with Mountain Biking Marin
Grand Opening Celebration of the Owning Pink Center
Posted by: | CommentsAs I mentioned in yesterday’s post, our lunch at Thai Smile was full of dynamic and amazing women. One of those super women: Lissa Rankin is celebrating the grand opening of The Owning Pink Center right here in Mill Valley this Saturday. Come out and get your Mojo back! My dream health center has arrived.
Saturday, May 1, 2010
3:00 – 6:00 p.m.
600 Miller Avenue, Mill Valley
415.746.6140
Meet the practitioners, including an integrative gynecologist, a naturopathic doctor, a fertility specialist, a life coach, a Reiki master, acupuncturists, massage therapists, and others.
Get your MOJO back with chair massages, green juice samples, edibles, music, meditation, a blessings altar, and more.
Don’t settle for being well.
Hidden Hiking Gems in the Bay Area
Posted by: | CommentsOne thing I love about the Bay Area is it is full of surprises. I’m always discovering new, fun things to do!
Today I went on an adventure on Mt. Tamalpais (known as Mt. Tam to the locals) and hiked up ZigZag trail and down Tenderfoot trail in Mill Valley!
ZigZag is an intense technical uphill trail (all uphill) that starts right off of Cascade Dr. in Mill Valley and ends near the Mountain Home Inn.
When we reached the Mountain Home Inn we headed toward Tenderfoot trail and took that down. At the end of Tenderfoot we spotted this guy.
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Sushi, Sushi and more Sushi
Posted by: | CommentsIn case you are wondering I do eat more than just chocolate… I like Sushi too.
I have come to realize that Marin County is full of great Sushi restaurants. This past weekend I tried an old favorite that I have not been to in years. I went to Robata Grill & Sushi in Mill Valley right off of Highway 101. I really like the atmosphere of Robata, they have lots of semi private booths to sit in so it’s a great place to go when you want to have a conversation with the person you are dining with and actually hear everything they have to say.
The service at Robata Grill & Sushiwas great, the food was fresh and delicious and the ambiance was nice. Can’t ask for much more. I was a happy camper.
I had my usual favorites: seaweed salad, sake salmon handroll and a rock-n-roll.
Celia had a hamachi handroll and decided to try their special pork lettuce wraps.
Robata Grill & Sushi
591 Redwood Hwy
Mill Valley, CA 94941
Tel: 415.381.8400
www.robatagrill.com
View of Tennessee Valley Beach
Posted by: | Comments
My favorite rock.
Wordless Wednesday (almost)
Food, Fun and Friends
Posted by: | CommentsI haven’t gotten out much in the last week. I think after the holidays and traveling I kind of wanted to hunker down and stay home. Today I’m wishing I was a bear so I could hibernate.
Just because I haven’t been going out doesn’t mean I haven’t been having fun and eating delicious meals.
On Friday morning, I went for a tour at the new Larkspur Hotel in Mill Valley. I’m interviewing hotels looks for the best one to host the Mountain Biking Marin Cross Country Mountain Bike Adventure coming up in May of this year. I was very impressed with this new hotel. It’s located on Highway 1 in Mill Valley right off of Highway 101, next to Frantoio. The Larkspur Hotel has done an amazing job remodeling the hotel (formally the Holiday Inn Express) and I was very impressed with Greg, the General Manager and Cassie, the Sales Manager. The hotel is beautiful, has a view of the bay and Mt. Tam and is located right next to the bike/walk path that will take you in to Sausalito or Mill Valley. I was wowed by the people and the place. I plan to recommend this hotel to Celia for the Mountain Biking Marin adventure.
I almost forgot to mention. Cassie from the Larkspur Hotel gave me a goodie bag when I was leaving. Among other things, it had a solar powered plastic flower that moves when the sun shines on it. Really, I think this is what sealed the deal. It goes nicely with the wind-up toys and purple pens in my office. (All reminders to me that life is about having fun.)
After my meeting at the hotel I met with Marilyn LoRusso, aka @Fun_Master at Cafe del Sol in Tam Junction and spent the afternoon chatting about social media and making life fun (Marilyn has some great tips on how to stay in the fun mode). I enjoyed sipping on a delicious ginger limeade during our meeting.
Then on Friday night we had a small dinner party. Since one of my fabulous neighbors gave me a gift certificate to Whole Foods I splurged on a yummy meal. We started with brie cheese and olive bread for appetizers while I prepared blackened salmon, roasted veggies, broiled asparagus, and salad. We finished the meal off with some Porto from our visit to the Napa Valley Wineries and yummy dessert.
I used the blackened salmon recipe I found on RealSimple.com. It was delicious!
Doggie Wash in Mill Valley
Posted by: | Comments
I have a clean doggie! I went to Woodland’s Pet Food & Treats and rented a bathtub (also known as a Pet Wash Center) for Poncho. He is now very clean and fluffy (and smells good).
The dog bathtub rentals are run similar to a do-it-yourself car wash. First you enter the fancy store filled with dog toys, dog food, and homemade dog cookies that look like human cookies, then you go to the counter and pay $15 for a dog bath. (Yes his bath cost more than my haircut but this is Marin where even the dogs feel entitled.) You then lead your dog up the steps in to the tub, clip him in with cables that are attached to the tub walls, put your token in the machine and begin the wash cycle.
First you rinse your dog, then move the knob to shampoo/conditioning cycle, then rinse again, and rinse some more to make sure you get all the soap off. Then use the blower to blow him dry. Meanwhile your dog looks at you like he hates you but in the end he comes out happy, fluffy, smelling and looking good.
Afterwards you walk through the fancy dog store trying to explain to your dog that all the toys and snacks on the shelf are not actually his.
Anyway, washing your dog on a Sunday afternoon at Woodland’s is a fun family activity for everyone but your dog.
Poncho is very good at expressing his feelings.
Woodland’s
701 Strawberry Village
Mill Valley, CA 94941
415.388.PETS
I tried to take his picture after the bath to show you how clean he is but I think he is still mad at me. He refused to get up.
Strawberry Gourmet Deli
Posted by: | CommentsStrawberry Gourmet Deli makes tasty sandwiches! If you are looking for an excellent deli in Mill Valley then I suggest you try Strawberry Gourmet Deli, they are conveniently located right off the freeway in Strawberry Village (near In-N-Out).
The food is fresh and there are lots of choices from dolmas to salads to falafel to sandwiches. I had a turkey sandwich on dutch crunch bread with cranberry sauce. Strawberry Gourmet Deli makes the best turkey sandwiches ever! In the past we’ve used them to prepare sandwiches for corporate tours with Mountain Biking Marin and they did an awesome job preparing lots of sandwiches for the big groups.
The service is great, sometimes I’ve been there with 20+ people in line and they just move us through quickly with a smile.
Oh, and they have great desserts! Writing this post just made me really hungry for one of their sandwiches I think I’m going to go get one right now.
Strawberry Gourmet Delicatessen
1216 Strawberry Village
Mill Valley, CA 94941
415.381.2088
