One of my most popular blog posts is the one I wrote about cheap haircuts in Marin. It seems affordable haircuts are in high demand around here. Today Celia wanted to get her hair cut but when she called to make an appointment she found out her favorite hair dresser, Tere was no longer working at the usual place.

After a little detective work we found Tere was now working at Tabu Hair Salon in San Rafael.

Tabu Hair Salon is located in the little mall off of Francisco Blvd in San Rafael (behind City Carpets). I cannot believe in all the years I have lived in Marin County I have never been to this mall! It is located right on the water of The Canal and is full of a bunch of treasures like KabaBBQ serving Persian food, a Taqueria, a Vietnamese restaurant and a small Mexican grocery market (that sells Corona beer actually made in Mexico).

Celia was very happy to find Tere and get her hair cut. Tabu Hair Salon is a super fun place owned by Juliana and Omar.

There is an area for kids and adults to play! You can play pool while you wait for your $10 haircut.

Celia was very pleased with her $10 haircut.

I just met Omar and Juliana for the first time but it seems Omar specializes in artistic haircuts (see photo) and Juliana in colors and cuts.  They have the coolest  kid in town. Check out his hairdo!

Did I mention the standard haircuts are only $10?!

Tabu Hair Salon
415-424-1653
555 Francisco Blvd, E
Suite 11
San Rafael, CA 94901

I got my car fixed! A few months ago my car was parked in a parking lot when dear daughter came out and found this very large dent in it. Thankfully, the woman who hit the car stayed and took full responsibility.

Unfortunately, this was my brand new car.

Good news is we found an awesome auto body repair guy to fix it. My car is like new again! Ray from AutoBody Express did an amazing job putting my car back together. He was fast and very detail oriented.  I’ve been to other auto body repair places in Marin before and have never had great service like this! They also handled all the insurance communication so I didn’t have to deal with it. Here are the before and after pictures.

Thanks AutoBody Express for doing such a great job making my car new again!

AutoBody Express is located in the Canal area of San Rafael (behind the Canal Alliance)

They are also on Facebook!

AutoBody Express
86A Belvedere Street
San Rafael, CA 94901
415-454-1881

Want to have a delicious and ethnic meal for 2 for under $10? I found the place!

I just discovered today that Royal Franks in downtown San Rafael is so much MORE than a hot dog stand.

I’ve walked by this place many times and never even considered going in. (I’m not a big fan of hot dogs.) Today as we were walking by we a saw a friend (Tere- the amazing woman who cuts our hair in Marin for $10) standing in front of Royal Franks. She was waiting for a friend but told us we absolutely had to try the Pupusas. I was like, “what are you talking about this a hot dog place?” She insisted we try their Pupusas and ordered one for us.

I asked the man behind the counter, Junior (who I think is the owner) what was up, did he have some kind of secret menu or something? I pointed to the menu that listed hot dogs and other random typical American food. He smiled and said yes and then handed me a card announcing the new menu. The card said, “Royal Franks now serves authentic Salvadorian and Guatemalan Food”.

We sat down and had to wait a few minutes. It turns out he makes the Pupusas fresh as you wait.

He brought us the Pupusa steaming hot! It was SO good and authentic tasting.

We decided to have Pupusas for dinner. They’re served with a tomato sauce and a cabbage salad. The total price for Celia and I to eat and bring home leftovers was under $10. The food was fresh, authentic and delicious!

Royal Franks is located at 1109 Fourth Street in San Rafael, CA.

415.879.5225

In case you are wondering what Papusas are… here is how Wikipedia describes them:

A pupusa (from Pipil pupusawa) is a traditional Salvadoran dish made of thick, hand-made corn tortilla (made using masa de maíz, a maize flour dough used in Latin American cuisine) that is filled with a blend of the following: cheese (queso) (usually a soft cheese called Quesillo found in all Central America), cooked pork meat ground to a paste consistency (called chicharrón, not to be confused with fried pork rind, which is also known as chicharrón in some other countries), ), refried beans (frijoles refritos), or queso con loroco (loroco is a vine flower bud from Central America). The two most common pupusas are the pupusa de queso (cheese) and more popular pupusa revuelta with mixed ingredients of queso (cheese), frijoles (beans),[1] and chicharrón. Pupusas are typically served with curtido (lightly fermented cabbage slaw with red chilies and vinegar) and a watery tomato salsa. – http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pupusa

I had the bean and cheese Pupusa!

Que rico!

If you go to Royal Franks, ask for Junior and tell him you want to try the secret menu Sally told you about.

Thanks to @DrMichelleXO‘s wonderful idea, we brought the Marin TweetUp’s to a whole new level of fun.

Last night was the Girl’s Night Out Twitter Dance. Which basically means if you are a girl on Twitter in the local area you were invited.

Eight fabulous women showed up at George’s Night Club in San Rafael around 7:30pm to have a glass of wine and chat before the concert started. (@DrMichelleXO @CurtisFinancial @RebeccaElia @RuthWetherford @HylaMolander @Pobutler @Sally_K @alembic)

George’s Night Club in San Rafael is awesome! It’s been newly remodeled and is a great spot for dancing in Marin.

We were fortunate enough to see Roy Rogers & The Delta Rhythm Kings at George’s. We chatted and danced the night away. (One woman sitting nearby thought we chatted a little too much and little too loud. I think she thought she was a library instead of a night club.) We closed the place down!

Afterward we took a stroll down 4th street in San Rafael and headed to Yet Wah (Classic Chinese Cuisine). Nothing like a big plate of Chow Mein after dancing all night!

Yet Wah closes at midnight, we arrived at 11:50pm. They were nice enough to stay open for us.

I didn’t get a chance to take many pictures from last night because it was too dark, but I did get this video using my iPhone. The band was amazing!!!

Funny thing about this blog… the post that drives the most traffic to my blog is the one I wrote about “affordable haircuts in Marin”. I guess with everything being SO expensive here in Marin people are on the lookout for something affordable. The hair salon has changed names since I wrote the post about cheap haircuts in Marin, although it is still the same great people. Salon Carlos in San Rafael is now called Salon Mirsa. I went yesterday to get my usual $10 haircut.

I like to support local, independently owned businesses but I’m not one to spend big money on a haircut. I’ve also never been happy with haircuts from that big super chain haircut place.

I was happy to discover Salon Mirsa (thanks to Celia who introduced me to the place). Salon Mirsa is kind of unique for Marin County. It doesn’t exactly fit the Marin County stereotype. The main language spoken at Salon Mirsa is Spanish. That’s because Salon Mirsa is located in the heart of the Canal community of San Rafael where most of the residence are Hispanic. But don’t let the language get in your way! The stylists at Salon Mirsa are a very welcoming and friendly bunch. Just tell them you know Sally .

Salon Mirsa has top notch stylists. If you are on a budget and are looking for a great haircut for you or your kids try Salon Mirsa. Tip: all the stylist are great but I especially like Tere.

$10 for a haircut! I don’t think you’ll find a better deal in Marin County.

Pictured below (Mirsa, the owner – Tere, the stylist – Celia, the mountain biker who got her hair dyed blue).

If you are hungry after your haircut you can find some tasty Mexican food nearby at Picante on Bellam Blvd.  Or you can do a little grocery shopping and get a cultural experience all at the same time.

Last night I met up with my friend Marilyn (aka @fun_master) at Roadside BBQ in San Rafael. It’s located in the Northgate Mall in Terra Linda.

I don’t know about you, but whenever I see a restaurant in a mall I usually assume it is a big chain restaurant and I’m not that interested in it. I learned Roadside BBQ is not a big chain restaurant. There are 2 locations, this one and another one in San Francisco.

Marilyn has been here before. It’s one of her new favorites so I let her order for me. We shared the pulled chicken sandwich. I think it was this one: “Smoked Free Range Chicken… Slow-cooked and sauced to perfection. Topped w/ avocado, tomato, cilantro, and grilled onions $8.95″ and sweet potato fries. The food was SO yummy and sharing the meal was just the right amount for me. They brought us a 6 pack of BBQ sauces to choose from.

I wish I would have taken pictures. Each table has a roll of environmentally friendly paper towels on it. After I began eating my sandwich I understood why the roll of paper towels was on my table.

Thanks Marilyn for introducing me to a new restaurant!

Roadside BBQ
5000 Northgate Mall
(next to Kohl’s)
San Rafael, CA
415-479-7200
http://roadsidebbq.com

I did take one picture. I took a picture of the restrooms. Don’t you think it’s kind of strange the girls bathroom has a cow on it and the boys does not? I do.

Have you heard of the new book by Lissa Rankin called What’s Up Down There? Questions You’d Only Ask Your Gynecologist If She Was Your Best Friend

Mark your calendars for 2 fun upcoming events in Marin!

Saturday, October 16, 2010 – 4:00pm (Men are welcome)
Lissa Rankin Talk & Book Signing at the Book Passage in Corte Madera. Come out and hear our very own local author & original Marin TweetUp Co-host Lissa Rankin talk about her new book: What’s Up Down There? Questions You’d Only Ask Your Gynecologist If She Was Your Best Friend #VaginaTweetUp

Thursday, November 4, 2010 – 7:00 – 9:00pm (Women only)
Ask the gynecologist and psychologist anything you want at girlfriends’ night out!
Dr. Lissa Rankin and Dr. Michelle Gannon
Pleasures of the Heart on 4th Street in San Rafael.

If you have driven through the Canal area of San Rafael on Bellam lately I’m sure you’ve noticed quite a few changes. The old sleepy Circuit City is now a booming Latino grocery store called Mi Pueblo.

After a quick review of Yelp! it seems Marin County is loving the new addition of Mi Pueblo. There were some concerns of the new big store having an impact on the smaller mom and pop stores but overall it seems it’s brought employment to the local neighborhood which is a good thing.

Mi Pueblo has lived up to their mission listed on their Website:

We strive to create an ambiance reminiscent of the fresh-food markets of Mexico and Latin America, while also carrying all the grocery items generally available in mainstream supermarkets, always welcoming everyone with a warm smile.

I was in the neighborhood so decided to stop by Mi Pueblo out of curiosity. I had already eaten and did not need any groceries so I just walked around the place.

My first impression upon walking in was that Mi Pueblo was a happy place to shop! Festive Latin music in the background, a colorful, fun Taqueria located right in the store, Pinatas hanging above the produce. The place made me smile and the music made me want to start dancing.The employees were super friendly and welcoming, every one we walked by said hello and smiled.

Shopping at Mi Pueblo is a cultural experience. It has everything you would find in a traditional grocery store including organic produce PLUS all sorts of Mexican and Latin American food. It’s a great opportunity to try new food and drinks. I bought a Mango Agua Fresca – it was delicious and refreshing.

I took a stroll through the produce. I was happy to see the produce looked very fresh, there were organic options and special produce from Mexico and other Latin American countries; things like Mexican Squash – stuff you might not find in a traditional “American” grocery store.

They were making handmade hot tamales ready to eat for $1.49. I was kind of wishing I was hungry so I could try one.

Mi Pueblo is located in the Canal are of San Rafael
330 Bellam Blvd
San Rafael, CA 415-578-3971

The Youth in Arts Italian Street Painting Festival in San Rafael was cool! I didn’t have a lot of time to hang out but I made a quick pass through downtown San Rafael on Sunday afternoon. Here are some of the amazing pieces I saw.

More information:

http://www.youthinarts.org/ispf.html

http://twitter.com/youthinarts

***

Toastmasters can be for anyone, you don’t have to live in the Bay Area to go to a Toastmasters meeting. You can find Toastmasters meetings all over the world.

I’m a member of the San Rafael Dominican University Toastmasters group. I’m actually the VP of Public Relations.

I joined Toastmasters because I realized I was losing the art of verbal communication. I was spending so much time on my computer networking online with others that I was starting to lose my voice, literally. You know the saying, ‘if you don’t use it, you lose it’.

I joined Toastmasters because I wanted to get more comfortable with public speaking but I’ve learned there is so much more you can get out of Toastmasters. Since joining a year ago I’m more confident negotiating deals, I’m a better listener and I’m comfortable taking charge in group situations. I’m also quicker to think on my feet.

In the past while at dinner parties I’d often freeze up during interesting conversations. My mind would just go blank and I’d have nothing to contribute, until later that night after the party was over I’d think of all sorts of interesting and intelligent things to say. Since joining Toastmasters and regularly taking part in the activity called Table Topics I’ve found that I’m now able to “think on my feet” and participate in these conversations.

Our group meets every Tuesday from 12-1. We meet at Dominican University but the group is open to the public. Our members consist of students, teachers, faculty, staff and community members (like me). We are a very relaxed and fun group.  Our number one focus is on having fun. We welcome guests and new members! If you’d like to visit our group please stop by any Tuesday at 12.  Currently we are meeting in Guzman Hall, Room 201. Check our Website to confirm location, we occasionally change room locations.

For more information visit: Dominican Toastmasters
We’re also on Facebook and Twitter.

To find out about Toastmasters in your area visit the Toastmasters International Site.

PS. If you are thinking about joining Toastmasters but feeling a little intimidated… just do it! If you want to talk more about our group feel free to contact me directly. And if you are worried about the cost, it is very affordable. There is a one time $20 new-member fee, then $27 dues every six months. (pro-rated if you join in mid-term).