The following is a list of businesses that were new in Marin county in January 2020
EAT & DRINK
Sally Newson has reinvented the American convenience store at Village Corner, a grab-and-go market in downtown Ross. Freshly prepared breakfast and lunch items from Taste, juices, drip coffee and on-tap kombucha, nitro matcha green tea and Equator nitro cold brew are at the ready.
To create what is billed as a restaurant and beer garden, Mill Valley’s Proof Lab expanded its retail and cafe offerings by teaming with San Francisco’s Hook Fish Lab. In a space adjacent to the Mill Valley surf and skate shop, an indoor-outdoor eatery is set to include an indoor bar, outdoor dining area and the same menu as the city Hook location, but served from a food truck. With the transparent supply chain, you can enjoy the crab burger (during crab fishing season), seafood ceviche or fish tacos secure in the knowledge of exactly where and on what boat your meal came from.
Kickin’ fried chicken is one of the many menu highlights of the new Sunday brunch service at Mill Valley’s Bungalow 44, where the Ramos fizz has a passionate following. Look for kid- and adult-size breakfast burritos, a Monte Cristo on brioche, and huevos rancheros with fried plantains.
That December chill in the air signals the seasonal return of Dungeness crab, and Gott’s Roadside in Greenbrae is bringing back its crab sandwich, the brioche bun slathered with Meyer lemon aioli. For a lighter touch, try the Dungeness crab and bay shrimp Louie with sliced avocado and a side of secret sauce that gets tongues wagging every year.
Following the debut of its Mill Valley outpost, Vitality Bowls opened in Sausalito’s Gateway Shopping Center, with the same menu of acai bowls, coffee, and superfoods-laden smoothies as its northern neighbor.
After a multiyear closure to rebuild the original space, chef Mourad Lahlou reopened San Francisco’s Aziza, his Michelin-starred Cal-Moroccan restaurant in the Richmond District. Expansive windows frame a poured concrete bar in the reimagined space, with black-and-white cowhide banquettes, wicker light fixtures and plum and teal accents. Dishes like chicken basteeya with almond and caramelized onion and hand-rolled couscous with aged butter are still available.
Big Night Restaurant Group unveiled The Greenwich in the former Cow Marlowe space in San Francisco’s Cow Hollow neighborhood, bringing executive chef Jennifer Puccio’s beloved Marlowe burger, Leo’s oysters and chicken Milanese to a space refreshed with a beachy, East Coast vibe.
Slurpable noodles at the only stateside location of Michelin-starred Japanese ramen chain Tsuta premiered at San Francisco’s Metreon, with French truffles gracing soba noodles in some of the unique refinements from chef Yuki Onishi. Be quick, though, as only 300 bowls are made each day.
SHOP
Jane Hedreen, the owner of bespoke children’s clothing shop flora + henri in Seattle, now has a store at Larkspur’s Marin Country Mart, Live and Love by flora + henri, with clothing for children, women and men and housewares and accessories for the home, sourced from the U.S. and Europe.
WELLNESS
Sonoma-based Becoming Independent opened in San Rafael, offering day services to help adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities live meaningful and productive lives as engaged members of the community.
Christina Mueller is a long-time Bay Area food writer. She hails from the East Coast and has spent way too much time in South America and Europe. She discovered her talent as a wordsmith in college and her love of all things epicurean in grad school. She has written for Condé Nast Contract Publishing, Sunset, and the Marin Independent Journal, among others. She volunteers with California State Parks and at her childrens’ schools, and supports the Marin Audubon Society, PEN America, and Planned Parenthood. When she is not drinking wine by a fire, she is known to spend time with her extended family.
