The Hit List: Sir and Star

I’m amassing an ever growing Hit List of destination restaurants to patronize. It’s so long, it’s dizzying, but I can’t stop myself- so many dishes to eat, so many places to explore. Stop the insanity, Leon is getting Larger (Airplane reference anyone?). Sir and Star is my Hit List’s latest addition run by the husband and wife team of Margaret Grade and Daniel DeLong of Manka’s Inverness Lodge fame. After a devastating fire to the lodge’s famed restaurant in 2006, they have breathed new life into a nearby Olema landmark. The couple had their eyes on the Olema Inn for years and their turn of events gave them reason to act. They bought the inn, revamped it promptly renaming it The Olema and opened Sir and Star- a little jewel of a restaurant. It’s the kind of place that just looks like it makes great memories.

I love the whole West Marin region. We drove up to Olema once on a whim while I was on tour in San Francisco (Chicago with Huey Lewis= nightly shots of whiskey post curtain with The Heart Of Rock ‘n Roll and the Cell Block Girls- now those were the days). There, in the West Marin, we found an inviting, mysterious and fog-filled coastline (one reason Sonoma is such a hotbed for Pinot- thank you mother nature) home to Point Reyes National Seashore and the Tomales Bay Oyster Co. We stayed at a divey little motel and I was completely enchanted by the area.

The restaurant at Manka’s Inverness Lodge was the stuff of locavore lore. A destination for farm-to-table foodies including the likes of Prince Charles and Thomas Keller, I sadly did not get the chance to visit. But with The Olema and its new restaurant, Sir and Star- the trail-blazing Manka team is back. The dishes still have whimsical names as they did at Manka’s- “Crab Plucked From Surrounding Seas” and “A Neighbor’s Quail Plumped With Kale”- personalizing the food and giving it a story. Named after the intersection where this little house lies, at Sir Francis Drake Blvd. and Star Route 1, it even bodes a mystical name- a name that  implores you to set out on a voyage for discovery. Westward Ho! Next stop- Sir and Star.

Round out your West Marin County Voyage with these must stops:

Hike the Point Reyes National Seashore, a morning stroll along this coastline will put anyone in a good mood. But don’t dip your toes too deep as this is Great White country. Dip at your own risk.

Slurp your heart out at the Tomales Bay Oyster Company. A local’s favorite, these oysters are farm raised on the premises and the spot is perfect for picnicking.

Cowgirl Creamery at Tomales Bay Foods. Take a $5 tour of the original outpost of this cult creamery in Point Reyes Station. My favorite of their delicious cheeses is the Mt. Tam.

Relax on the Tomales Bay while staying at The Poet’s Loft in the tiny town of Marshall. This view would unleash the prose of any lucky visitor’s inner poet.

This perfect little patch of planet is one of my favorite places. It kind of makes me feel like a West Coast Jessica Fletcher- it’s quaint, charming and local like Cabot Cove and inspiring enough to make me want to solve mysteries. Ok, I know that’s kind of random but it’s the truth. Have you been? Do tell your favorite spots in the area.

{Image Credits: James Baigrie, The Olema}

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