Marin Magazine January 2009

M A R I N

EXTRAORDINARY LIVING

L IKE N O O THER .

Just Opened

purveyors of luxury goods since

Juliska, Match, Jan Barboglio, Arte Italica, Anichini

story nora isaacs home Roots Remembered

A house that carried its past into the future.

story p. j. bremier photos barbara ries go Their Farm, Your Table

From baby Bibb to Big Island beef, Hawai‘i’s crops are thriving.

story mimi towle

letters

Readers respond to Marin Magazine.

at a glance

Hot tips day by day for the Bay Area.

currents

Bay Area news, books, openings, people and events.

snap

Out and about, in and around Marin.

fashion trends

Sparkle plenty. by somer flaherty

life style

Marin’s Forrest Kolb and Joe Paone on personal style. by mimi towle

fyi

Adventure: Underwater flight. by jim wood

Business: The shop doctors. by somer flaherty

Art: Mill Valley expressionist. by barry willis

Home: New year, new design. by somer flaherty

The Cover

The Wave taken at Rodeo Beach by photographer Stephen Lefkovits. To view more of his work visit marinimages.com or to purchase go to marinnagazine.com/coverart.

Departments

52 80 98 108 126 146

conversation

Mill Valley’s David Harris.

wedding guide

Fourth annual nuptial resources.

calendar

A roundup of performing arts, events, galleries and more.

flavor

Marin Magazine’s Organic Marin: recipes from local restaurants. Dine Out, an insider’s guide to Bay Area eateries.

microclimate

Fairfax—gateway to West Marin. by daniel jewett

dialogue

Marin innovator, thinker and entrepreneur Paul Hawken. by mimi towle

18 22

view from mount tam

The creators of Marin Magazine welcome you to share their vision.

pov

Good-bye 2008—Hello 2009. by jim wood

GUMP’S PRESENTS SAN FRANCISCO’S MOST INSPIRED BRIDAL EVENT

We’ve brought together a team of experts to inspire and assist you in planning your wedding. Let Gump’s wedding consultants, along with representatives from our china, crystal and silver galleries, guide you in selecting the gifts of a lifetime for your registry. Sip sparkling wine and enjoy a continental brunch by Taste Catering as you stroll among the gorgeous tables created by our stylists with flowers from Kathleen Deery Design. Get a primer on event planning with Laurie Arons Special Events, and get acquainted with other fine purveyors of wedding services. $30 per person. Please call 415.984.9250 or visit gumps.com/bridal for tickets and more information.

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 8, 2009 11:00 A.M. TO 1:00 P.M. 135 POST STREET, SAN FRANCISCO

EDITORIAL

EDITORIAL DIRECTOR Nikki Wood ext 105 | nwood@marinmagazine.com

EXECUTIVE EDITOR Jim Wood ext 106 | jwood@marinmagazine.com

SENIOR EDITOR Mimi Towle ext 101 | mtowle@marinmagazine.com

EDITOR-AT-LARGE Tim Porter tporter@marinmagazine.com

DEPARTMENTS EDITOR Somer Flaherty ext 103 | sflaherty@marinmagazine.com

WEB EDITOR Daniel Jewett ext 116 | djewett@marinmagazine.com

COPY EDITOR/PROOFREADER Cynthia Rubin

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS P. J. Bremier, Leslie Harlib, Nora Isaacs, Barry Willis

ART

ART DIRECTOR Anne Walzer

PRODUCTION MANAGER Alex French ext 111 | production@marinmagazine.com

PRODUCTION ARTIST Stephen Spoja

CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS Drew Altizer, Sheri Montgomery, Barbara Ries

ADMINISTRATION

CONTROLLER Maeve Walsh ext 104 | mwalsh@marinmagazine.com

OFFICE MANAGER Linda Reid ext 100 | lreid@marinmagazine.com

ADVERTISING

PUBLISHER Lisa Shanower ext 107 | lshanower@marinmagazine.com

ADVERTISING DIRECTOR Michele Geoffrion Johnson ext 110 | mjohnson@marinmagazine.com

ACCOUNT MANAGER Leah Bronson ext 109 | lbronson@marinmagazine.com

ACCOUNT MANAGER Stephanie Ericson ext 108 | sericson@marinmagazine.com

ADVERTISING ART DIRECTOR Alex French ext 111 | production@marinmagazine.com

REGIONAL SALES OFFICES

NORTHERN CALIFORNIA

carolyn ware & associates | Carolyn Ware 415.601.0192

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA

dorie leo & associates | Dorie Leo 310.822.4938

NEW YORK

couture marketing | Karen Couture 917.821.4429

SOUTHEAST tlc media | Cindy Taylor 404.459.6578

HAWAII

destination marketing | Ashli Taguchi 808.739.2200

MARIN CUSTOM MEDIA

CONTACT: PUBLISHER Lisa Shanower ext 107 | lshanower@marinmagazine.com

TYING THE KNOT HAS NEVER BEEN EASIER.

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GETTING TO THE CHURCH ON TIME is least of it when it comes to weddings—you also want to arrive in style and then celebrate with family and friends in a way that makes the day as special as can be. In Life, four local couples tell how they did just that, with events ranging from a laid-back, colorful ceremony on Maui to a festive evening party at St. Vincent’s School for Boys in San Rafael. Once they’ve inspired you, turn to our fourth annual Wedding Resource Guide, which provides all you need to know about finding just the right dress, food, photographer and more for your big day.

Far be it for us to suggest where you should go on your honeymoon, but (ahem) if you do choose Hawaii you’ll have the opportunity to indulge in the bounty of the growing culinary movement known as Hawai‘i regional cuisine. In Go, Mimi Towle introduces a dozen innovative Hawaiian chefs who base their menus on food fresh from the Islands, bringing it directly from local farms to Hawaiian restaurant tables.

Back in Marin, in Home, P . J. Bremier tours a remodeled California Mediterranean house high on a Ross ridgetop whose extensive remodel successfully blended centuries of tradition with the accessories of modern living.

Also in this issue, Conversation engages Mill Valley writer David Harris about civil disobedience, solitary confinement and his new book on former 49er coach Bill Walsh; in FYI Business, Somer Flaherty speaks with a trio of local shopping consultants about their wardrobe makeover secrets; Dialogue questions Marin thinker and entrepreneur Paul Hawken; FYI Adventure meets a Marin couple whose invention enables you to fly underwater; and Microclimate visits the leafy streets of Fairfax.

As always, our wish is for your good reading. Enjoy Marin Magazine , as we continue to celebrate this extraordinary place!

Lisa Shanower, Publisher

Nikki Wood, Editorial Director Jim Wood, Executive Editor

My wealth is well cared for...

Readers respond

❯❯ Inspiring Redwoods

Thank you for another great issue of Marin I particularly enjoyed the article about The Redwoods in Mill Valley and the amazing group of people who live there. They set a splendid example of how to maintain a vigorous and engaged way of life regardless of one’s age. I’ve come to believe that communal living in places such as The Redwoods can provide the stimulation and support that I will be seeking some day. After reading this article, and noting the waiting list of up to five years, I can see that I need to plan ahead. Kudos to Marin for profiling interesting people of all ages and income levels who personify the diversity and spirit of Marin County.

Barbara Webb, San Rafael

❯❯ Respect the troops

In answer to Hugh Scott’s equating opposition to the Iraq war to disrespect for our troops (December Letters). I wonder if he would place his Belvedere neighbors in this category since over 60 percent of them voted for Obama. I think that the real America showed itself on November 4th by electing Obama president. I think we respect our troops by advocating getting them out of Iraq.

Jack Edelman, via e-mail

Corrections: On page 28 of the December issue we incorrectly gave the date of Hanukkah as December 11. The Festival of Lights actually began on December 21. Also in the December issue on page 82, photo credit goes to Usama Jalil Nahi of the International Medical Corps. Marin Magazine apologizes for the errors.

Letters to the editor may be edited for clarity and brevity. Send letters to Marin Magazine, One Harbor Drive, Suite 208, Sausalito, CA 94965. Or e-mail jwood@marinmagazine.com.

eventWhite

Good-bye 2008—Hello 2009

Last year’s accomplishments point to a strong new year

Last year, nearly 70 percent of Marin and Sonoma voters chose to tax themselves to build SMART, a 70-mile commuter rail line connecting Larkspur and Cloverdale that has an accompanying bike and hiking trail.

“We’re already restoring the Cal Park tunnel between Larkspur and San Rafael,” says Dave Bernardi of Marin’s Public Works Department.

“It’ll be finished by December of ’09.” This will open a welcome (and expensive—$11.3 million) two-mile biking and walking trail between Larkspur and San Rafael; trains come later.

Engineering for SMART will take 18 months to complete. Meanwhile, a decision must be made: Will it be heavy (as in freight trains) or light rail (as in Europe)? Regardless, each car will have its own diesel engine and will carry, on average, 100 passengers. Other decisions: Will trains accommodate bicycles? Have bathrooms? Will food be available? What about an afternoon glass of wine? Public input is invited; monthly meetings will be held. Go to sonomamarintrain.org for information. Says SMART’s Chris Coursey, “Construction cost

total $540 million and will provide hundreds of job opportunities.” His parting words: “Trains will be running by 2014.”

Another major Marin accomplishment, one already completed, is the $64 million Health and Wellness Campus in San Rafael. “It’s providing first-class service in a first-class environment,” says Larry Meredith, director of Health and Human Services for the county. Services provided include pre- and post-natal care, child dentistry (adult dentistry is coming) and immunization and reproductive services.

“It’s compassionate, efficient and quality health care for children, adults and seniors living in Marin who are uninsured or underinsured and in need,” says Meredith. Services are provided to those who qualify at “a cost they can afford,” he says. Amazingly, if the campus has a drawback, it’s underutilization. “We only opened in November,” says Meredith. “We’re walking before we have to run.”

The Health and Wellness Campus is inspirational and truly green, “environmentally, it was built to the gold standard,” Meredith says. Half a dozen buildings formerly occupied by George Lucas’s Industrial Light & Magic have been transformed, via art, architecture and landscaping, into an environment that would do a blue-chip high-tech start-up proud. Clean lines; light and airy spaces; colorful and concise signage; functional and stylish furniture—the campus merits a visit by anyone wanting to know what the county does for its less fortunate. The Health and Wellness Campus is located at Kerner and Bellam boulevards, close to Circuit City. More info online co.marin.ca.us/campus.

Other 2008 Marin accomplishments likely to continue into 2009: More than 150 units of affordable housing have been or will be added

BY JIM WOOD

to the county’s inventory, including 79 apartments at the attractive San Clemente Drive complex in Corte Madera; 50 at the Fireside, which opens next April in Tam Valley; and 24 in Drake’s Way, now under construction near Larkspur Landing. The November election also seated Sharon Jackson and Dr. Hank Simmonds on the Healthcare District board, meaning Marin General Hospital now has a fighting chance of survival. Likewise, if Bolinas wants to get off life support (not a sure assumption), it’s best that talk about dredging the Bolinas Lagoon becomes action, at least so fishing and crab boats can gain access.

The three-year-old expansion of Highway 101 will at last bring relief to county commuters, says Dianne Steinhauser, executive director of the Transportation Authority of Marin: “Commuter lanes will open in January—which will substantially reduce congestion,” she says. And if you regularly drive to West Marin (which I do), you’ll want the five-mile axlecracking stretch of Sir Francis Drake Boulevard as it winds through Samuel P . Taylor State Park to be slightly straightened and repaved. Yes, it may cost a few redwoods, but that roadbed was laid in the 1920s, cars are wider now, and bicyclists are entitled to a safe shoulder. Back in central Marin, on Francisco Boulevard East, the old John Irish Chrysler/Jeep dealership will become the new location for Tom Prices’s Infiniti dealership, and down by the Golden Gate at Cavallo Point, the 142-room lodge, restaurant and spa that opened in 2008 at Fort Baker, business appears extremely positive.

In summary, Marin’s 2009 outlook is surprisingly strong—thanks in part to the accomplishments of 2008. That’s my point of view. What’s yours?

E-mail jwood@marinmagazine.com.

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To book your adventure of a lifetime, visit your local AAA branch, call 1-888-249-4023, or click AAA.com/travel today.

JANUARY 15–30

Dine About Town

Choose from more than 100 restaurants at the eighth annual Dine About Town, offering prix-fixe lunches and dinners. 415.391.2000, onlyinsanfrancisco.com

JANUARY 16

Champion Cellist

The award-winning cellist Hai-Ye Ni returns home to Marin for a special performance. Mt. Tamalpais United Methodist Church (Mill Valley). 415.381.4453, chambermusicmillvalley.org

JANUARY 19

Martin Luther King Day

Make a peace flag, listen to music and learn about Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s life. Bay Area Discovery Museum (Sausalito). 415.339.3958, baykidsmuseum.org

THRU JANUARY

di Rosa Preserve

After the Age of Reason features new drawings and sculpture by Maria Porges. di Rosa Preserve (Napa). 707.226.5991, dirosapreserve.org

JANUARY 21

Wild Cats

Learn about the habitats and behaviors of Point Reyes’ wild cats. Point Reyes Field Seminars (Point Reyes Station). 415.663.1200, ptreyes.org

JANUARY 1

New Year’s Day

It’s time to head to the gym, eat better and recycle more. Taking advantage of Marin County’s trails, healthy food and easy-tofind recycling centers, it will be easy to honor those resolutions.

JANUARY 16

Peking Acrobats

Jugglers, cyclists and gymnasts from the People’s Republic of China take the stage. Marin Veterans’ Memorial Auditorium (San Rafael). 415.499.6400, co.marin.ca.us

JANUARY 18–20

Marin Symphony

Discover the Romantic Passions of Cello and Courtship featuring David Requiro on cello with a cameo by Smuin Ballet. Marin Center (San Rafael). 415.499.6800, marincenter.org

JANUARY

JANUARY 10–18

Josh Kornbluth

Playwright, performer and KQED-TV host Josh Kornbluth debuts his new one-man show Andy Warhol: Good for the Jews? Contemporary Jewish Museum (SF). 415.655.7881, thecjm.org

JANUARY 18

Rubik’s Cube

So you think you can solve the cube? The international Rubik’s Cube competition comes to town. Exploratorium (SF). 415.561.0377, exploratorium.edu

JANUARY 22

Irreverent Art

Attend the opening night party kicking off the new Irreverent: Contemporary Nordic Craft Art exhibit at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts. YBCA (SF). 415.978.2787, ybca.org

JANUARY 31

Laughter in Bloom

See Eddie Carroll become one of America’s most beloved entertainers, Jack Benny. Osher Marin JCC (San Rafael). 415.444.8000, marinjcc.org

Dinner

Fit for a President

No need to travel to Washington to take part in all the inauguration festivities; head over to Nick’s Cove in Tomales Bay, where diners can revel in the restaurant’s special Barack Obama inauguration dinner on January 21. Chef Adam Mali has prepared a three-course menu for $20.09, which includes a salad of escarole, avocado and persimmon, braised lamb shoulder with polenta and gremolata and spiced pear bread pudding.

Meet Fellow Yogis

Yogis are headed to the Hyatt Regency in San Francisco, January 16—19, for the sixth annual Yoga Journal Conference. The weekend includes everything from panel discussions with environmental activist Julia Butterfly Hill to asana classes with Sharon Gannon and Seane Corn to yoga teacher training sessions. 800.561.9398, yjevents.com

Project Happiness

This month, head to local movie theaters to check out Bay Area—based nonprofit Project Happiness’s new documentary of the same name. The film features Richard Gere, His Holiness the Dalai Lama and our own local connection Marinite, George Lucas. It follows a high school class from Mount Madonna School near Watsonville who were inspired after reading the Dalai Lama’s book Ethics for the New Millennium. The students embark on a journey to discover the true nature of happiness. projecthappiness.com

PERFECTLY UNIQUE BOUTONNIERES

Erin Rosenow, formerly of the acclaimed Laurel Heights floral shop Birch, has branched out on her own with Rosenow Floral. Sure, we love the colorful bouquets, but it’s her line of unique wedding boutonnieres made with guitar picks, sand dollars and miniature birdcages that shines. 415.424.7437, rosenowfloral.com

HAVE YOU HEARD? There’s a new man in town…and his name is Christopher Downs. Having just opened his namesake salon on Ark Row, he’s become the talk of Marin and beyond, including a recent callout in Daily Candy. Hailing from NYC, where he still catches the red-eye to work as an invitationonly personal and editorial stylist, he’s landed in Tiburon and couldn’t be happier. With a little help from his partner

Paul DeMartini of WilliamsSonoma, he revamped the small, well-lit space into a cozy chic salon. A Yelp contributor in Sausalito sums up the hype. “Christopher actually does that ‘haircut to match your face and lifestyle’ thing! I’ve always heard about it, asked for it, but have never received it until now.” christopher-salon.com

All Washed Up

For almost 10 years Forest Knolls resident Judith Selby Lang and her husband have been collecting the plastic that washes up on Kehoe Beach in the Point Reyes National Seashore and turning it into wearable art. According to Lang, there is no better way to spark a dialogue about the health of the oceans than to wear jewelry made from recycled beach plastic. Look for Lang’s exhibit during Earth Day and Costal Cleanup Day in 2009 or pick up your own unique creation at Electric Works in San Francisco. 415.626.5496, sfelectricworks.com

TAKE THE STAGE

Imagine children from different schools and different towns all coming together to bring an artistic vision to life. That is exactly what happens every fall, winter and spring at 142 Throckmorton’s Marin Youth Performers group. The sessions—led by local teacher and student favorite Adam Saville—teach children every aspect of theatrical production, from acting onstage to working backstage and operating lights and music. Auditions for the next show, Annie Jr., take place January 12–15 and the show runs March 6–8. 142throckmortontheatre.com

Singing for a Living

From the rough streets of East Oakland to singing on chart-topping albums by artists like Celine Dion, Diana Ross, Jennifer Lopez and Mariah Carey, session vocalist Clay “Claytoven” Richardson has seen it all. Just ask San Rafael studio mogul Narda Michael Walden, who calls Richardson whenever the backing vocals on an album he is recording just have to be right. Richardson reveals all his secrets from his many years in the music business in his new book The Professional Studio Vocalist, available at amazon.com. claytoven.com

Houseboats of Sausalito

Marin’s newest pictorial history book, Houseboats of Sausalito, not only includes great photos but was written by our beloved Phil Frank, creator of the widely acclaimed cartoon strip Farley and namesake of Cavallo Point’s Farley Bar.

Openings and Events

Interior Floor Design (formerly Marin Floor Company) in San Rafael held a grand opening to celebrate its new name complete with a ribbon-cutting by Mayor Al Boro and wine, music and refreshments. At Nicole Grey and Company in Strawberry Village, owner Nicole Grey held a party for the first anniversary of her fine luxury goods and gifts store. In downtown Mill Valley, the Plumpjack Group enjoyed the grand opening of Balboa Cafe back in September. The new location will be the second Balboa Cafe for the company (the other is in San Francisco). At Chabot Space and Science Center’s 125th anniversary gala celebration Bill Nye the Science Guy was on hand to enliven the festivities. At the Crown & Crumpet tea room grand opening, owners and Marin residents Amy and Chris Dean welcomed guests to an evening of bubbly, sweets, savories and, of course, tea at their new hip Ghirardelli Square location.

1. Scott Agueros, Kimberly Sherry, Mayor Al Boro 2. Berley Farber, Maya Diaz

3. Kristy and Gabe Frlekin 4. Nicole Grey 5. Juan Cazorla, Pauline Kelly 6. Regina Callan, Rick Reece, Beth Townsend 7. Nancy Morgan 8. Rosanne and Jeffrey Cheung 9. Bill Nye 10. Danielle Demerle, Ryoko Isozaki 11. Amy and Chris Dean

NICOLE GREY

BALBOA CAFE CHABOT

Around Town

At Dominican University of California student research teams presented the positions of Senator John McCain and then Senator Barack Obama on key issues for the VoteSmart Challenge ’08. Each research team described the policy issue and the different candidates’ positions during a 10-minute audio/visual presentation. The audience used digital keypads to vote on various policy issues, prompted by a set of preselected questions based on the presentation. Senior Access raised almost $10,000 at an Italian benefit dinner at the Mill Valley Outdoor Art Club. At the Marin Humane Society’s Whiskers & Wine event hosted by Doug McConnell, more than $10,000 was raised to support the society’s shelter programs. Guests experienced Tiburon’s Gyrotonic studio with owner Alicia Rypma and her staff. Fitness buffs enjoyed food and learned about the exercise system, which was developed to simultaneously stretch and strengthen the body using minimal effort. At the Westin St. Francis, the Bay Institute held its annual gala, Celebrating H20 (Headwaters 2 Ocean), which raised funds to support work to protect and restore San Francisco Bay and its watershed. Spectrum LGBT Center hosted 400 guests at its 26th anniversary gala at the Mill Valley Community Center. The event raised over $100,000 for Spectrum’s education and advocacy programs, which promote equality and justice for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people in Marin County.

1. Joseph R. Fink 2. Mimi Schreiber, Carol Mateo, Cris Chater, Wendy Walsh 3. Bill and Jett Walker 4. Emma Clifford, Marion Fitzgibbon 5. Breeze Carlile, Alicia Rypma 6. Jared Huffman, Christina Swanson, Bill Lockyer 7. Paula Pilecki, Jeanne Rizzo, Pali Cooper, Mark Leno

MARIN HUMANE SOCIETY

1. Barbara Llewellyn, Karen Dyer, Katie Owens

2. Douglas and Jennifer Fish, Candice Wiegand

3. Cosima Crane, Joy Goldberg 4. Nicole and Aleco Preovolos and baby Ryan 5. Julie Perachiotti and Mishel Rohl 6. Heidi Whalen, Allen Preger, Lisa Preger 7. Tyler Florence, Deborah Goldman

8. Steve and Emily Janowsky

Family Time

In Larkspur, Item Shoes owner Joy Goldberg held the second annual Out With the Old, In With the Shoe event. Guests donated gently used workappropriate accessories to the event, which supports Wardrobe for Opportunity. The Godmothers of Timothy Murphy held a 10th anniversary celebration at St. Vincent’s School for Boys in San Rafael to raise money for school uniforms for the boys. This past fall, Tyler Florence kicked off his national book tour at his Mill Valley retail location. At this benefit for Kiddo!, guests enjoyed wine and appetizers prepared by Florence from his two new cookbooks. The Corte Madera Larkspur Schools Foundation held its inaugural golf tournament at San Geronimo to support the Corte Madera Larkspur district.

SCHOOLS

CALL for ENTRIES

Get Covered!

ATTENTION ARTISTS: Enter the Third Annual MARIN MAGAZINE Cover Art Contest.

WINNERS: A winner for each of the following categories: painting, photography and illustration, will be featured in the May 2009 MARIN MAGAZINE.

EXPOSURE: Each winner will be featured on the May 2009 impact cover unit and will display their work to the public at the opening of the MARIN ART SALON May 7, 2009.

ENTER NOW AT: MARINMAGAZINE.COM/GETCOVERED

sparkle plenty

Of course, the standard de rigueur piece of wedding jewelry is the sparkling ring, but a bride has to think about other pieces she’ll wear on the big day. Whether it’s a beautiful bracelet, trendy chandelier earrings, statementmaking necklace, classic pearls with a twist or a sapphire-inspired bit of “something blue,” here’s what’s new in bridal jewelry.

— somer flaherty

1. White gold earrings set with diamonds and blue topaz briolettes by Stacey Lorinczi. Starting at $650 at Stacey Lorinczi. 415.566.7394, lorinczi.com

2. Sapphire and diamond necklace by Ashley Morgan, approximately $65,000 at Ashley Morgan (SF). 415.205.6228, ashleymorganjewelry.com

3. Necklace in metal with black and white crystals by Yves Saint Laurent. $3,125 at Yves Saint Laurent (SF). 415.837.1211, ysl.com

4. Estate cuff by Judith Ripka, approx. $12,800 at Judith Ripka Jewelry (SF). 415.399.1995, judithripka.com

5. Necklace and earrings with South Sea pearls and pavé diamonds, $25,000 and $3,800 at Stephan Hill (San Rafael). 415.459.5808, stephanhill.com

lifestyle

Names: Joe Paone and Forrest Kolb Home: Sausalito Occupation: Cofounders, EcoFlip.org

Longtime friends

Forrest Kolb (right) and Joe Paone (left) believe they have a solution for greenminded pack rats, shoppers or purgers — or just folks looking for more info on how to be green. Last year they started EcoFlip. org, an online green resource center. What we appreciated most from meeting these two young entrepreneurs is the yin and yang of their personalities. Due to space, we had to cut the interview short; for the complete version, go to marinmagazine. com.

What are you wearing?

FK Denim shirt and leather jacket by Sundance, Rock & Republic jeans, Converse low-top shoes, beaded bracelet from Peru, Native American colored bracelet from eBay. JP Organic corduroy blazer from Sundance. Organic cotton long-sleeve shirt from Sundance. Calvin Klein blue jeans. Armani belt. Mark Mason shoes.

Where would you wear this outfit?

FK Weekday/weekend breakfast at Half Day Cafe in Kentfield, the Pelican Inn on Thursday nights for live music or morning coffee in Sausalito.

JP: An evening out on the town.

How long does it take you to get ready in the morning?

FK Let’s see…I open my eyes, say thank you to God for the opportunity to live in the “Garden of Marin,” shower, jump into my clothes, and decide which cafe I feel like working at for the day. Ten minutes?

JP 15 to 20 minutes.

Describe your personal style.

FK Timeless clothing and accessories. Denim shirts, beat-up brown leather shoes, old brown belts, down-to-earth-toned tees. I wear Havianas flip-flops and Uggs when I can. I’m all about clean comfort.

JP Casual, clean and professional.

Where do you love to shop in Marin?

FK Sundance, Spirit Matters in Inverness…

JP I actually find shopping painful. However, I do like Sundance and Banana Republic.

PHOTO: BARBARA RIES

Favorite designers?

FK Kasil Jeans, Lululemon, North Face, Patagonia….

JP Pass.

What is the single most essential piece in your wardrobe?

FK One of my rosaries from around the world, usually one that I bought in Medjugorje, Bosnia, a magical village that permanently altered my life two summers back. I don’t leave home without one. Other than that, probably my North Face.

JP Comfortable jeans.

What do you splurge on?

FK Dessert at Americano, Mexican chips at Joe’s Taco Lounge, fresh air from atop the Bootjack Trail…

JP Coffee.

What’s your fashion pet peeve?

FK “North Face couples.” I’m originally a So-Cal native and this was one of the first things I noticed when I moved to the Bay Area.

JP People that are too hip.

What’s the most expensive thing you’ve ever bought?

FK A business in Marin County! And so worth it!

JP I took my girlfriend to see a movie in San Francisco. That was pretty expensive.

Did it make you happy?

FK Every day of my life. A friend of mine who’s traveling the world writing a book called The Altrupreneur defines success as doing only what you love in every 24-hour period. I agree with him, and when you let go of everything else you literally watch every plane of your life change (for the better) before your eyes.

JP All time spent with my girlfriend makes me happy.

Karen and Graham Hawkes—pioneers of flying in the ocean

FBY JIM WOOD

rank Sinatra once crooned “come fly with me, let’s fly let’s fly away.” His enticements included a trip to llama land, a one-man band, and a bar in far Bombay. Karen and Graham Hawkes of San Anselmo sing a similarly inviting harmony, offering the lure of coral canyons, eerie shipwrecks and forests of brilliant seaweed.

There is a difference, though. Whereas Sinatra wanted you to fly him where the air is rarified—the Hawkes want to take you down beneath the sea—in a deep flight submersible, their term for what others might describe as an underwater airplane.

What a glorious feeling to be at the Marin Farmers Markets, especially on those rainy days. Just like the rains give life to the land, they also invigorate the to the seasons than at the farmers market.

Here, you’ll taste the freshest foods of the season and experience the full gamut of weather patterns; from a light breeze and gentle drizzle to blustery winds and drenching downpours, to miraculous blue skies and warm winter rays. We’ve learned to embrace the elements, the puddles included, and urge you to do the same, at least until we realize our dream of a permanent, covered marketplace. While stormy clouds may chase fair-weather eaters from the place, we say bring on the rain. A trip to the farmers market is an enlivening experience anytime of year, and those rainy days are not exceptions, but exceptional.

“Seventy-five percent of the earth is water and 94 percent of all its life is aquatic,” says Karen Hawkes, “and yet most people rarely venture into it.” Note that she didn’t say “out onto” the water, but “into” it.

The Hawkes own Hawkes Ocean Technologies of Point Richmond, the world’s only manufacturer of winged submersibles.

“Our battery-powered Super Falcon is 21 feet long, weighs 4,000 pounds, seats two, has a 9-foot wingspan and costs around $1.7 million,” says Graham Hawkes, a London-born engineer and international leader in the field of deep water submersibles. The Super Falcon can “fly” as deep as 1,000 feet and has a range of 25 nautical miles.

In November, the Hawkes and their children — Oliver, 10, and Madeleine, 9 — were in the Sea of Cortez off Baja, Mexico, delivering a Super Falcon submersible to the ideal buyer: venture capitalist and part-time Belvedere resident Tom Perkins, owner of the three-masted, 289-foot-long Maltese Falcon

“It was surreal, really surreal,” says Karen of the shakedown cruise and informal turnover. She says Perkins, who owns two yachts, intends to use the craft for “recreational flying and underwater exploring.”

Another Hawkes customer of note was the late adventurer pilot and balloonist Steve Fossett, who in 2005 bought a single-seat Deep Flight Challenger submersible capable of diving down to 36,000 feet — nearly 7 miles. “He wanted to set a record for the world’s deepest solo dive in the Marianas Trench,” says Karen, “just as he was the first person to fly solo around the world in a balloon.” Fossett was killed when his airplane crashed near Mammoth Lakes in 2007. His estate is selling the submersible for $3 million, in the condition it was in when Fossett’s death occurred and about four weeks before its initial sea trials.

Ironically, Graham Hawkes now holds the world record for the deepest solo dive, which he set when he took a Deep Rover I down to 3,000 feet while testing it in the late 1980s. Three Deep Rover II submersibles, another of Hawkes’s vehicles, were also featured in James Cameron’s 3-D, IMAX film Aliens of the Deep

Marin Civic Center (Sun & Thurs, 8-1, ALL YEAR)

Novato (Tues, 4-8, May-SEptember) Fairfax (Wed, 4-8, May-September)

Newark (Sun, 9-1, ALL YEAR)

OAKLAND — Grand Lake (Sat, 9-2, ALL YEAR) Hayward (Sat, 9-1, All Year)

Meet the farmers who love to play in the rain.

San Francisco photographer Morton Beebe—author with the late San Francisco Chronicle columnist Herb Caen of San Francisco: City by the Bay—has flown underwater with Graham Hawkes in the Bahamas and the Sea of Cortez. “We reached between 500 and 600 feet,” says Beebe, a former Navy pilot, “and it was an amazing experience.”

Beebe, a relative of deep diving pioneer William Beebe and raconteur/author Lucius Beebe, says piloting a prototype of the Super Falcon is similar to flying the navy’s old T-28 trainer. “It’s strictly a ‘pedals and stick’ operation,” he says, “but you run out of daylight below 500 feet and need a powerful lamp to find your way around.”

Besides the Hawkes family in San Anselmo, the Super Falcon is connected to

Piloting a Super Falcon is similar to flying the navy’s old T-28 trainer. “It’s strictly a ‘pedals and stick’ operation,” says photographer Morton Beebe, “but you run out of daylight below 500 feet and need a powerful lamp to find your way around.”

Marin County in that it was developed using software products from San Rafael–based Autodesk. “Our digital prototyping was all done with Autodesk Inventor,” says Graham. “That way we avoided the expenses and delays of building a physical prototype—we virtually optimized and validated it on a computer screen.” Autodesk, which sponsors many of the Hawkes ventures, also provided Maya, which is 3-D modeling, animation and rendering software. “In no small way,” concludes Graham, “Autodesk makes it possible for engineers like me to develop new engineering and innovations that once only existed in our dreams.”

JUDY DOMENICI

“My clients come from all walks of life.”

The Shop Doctors

It’s a new year and time for a wardrobe overhaul

IBY SOMER FLAHERTY

f you’ve pictured being featured on TLC’s What Not to Wear, or your wardrobe just needs an overhaul, it may be time to call in a pro. This New Year’s is your cue to seek out an image consultant and professional shopper.

“I’m going to take the anxiety out of it,” Judy Domenici says. This Larkspur resident and image consultant is confident and petite, with an infectious energy. “If a client says they need me to go and find them an outfit for the holidays, I’ll go to the store beforehand and pull a few pieces so it won’t overwhelm them.”

PHOTO CREDIT: JUDY DOMENICI/BARBARA RIES; TARA KITAMI, KRISTEN HARPER:TIM PORTER

People often fall into trends without considering what will look good on their body shape.

Today, Domenici is at Greenbrae boutique Lindisima with owner Linda Bottmeyer. Perfectly coiffed, she has a quick eye, scouring the racks for just the right frock, keenly aware of different price points to work with her clients’ various budgets. As a personal shopper, Domenici has relationships with most of the boutique owners in Marin, which allows her to hold numerous items for a client and get the inside scoop on pieces that will be coming in for the next season.

“I don’t have a typical client,” she says. “My clients come from all walks of life. I have clients who are experiencing life changes, such as divorce, loss of a spouse or weight changes, or those who have made a career change.”

Domenici, who charges $140 per hour, says generally before she ever steps into a store or a client’s closet, she will discusses the person’s goals and desired results. The next step is a closet update, which clears out what does not work and makes room for what does

KRISTEN HARPER

“You have to identify pieces that they haven’t worn for a year and figure out why they are keeping them.”

TARA KITAMI

Friedman & Associates

Marin County’s Most Nationally Recognized

work. “My end goal is that my clients’ closets and wardrobes be a reflection of who they want to be,” says Domenici.

Kristen Harper left her work as a psychologist to attend to both the inside and outside of a client’s persona. Her Wing Woman Consulting firm can help with anything from shopping for a single event to a total closet revamp.

“We have two different types of clients,” she says. “The workaholic client who has no time for her- or himself and the fashionably challenged client who may have the time but not the knowledge about personal style.”

With hourly rates of $150 or a monthly retainer option of $1,500, her aid doesn’t come cheap, but Harper’s approach is the person’s whole package—which could include a total hair and beauty makeover or even advice like which nonprofits might help expand a client’s professional network.

First, she finds out about her clients’ lifestyle and what they want their appearance to say about themselves. “Then we identify certain looks that appeal to them and from there go to the closet. You have to identify pieces that they haven’t worn for a year and figure out why they are keeping them.” She next organizes the closet by season and occasion and shops for needed pieces.

“As a personal shopper I want to enhance my clients’ presentation personally, socially and professionally. This is a fast-paced world and we only have an instant to make a first impression.”

Tara Kitami just recently started Kitami Ropa, her image consulting and personal shopping business, but the effervescent San Rafael resident has 15 years’ experience in the fashion industry as a buyer for successful boutiques and producer of fashion shows. “In this economy, it is imperative, now more then ever, to make smart choices with any kind of purchase, especially clothing,” she says. “We start with a lifestyle assessment to find out needs, desires

Charles Schwab Institutional “2008 Mover and Shaker”

and wants. We then write up a plan of action. Once we have created a unique, tailored plan, we typically do a closet audit.”

Kitami, who charges $125 for a general assessment appointment and then the same rate per hour for all services, says people often fall into trends without considering what will look good on their body shape. “People have said to me, ‘Once I lose a few pounds I’ll go shopping.’ You need to dress your body now, and once you feel good with who you are now, you will be amazed at what you can accomplish, including losing that extra weight,” she insists. “Quality clothes can be taken in, but clothes that never work are a waste of time and money.” She also offers a 24-hour wardrobe crisis hotline and sends out a monthly newsletter with tips and advice.

Kitami’s client June Ahern, a life coach, used her services while preparing for a book tour in Manhattan. “It was a treat, especially in these economic times,” says Ahern. “It was the best gift I could have given myself.” Kitami brought various choices for Ahern’s self-described ‘goddess’ body-type and even worked through her closet to donate six garbage bags of clothes to charity. Ahern says if you’re wary of hiring a personal shopper, at least let her come over and give you ideas. “I wore that outfit she picked out in Manhattan and I felt confident. I felt like stepping out. I had a spring in my step. She has an eye and she surprised me. And you know what, down to the shoes, she got it right.”

Anyone can benefit from an image consultant, but even if you can’t afford it, all three women say, the one thing you should absolutely require in your closet is order. And that’s free.

For more information about personal shoppers contact Judy Domenici, 415.517.2514; Tara Kitami/Kitami Ropa, 415.368.6616, kitamiropa.com; Kristen Harper, 415.533.7083, wingwomanconsulting.com

Robert H. Byers, MD

Lisa M. Elvin, NP

Jon R. Goff, MD

David H. Goltz, MD

John C. Keohane, MD

Michael J. Oechsel, MD

Ernest H. Sponzilli, MD

Michael S. Stock, MD

Charles A. Stuart, MD

Jonathan R. Goff, MD

Trained in the prestigious Harvard Intercontinental Shoulder fellowship, Dr. Goff has expertise in:

Mill Valley Expressionist

Robert Green Fine Arts sets the standard for quality art BY

BARRY WILLIS

The mean streets of New Jersey seem an unlikely origin for an erudite art dealer. Yet that’s where Bob Green came from, running to keep up with his father, a longshoreman and a prizefighter.

“Fighters didn’t make much in the ’30s and ’40s,” says Green, owner of Robert Green Fine Arts in Mill Valley. “He’d fight for maybe a hundred bucks and a wristwatch.”

The family moved often around the New York area, then as now a hotbed of cutting-edge art. “I was aware of the art world, but didn’t plug into it when I was a kid,” he says. Athletics hooked Green early. Lean and angular, he’s a lifelong health-and-fitness enthusiast who looks capable of long afternoons on the tennis court or ski slopes.

The art bug bit later, after college, when he was working at advertising firm Young & Rubicon in San Francisco. “A lot of compelling commercial art crossed my desk . . . many people in the ad industry are very creative, frustrated artists.”

Green’s first entrepreneurial venture grew out of his advertising experience. He and a partner assembled and sold boxed sets of art photography “that could be stuck to the wall as instant decor.” He also began buying original artwork—etchings and paintings. In 1972 he headed to Tokyo with a portfolio and hope that a Wall Street Journal article had been accurate about the Japanese appetite for Western art. “Even though I couldn’t speak Japanese, I called on dealers and found they were eager for what I had—pieces by Matisse, Miró, Paul Klee, Sam Francis and others,” he says. “I discovered that I could possibly make a living in this unusual way—traveling the world selling art.”

From Tokyo he went to Australia, where he sought gallerists and collectors in Sydney and Melbourne. Calm and mild-mannered, with just a hint of confrontational New York style, Green got on well with Australians and found them intrigued by the kind of art he offered. He connected with James Mollison, then director of Australia’s new National Gallery in Canberra, who was the center of heated controversy after spending $3 million on a huge Jackson Pollock painting, Blue Poles

“I had two Pollock works on paper— and some psychoanalytic drawings he had done for Dr. Joe Henderson, his psychiatrist and a longtime Marin resident,” says Green. The Mollison connection led him to collectors who bought the lot. The windfall helped Green buy a house in Mill Valley. He lives with Pauline, his wife of 36 years, and their art collection in the hills above Tamalpais High School.

Throughout the ’70s and ’80s he made more than 70 trips to Australia, Asia and Europe, buying and selling art. “It was a great ride,” he says, “but I couldn’t keep traveling.” He was ready to open a gallery of his own. He rejected the city in favor of his hometown, where he could “stumble out of bed and roll in to work in a few minutes.” Robert Green Fine Arts opened in 1990, showing works by Francis, Walt

Kuhlman, Robert McChesney, George Stillman and others associated with the California School of Fine Arts, as the San Francisco Art Institute was originally known.

Green and business partner Charlotte Bernstrom, pictured at left, who comes from an extensive fine art background, favor abstract expressionists and “action painters,” so called because of their bold athletic strokes on large canvases. With a sweeping gesture indicating his gallery, Green says, “What moves me is the passionate attempt to convey feelings and emotions through form and color.”

Figurative work appears rarely at Green’s gallery. Objective reality is implied only in former architect James Shay’s muted abstracts, based on coastal landforms. Featured sculptor Bill Barrett’s organic shapes suggest Keith Haring’s exuberant human forms without Haring’s literalism.

Green’s roster doesn’t include artists from the nihilistic, angst-ridden postwar school. There are no dark, brooding “slash-and-dash” paintings in his space. Instead, he prefers joyous, uplifting art—intense watercolors by Paul Jenkins, still as vibrant today as they were decades ago; riveting creations by John Grillo, a pioneer of action painting; monotypes by Francis, among the most prolific artists of the 20th century; finely wrought paintings by Mary Jones; autobiographical pieces by Chris Gwaltney; and technically astounding works by Ed Moses, in his 80s but still in his creative prime.

Green describes his gallery as “an incredibly focused body of work.” He explains further: “Artists make art to express themselves in ways they can’t verbalize adequately. They create a language of form and color.”

Mill Valley’s changing commercial environment concerns him. “This town was a significant art destination when Artisans was on Blithedale and Susan Cummins Gallery was around the corner,” he says.

Green’s 40 years of experience have bestowed a depth of knowledge and empathy that beguiles art lovers both local and farflung. And the Marin art scene remains robust, he says. “There’s never been a shortage of talent or interest in this county.”

“ I am a person who lives in the moment, and the moment I saw The Tamalpais, I knew it was the right place for me. The people here are truly interested in life, and in each other. other.”

Life Care at The Tamalpais gives you the freedom to live the life you deserve while enjoying a world of inspiring choices. Here, everything you need is close at hand: a wealth of activities and services tailored for your independent lifestyle, plus onsite access to expert medical care, assisted living, and skilled nursing—all available without a change in monthly fees. The Tamalpais is the only fully accredited Life Care community in Marin County. Peace of mind is closer than you think. Control future health care costs for your lifetime and make this liberating choice.

Resident T–Y Shen – Retired economics professor and avid hiker SM

NEW YEAR, NEW DESIGN

Attract positive chi in your home and life with these feng shui tips

BY SOMER FLAHERTY

The ancient Chinese system of aesthetics called feng shui, which translates to wind-water in English, is believed by followers to utilize the laws of both heaven and earth to receive positive chi, or energy flow. By incorporating changes in your home, such as the position in which your bed faces the door or where you place a mirror, followers believe, you can restore balance and harmony in your life.

Peekaboo clear nesting tables by CB2, $199 at CB2 (SF). 415.834.9370, cb2.com

Turquoise gourd vase by McGuire, $1,470 at McGuire (SF). 415.986.0812, mcguirefurniture.com

Terraced wall art by West Elm, $39 to $59 at West Elm (Corte Madera). 415.927.0202, westelm.com

One Year to an Organized Life by Regina Leeds, $17 at Book Passage (Corte Madera). 415.927.0960

Is life getting stale, routine, boring? Fresh flowers can help change that.

Nancy Bennett’s tips to incorporate feng shui in your own home

SAN ANSELMO RESIDENT

Nancy Bennett has been a practicing mind and body feng shui master for 20 years. In Bennett’s initial interview with clients she asks them what they want in life.

“I always do their horoscope, both Western and Eastern, to be able to attune ‘cures,’ choose colors and give directions to the person,” says Bennett. “And if someone doesn’t care for a particular cure, I need to change it to fit what they like, because we are all so very different. Each person’s life is viewed from a different eye; that’s what makes feng shui so interesting.” Read on for her tips to fi x common problems in your own life and home.

Do you feel isolated?

Check your front door. Is it visible from the street? If not, ask yourself how you can make that happen.

Create Your Own Organized Sanctuary

AT ITS MOST BASIC LEVEL feng shui decreases your stress and increases your positive energy by clearing the clutter and anything that isn’t essential to your good chi. Regina Leeds, New York Times best-selling author of One Year to an Organized Life and author of The Zen of Organizing, recently spoke with Marin women about how they can create a relaxing sanctuary in their own home. Broken down by weekly tasks, the projects in the book cover your home and your life. Known as the Zen Organizer, Leeds says you can create a calm, peace-filled, joyous environment in your home or work area. “I recognize a ‘Zen organized’ environment the minute I enter one. It’s the feel of the room, not just its appearance.” 818.506.7167

Are you lonely for a partner?

Look at the passenger seat in your car — is it crowded with stuff? Or is one side of your bed next to a wall? Lots of things can create situations for you that you can easily fix. Be sure to set your bedroom up as if you already had a partner. One small correction is to have a night stand on each side of the bed.

Is constipation a small daily problem?

Look to see if your hallways may be crowded.

Does opportunity seem to pass you by?

Make sure your doors open all the way and that there are not things behind them.

Does the past haunt you?

Clear your handwriting of backswings.

Is your child tired and unable to accomplish what he or she wants?

Remove the television or computer from the room and keep the closet doors closed at night.

When do you use mirrors in your home?

You can use mirrors for all types of things—what you want to stop happening in your life and what you want to happen in your life. Sometimes a feng shui expert will actually put tiny mirrors where you won’t even see them to create a positive change.

What is the importance of a water feature?

It’s important to have still or moving water in the right place, as moving water has to do with being more social, still water with tranquility and peace.

Is life getting stale, routine, boring?

Fresh flowers can help change that. Whether you spread them around or keep them in a simple vase, be sure to tend to them daily so the water doesn’t get grungy and the leaves don’t wilt, and replace them regularly.

The Last Stand: The War Between Wall Street and Main Street Over California’s Ancient Redwoods; Dreams Die Hard: Three Men’s Journey Through the Sixties; The League: The Rise and Fall of the National Football League; and Shooting the Moon: Story of an American Manhunt, Unlike Any Other, Ever.

Only that last title leaves a prospective reader guessing about the book’s subject. “It details the process leading up to America’s invasion of Panama and capture of that nation’s de facto president Manuel Noriega, and how he was brought to the U.S. to stand trial on drug charges,” Harris says. “It’s quite a story.”

The same could be said of Harris’s life.

Let’s start with high school; when and where was it—and what kind of a kid were you? I grew up in Fresno, and being born six hours after the cutoff date, I was always the youngest one in my classes. In the eighth grade, I wanted to grow up and join the FBI. In high school, I was on the debate team along with being a football player, a gym rat and “Boy of the Year” for 1963.

I was absolutely straight. Fresno had no radicals in those days. Yet, I was a little different in that early in high school I went to a conference given by the American Friends Service Committee where the speaker was Martin Luther King’s right-hand man and the topic was civil rights. It was a natural for me as I had been one of only three white kids on my West Fresno Little League team. That experience started me thinking about things.

How did your post–high school evolution come about? I chose Stanford over Cal because the scholarship was a little better. The big moment for me there came when the Mississippi Project showed up. It was 1964 and blacks had been registering blacks to vote, but no one outside of Mississippi was paying any attention. So their strategy was to get some white guys to come down and hope they’d bring the press with them. Allard Lowenstein, a protégé of Eleanor Roosevelt, recruited me. Right away I felt it would be one of the great

“For me, the critical moment in America’s history would be the summer of ’68 and the assassination of Robert Kennedy. That act condemned the nation to almost another six years of war. In modern terms, it would be like Obama being killed before he got the Democratic nomination.”

adventures of our time and I didn’t want to miss it. I knew I could get myself killed.

Sure enough, on my second day in Lambert, Mississippi, I was alone in a black neighborhood when two white guys in a pickup drove up; one had a pistol in his belt, the other put a shotgun in my face and said: “Nigger-lover, I’ll give you five minutes to get out of town before I blow your head off.” I did the stammering student routine, saying: “Oh yeah, well who are you? And what makes you think?”

The guy just repeated, “Like I said nigger-lover, five minutes.” Just then three of my co-workers arrived, threw me in their car, drove off, and fortunately, we never saw those two and their pickup again. A week later, an FBI agent who was sent down to supposedly protect us also called me a “nigger-lover.” We were there three weeks, got considerable attention and helped register hundreds of blacks. It was an eyeopening experience. Afterward, I didn’t look at America in the same way.

How did you transition into anti-Vietnam War activism? In 1966, I made the decision I wouldn’t take my student deferment. I simply believed that if you have a war, everyone should fight it — not just the poor people. So when my draft card arrived, I sent it back, saying I opposed killing people for no reason other than to prop up some tinhorn dictators. Then, after my year as student body president, in 1967 a bunch of us organized the resistance, which was dedicated to organized civil disobedience, publicly defying draft laws and refusing to cooperate with the Selective Service Act, the latter being an offense punishable by up to five years in prison.

Did I have any doubts about what we were doing? You bet. Here was a bunch of 20-yearolds taking on the most powerful entity in the world and all we had was a printing press out in the garage to make flyers. When I was or-

dered to report for induction, I refused to go inside the courthouse building. I knew exactly what would happen. I was arrested, indicted and put on trial in May of ’68 and convicted. Truthfully, I told my attorney not to fight it on technicalities even though there were numerous legal infractions. All across the country I’d been telling guys to be ready to go to prison, so I felt obliged to go. It was an act of civil disobedience. The law said you had to carry your draft card at all times and I refused to do that. Also, I refused to report for duty. Both were felonies and I was sentenced to three years in prison.

Talk about your time in prison. I served a month in San Francisco County Jail where I led my first strike. We weren’t going to put up with any of their shit, whether it was the food, medical care or visitation rights. Then they drove me to the federal prison camp at Safford, Arizona, where I stayed for seven months. Next, because of the role I played in a strike, they packed me off to the federal corrections institution at La Tuna, Texas, right outside El Paso. At each place, again because of the strikes, I did a total of four months in isolation, all of it at La Tuna. It was grim, but I didn’t let it eat me up—that’s what they want it to do. Somehow I got by. It helped that I was there for a cause I believed in. My approach was to be my own man and behave accordingly.

What was your longest time in solitary confinement? The longest stretch was 45 days. At La Tuna, isolation was in the basement. They take away your belt and your shoelaces so you can’t hang yourself; the only light is from a window high up the wall; there’s no light bulb in your cell; there’s no one in the cell across from you, so you never see whom you’re talking to—or yelling at; and there was nothing to read but the Bible, which I reread, and The Cross and the Switchblade, a cheesy memoir by

a Catholic priest; I swore I’d burn it if I ever saw it again. Oh, and they let you out once a week for a quick shower. The worst part of all of it was that I was a smoker—and smoking wasn’t allowed. I knew I couldn’t survive in isolation by wanting to be somewhere else, so I played mind games, invented stories and exercised in my cell.

How did it affect you? It was a learning experience, a coming-of-age, its own kind of manhood ritual not unlike—in form if not substance—the one I would have gone through had I enlisted in the Marine Corps.

After being released from prison you were a convicted felon, soon to be divorced, a father with joint custody of his son, without a job, and 15 units short of graduating from Stanford. What happened? I went back to organizing. Two weeks after I was released I was driving along the San Diego Freeway and heard on the news that Vietnam vets were throwing their medals on the White House lawn. I broke down and cried—back when I entered prison we’d been trying so hard to organize the soldiers, so this felt pretty damn good. In San Diego, we organized an ad hoc vote on whether or not the U.S.S. Constellation should return to Southeast Asia and resume bombing raids over Vietnam. A little later the peace accords were signed and I was 25 years old and needed a job.

So I wrote to Jann Wenner at Rolling Stone He knew of me and told me to submit something. I wrote a story titled “Ask a Marine” about a sergeant named Ron Kovic, which Kovic later wrote as Born on the Fourth of July. It eventually became the Oliver Stone–Tom Cruise movie of the same title. It was from there, I guess you’d say, that my career as a writer started.

There was, however, one interruption: nearly three years after I started at Rolling

Stone I ran for the U.S. Congress against the Republican Pete McCloskey—and I lost.

What causes you, or inspires you, to select a topic for one of your books? Let me start with the exception, Dreams Die Hard: Three Men’s Journey Through the Sixties. One night in 1980, I got a call from New York and a voice asked, “Do you know Allard Lowenstein?” I answered that I did and that I’d worked with him on several occasions. Then the caller wanted to know if I knew a man named Dennis Sweeney. After I said that some time ago Sweeney and I were good friends, I was told, “Lowenstein has just been shot and killed, and the killer has been identified as Dennis Sweeney.”

After my shock wore off, I got the inspiration for Dreams Die Hard. Obviously, it’s about the three of us. However, most of my books have come from instant impressions, such as The Last Stand, which resulted from a Chronicle article about Humboldt County and the battle for the Pacific Lumber Company that captured my interest. The same for Shooting the Moon, about General Noriega. Except for Dreams Die Hard, I started from scratch and did an enormous amount of research before starting to write.

As a “popular historian” do you have a personal hero? Is there one person in modern history that could have made a difference in America’s history, but for one reason or another, it didn’t happen? For me, the critical moment in America’s history would be the summer of ’68 and the assassination of Robert Kennedy. That act condemned the nation to almost another six years of war. In modern terms, it would be like Obama being killed before he got the Democratic nomination. As a result, the election of 1968 offered no real choice: it was Nixon versus Humphrey and both were hawks. If Kennedy had lived, he would have won and America would have been very different. The Vietnam War would have ended sooner and there wouldn’t have been Watergate. That was a defining time for America and it would have been different had Bobby Kennedy lived. However, he’s not my personal hero. My personal hero is Mahatma Gandhi.

Mill Valley Health Club & Spa

Specializing in Personal Fitness and Pilates Training

John Hoeber and Michael Hoeber Jenkins have been in business for over 18 years, providing high-quality exercise programs, clean and updated facilities, and a friendly, neighborhood feeling only a family-owned business can offer. If you want to experience more from a health club, please come as our guest free for two weeks. (Offer good for local, first time users.)

In celebration of 10 years in Mill Valley, we are offering a limited number of new memberships at 1999 prices:

$10 to join

$79 per month

(For the first 3 months with a one-year agreement; after 3 months, monthly dues will be 2009 prices. Please check with Membership Services for rates)

This offer is valid until February 28, 2009

UNFORGETTABLE IN EVERY WAY

With their own unique style, four Bay Area couples create magic on their wedding day.

BY NORA ISAACS

JULIE HOFFMAN & BILLY BREMER

OLOWALU PLANTATION HOUSE, MAUI

Julie Hoffman and Billy Bremer wanted a destination wedding that reflected their relaxed approach to life. So they decided to go straight to the epicenter of all things mellow: the Hawaiian island of Maui, where the slower pace of life is perfectly in sync with their laid-back outlook. The fact that they had never been there— nor would they even visit their wedding spot until the weekend of the event—didn’t faze this couple, who trusted not only fate but also the judgment of their wedding planner. The Mill Valley couple— she’s a schoolteacher originally from Texas; he’s a commercial real estate banker who grew up in Marin—left the job of finding the venue to Marinbased Barbara Gerraty of A White Orchid Wedding, who led them to Olowalu Plantation House, a private estate overlooking a rocky beach with island views.

The whole celebration took on the feeling of “island style.” Traveling guests arriving on Maui were welcomed with a luau-style dinner and spent the next day hanging around the pool. “It was just fun,” says Julie. “We got to see everybody and it took the pressure off the wedding.”

On the wedding day, 65 guests gathered on a grassy area near the estate to watch the couple walk down the aisle—Julie in bare feet and Billy in khakis—to a guitar-plucking Hawaiian version of “Somewhere Over the Rainbow”. “We love the beach. We’re hikers and swimmers, and it was really important for us to get married outside,” says Julie. After the ceremony, guests lounged on outdoor couches as the sun set. A few traditional rituals found their way into the reception: a cake-cutting ceremony and a bridal father-daughter dance.

Even though they had never been to Maui, says the bride, it turned out to be the setting for a dream come true. “I remember looking out at my friends and family and thinking that everybody I loved and wanted to be here came.”

Location: Olowalu Plantation House in Olowalu, Maui, Hawaii

Photographer: Tad Craig Photography, 808.579.9571, tadcraigphotography.com

Caterer: Cafe O’Lei Catering Company, 808.877.0073

Beverage service: Maui Bars R Us, 808.874.7083

Cake: Maui Wedding Cakes, mauiweddingcakes.com

Flowers: Teresa Sena Designs, 888.240.9336

Music: Ernest Puaa, dabarefootwarrior.com

Wedding planner: Barbara Gerraty, A White Orchid Wedding, 888.240.9336, whiteorchidwedding.com

Location: St. Regis San Francisco, stregis.com/ sanfrancisco

Photographer: Traci Griffin, tracigriffinphotography. com

Caterer: St. Regis

Cake: St. Regis (design by the bride)

Flowers: Wiggy Flowers, wiggyflowers.com

Music: Chris Debol, christherebel.com

Invitations: Mimi Yoo and Laika Huang

Dress: Monique Lhuillier, from Bridal Galleria

Hair/makeup: Taylor Pham, facesbytaylor.com

Video: Slava Basovich, guerilla-films.net

LAIKA HUANG & COLIN CHOW

ST. REGIS, SAN FRANCISCO

Corte Madera residents Laika Huang and Colin Chow envisioned a destination wedding that was modern and sophisticated—but definitely not stuffy. After getting engaged on Maui, they thought the Four Seasons on Maui would be the perfect place—but rethought that plan when the hotel began some construction. They wound up in the Bay Area, at San Francisco’s St. Regis—and they still got their vacation wedding: “Both of our families don’t live in this area, so it turns out that the Bay Area is a destination for most of our family,” says Laika, a merchandise manager at Restoration Hardware.

So friends and family from Asia, Los Angeles and New York gathered at the grand hotel, where the couple achieved their modern minimalist dream in a dramatic setting with ballroom and outdoor terrace. The atmosphere, which they describe as “Zen,” included details like invitations that came inside a box (made by the bride’s best friend and maid of honor) and an aisle flanked by rectangular metal structures alternating with horsetail reeds, river rocks and wheatgrass.

The couple incorporated customs to honor their Asian heritage. During the ceremony, they bowed to their parents in gratitude. “It’s a very Asian traditional thing,” says Laika. “It symbolizes thanks for all they’ve done for us and says now we will start our new life.” Later, she changed into a vintage orange and green kimono passed down from her grandmother. They wrote their own vows, and Laika’s brother sang at both the ceremony and the reception. A rumba-inspired first dance kicked off the celebration, followed by a father-daughter dance to “Twist and Shout,” a conga line and five hours of dancing. “Everyone had a blast. That’s what we wanted the wedding to be about,” Laika says.

SERENE MOUSSA & CONOR BUCKLEY

ST. VINCENT’S SCHOOL FOR BOYS, SAN RAFAEL

As high school sweethearts in Marin, both Serene Moussa and Conor Buckley knew they wanted to get married at a beautiful place in the area.

The other criteria? Someplace big to accommodate Conor’s big Irish family, Serene’s family traveling here from Egypt, and the large network of friends they’ve accrued over a lifetime in Marin.

After getting engaged on their ten-year dating anniversary, they knew where to look for the big day: Last year, Conor had volunteered at St. Vincent’s, a school for troubled boys in San Rafael. “It’s a place that not many people are aware of, unless they are a part of the community,” says Serene.

The couple also loved the old-world romantic feeling of the St. Vincent’s church. They added a few simple touches to accentuate the feeling: huge dahlias floated in the fountain, and they lined the aisle with freestanding wrought-iron candelabras, packed with white loose flowers and entwined with ivy trailing to the floor. After the ceremony the candelabras lit the courtyard for the reception.

“You get transported to another time when you are there,” says Serene. “All of the vendors did such a great job in transforming that space into something magical. Seeing everything come together, I just thought, ‘Wow!’”

The ceremony, conducted inside the chapel, included the Loving Cup ceremony, an ancient Celtic tradition that recognizes the anam cara, or soul friend, in one another. At the reception, each guest was greeted at the table with a peacock feather (the color palette of the party), favors that were soon tucked behind ears or into lapels as people moved to the music. At one point a belly dancer appeared, paying homage to Serene’s Palestinian roots. “It was a great eclectic mix of younger people and older people,” says Serene. “I have aerial shots of the crowd. There isn’t one person not on the dance floor!”

Underscoring their celebration of integrated themes from around the world, the couple danced their first dance to an upbeat song by the Spanish singer Manu Chao called “Trapped by Love,” which is partly in Spanish and partly in French. “It reflected the whole melding of cultures,” says Serene.

Location: St. Vincent’s School for Boys, San Rafael Photographer: Rosemarie Lion, 707.766.6955, lionphotography.com

Caterer: altacuisine, 415.898.3230, altacuisine.com

Cake: Branching Out, Jill Branch, Corte Madera, 415.924.0198, branchingoutcakes.com

Flowers: Waterlily Pond, San Francisco, 415.377.4435, waterlilypond.com

Wine vendor: Rick’s Wine Cellar Day-of coordinator: Jill Guiomar, Eventful Days, Castro Valley, 510.537.4978, eventfuldays.net

Dress: Amsale, 800.765. 0170, amsale.com

Ceremony: St. Patrick’s Catholic Church, San Francisco, 415.421.3730, stpatricksf.org

Reception: The Lodge at the Regency Center, San Francisco, 415.673.5716, regencycentersf. com/lodge.html

Photographer: Tu Photography, 415.455.9219, tuphotography.com

Caterer: Paula LeDuc, 888.443.4498, paulaleduc.com

Flowers: Asiel Design, 888.506.7673, asieldesign.com

Music: Orquesta Borinquen, 510.508.8210, borinquensalsa.com

Invitations: Kris Nations, 415.505.3866, krisnations.com

Wedding planner: MB Wedding Designs, 415.706.1677, mbweddingdesigns.com

Dress: Vera Wang

Bridal accessories (jewelry, hair adornment): Kris Nations, 415.505.3866, krisnations.com

Hair: Lizzy McNeill from Louie Hair Salon, 415.864.3012, louiehairsalon.com

Makeup: Stacy McClure from Makeup by Stacy, 415.377.0855, makeupbystacy.com

EMILY MORRIS & JAVIER SOLTERO

ST. PATRICK’S CATHOLIC CHURCH/LODGE AT THE REGENCY CENTER

Emily Morris and Javier Soltero’s romance has always been rich with surprises. When they met in San Francisco, they were shocked to discover they had attended the same college—but had never met. Eleven years later, they wanted a wedding with the same sense of drama.

The couple—she is a director of product marketing, he is CEO of a technology software company—are both Catholic, so a church wedding was important. They chose San Francisco’s St. Patrick’s church, a historical landmark downtown. In the ceremony, Javier’s brother accompanied the organist on the violin as the couple walked down the aisle. “As in any good wedding, there were some tearjerker moments,” says Javier.

After the traditional Catholic ceremony, the 85 guests were shuttled to the Lodge at the Regency Center on Sutter near Van Ness Avenue, a relatively obscure venue that few of their guests had ever seen, for a reception in an ornate room replete with dark wood. During cocktails the guests were kept sequestered outside the ballroom; then, at the appointed hour, they were ushered into the majestic space filled with dramatic greens, reds and purples. “We wanted to blow people’s minds and have them very captivated by the venue,” says Javier.

Another centerpiece of the celebration was the music—a closely guarded secret. As guests dined, an 11-piece salsa band quietly set up behind a curtain. Suddenly, the bandleader introduced himself and the curtain rose. “Everybody fell off their chair when they saw it!” says Javier. Next came “comedic attempts by people who have never done it to salsa-dance.”

They surprised guests by forgoing the traditional wedding cake for a huge array of handpicked desserts. The couple’s mission to dazzle guests with the unexpected was clearly a success. Does that foretell a big surprise for, say, the first anniversary? “We don’t like surprises for each other—we like giving them to other people,” Javier says.

ROOTS REMEMBERED

A house that carried its past into the future

BY P. J.

BREMIER PHOTOS BARBARA RIES

Abeautifully designed home, like the most chic style-setter, requires knowing how to edit— what to keep and what to discard. That’s the case with this California Mediterranean home, high on a Ross ridgetop, which was given an updated look during an extensive remodel four years ago.

The doors are 17th century, brought by the Spanish conquistadors to South America, where centuries later, the former owner of the house bought them.

But its new owners, who had purchased it a few years earlier, had fallen in love with — and were determined to preserve — keepsakes of its past, including its lavishly embellished front doors, a peaked pineplanked ceiling and 100 garden roses beloved by the previous owner, an accomplished rosarian.

“We loved the rustic hand-carved design of the front doors,” says the homeowner. The doors were 17th century, brought by the Spanish conquistadors to South America, where centuries later, the former owner of the house bought them, and subsequently inset them as panels in a new larger set of double doors. The couple also admired and kept the living room’s pine ceiling, which exuded an old-world feeling, studded with big iron braces and bolts. It serves as a perfect frame for a vista of Mount Tamalpais.

The home’s 19th-century hand-carved oak molding and a small sitting room chandelier found their way up a circular staircase into a tower room, whose windows open onto a view of the remodeled landscape, which includes 200 new rosebushes.

The garden of this 4.5-acre property, irrigated entirely by well water, is still tended by the same French gardener who has worked there

for 40 years. “He helps me grow a lot of the food that we enjoy all summer,” the homeowner says.

This recurring blend of continuity and freshness found its way into the architecture, too. The original house was about the same size and had Mediterranean styling, the homeowner says, “but we added many more style elements that are more in keeping with the California Mediterranean design: arches, curved walls and moldings, a graceful Wallace Neff–inspired entry loggia, elegant French doors and balconies, stone fountains and urns, and old-world lighting fixtures.”

The couple’s preference is a relaxed lifestyle, so they insisted on a beautiful home that also “looked like real people lived in it and who could put their feet up on the couch,” the wife says. “I had assembled a binder with images from magazines I had collected over several years that showed furniture and fixtures I liked. Linda Marks of Marks & Marks Design thumbed through the book and said, ‘OK, I get it.’ And she did.”

Using a restrained earth-tone color palette, Marks imbued the spaces with luxurious, natural materials: rich Cumaru wood laid in a herringbone pattern in the entry hall, true Italian terra-cotta in the kitchen and family rooms, custom wool rugs from Stark Carpets for the living room and master suite, and sumptuous window treatments in the master suite by Brunschwig & Fils and Cowtan & Tout. “Everything is classic,” Marks says.

She made sure the children’s bedrooms were playfully sophisticated and grounded them in saturated color to absorb, rather than reflect, the sunny exposure. The master suite is cool and serene, with a balcony that overlooks the garden and pool and a cozy anteroom that serves as offices, library and television room.

The downstairs is devoted to the pursuits of family and visitors with guest suites, a

gym, and separate rooms for billiards, media and projects.

Because the homeowners, supporters of Ross School and WildCare, like to entertain, they needed a kitchen that would support their efforts. The oversize granite island, Marks says, “is a great working and entertaining space” and the dumbwaiter eliminates extra trips by easily lifting groceries to the kitchen either from the car or the second refrigerator in the garage below.

Special attention was also paid to the home’s customized, keypad-controlled lighting schemes in order to create dimension and drama. “It doesn’t matter how beautiful the architecture or furnishings are,” says lighting designer Vita Pehar; “if they are lit inappropriately, it does not feel good.”

In the living room, for example, she used decorative wall sconces for ambience, lamps for reading and strategically placed lowvoltage spotlights to create interesting visual focal points.

Subtle lighting was important outside, too, where Michael B. Yandle’s eponymous Ross landscape architecture firm oversaw the landscape remodel. He wanted a “warm glow—like candlelight—that leads you through the garden.”

Special attention was paid to the home’s customized, keypad-controlled lighting schemes in order to create dimension and drama… decorative wall sconces for ambience, lamps for reading and strategically placed low-voltage spotlights to create interesting focal points.

“Sometimes,” he says, “you have to build drama into a site, but in this case the site, situated on a saddle ridge, has almost 360-degree views, so the key was not to conflict with the drama and scale of those magnificent off-site views.”

His design allowed the garden to unfold in a series of public and private spaces: some open and dramatic, others intimate and cloistered, and all linked by lawn or Santa Barbara sandstone.

Yandle kept the existing oak and cypress trees, but also imported Sevillano olive and English laurel trees; established boxwood and privet hedges; and planted the cascading terraces that flank the grand staircase with roses, perennials and bulbs and single cypress tress. Other beds, lush with fruit trees and even more roses, conceal a solar array that greatly reduces the home’s electricity usage.

It’s hard for the owners to pick just one space they enjoy most.

“Our favorite spaces change as the light changes,” the wife says. “In the morning, we love to read the paper and have coffee out on the south loggia and watch the light changing on Mount Tam. In the afternoon, we love to entertain friends or hang out with our kids and pets by the pool and enjoy the afternoon sun.”

“I pinch myself every day,” her husband adds. “We love living here.”

Contractor Bruce MacDougall & Kevin Clark

Interior designer Marks & Marks Design

Lighting designer Vita Pehar Design

Landscape Architect

Michael B. Yandle Landscape Architecture

Landscape Contractor S & S Landscaping

THEIR FARM,

YOUR TABLE

From

baby Bibb to Big

Island beef, Hawai‘i’s crops are thriving — and showing up on menus in force.

BY MIMI TOWLE

About the time many of us were glued to the television coverage of Operation Desert Storm and Kurt Cobain had us all wondering just how does teen spirit smell, a group of like-minded chefs got together in our 50th state and conceived the concept of Hawai‘i regional cuisine (HRC). The basic aim of these 12 culinary innovators, among them Bev Gannon, Alan Wong, George Mavrothalassitis and Sam Choy, was to take advantage of the freshest island ingredients: livestock raised on the islands, fruits and vegetables grown in rich volcanic soil, fresh fish from the Pacific. Did they expect HRC to become a sought-after menu enhancement? “Absolutely not!” Gannon says. “We created HRC because we were tired of getting inferior products from the mainland, so we got together with the farmers (who were shipping their entire crops offshore), the fisherman and anyone

willing to raise cattle and asked them to work with us. ”

Is HRC the same as farm-to-table?

“Not really,” Gannon says. Both movements do share a commitment to quality local products, but HRC arose more from a desire to celebrate the heritage of Hawai‘i’s myriad ethnicities, while farmto-table’s raison d’être is sustainability. Still: “Everyone I talk to, including food vendors, is moving toward a more sustainable way of doing business because it just makes good business sense,” Gannon observes. “The benefits for the environment and preserving our fragile island ecology are fantastic and (the recognition of that) is now very commonplace in Hawai‘i.”

Up-and-coming chef Ryan Loo, who is stirring up the Waikiki waterfront with his new restaurant Twist at Hanohano in the Sheraton hotel, respects his culinary forebears and credits chefs like Wong and Gannon for setting a great example and creating a market for local farmers.

“Even in the past 10 years local farmers (have been) establishing themselves with crops like microgreens and specialty fruits,” he points out. “Because of our great weather and soil, the diversity of fruits and vegetables is endless.”

To sample this newfound bounty of paradise, we’ve singled out a few both new and classic examples of Hawai‘i regional cuisine.

MAUI

In step with the Fairmont Kea Lani’s commitment to the environment, Ko, which means “sugarcane,” has brought Maui-born executive chef Jake Belmonte on board at this Wailea resort. Chef Belmonte has forged partnerships with local farmers to offer fare like ahi “On the Rock” sashimi spiced with orange-ginger-miso sauce, and lobster tempura served with spicy sesame, pineapple, sweet chili garlic, and grapefruit soy sauces. For those who prefer a bit of hemoglobin in their protein, he’s got Maui Cattle Company “paniolo” rib-eye steak and coconut-curry lamb chops marinated and grilled with mango-mint salsa. As a father of two with his own backyard garden, he is passionate about sustainability. “We all need to cultivate a sustainable lifestyle. For over a decade, local farmers have been producing more and more island-grown products. Hawai‘i is an abundant source of sustainable products, and its future (potential) for renewable energy is like a gold mine.” 800.441.1414, fairmont.com

Google “farm-to-table Maui,” and chef James McDonald of Pacific‘o, I‘o and the gourmet luau feast at Lele is first to appear. As he picks a gorgeous grapefruit, the says “The fertile volcanic soil of Hawai‘i offers so much variety for growing,” says the chef as he picks a gorgeous grapefruit.

ALAN WONG

HAWAI‘I REGIONAL CUISINE WAS CREATED BY THE FOLLOWING 12 CHEFS:

LEFT : Chef James McDonald buying produce for Pacific’o and I’o in upcountry Maui with TV chef Andrew Zimmern. UPPER : Bev Gannon, an original HRC chef. LOWER : Jake Belmonte prepares a meal in his kitchen at the Farimont Kea Lani.

Based on Oahu and the chef/owner of the original Alan Wong’s Restaurant (Honolulu, Oahu), the Pineapple Room by Alan Wong at Macy’s in Ala Moana Center (Honolulu, Oahu), Hualalai Grille by Alan Wong at Hualalai Resort (Kaupulehu, Hawai‘i’s Big Island). ROY YAMAGUCHI Based on Oahu and the chef/owner of the original Roy’s in Hawai‘i Kai (Honolulu, Oahu), as well as 6 other locations throughout the state: Roy’s Waikiki Beach (Oahu), Roy’s Ko Olina (Oahu), Roy’s Kihei (Maui), Roy’s Poipu Bar & Grill (Kaua‘i), Roy’s Kahana Bar & Grill (Maui), and Roy’s Waikoloa Bar & Grill (Hawai‘i’s Big Island). Also, 28 locations in the continental U.S., 1 in Japan, and 1 in Guam. GEORGE MAVROTHALASSITIS Based on Oahu and the chef/owner of Chef Mavro restaurant in Honolulu. PETER MERRIMAN Based on Hawai‘i’s Big Island and the chef/owner of the original Merriman’s Waimea (Hawai‘i’s Big Island), Merriman’s Kapalua (Maui), and Merriman’s Poipu (Kaua‘i).

AMY FERGUSON OTA Based on Hawai‘i’s Big Island and the chef/owner of O’s Bistro in Kailua-Kona (Hawai‘i’s Big Island) BEVERLY GANNON Based on Maui and the chef/owner of Hali‘imaile General Store,

Last year, Gourmet named his eateries to its list of top restaurants with farm connections. Menus feature items like Maui steak with roasted garlic cloves, oyster mushrooms and pahole (fern shoots) and award-wining “Hapa Hapa tempura.” His farm provides most of the produce, including Tahitian limes, tomatoes, stir-fried veggies and fresh herbs. All three venues offer Maui-grown range-fed beef that “has a serious island flavor,” McDonald says (Lahaina). 808.667.4341, pacificomaui.com; 808.661.8422, iomaui.com; 866.244.5353, feastatlele.com

Despite the long drive to get to Bev Gannon’s Hali‘imale General Store, this 150-seat casual spot nestled in an upcountry pineapple field has been a dining institution since its opening in 1988. Why? The food. “Whenever possible, I source local products,” she asserts. In part that’s because “I feel a responsibility to use what is grown and cultivated as close as possible to my restaurants, but mostly, my guests get a better product on their plate.” Fish such as ahi, opakapaka, ono and mahimahi are easy to source wild; farmraised Kaua‘i prawns, moi (Pacific threadfin), Kampachi (Hawai‘ian yellowtail) and abalone. In the past, when she’s tried to jazz up signature dishes like Meyer lemon chicken breast, Hunan lamb, crab pizza and pineapple upside down cake, her customers have revolted. They love the menu and won’t let her change it—though she does add a few seasonal treats. Diners can also get a taste of her culinary talents at Joe’s (named after her husband) in Wailea and at the Hotel Lana‘i. Gannon is executive chef for Hawai‘ian Airlines and travels to each operational hub to train chefs to use their own local food sources. “Obviously, it is working,” she says, “as we are always voted in the top if not number one in airline food surveys” (Hali‘imale). Hali‘imale General Store, 808.572.2666; Joe’s (Wailea), 808.875.7767; bevgannonrestaurants.com

Established in 1990, the Lahaina Grill has been rated best Maui restaurant in Honolulu magazine’s reader poll for 15 years in a row. For 11 of these years, Jurg Münch, a Swiss-born-andtrained, Asia-raised master chef, has been at the helm, and he’s dedicated to using the island’s bounty as the backbone of his menu, which includes Kona lobster crab cake, kalua duck and osso buco, all sourced from the islands (Lahaina). 808.667.5117, lahainagrill.com

Big Chain, Local Links With already one Hawai‘i Whole Foods and three more planned for the near future, the Austinbased grocery chain recently broke ground for a Maui Mall location, due to open in spring 2010, attendees were invited to sample radishes, pineapples and strawberries from Maui, papayas from Molokai, cucumbers and broccoli from the Big Island and tomatoes from Oahu. The store is looking for area suppliers big and small, organic where possible; island companies including Surfing Goat Dairy, Maui Brewing Company, Howard’s Nurseries and Kula Grown Organic Produce have already signed on with the Hawai‘i locations. Whole Foods has a local loan program that can provide up to $100,000 for established suppliers to improve or expand their operations, says Claire Sullivan, community and vendor relations coordinator for the chain.

Joe’s Simply Delicious Food in Wailea, and Celebrations Catering (all on Maui), as well culinary advisor for the Lana‘i City Grille in the Hotel Lana‘i (Lana‘i). GARY STREHL Formerly the executive chef at the Hawai‘i Prince Hotel Waikiki and now based in Washington, D.C., as director of food and beverage at the L’Enfant Plaza Hotel.

JEAN-MARIE JOSSELIN Based in Las Vegas and former chef/owner of A Pacific Cafe restaurants on Kaua‘i, Oahu (Honolulu) and Maui and current chef/owner of 808 Restaurant at Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas, with the status of a planned new restaurant in Honolulu (Oahu) unknown. MARK ELLMAN Based on Maui and the chef/owner of 9 Maui Tacos shops on Oahu, Maui, and Hawai‘i’s Big Island, as well as the Penne Pasta Café and Mala Ocean Tavern, both in Lahaina (Maui). PHILIPPE PADOVANI Based on Oahu and former chef/owner of the now-closed Padovani’s Restaurant and Wine Bar in Waikiki, currently chef/co-owner of Elua Restaurant and Wine Bar in the L’Uraku Tower in Honolulu. ROGER DIKON Former executive chef at the Maui Prince Resort on Maui, but no current information found. SAM CHOY Based on Oahu and former chef/owner of the now-closed Sam Choy’s Diamond Head Restaurant, currently chef/owner of Sam Choy’s Breakfast, Lunch & Crab Restaurant in Honolulu and Sam Choy’s Guam Restaurant. *information provided by Hawai‘i Visitor and Convention Bureau Kapalua Farms Restaurants at Kapalua Resort, including Pineapple Grill, the Plantation House Restaurant, Honolua Store Deli and Kapalua Adventure Center Cafe, have paired with Kapalua Farms, right up the road. A division of Maui Land and Pineapple, the farm operation has recently expanded sustainable food production to create a more keiki-size carbon footprint. “The day is coming when a tomato grown in California will be much more costly (here), both financially and environmentally, than a tomato grown in Hawai‘i,” notes MLP executive David Cole. “We can no longer rely on other people and places for our food and fuel. The business advantage of sustainable local food production is the assurance that we will have food when we need it.” Check the menus for locally grown produce and go ahead and indulge in that three-egg omelet or soufflé; the eggs are from the farm’s freerange hens. kapalua.com

OAHU

Ever since George Mavrothalassitis opened his Honolulu restaurant Chef Mavro in the late ’90s, the former executive chef of Halekulani’s famed La Mer has been a leading purveyor of Hawai‘i regional cuisine. Through the years he has received such kudos as the James Beard award, being listed among Hawai‘i’s top 40 restaurants (with 18 out of a possible 20 stars) by gayot.com, and a Gourmet write-up citing his eatery as “where we would eat if we had only one night in Honolulu.” While today there are many more one-night-worthy options, Mavro has maintained his innovator status. Abalone and flounder have joined his menu’s list of farmed options from the Kona Coast via the Natural Energy Laboratory of Hawai‘i Authority (NELHA); fall dishes include abalone ceviche with croquettes of cod, red chimichuri and essence of cilantro as well as a crispy fillet of flounder with rice-flake crust, braised green papaya, broccolini florets and house tamarind curry. Sometimes buying local means the cost is higher and sometimes it takes more time, but the reward is huge, Mavrothalassitis says. “Local farmers succeed, and my guests enjoy fresh, regional ingredients and a dining experience they could

FAR LEFT : Chef George Mavrothalassitis of Chef Mavro LEFT : Up and coming chef Ryan Loo of Twist at Hanohano BELOW : Ahi appetizer from the Fairmont Kea Lani.

have only in Hawai‘i.” For those who want to get their hands sticky and bring home culinary tricks, he leads gourmet Hawai‘ian cooking classes (Honolulu). 808.944.4714, chefmavro.com

Finally, the menu from this Sheraton Waikiki eatery is on par with its fabulous Pacific views. The new name Twist at Hanohano (formerly Hanohano Room) was inspired by chef Ryan Loo’s culinary approach: tradition with a twist. “I love to use classical techniques with new visions and flavors people may not be familiar with, like a Caesar made with locally harvested baby Bibb,” says Oahu-born Loo. He makes a point of supporting area farmers, choosing baby herbs, oyster mushrooms and vegetables from nearby Waimanalo (on Oahu) and lobster from Kona. He’s likewise created a twist on the ol’ prix fixe: diners can build their own multicourse dinner with a three-, four- or five-course option. As a local, Loo sees cooking as a celebration of heritage. “I find the bounty from the land and sea of Hawai‘i enables us, as hosts, to prepare foods that tantalize the palate with simplicity of flavor,” he says. “What better way is there to showcase Hawai‘i than through the diversity of our culture and cuisine? Visitors don’t want to come here and have something they can eat at home” (Waikiki). 808.922.4422, starwood.com

Ed Kenney and David Caldiero have created not one but two farmto-table venues, Town and Downtown, both of which support local farms, use organic ingredients where possible and serve pasta and bread made from scratch. Some specialties like grass-fed burgers are made from North Shore Cattle Company beef or USDA-approved Kulana wild boar (fatty enough to make sausage and prosciutto) from the Big Island. A favorite vendor is Ma‘o Organic Farms, a five-acre nonprofit on the west side of Oahu founded to build community and give positive direction to disaffected local youth. (Kaimuki). 808.735.5900, townkaimuki.com

His empire has expanded to the Big Island and Japan; meanwhile, Alan Wong’s namesake restaurant in Honolulu was listed in Food & Wine magazine’s Go List 2008. It’s still serving up dishes that made him famous, like twice-cooked short ribs, butter-poached Kona lobster and “H.R. Caesar” salad made with baby Maui romaine and kalua pig. His definition of the concept he helped create? “Hawai‘i regional cuisine is the contemporary style of cooking in Hawai‘i today. It’s eclectic, EastWest. It utilizes all of the ethnic influences found in Hawai‘i today and is representative of Hawai‘i being called the melting pot of the Pacific.” Look for his monthly farm-to-table series on his website (Honolulu). 808.949.2526, alanwongs.com

KAUA‘I

Postcards Cafe is known for its homey style, multicultural island-grown organic vegetarian cuisine, and fresh seafood. Diners won’t find meat, poultry, refined sugar or food with chemical additives on the menu, and many dishes are vegan. Appetizers include Thai summer rolls, made with local shredded carrots and cabbage, basil, cilantro and mint, and the unique Hanalei taro fritters, described as “tasty polenta-crusted taro with pineapple ginger chutney.” Stay veggie for dinner or try the local seafood. If you’re lucky, ahi is the fresh catch; the blackened ahi gets rave reviews (Hanalei). 808.826.1191, postcardscafe.com

Executive chef Ben Takahashi, new to his post at the Sheraton Kaua‘i Resort, comes to the table(s) with impressive HRC cachet. For the past few decades he’s worked on most of Hawai‘i’s major islands, befriending many of their farmers along the way. Now, on Kaua‘i he is discovering new favorites like goat cheese and the Kaua‘i salt ponds’ salt, which he uses to brine poultry and pork. “I like to utilize food from our local farmers and fisherman in my cooking,” he says. “It’s better for my customers and it’s good for the sustainability of the state; it’s good to be green.” As of this fall, Takahashi oversees Shells, the Point and Naniwa restaurants on the Sheraton’s Poipu property (Poipu). 808.742.1661, starwoodhotels.com

LANA‘I

Besides the two resorts, the only other place to get a meal here is the boutique Lana‘i Hotel, where Bev Gannon has created a culinary destination. Chef Mike Davis grows herbs to complement locally grown roasted root vegetables as well as standbys like meat loaf, rotisserie chicken and fresh island fish. 808.565.7211, hotellanai.com

As most Lana‘i visitors stay at either Manele Bay or the Lodge at Koele, most of their dining options are overseen by executive chef Oliver Beckert, who draws from nearby food sources as much as he can. “Four Seasons Resorts Lana‘i supports local farmers and fisherman because they offer the freshest quality produce, picked in its prime,” he says. The restaurants buy produce from Bennie’s Farm on Lana‘i; greens and specialty fruit come from Adaptations farm on the Big Island and mushrooms are from Hamakua mushroom farm on Hawai‘i. While the lamb is from Colorado and the squab from Washington, Beckert doesn’t go far for the daily ocean catch.

“Hawai‘ian seafood is considered the best in the world, ranging from opakapaka to Pacific snapper,” he notes. “The quality and freshness are outstanding. The fish is caught in the morning and served the same evening.” Manele Bay, 808.565.2000; Lodge at Koele, 808.565.4000, fourseasons.com/Lanai

HAWAI‘I/BIG ISLAND

Celebrating its 20th year in business, Merriman’s, a low-key eatery in the sleepy town of Waimea, has been named “Best Big Island Restaurant” by Honolulu magazine for 11 consecutive years. Although it was founded by HRC pioneer Peter Merriman, chef Neil Murphy runs the kitchen these days and is earning rave reviews for his Hawai‘i farm-to-table-driven menu. “I take time to get to know the farmers and I accept all that they bring into our kitchen,” he explains. “We showcase the food, not complicated preparation, so our guests authentically taste the organically grown lettuce or vine-ripe tomatoes from down the road” (Waimea). 808.885.6822, merrimanshawaii.com

It’s not much of a surprise that at Kona Village, the resort known for “unplugged Hawai‘i” and eco-friendliness, executive chef Mark Tsuchiyama’s first priority is food from local vendors. Look for Waimea-grown tomatoes and greens, hearts of palm, goat cheese, fresh island fish, famous Kona coffee and even island wild boar on the menus throughout the property. Tsuchiyama has established relationships with boat captains to ensure freshly caught island fish as well as abalone, lobster and cold-water fish from nearby NELHA. “My goal is to always have what is brought to the table come from the freshest ingredients possible,” he asserts (Kona). 808.325.5555, konavillage.com

Good food is easy to find throughout the Four Seasons Haulalai resort. Executive chef James Babian, ever committed to local vendors, has a metaphysical take on his art. “Dining should be a culinary adventure for the soul, from the delicate aroma of herbs picked fresh from our own gardens and produce from Hawai‘i island farmers to a visually inspiring presentation to a level of service that is unsurpassed. All of these elements, in a breathtaking oceanfront setting, create a memorable and complete dining experience.” Signature items at award-winning upscale oceanfront restaurant Pahu i‘a include the Hawai‘ian Anthology Appetizer; Pacific Seafood Ragout with red pepper–coconut sauce; and pan-seared “Kona Blue” Kampachi or amberjack, raised offshore. 808.325.8000, fourseasons.com/hualalai

www.visit-oahu.com

Sips of Paradise

BY LESLIE HARLIB

The venerable 10-day Kona Coffee Festival, Hawai‘i’s oldest food festival and America’s only coffee festival, helps position the beans as brown gold. Held every year in early November, it’s rich in gourmet food and coffee tastings and coffee plantation tours.

“All growing here is on the rise,” says Ken Love, a farmer who founded the thriving Saturday morning Kailua-Kona farmers’ market three years ago. “But diversifying is the only way to be successful. You can’t just grow coffee. Because the climate here allows us to produce fruits and vegetables year-round, every month there’s something different to sell.”

Love raises coffee along with scores of varieties of avocados and bananas, yard-long ice cream beans, jackfruits as big as exercise balls and a multitude of other tropical fruits and berries, all characterized by sweet or sour flavors so intense, they detonate in the mouth.

The Big Island is also home to thriving cacao, vanilla and tea plantations, as well as sustainable hearts of palm farms and macadamia nut orchards. At the Natural Energy Laboratory of Hawai‘i Authority (NELHA), on more than 300 acres of coastline adjacent to the Kona airport, aquaculture is thriving: lobster, shrimp, oysters, abalone, Kampachi and sea horses are just some of the creatures in production, as is the bottled water called Kona Deep, made from desalinated 1,000-year-old seawater. Visitors are welcome to tour all these operations.

But Kona coffee is arguably the most elegant of crops. Coffee orchards such as the ones at Ueshima Coffee Corporation, where the event’s picking contest was held, conjure the pristine beauty of Napa vineyards. Rows of perfectly groomed trees are interspersed with strips of short-mown grass neat enough to golf on.

The trees are pruned to around eight feet in height because ripe coffee berries, as red as cranberries and with a smooth, firm skin, must be picked by hand. Once hulled, dried and

roasted, the beans themselves (whitish-tan in their natural state, surrounded by gooey jelly) develop exquisite floral, nutty and winey flavors. And like wine, they reflect the terroir of Kona’s mineral-rich volcanic soil.

At a Sunday afternoon art-and-coffee stroll held throughout Holualoa, a Kona town at an elevation of 1,200 feet that’s rife with the feel of old Hawai‘i, visitors had the opportunity to taste coffees from more than 30 of Hawai‘i’s independent growers. Like at wine tastings, I fell in love with my favorite brews and discovered that Kona coffee’s at its best when the beans are medium-roasted—the fruity and nutty subtleties aren’t drowned out by the burned undertone typical of dark roasts.

A must-try is the new Holuakoa Gardens Cafe, an outdoor jungle-covered restaurant with its own 50-foot koi pond. Owned by a former New York chef, it’s representative of Hawai‘i’s burgeoning slow food movement, serving only island-grown organic produce, grass-fed beef and local fish. And the kitchen turns out the most exquisite lilikoi cheesecake, made with fresh-squeezed passion fruit juice, you’ll ever taste.

Even the simplest food businesses are getting into the artisan act. Naai Colborn, a trained pastry chef in her 20s and the new owner of Chris’s Bakery in the little town of Kealakekua, makes from-scratch whole wheat malassadas, the square deep-fried Hawai‘ian doughnuts dusted with sugar that are like New Orleans beignets. “Most people here haven’t even had baked goods from scratch anymore,” Colborn said as I watched her roll out a mass of dough at 6 a.m. “It’s more meaningful when someone can taste something that’s handmade.”

Elegant Kona coffee and a down-home doughnut: that contrast of high-end and earthy is what the best of the Big Island today is all about.

IF YOU GO:

The Kona Coffee Festival takes place for 10 days from the first to second week in November, in and around the Kailua-Kona region of Hawai‘i. For information, visit konacoffeefest.com.

Sheraton Keauhou Bay Resort & Spa, Kona, Hawai‘i. Known for its meandering pool with waterfall and waterslide, the hotel is just a seven-minute drive from the coffee belt

towns. Oceanfront rooms come with amazing views and the sound of booming surf against black lava rocks. sheratonkeauhou.com

Outrigger Hotel, Kona, Hawai‘i. Sister resort to the Sheraton, this hotel sits on the site of an ancient Hawai‘ian village and features tide pools along with some of the best snorkeling spots on the Big Island. The new Sunday night buffet ($18.95) showcases traditional Hawai‘ian home cooking. outrigger.com

Lilikoi Inn, Holualoa, Hawai‘i. Owned by a former Berkeley couple, this homey bed-andbreakfast is also a working Kona coffee farm (600 trees). Breakfasts, made from scratch, feature lilikoi products. lilikoiinn.com

WHERE TO EAT:

Teshima’s, 79-7251 Mamalahoa Hwy., Kealakekua, Hawai‘i. It started as a general store in 1929 and has been a restaurant since 1940. Original owner Mrs. Teshima,

102, will still be your host. The specialty: simple Japanese food at unbeatably low prices.

Holuakoa Cafe, 76-5901 Mamalahoa Hwy., Holualoa, Hawai‘i, 808.322.2233. Outdoor dining at its best, with organic produce and a seasonally changing menu.

Keauhou Farmers’ Market, every Saturday from 8 a.m. to noon in the parking lot of the Keauhou Shopping Center, 76-6831 Ali‘i Dr., Kailua-Kona. keauhoufarmersmarket.com. Mrs. Teshima, 102, original owner of Teshima’s

Marin Magazine’s Fourth Annual Wedding Resource Guide

You’re engaged! Congratulations—the engagement period is the start of a wonderful journey together. Marin Magazine’s fourth annual Wedding Resource Guide puts all the details in one place, giving you a boost to create your perfect wedding day. In these pages you will find lists of our favorite bridal boutiques, venues, bakeries, florists, photographers, jewelers, salons and more. Everything has been carefully chosen by our editorial staff to reflect a variety of styles, whether it’s an extravagant affair at a posh hotel, a local ceremony at Old St. Hilary’s or a sunset event in Hawaii. For brides, it’s a personal little book of contacts to help turn the dream into a reality. Happy planning!

BRIDAL GOWNS & BRIDESMAIDS’ DRESSES

Alexandra Bridal Salon 251 Post St, 2nd floor, SF Phone 415.951.0400

Web alexandrasalon.com

And Something Blue 2000 Washington St, SF Phone 415.409.0214

Web shopandsomethingblue.com

Bella Bridesmaid 2250 Union St, Ste 1B Phone 415.931.5492

Web bellabridesmaid.com

Bridal Galleria 3 Embarcadero Center, SF Phone 415.362.2277

Web bridalgalleria.com

Cena Jane 709 Broadway, Sonoma Phone 415.485.5550

Web cenajane.com

Forget Me Knots Bridal 1738 Union St, Ste 101, SF Phone 415.921.0838

Web forgetmeknotsbridal.com

Group Lili 7950 Redwood Dr, # 15 Cotati Phone 707.793.1100

Web grouplili.com

Jin Wang 111 Maiden Lane, 3rd floor, SF Phone 415.397.9111

Web jinwang.net

Joan Gilbert Bride San Francisco Phone 415.752.1808

Web joangilbertbride.com

Lea Designs 27 Ross Common, Ross Phone 415.461.4804

Marina Morrison 30 Maiden Lane, SF Phone 415.984.9360

Web marinamorrison.com

Neiman Marcus Bridal Salon 150 Stockton St, SF Phone 415.362.3900

Web neimanmarcus.com

Priscilla of Boston 170 Grant Ave, 2nd Floor, SF

Phone 800.664.3309

Web priscillaofboston.com

Shadows

429 San Anselmo Ave, San Anselmo

Phone 415.459.0574

Web shadowsjewelry.com

Sylvia Bentcheva Couture

863 Magnolia Ave, Larkspur

Phone 415.924.6413

Web sbcouture.com

TUXEDOS

Gene Hiller

729 Bridgeway, Sausalito

Phone 415.332.3636

Web genehiller.com

Louis Thomas

211 Corte Madera Town Center

Phone 415.924.1715

Web louisthomas.com

Selix Formalwear

874 Fourth St, San Rafael

Phone 415.455.0830

Web selix.com

ACCESSORIES

20/20

1127 Fourth St, San Rafael

Phone 415.453.2020

Web 2020opticalinc.com

Mill Valley Hat Box

118 Throckmorton Ave, Mill Valley

Phone 415.383.2757

Web millvalleyhatbox.com

CATERERS

All Seasons Catering

201 Seminary Dr, Mill Valley

Phone 415.383.9355

Web allseasonscatering.com

Alta Cuisine

1555 S. Novato Blvd, Novato

Phone 415.898.3230

Web altacuisine.com

An Affair to Remember

196 Market St, San Rafael

Phone 415.459.6505

Web remembercatering.com

Back to Earth Organic

Berkeley

Phone 510.652.2000

Web organiccatering.com

Elaine Bell Catering Company

254 First St, East Sonoma Phone 707.996.5226

Web elainebellcatering.com

Michael Goldstein Catering

PO Box 5175, Novato Phone 415.382.2053

Web mgccevents.com

Paula LeDuc Fine Catering

1350 Park Ave, Emeryville Phone 510.547.7825

Web paulaleduc.com

CAKES

Branching Out

Corte Madera

Phone 415.924.0198

Web branchingoutcakes.com

Emporio Rulli

464 Magnolia Ave, Larkspur

Phone 415.924.7473

Web rulli.com

Gerhard Michler

950 Illinois St, SF

Phone 415.861.5158

Web gerhardmichler.com

I Dream of Cake

1351 Grant Ave, SF Phone 415.989.253

Web idreamofcake.com

Sweet Things

1 Blackfield Dr, Tiburon Phone 415.388.8583

Web sweetthings.com

Victoria Pastry Co. 209 Bon Air Center, Greenbrae Phone 415.461.3099

Web victoriapastry.com

BEAUTY/SPA

Art of the Eye

141 Bon Air Center, Greenbrae Phone 415.461.7500

Web artofeye.com

Blue Mercury 1624 Redwood Hwy, Corte Madera

Phone 415.924.5400

Web bluemercury.com

Cavallo Point Healing Arts Center

601 Murray Circle, Sausalito

Phone 415.339.4700

Web cavallopoint.com

Champagne Salon & Day Spa

1 Blackfield Dr, Tiburon Phone 415.380.9111

Web champagnesalonanddayspa.com

Christopher Salon 90 Main St, Tiburon Phone 415.435.0111

Web christopher-salon.com

Evo Spa

216 Strawberry Village, Mill Valley Phone 415.383.3223

Web evo-spa.com

Flying Beauticians

18 E. Blithedale, Ste 11, Mill Valley Phone 415.381.8134

Web flyingbeauticians.com

Gina Khan Salon/Yosh 173 Maiden Lane, SF Phone 415.989.7704

Web ginakhan.com

Joseph Cozza Salon 30 Maiden Lane, SF Phone 415.433.3030

Web josephcozzasalon.net

Lili S Salon

219 Caledonia St, Sausalito Phone 415.332.8700

Web lilissalon.com

Magnolia Avenue Salon 1133 Magnolia Ave, Larkspur Phone 415.461.9616

Web magnoliaavenuesalon.net

Milvali

3 E. Blithedale, Mill Valley Phone 415.388.0988

Web milvali.com

NewSkin Clinic Bay Club Marin, Corte Madera Phone 415.945.9555

Web newskinclinic.com

NH2 Salon 208 Vintage Way, Novato Phone 415.897.8777

Web nh2salon.com

Red Door Salon & Spa 126 Post St, SF Phone 415.989.4888

Web reddoorspas.com

Sen Spa

1161 Gorgas Ave, SF Phone 415.441.1777

Web senspa.com

77 Maiden Lane

77 Maiden Lane, SF

Phone 415.391.7777

Web 77maidenlane.com

Smooth Operations

822 D St, # 5, San Rafael

Phone 415.710.9711

Web smoothoperationsmarin.com

Stellar Spa

26 Tamalpais Dr, Corte Madera

Phone 415.924.7300

Web stellarspa.com

The Laser Center

770 Tamalpais Dr, Ste 301, CM

Phone 415.945.9314

Web marinlaser.com

FLORISTS

Bloomers of Larkspur

501 Magnolia Ave, Larkspur

Phone 415.927.7422

Web bloomersoflarkspur.com

Bloomworks

200 Bon Air Shopping Center, Greenbrae

Phone 415.464.8166

Web bloomworksfloral.com

Catherine Scott Flowers

San Rafael

Phone 415.453.6354

Web catherinescottflowers.com

Hearts and Flowers

1550 Tiburon Blvd, Tiburon Phone 415.435.1972

Lady Bug

1303 Bridgeway, Sausalito Phone 415.332.2414

Local Flora

100 Red Hill Ave, San Anselmo

Phone 415.459.4490

Web marinflora.com

Passion Flowers

215 Corte Madera Ave, Corte Madera

Phone 415.927.3983

INVITATIONS

Folio

1118 Magnolia Ave, Larkspur

Phone 415.461.0120

Gooseberry Press

541 Barien Way, SF

Phone 415.601.5135

Web gooseberrypress.com

Leila Press

Mill Valley Phone 415.309.3790

Web leilapress.com

Petite Paperie

643 E. Blithedale, Mill Valley Phone 415.381.3711

Web petite-paperie.com

Pine Street Papery

42 1/2 Caledonia, Sausalito Phone 415.332.5458

Popapery

228 Bon Air Center, Greenbrae Phone 415.461.8084

Ram Print and Communications

601 Strawberry Village, Mill Valley Phone 415.383.4177

Web ramprint.com

The Wedding Shoppe

316 Bon Air Center, Greenbrae Phone 415.461.1802

JEWELERS

Alix & Company

55 Throckmorton Ave, Mill Valley Phone 415.380.0880

Web alixandcompany.com

Amir H. Mozaffarian

155 Post St, SF Phone 415.391.9995

Web mozzafarian.com

Arth & Co.

210 Post St #1004, SF Phone 415.986.3660

Ashley Morgan Designs San Francisco

Phone 415.205.6228

Web ashleymorgandesigns.com

Bailey, Banks & Biddle 1728 Redwood Hwy, Corte Madera

Phone 415.924.0494

Web baileybanksandbiddle.com

Bulgari

237 Post St, SF Phone 415.399.9141

Web bulgari.com

Cartier

250 Post St, SF Phone 415.397.3180

Web cartier.com

David Clay Jewelers

1872 Union St, SF Phone 415.922.4339

Web davidclayjewelers.com

De Beers

185 Post St, SF Phone 415.391.1400

Web debeers.com

Deleuse Jewelers

1771 Tiburon Blvd, Tiburon Phone 415.435.2484

Web deleusejewelers.com

Johann Paul Jewelers

272 Bon Air Center, Greenbrae Phone 415.461.1866

Web johannpauljeweler.com

John Atencio

845 Market St, SF

Phone 415.947.0300

Web johnatencio.com

Julianna’s Fine Jewelry

The Village at Corte Madera

Phone 415.924.9711

Web juliannasfinejewelry.com

Lang Antiques

323 Sutter St, SF Phone 415.982.2213

Web langantiques.com

Lehrer Designs Jewelry 1137 Magnolia, Larkspur Phone 415.461.2212

Web lehrerdesigns.com

LuLu Designs

124 Locust Ave, Mill Valley Phone 415.378.7567

Web luludesignsjewelry.com

Mar-Chet Jewelers 326 San Anselmo Ave, San Anselmo Phone 415.453.8963

Old Gold

17 Main St, Tiburon

Phone 415.789.9583

Web oldgoldjewelry.com

Rafael Jewelers

1200 Fourth St, San Rafael Phone 415.453.3580

Web rafaeljewelers.com

Shapur Mozaffarian Fine Jewelry

272 Post St, SF

Phone 415.392.1200

Shreve & Co.

200 Post St, SF

Phone 415.421.2600

Web shreve.com

Simayof

1934 Union St &

295 Geary St, SF

Phone 415.929.6200, 415.391.0152

Web simayof.com

Spirits in Stone

585 Bridgeway, Sausalito

Phone 415.332.2388

Web spiritsinstone.com

Stephan-Hill Jewelry

1226 Fourth St, San Rafael

Phone 415.459.5808

Web stephanhill.com

Stuart Moore

1898 Union St, SF

Phone 415.292.1430

Web stuartmoore.com

Tiffany & Co.

350 Post St, SF

Phone 415.781.7000

Web tiffany.com

Union Street Goldsmith

1909 Union St, SF

Phone 415.776.8048

Web unionstreetgoldsmith.com

Valentino Fine Jewelers

814 Grant Ave, Novato

Phone 415.898.1915

Web valentinogold.com

PHOTOGRAPHERS

Artistic Weddings

96 Robinhood Dr, San Rafael

Phone 415.460.1440

Web artisticweddingsphoto.com

Brooke Lydecker Photography

San Francisco

Phone 415.309.5580

Web bdlphotography.com

Greg Piche Photography

400 La Verne, Mill Valley

Phone 510.517.2061

Web gregpiche.com

Jesse Leake Photography

1592 Union St, SF

Phone 415.250.1272

Web jesseleake.com

Julie Mikos Photography

P.O. Box 5762, Berkeley

Phone 510.681.7616

Web juliemikos.com

Julio Duffoo Photography

1231 Grove St, #3, SF

Phone 415.509.6842

Web duffoophotography.com

Larry Dyer Photography

1414 Fourth St, Ste 200C, San Rafael Phone 415.721.7218

Web larrydyer.com

Linda Russell Photography

San Rafael

Phone 415.459.3639

Web russellphoto.com

Lisa Leigh Photography

469 Miller Ave, Mill Valley

Phone 415.389.0609

Web lisaleighphotography.com

Little White Dress

San Francisco

Phone 415.824.8991

Web littlewhitedress.com

Martina Konietzny

P.O. Box 8432, Emeryville

Phone 510.652.6563

martinakonietznyphotography.com

Meg Smith Photography

101 South Coombs, Y8, Napa

Phone 707.259.1539

Web megsmith.com

Natalie Sousa

San Rafael Phone 866.977.5300

Web nsphotography.com

Perfect Circle Photography

San Rafael Phone 415.819.3088

Web perfectcirclephoto.com

Susan Adler Photography PO Box 150937, San Rafael

Phone 415.457.1148

Web susanadler.com

Suzy Clement 17 Osgood Place, SF

Phone 415.283.8211

Web suzyclement.com

Tu Photography

1560 Fourth St, Ste C, San Rafael

Phone 415.455.9219

Web tuphotography.com

Visalli Photography

1505 Bridgeway, Ste 107, Sausalito Phone 415.331.1223

Web visalli.com

VENUES

Acqua Hotel

555 Redwood Hwy, Mill Valley Phone 415.380.0400

Web marinhotels.com

Casa Madrona

801 Bridgeway, Sausalito

Phone 800.288.0502

Web casamadrona.com

Cavallo Point Lodge

601 Murray Circle, Sausalito Phone 415.339.4700

Web cavallopoint.com

Corinthian Yacht Club

43 Main St, Tiburon

Phone 415.435.4812

Web corinthiancatering.com

E & O Trading Company

2231 Larkspur Landing Circle, Larkspur Phone 415.925.0303

Web eotrading.com

Falkirk Cultural Center

1408 Mission Ave, San Rafael Phone 415.485.3328

Web falkirkculturalcenter.org

Gaylord India Restaurant

201 Bridgeway, Sausalito Phone 415.339.0172

Web gaylords.com

Guaymas 5 Main St, Tiburon Phone 415.435.6300

Web guaymasrestaurant.com

Headlands Center for the Arts

944 Fort Barry, Sausalito Phone 415.331.2787 ext 28

Web headlands.org

IDESST Hall

511 Caledonia St, Sausalito

Phone 415.332.7900

Jason’s Restaurant

300 Drakes Landing Rd, Greenbrae

Phone 415.925.0808

Landmarks Art and Garden Center

841 Tiburon Blvd, Tiburon

Phone 415.435.1853

Web landmarks-society.org

Lodge at Tiburon

1651 Tiburon Blvd, Tiburon

Phone 415.435.3133

Web thelodgeattiburon.com

Lyford House at Tiburon Audubon Center

376 Greenwood Beach Rd, Tiburon

Phone 415.388.2524, ext 101

Web tiburonaudubon.org

Marin Art and Garden Center

30 Sir Francis Drake Blvd, Ross Phone 415.454.1301

Web maagc.org

Mill Valley Community Center

180 Camino Alto, Mill Valley

Phone 415.383.1370

Web millvalleycenter.org

Old St. Hilary’s

Esperanza Rd via Beach Rd, Tiburon

Phone 415.435.1853

Web landmarks-society.org

Olema Inn and Restaurant

10000 Sir Francis Drake Blvd, Olema

Phone 415.663.9559

Web theolemainn.com

Outdoor Art Club

1 W. Blithedale, Mill Valley

Phone 415.383.2582

Web outdoorartclub.org

Peacock Gap Golf and Country Club

333 Biscayne Dr, San Rafael

Phone 415.453.4940

Web peacockgapgc.com

Pelican Inn

10 Pacific Way, Muir Beach

Phone 415.314.5050

Web pelicaninn.com

Point Reyes Seashore Lodge

10021 Coastal Hwy 1, Olema

Phone 415.663.9000

Web pointreyesseashore.com

Rancho Nicasio

1 Old Rancheria Rd, Nicasio

Phone 415.662.2219

Web ranchonicasio.com

Sausalito Woman’s Club

120 Central Ave, Sausalito

Phone 415.332.2700

Web sausalitowomansclub.org

Scoma’s

588 Bridgeway, Sausalito

Phone 415.332.9551

Web scomassausalito.com

Servino Ristorante

9 Main St, Tiburon

Phone 415.435.4079

Web servino.com

Stinson Beach Community Ctr

32 Belvedere St, Stinson Beach

Phone 415.868.1444

Web stinsonbeachonline.com

StoneTree Golf Club

9 Stonetree Lane, Novato

Phone 415.493.2180

Web stonetreegolf.com

The Gables Inn

62 Princess St, Sausalito

Phone 415.289.1100

Web gablesinnsausalito.com

The Spinnaker

100 Spinnaker Dr, Sausalito

Phone 415.332.1572

Web thespinnaker.com

North/East of Marin

Auberge du Soleil

180 Rutherford Hill, Rutherford

Phone 707.963.1211

Web aubergedusoleil.com

Beltane Ranch

11775 Sonoma Hwy, Glen Ellen

Phone 707.996.6501

Web beltaneranch.com

B. R. Cohn Winery

15000 Sonoma Hwy, Glen Ellen

Phone 800.330.4064

Web brcohn.com

Claremont Resort

41 Tunnel Rd, Berkeley

Phone 510.843.3000

Web claremontresort.com

COPIA

500 First St, Napa

Phone 707.259.1600

Web copia.org

Cornerstone Gardens 23570 Hwy 121, Sonoma Phone 707.933.3010

Web cornerstonegardens.com

Garden Valley Ranch 498 Pepper Rd, Petaluma Phone 707.795.0919

Web gardenvalley.com

Gloria Ferrer 23555 Carneros Hwy, Sonoma Phone 707.996.7256

Web gloriaferrer.com

Kenwood Inn and Spa 10400 Sonoma Hwy, Kenwood

Phone 707.833.1293

Web kenwoodinn.com

Little River Inn 7901 North Hwy 1 Little River

Phone 707.937.5942

Web littleriverinn.com

Mint Locations

403 San Rafael Ave, Belvedere Phone 415.789.1969

Web mintlocations.com

Purple Orchid

79 Clearstream Ct, Danville Phone 925.606.8855

Web purpleorchid.com

River Terrace Inn 1600 Soscal Ave, Napa Phone 707.320.9000

Web riverterraceinn.com

Sbragia Family Vineyards 9990 Dry Creek Rd, Geyserville Phone 707.473.2992

Web sbragia.com

Silverado Resort 1600 Atlas Peak Rd, Napa Phone 707.257.0200

Web silveradoresort.com

Sonoma Mission Inn 100 Boyes Blvd, Sonoma Phone 707.938.9000

Web fairmont.com/sonoma

Viansa Winery

25200 Arnold Dr, Sonoma

Phone 800.995.4740

Web viansa.com

Villagio Inn and Spa

6481 Washington St, Yountville

Phone 707.944.8877

Web villagio.com

Vintners Inn

4350 Barnes Rd, Santa Rosa

Phone 707.944.8877

Web vintnersinn.com

San Francisco

Asian Art Museum

200 Larkin St, SF

Phone 415.581.3500

Web asianart.org

Cliff House

1090 Point Lobos, SF

Phone 415.386.3330

Web cliffhouse.com

Fairmont

950 Mason St, SF

Phone 415.772.5000

Web fairmont.com/sanfrancisco

Ferry Building

One Ferry Building, SF

Phone 415.369.9800

Web ferrybuildingmarketplace.com

Forbes Island

Pier 39, SF

Phone 415.951.4900

Web forbesisland.com

Fort Mason Center

Bldg A, Fort Mason Center, SF

Phone 415.441.3400

Web fortmason.org

Hotel Adagio

550 Geary St, SF

Phone 415.775.5000

Web jdvhospitality.com

Hotel Vitale

8 Mission St, SF

Phone 415.278.3700

Web hotelvitale.com

InterContinental

Mark Hopkins

999 California St, SF

Phone 415.392.3434

Web intercontinental.com

James Leary Flood Mansion

2222 Broadway, SF

Phone 415.563.2900

Web floodmansion.org

Legion of Honor

34th Ave & Clement St, SF

Phone 415.750.3683

Web famsf.org

Presidio Officers’ Club

50 Moraga Ave, SF

Phone 415.561.5444

Web presidio.gov

The City Club

155 Sansome St, SF

Phone 415.362.6697

Web cityclubsf.com

The Huntington Hotel

1075 California St, SF

Phone 415.474.5400

Web huntingtonhotel.com

The Ritz-Carlton

600 Stockton St, SF

Phone 415.296.7465

Web ritzcarlton.com

Westin St Francis

335 Powell St, SF

Phone 415.397.7000

Web westinstfrancis.com

South of San Francisco

Bernardus Lodge

415 Carmel Valley Rd, Carmel Valley

Phone 831.658.3504

Web bernardus.com

Highlands Inn Park Hyatt Carmel

120 Highlands Dr, Carmel

Phone 831.620.1234

Web hyatt.com

The Holly Farm

9200 Carmel Valley Rd, Carmel

Phone 831.625.1926

Web hollyfarm.com

The Holman Ranch

60 Holman Rd, Carmel

Phone 831.659.6030

Web holmanranch.com

Mission Ranch

26270 Dolores St, Carmel

Phone 831.624.3824

Web missionranchcarmel.com

Monterey Plaza Hotel & Spa

400 Cannery Row, Monterey Phone 831.646.1700

Web woodsidehotels.com

Pebble Beach Resorts

1700 17-Mile Dr, Pebble Beach Phone 800.654.9300

Web pebblebeach.com

Quail Lodge

8205 Valley Greens Dr, Carmel Phone 888.828.8787

Web quaillodge.com

The Inn at Spanish Bay 2700 17-Mile Dr, Pebble Beach Phone 800.654.9300

Web pebblebeach.com

Ventana Inn and Spa Hwy 1, Big Sur Phone 831.667.4202

Web ventanainn.com

Tahoe

Chapel of the Bells 2700 Lake Tahoe Blvd, South Lake Tahoe Phone 800.247.4333

Web tahoechapelofthebells.com

Edgewood Tahoe Stateline, Nevada

Phone 775.588.3566

Web edgewood-tahoe.com

Hyatt Regency Tahoe

111 Country Club Dr, Incline Village Phone 775.832.1234

Web laketahoehyatt.com

Resort at Squaw Creek 400 Squaw Creek Rd, Olympic Valley Phone 530.583.6300

Web squawcreek.com

The Chateau at Incline Village 955 Fairway Blvd, Nevada Phone 775.832.1240

Web inclinefacilities.com

Thunderbird Lodge

Incline Village, Nevada Phone 775.832.8750

Web thunderbirdlodge.org

HAWAII VENUES

Big Island

The Fairmont Orchid

1 N. Kaniku Dr, Kohala Coast Phone 808.885.2000

Web fairmont.com/orchid

Four Seasons Resort Hualalai 72-100 Ka‘upulehu Dr,

Ka‘upulehu-Kona

Phone 808.325.8000

Web fourseasons.com/hualalai

Mauna Kea Beach Hotel

62-100 Mauna Kea Beach Dr, Kohala Coast

Phone 808.882.5465

Web maunakearesort.com

Mauna Lani Resort

68-1400 Mauna Lani Dr, Kohala Coast

Phone 808.885.1468

Web maunalani.com

Kona Village Resort

Queen Ka‘ahumanu Hwy, Kailua-Kona

Phone 800.367.5290

Web konavillage.com

Kaua‘i

Grand Hyatt Kaua‘i 1571 Poipu Rd, Koloa

Phone 808.742.1234

Web kauai.hyatt.com

Kaua‘i Marriott

3610 Rice St, Lihue

Phone 808.245.5050

Web marriott.com

Princeville Resort

5520 Ka Haku Rd, Princeville

Phone 808.826.9644

Web princevillehotelhawaii.com

Lana‘i

Four Seasons Resort Lana‘i at Manele Bay

One Manele Bay Rd, Lana‘i City

Phone 808.565.2000

Web fourseasons.com/manelebay

Four Seasons Resort Lana‘i

The Lodge at Ko‘ele

One Keomoku Hwy, Lana‘i

Phone 808.565.4000

Web fourseasons.com/koele

Maui

Fairmont Kea Lani

4100 Wailea Alanui Dr, Wailea

Phone 808.875.4100

Web fairmont.com/kealani.com

Four Season Resort Maui at Wailea

3900 Wailea Alanui, Wailea

Phone 808.874.8000

Web fourseasons.com/maui

Grand Wailea Resort

3850 Alanui Dr, Wailea Phone 800.888.6100

Web grandwailea.com

Hotel Hana Maui

5031 Hana Hwy

Phone 808.248.8211

Web hotelhanamaui.com

Hyatt Regency Maui Resort

200 Nohea Kai Dr, Lahaina

Phone 808.661.1234

Web maui.hyatt.com

Ritz-Carlton Kapalua

1 Ritz-Carlton Dr, Kapalua Phone 808.669.6200

Web ritzcarlton.com

Wailea Beach Marriott Resort

3700 Wailea Alanui Dr, Wailea Phone 808.879.1922

Web marriott.com

Westin Maui Resort and Spa

2365 Ka‘anapali Pkwy, Lahaina

Phone 808.667.2525

Web westinmaui.com

O‘ahu

Halekulani Hotel

2199 Kalia Rd, Honolulu

Phone 808.923.2311

Web halekulani.com

Hyatt Regency

Waikiki Resort 2424 Kalakaua Ave, Honolulu

Phone 808.923.1234

Web waikiki.hyatt.com

JW Marriott Ihilani Resort

92–1001 Olani St, Kapolei

Phone 808.679.0079

Web ihilani.com

Kahala Hotel and Resort

5000 Kahala Ave, Honolulu

Phone 808.739.8888

Web kahalaresort.com

Royal Hawaiian

2259 Kalakaua Ave

Phone 808.923.7311

Web royal-hawaiian.com

WEDDING PLANNERS

A Dream Wedding Napa and Sonoma

Phone 707.579.5886

Web a-dreamwedding.com

Alison Events 2200 Broderick St, SF Phone 415.567.7605

Web alisonevents.com

Stanlee R. Gatti Designs San Francisco

Phone 415.558.8884

Web stanleegatti.com

Stephanie Portillo San Anselmo

Phone 415.713.7714

Web stephanieportillo.com

WEDDING REGISTRIES

Bloomingdale’s 845 Market St, SF

Phone 415.856.5300

Web bloomingdales.com

Cabana Home 238 E. Blithedale Ave, Mill Valley

Phone 415.383.0201

Web cabanahome.com

David M. Brian 110 Bon Air Center, Greenbrae

Phone 415.464.0344

Web davidmbrian.com

Gump’s 135 Post St, SF Phone 800.444.0450

Web gumps.com

Macy’s

1000 Northgate Mall, San Rafael Phone 415.499.5200

Web macys.com

Macy’s Union Square

170 O’Farrell St, SF Phone 415.397.3333

Web macys.com

Neiman Marcus

150 Stockton St, SF Phone 415.362.3900

Web neimanmarcus.com

Nicole Grey & Co. 1241 Strawberry Village, Mill Valley Phone 415.383.4500

Web nicolegreyandco.com

Pottery Barn 1822 Redwood Hwy, Corte Madera Phone 415.924.8919

Web potterybarn.com

Sur La Table

425 Corte Madera Town Center Phone 415.945.0112

Web surlatable.com

Target

200 Vintage Way, Novato Phone 415.892.3313

Web target.com

Tiffany & Co.

350 Post St, SF Phone 415.781.7000

Web tiffany.com

Williams-Sonoma

Village at Corte Madera Phone 415.924.6799

Web williams-sonoma.com

ongratulations! Your engagement marks the start of an exciting time.

The key to a stress free wedding is in the planning but most couples will attest that with out help this can be a challenge.

Let the professional and knowledgeable wedding consultants at Gump’s help you prepare for your future life together. Whether it’s an extravagant city affair or a small outdoor ceremony, for decades, our experienced staff has been guiding couples in developing a gift registry that will suit their needs and reflect their individual style.

A personal registry makes it easy for family and friends to select the perfect gift. Gump’s offers a traditional registry where items are sent to the bride and groom as they are selected or couples can opt for the gift notification program, which alerts them as gifts are selected but ultimately lets the couple choose final selections and how they wish to redeem their account.

Founded in 1861, Gump’s is a legendary shopping destination with an international reputation. We are committed to providing an unmatched level of personal service.

The perfect day is an attainable goal. Let us help you create an unforgettable wedding and a lifetime of happiness.

J Julianna’s Fine Jewelry

WE ARE A FAMILY, SO WE’LL TREAT YOU LIKE FAMILY.

The Village at Corte Madera, CA

415.924.9711

juliannasfinejewelry.com

ulianna, along with her daughter, Judy, first opened Julianna’s Fine Jewelry at “The Village at Corte Madera” when the Mall was established 24 years ago. Julie, having been in the jewelry business for 20 years prior to that, brought her vast knowledge and business savvy to this venture.

Four years later, Jean-Louis joined this family venture bringing with him 13 years of experience in jewelry-making and design along with his knowledge of fine gems.

Julianna’s specializes in creating fabulous one-of-a-kind pieces, (see the ring pictured above). The store also carries many beautiful high-end designers such as Ritani, Roberto Coin, Leslie Greene, Simon G., Mikimoto, and many more.

The staff at Julianna’s will be very happy to sit down with you to create your own unique engagement ring. They carry the finest quality diamonds and offer them at very competitive prices.

Julianna’s also carries the following fine Swiss made watches: Rolex, Breitling, Omega, Tag Heuer, Raymond Weil, Luminox, TW Steel and Tissot, any of which would make an excellent Bride or Groom’s gift to commemorate your special occasion.

Everyone at Julianna’s will strive to accommodate your every jewelry or watch need. Whether a small repair or a grand custom project, they will make sure that you receive superior service and quality.

20/20

YFINE EYEWEAR

1127 4th Street

San Rafael, CA

415.453.2020

181 San Marin Drive

Novato, CA

415.892.2020

2020opticalinc.com

our wedding moment surrounds you with a luxurious elegance that will be remembered forever.

At 20/20 Optical, we pay attention to the most important components of luxury; consistent and superior quality, uniqueness and exclusivity, valued by you and those you respect, all delivered in a way that makes you feel special.

“Our passion is to give our customers the luxuries of the best service, sense of design, comfort and individuality in their eyewear” says David Schwartz, owner of 20/20 Optical. “Let us show you the largest selection of distinctive eyewear from around the world.”

20/20 Optical is a leader in the emerging market for luxury eyewear. “It’s not unusual to see eyewear made of precious metals, set with gemstones, fitted or inlayed with the fluid grace of beautiful and exotic woods, genuine buffalo horn, gold or silver. This new super-luxury eyewear from Gold & Wood® is no longer simply a functional item,” says Schwartz. Luxury eyewear is at the highest end of the market in terms of quality and value. Owning a pair of Gold & Wood eyewear provides a sensuous pleasure.

Diamonds* or brilliant gemstones in white and black accentuate solid yellow and white gold styles. Styles can be customized with special colorations and limited-edition materials to provide truly singular pieces. They’re craftsmen created with a deep love for perfection.

Let 20/20 Optical make you sparkle. Call us today.

* Certified conflict-free

Nicole Grey & Company

124 Strawberry Village Mill Valley, CA

415.383.4500

nicolegreyandco.com

Best Wishes on your engagement!

Now, the two most important tasks you will undertake together as a newly engaged couple are sending out announcements and registering for gifts. No need to go anywhere else, because at Nicole Grey and Company, we are experts at both.

The highly skilled staff in our personalized stationery and wedding invitation department will help you set the perfect tone for your new life right from the beginning.

Our registry at Nicole Grey and Company is unique—we pride ourselves in personal service, listening to your ideas and catering to your taste. Whether you are decorating a beach house on Belvedere Island or a loft in San Francisco, you are sure to be inspired by the myriad of exquisite home accessories. Juliska, Match, Jan Barboglio, Arte Italica, Aidan Gray, Anichini and Le Jacquard Francais are only some of the heirloom-quality home decor lines that we feature. From tabletop to bed linens, we cover it all.

And for after the wedding, we provide a full interior design service to help you complete the details that will reflect your new lifestyle.

Nicole Grey and Company has been a purveyor of luxury goods since 1991. We now have a convenient new location in the heart of Strawberry Village.

So relax…this is the time to indulge. At Nicole Grey and Company we are at your service.

Bernardus Lodge

ernardus Lodge offers a perfect setting for your wedding. Exchange vows in the Wedding Garden, a cornucopia of floral delights with grand views of the Santa Lucia Mountains. Lavish receptions come alive for up to 150 guests in the Meritage Ballroom featuring vaulted ceilings, arched windows and French doors. We host only one wedding per day. This ensures the ultimate in personalized service from our wedding experts, so they are available to customize every detail of your journey from start to finish. The romance continues with world-class accommodations and dining. A luxurious full-service spa and salon offers a range of bridal services to prepare you for that special moment. Here, you can truly create the wedding of your dreams.

415 Carmel Valley Road

831.658.3504 Carmel Valley, CA bernardus.com

Simayof

HERA ENGAGEMENT RING COLLECTION

Hera Engagement Rings reveal distinguished designs that express true uniqueness. Each ring is beautifully handcrafted by Simayof’s master jewelers, showcasing a variety of cuts, shanks and bases. All are available in 18k white gold and platinum and can be further customized to perfectly suit one’s taste. For over 75 years and spanning three generations, the master jewelers at Simayof have prided themselves in handcrafting each and every piece to exacting specifications. To this day, Simayof is remaining at the forefront of luxury jewelry through its continuous innovation in design and craftsmanship. The result is an unforgettable selection of fine diamond and gemstone jewelry of the utmost quality.

1934 Union Street, San Francisco 888.SIMAYOF 295 Geary Street, San Francisco simayof.com

Johann Paul Jewelers

DESIGNER GOLDSMITHS

Located within the Greenbrae Bon Air Center, Johann Paul’s philosophy is to provide the best product and customer service possible. They feature the most perfectly cut diamonds in the world from Hearts on Fire™ and invite everyone to personally experience each diamond’s 58 facets of brilliance. Their warm and friendly showroom was also recently expanded to include many more lines of designer jewelry.

272 Bon Air Center

415.461.1866 Greenbrae, CA johannpauljeweler.com

Priscilla of Boston

THE EMBODIMENT OF LUXURY

Offering unparalleled personal attention and distinctive couture gowns, bridesmaid apparel and occasion wear by celebrated designers, Priscilla of Boston takes every measure to ensure your comfort in a relaxed, luxurious atmosphere...from spacious, private fitting rooms to dedicated, experienced personal consultants and on-site seamstresses. Visit our Union Square salon today!

170 Grant Avenue, 2nd floor

800.664.3309 San Francisco, CA priscillaofboston.com

Champagne Salon & Day Spa

BE READY FOR YOUR SPECIAL DAY

Champagne Salon and Day Spa is Marin’s premier full-service luxury day spa offering the very best in hair care, nail care, massage and aesthetic services in a relaxed and stress-free environment. All of our Salon & Spa services can be customized to fit your Wedding Party’s needs, either before or on your Wedding day. Whether hair styling and make-up, or full spa packages for everyone, your Spa party begins with Champagne and Horsdouerves and ends with everyone looking and feeling their best for your special day! Our Spa Director will be happy to coordinate the perfect services for your Wedding Party. Hair Styling, Manicure/Pedicure, Massage, Airbrush Spray Tanning, Facials, Waxing, Make-up, Eye Lash/Brow Tint.

One Blackfield Drive

415.380.9111 Tiburon, CA champagnesalonganddayspa.com

Vintners Inn

YOUR WINE COUNTRY WEDDING DESTINATION

hether planning a grand wedding or an intimate occasion for a select few, make it memorable at Vintners Inn. Located in the heart of Sonoma County’s wine country, Vintners Inn is nestled amidst 92 acres of lush vineyards and beautiful gardens. The Event Center is adjacent to the 44-room inn, as well as the famed restaurant, John Ash & Co., and The Front Room Bar and Lounge. From shower to rehearsal dinner, ceremony to reception to post wedding celebrations, we personally assist you with every detail to make your wedding an unforgettable experience: romantic, wine country setting; wedding space for up to 350 guests; award-winning catered cuisine; 44 luxurious rooms with king beds, private balcony or patio, many rooms with fireplaces and Jacuzzis; and a bottle of wine upon arrival.

4350 Barnes Road

800.421.2584 Santa Rosa vintnersinn.com

Deleuse Jewelers

FINE EUROPEAN JEWELERS

Deleuse Jewelers was established in 1945 in Nice, France by John Deleuse, a trained watchmaker graduating from the Ecole Nationale de Cluse. In 1951 Mr. Deleuse opened a second store in San Francisco. His son Jeff joined the family business after earning degrees in Psychology & Graduate Gemology. Jeff and his wife Janet opened Deleuse Jewelers in Marin in 1982, bringing the family business across the Bay. Deleuse Jewelers offers exclusive brands such as Cartier, Faberge and Schoeffel Pearls. Signature Deleuse Diamonds and custom jewelry designed by Janet anchor the collection as Deleuse Jewelers carries on the sixtythree year tradition of quality and old world service. Members of the American Gem Trade Association & American Gem Society. Visit “Buying a Diamond” at deleusejewelers.com/DeleuseBlog

1771 Tiburon Boulevard

Tiburon, CA

Stephanie Portillo

We approach each event as a blank palette with great care and attention into coming up with the perfect mix of all the details-the invitations, the cocktails, the music, the flowers and the menu. Whether on a beach, in a ballroom or at a private home, we reflect the lifestyles and personalities of each couple. We work closely with premier vendors to create unforgettable moments, not only for the couple, but for family and friends too. By appointment only.

PO Box 1753

415.713.7714 San Anselmo, CA stephanieportillo.com

EVO Spa

BEGIN YOUR BRIDAL JOURNEY HERE.

Planning the most important day of your life can be stressful. Come to Evo Spa and let us nurture you with a relaxing massage, a phenomenal facial, a healing body treatment and an airbrush bronze for that perfect bridal glow!

Now you are ready for a fairy tale wedding.

216 Strawberry Village

415.383.3223 Mill Valley, CA evo-spa.com

The Gables Inn Sausalito

INDULGE YOURSELF

The Gables Inn Sausalito welcomes you. Perfectly located in a quiet setting amongst a small grove of Buckeye trees on Princess Street, but only a minute walk to the San Francisco Ferry, art galleries, and excellent restaurants in the center of downtown Sausalito. In contrast to the activity in the nearby shops along Bridgeway Street, guests are immersed in tranquility by our peaceful location and setting. Return from your daily activities to relax around the fireplace and socialize at our evening wine and cheese reception, or unwind in your exquisite room submerged in the oversized bathtub with spa jets. The spectacular amenities will inspire and re energize.

Our genuine passion for providing a wonderful guest experience is evidenced in the brilliantly personalized service and attention to detail. It is our pleasure to host your next visit to Sausalito.

62 Princess Street 415.289.1100 Sausalito, CA gablesinnsausalito.com

NewSkin Clinic

GET THE NEWSKIN GLOW

After the dress, it’s all about the photos that will last for generations. We safely and easily plump your lips and lines with our advanced dermal fillers, banish your frown with Botox, restore your skin’s brightness and tone with gentle pulsed light. Remove unwanted hair, anywhere. Board certified MD. Beautiful skin is the best make-up. Make your appointment early.

the Sanctuary day spa, Bay Club Marin 415.945.9555 Corte Madera Town Center newskinclinic.com

Lang Antiques

VINTAGE ENGAGEMENT RINGS

When you buy an engagement ring at Lang Antiques you receive more than a ring. Our expert staff will provide the best customer service possible while assisting you in the selection of a ring as unique as your love.

• We have the largest collection of high quality true vintage engagement rings you will find anywhere.

• Our friendly staff loves jewelry and there is nothing more satisfying than helping you find the perfect ring. Whether we help you in person, or online, we are there to answer all your questions and address all your concerns.

• All our rings have been meticulously examined and appraised by a staff of expert appraisers specializing in period jewelry.

• We guarantee all our diamonds to meet or exceed GIA grading standards.

323 Sutter Street 415.982.2213 San Francisco, CA langantiques.com

Local Flora

We are Marin County’s “Green” Florist, featuring eco-friendly design solutions with flowers from regional farmers and sustainably certified growers. Local Flora’s designs are a dazzling display of organic artistry drawing on our local palette of color, textures and seasonal bounty. From small intimate gatherings to large elaborate receptions, it is important to us that your event is a reflection of your personal style. Come visit our store and get to know your Local Flora.

100 Red Hill Avenue

415.459.4490 San Anselmo, CA marinflora.com

MARIN’S GREEN FLORIST

All Seasons Catering

All Seasons Catering is a premier, full service catering company that has been creating memorable events for over 20 years. We are committed to providing the finest quality food and service. We offer custom menus for sit down dinners, buffets, family style or themed cooking stations. Our staff is dedicated to providing a menu that will compliment your style and budget! 201 Seminary Drive

Mill Valley, CA allseasonscatering.com

Art of the Eye is the vision of three women, experienced executives and friends. We provide the right brow and lash design that defines your sense of beauty inside and out. We promise personalized service, uncompromising professionalism and a safe haven to pamper yourself. 141 Bon Air Center 415.461.7500 Greenbrae, CA artofeye.com

Union Street Goldsmith

lenda Queen and Terry Brumbaugh have been in the jewelry business so long they’re now creating wedding bands for the children of couples whose rings they made decades ago. With 40 years in the trade, their shop, with its big Dutch doors and friendly staff, is welcoming and unpretentious, and their collections fresh, contemporary, creative and fun. Each case bursts with jellybean colors – yellow diamonds, orange sapphires, pistachio-green pearls and other exotic gems, set in rose, yellow and white gold and, especially, in platinum. Glenda and Terry have an affection for combining simple, unfussy shapes and unusual materials to create fine jewelry that goes as well with Levi’s as it does with black tie. The shop also carries collections by designers from around the world.

1909 Union Street

415.776.8048 San Francisco unionstreetgoldsmith.com G

GLENDA QUEEN AND TERRY BRUMBAUGH

AAlix & Company

lix & Company is the gallery and workshop of jewelry designer Janet Alix. High ceilings with slow-moving fans, old wooden floors and beautiful display cases make this romantic showroom a delight to visit. Janet and her team of jewelry professional enroll customers in the selection process to ensure jewelry appropriate for both their budget and lifestyle. The staff works with gems and metals from the simple to the sophisticated. Perfection can be a classic design in an affordable price point, or a treasure out of Aladdin’s trove. For the staff at Alix & Company the joy is in being part of life-changing moments. “We want our customers to have jewelry they wear and love. We want our customers to shine in the jewelry we make for them.”

55 Throckmorton Avenue 415.380.0880 Mill Valley, CA alixandcompany.com

Popapery

WEDDING INVITATIONS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS

Whether your style is traditional or contemporary, Popapery is happy to assist you in creating the perfect invitations and stationery for your wedding, shower and engagement party. We specialize in creating beautiful handmade invitations for your celebration. Several lines of custom and imprintable invitations, handmade and recycled papers, and ribbons are available to meet every budget.

228 Bon Air Center

415.461.8084 Greenbrae, CA popapery.com

Sausalito Events Place

CREATE YOUR UNFORGETTABLE EVENT

The perfect venue for your Marin County wedding! These newly remodeled facilities will accommodate medium to large groups up to 400 people. Create an unforgettable event, from corporate meetings and functions, to wedding ceremonies, receptions, bar/bat mitzvahs and birthday parties. The complete kitchen facility and service areas make the accommodations accessible and easy to use. Managed by Paradise Properties.

511 Caledonia Street

415.332.7900 Sausalito, CA sausalitoeventsplace.com

JANUARY ARTS & EVENTS GUIDE

THEATER

Thru 11 Disco Diva Thelma Houston The Grammy Award winner is back at Teatro ZinZanni. Experience Houston’s passionate vocal delivery along with special guests El Vez, the Mexican Elvis, and Christine Deaver as the outrageous chef. Pier 29 (SF). 415.438.2668, zinzanni.org

10–February 14 Children’s Theatre See the Evil Queen defeated by Snow White and her seven little friends at this Children’s Theatre Association of San Francisco performance. Florence Gould Theater (SF). 415.248.2677, ctasf.com

10–18 Josh Kornbluth Playwright, performer and KQED-TV host Josh Kornbluth debuts his new one-man show Andy Warhol: Good for the Jews?. Contemporary Jewish Museum (SF). 415.655.7881, thecjm.org

15–February 8 Marin Theatre Company

My Children! My Africa! is a tale of friendship between two teenagers in apartheidtorn South Africa. Marin Theatre Company (Mill Valley). 415.388.5208, marintheatre.org

16–February 22 Ross Valley Players

Glengarry Glen Ross is the story of four small-time real estate salesmen who will do anything to make a buck. Barn Theatre (Ross). 415.456.9555, rossvalleyplayers.com

24–25 Live at the Met The Lark Theater hosts the entire Metropolitan Opera season live in high definition. This month see Mark Morris’s production of Christoph Gluck’s Orfeo ed Euridice. Lark Theater (Larkspur). 415.924.5111, larktheater.net

27–June 27 Wicked The cultural phenomenon that got its start in San Francisco

is back for an extended stay. Orpheum Theatre (SF). 415.512.7770, shnsf.com

COMEDY

Tuesdays Mark Pitta and Friends The comic hosts an evening for up-and-comers and established headliners to work on new material. 142 Throckmorton Theatre (Mill Valley). 415.383.9600, 142throckmortontheatre.com

DANCE

7–11 Chinese New Year Spectacular

Classic Chinese dance and music comes to life in a lavish and colorful show celebrating Chinese New Year. War Memorial Opera House (SF). 415.392.4400, sfshow.net

16 Peking Acrobats Jugglers, cyclists and gymnasts from the People’s Republic

Chinese New Year festivities celebrate the Year of the Ox, January 7–11.

of China take the stage. Marin Veterans’ Memorial Auditorium (San Rafael). 415.499.6400, co.marin.ca.us

27–February 7 SF Ballet The 76th season begins with a program featuring three great ballets including a Yuri Possokhov world premiere. War Memorial Opera House (SF). 415.865.2000, sfballet.org

MUSIC

Last Tuesdays Open Mic Night Krickie and Matt Hansen host an evening of beat boxers, accordions, blues players and more. Sweetwater Station (Larkspur). 415. 264.1384

Tuesdays Swing Fever The band gives tribute to jazz artists and composers, playing selections from its roster of over 1,000 tunes. Panama Hotel (San Rafael). 415.457.3993, panamahotel.com

7–11 San Francisco Symphony Michael Tilson Thomas conducts works by Aaron Copland, Alban Berg and Johannes Brahms. Davies Symphony Hall (SF). 415.864.6000, sfsymphony.org

16 Hai-Ye Ni The award-winning cellist returns home to Marin for a special performance. Mt. Tamalpais United Methodist Church (Mill Valley). 415.381.4453, chambermusicmillvalley.org

16 Loudon Wainwright III Wainwright’s autobiographical songs and humor have made him a concert favorite for decades. Great American Music Hall (SF). 888.233.0449, gamh.com

18–20 Marin Symphony Discover the Romantic Passions of Cello and Courtship featuring David Requiro on cello with a cameo by Smuin Ballet. Marin Center (San Rafael). 415.499.6800, marincenter.org

23 Pepper Hear the reggae, dub and rock sounds of these Hawaii natives. The Warfield (SF). 415.421.8497, goldenvoice.com

24 The Best of Doo-Wop Buck Ram Platters, The Crew Cuts, The Olympics, Danny and the Juniors and Brenda

MSMarin Symphony

Alasdair Neale, Music Director

08 | 09 SEASON

The Romantic Passions of Cello and Courtship

Sunday, January 18 and Tuesday, January 20, 2009 at 7:30pm

Alasdair Neale, conductor David Requiro, cello

BartókSuite from The Miraculous Mandarin

TchaikovskyVariations on a Rococo Theme, Opus 33

ProkofievExcerpts from Romeo and Juliet, Suite No. 1, Opus 64a

Marin Center, San Rafael

Tickets $27 / $50 / $65 (students half price) at 415.499.6800

David Requiro, winner of the 2008 Naumburg International Cello Competition

Cameo appearance by Smuin Ballet

Featuring

Guest artist sponsored by Hoytt Enterprises

Sample and purchase over 300 fine wines from five continents, enjoy fresh Mediterranean tapas and encounter the world of wine and food during complimentary weekend wine and culinary classes.

Call 440-0772 or visit www.cellar360.com for schedule of events.

Relax with one-hour free parking, enter on Beach Street, just east of Polk.

Holloway bring the sounds of the ’50s and ’60s alive. Marin Veterans’ Memorial Auditorium (San Rafael). 415.499.6400, co.marin.ca.us

29–31 Yoshi’s San Francisco Experience Mark Hummell’s Blues Harmonica Blowout with Charlie Musselwhite, Lee Oskar, Curtis Salgado and Johnny Dyer. Yoshi’s (SF). 415.655.5600, yoshis.com

GALLERIES

MARIN

Aperture F/64 Fine art and black-and-white photography. 635 San Anselmo Ave, San Anselmo. 415.482.0480

Art Abloom Studio and Gallery Growth Through Flames Oil paintings by Gabriella Spina Drake. 1527 San Anselmo Ave, San Anselmo. 415.256.1112, artabloom.com

Artisans Art Gallery Ongoing work. 853 Fourth St, San Rafael. 415.460.5208, artisansartgallery.com

Art Works Downtown Boots, Bags and Bikinis Mixed media by Carol Durham, Antonia “Tuppy” Lawson and Melissa Woodburn, January 8–February 13. 1337 Fourth St, San Rafael. 415.451.8119, artworksdowntown.org

Claudia Chapline Gallery Color 4 Abstract works on paper by Claudia Chapline, Etta Deikman, Paul Redaelli and Harold Schwarm, thru February. 3445 Shoreline Hwy, Stinson Beach. 415.868.2308, cchapline.com

College of Marin Art Gallery Art from faculty members. 835 College Ave, Kentfield. 415.485.9493, marin.cc.ca.us

Donna Seager Gallery Work by Michael Cutlip, thru January 15. 851 Fourth St, San Rafael. 415.454.4229, donnaseagergallery.com

Gallery Bergelli Group show by gallery artists. 483 Magnolia Ave, Larkspur. 415.945.9454, gallerybergelli.com

Gallery Route One La Vida, Latino Photography Project, thru January 10 11101

Hwy One, Point Reyes Station. 415.663.1347, galleryrouteone.org

Marin MOCA Members’ show, January 3–25. 500 Palm Dr, Novato. 415.506.0137, marinmoca.com

Marin Society of Artists Ongoing work 30 Sir Francis Drake Blvd, Ross. 415.454.9561, marinsocietyofartists.org

Milk and Honey Art Gallery Underground comic book artists group show. 384 Miller Ave, Mill Valley. 415.383.7580

Mona Lease Gallery Work by Leonard Breger. 39 Greenbrae Boardwalk, Greenbrae. 415.461.3718, monalease.net

Northbay ArtWorks Members’ ongoing work. 7049 Redwood Blvd, Ste 208, Novato. 415.892.8188, northbayartworks.com

O’Hanlon Center for the Arts Annual members’ show, January 6–29. 616 Throckmorton Ave, Mill Valley. 415.388.4331, ohanloncenter.org

Robert Allen Fine Art Gallery Artists Group Show Work from more than 40 artists, thru January 23. 301 Caledonia St, Sausalito. 415.331.2800, robertallenfineart.com

Robert Beck Gallery Early California and contemporary plein air paintings on display. 222 Sir Francis Drake Blvd, San Anselmo. 415.456.7898, beckgallery.org

Robert Green Fine Arts Contemporary paintings and other nonobjectionable work. 154 Throckmorton Ave, Mill Valley. 415.381.8776, rgfinearts.com

Sam the Butcher Photography by Mick Laska, thru January. 19 Ross Common, Ross. 415.902.1019, samthebutcherart.org

Smith Andersen North Painted ceramics from Gail Chadell Nanao, thru January 17. 2240 A Fourth St, San Rafael. 415.455.9733, smithandersennorth.com.

Studio 4 Art Work by local artists at this brand-new gallery and workshop offering materials and classes. 1133 Grant Ave, Novato. 415.596.5546, studio4art.net

Different Mon. - Sat. 10:30 am - 6:00 pm www.fancythatgiftshop.com

photo

The Art Bar Ongoing work. 46 Main St, Tiburon. 415.435.5999, theartbar.us

The Painters Place Ongoing work. 1139 Magnolia Ave, Larkspur. 415.461.0351, thepaintersplace.com

SAN FRANCISCO

ArtHaus The Abstractors are at this Nob Hill gallery opened in 1996 by art dealers James Bacchi and Annette Schutz. 411 Brannan St, 415.977.0223, arthaus-sf.com

Berggruen Gallery Group show including painting going back to 1960. 228 Grant Ave, 415.781.4629, berggruen.com

Cain Schulte Gallery What World Behind

Those Ruby Eyes Oil painting by Michael Tole, January 7–February 14. 101 Townsend St, 415.543.1550, cainschulte.com

Caldwell Snyder Gallery Recent figurative paintings by Spanish artist Regina Saura. 341 Sutter St, 415.296.7896, caldwellsnyder.com

Elins Eagles-Smith Gallery Works on Paper by Sam Francis, January 8–31. 49 Geary St, 415.981.1080, eesgallery.com

George Krevsky Gallery The Test of Time: Highlights in American Art. 77 Geary St, 415.397.9748, georgekrevskygallery.com

Gregory Lind Gallery All It Is New work by Jake Longstreth, thru January. 49 Geary St, 415.296.9661, gregorylindgallery.com

Hackett-Freedman Gallery Synchronies: Undercurrents in Postwar European and American Abstraction, January 8–February 28. 250 Sutter St, 415.362.7152, hackettfreedman.com

Meyerovich Gallery The gallery specializes in American and European works on paper, paintings and sculptures. 251 Post St, 415.421.7171, meyerovich.com

Rena Bransten Gallery Duo Mysto Mixed media from Don Ed Hardy and Ron Nagle, thru January 10. 77 Geary St, 415.982.3292, renabranstengallery.com

MUSEUMS

MARIN

Bay Area Discovery Museum Make a peace flag, listen to a performance by the a cappella ensemble SoVoSó and learn about Dr. Martin Luther King’s life at this special event. January 19 (Sausalito). 415.339.3958, baykidsmuseum.org

Bolinas Museum Wood sculpture by Peter Boiger will be on display, January 17–March 1. (Bolinas). 415.868.0330, bolinasmuseum.org

Falkirk Cultural Center The historic Queen Anne Victorian located in the heart of San Rafael is open to the public. (San Rafael). 415.485.3438, falkirkculturalcenter.org

BAY AREA

Asian Art Museum Afghanistan: Hidden Treasures from the National Museum, Kabul In 2003, artifacts long thought stolen or destroyed were uncovered in Afghanistan.

Katchie Ananda

Sherri Baptiste

Jnani Chapman

Gillian Comstock

Seane Corn

Jason Crandell

800.561.9398 | YJEVENTS.COM

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SPONSORS

Nicki Doane

Ana Forrest

Richard Freeman

Sharon Gannon

Julie Gudmestad

Julia Butterfly Hill

Kate Holcombe

Brent Kessel

Gurmukh Kaur Khalsa

Gary Kraftsow

Judith Hanson Lasater

Cyndi Lee

David Life

Tias Little

Eddie Modestini

Jason Nemer

Aadil Palkhivala

Sarah Powers

Shiva Rea

Desirée Rumbaugh

Colleen Saidman

Matthew Sanford

Jenny Sauer-Klein

Beth Shaw

Sianna Sherman

Stephanie Snyder

Rod Stryker

David Swenson

Jai Uttal

Cora Wen

Duncan Wong

Rodney Yee

See these treasures as they make their only West Coast appearance, thru January 25 (SF). 415.581.3500, asianart.org

Contemporary Jewish Museum Warhol’s Jews: Ten Portraits Reconsidered This exhibition is the first West Coast showing of the complete set of paintings Andy Warhol made in this series, thru January 25 (SF). 415.655.7800, thecjm.org

de Young Maya Lin: Systematic Landscapes New drawings, sculpture and installations from Maya Lin, the artist behind the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, thru January 18 (SF). 415.863.3330, thinker.org

di Rosa Preserve After the Age of Reason New drawings and sculpture by Maria Porges, thru January. 5200 Carneros Hwy, Napa. 707.226.5991, ext. 34, dirosapreserve.org

Exploratorium Can you solve the cube?

The international Rubik’s Cube competition comes to the Exploratorium, January 18 (SF). 415.561.0377, exploratorium.edu

Marin History

Historian Richard Torney presents a special slide presentation to close the popular exhibit on Marin’s historic trains, Riding the Rails , January 10. The exhibit opened in 2007, marking 100 years since the historic consolidation of the Northwestern Pacific Railroad. San Rafael Council Chambers. 415.454.8538, marinhistory.org

James C. Leonard Before Time 48 x 68 inches Acrylic on Canva s

James C. Leonard Before Time 48 x 68 inches Acrylic on Canvas

The No. 3, with the Mt. Tamalpais & Muir Woods Railroad, leaving at Muir Woods Tavern, 1896.

Opening Night

Legion of Honor The State Museums of Berlin and the Legacy of James Simon

See more than 100 works from the State Museums of Berlin, all from patron James Simon, whose cultural legacy will also be examined, thru January 18 (SF). 415.863.3330, legionofhonor.org

SFMOMA Swiss artist Mai-Thu Perret has spent the last 10 years imagining a world free from capitalism. The Crystal Frontier examines her vision, thru March 1 (SF). 415.357.4000, sfmoma.org

Yerba Buena Center for the Arts

Experience art created by the new wave of artists from Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden as the YBCA presents Irreverent: Contemporary Nordic Craft Art, January 23–April 12 (SF). 415.978.2787, ybca.org

EVENTS

5–26 Bay Shore Studies Children can learn to become young marine biologists in this special class. Richardson Bay Audubon Center and Sanctuary (Tiburon). 415.388.2524, tiburonaudubon.org

7 Tony Curtis The star of films such as Some Like It Hot and Spartacus discusses his life during Hollywood’s Golden Age and his new biography American Prince. Jewish Community Center of San Francisco (SF). 415.292.1233, jccsf.org

SAN FRANCISCO BALLET OPENS ITS 76TH REPERTORY SEASON with a Russian–treasures-themed gala celebrating Russian arts and history, January 21. The evening includes dinner at SF city hall, a performance and party featuring hors d’oeuvres, dancing and live music. The 2009 season kicks off January 27 and continues with seven additional programs. SF City Hall (SF). 415.865.6766, sfballet.org

15–30 Dine About Town Choose from more than 100 restaurants at the eighth annual Dine About Town offering prix-fixe lunches and dinners. 415.391.2000, onlyinsanfrancisco.com

21 Blue Star Music Camp Tommy Castro will headline with Jimmy Dillon and Ozzie Ahlers at this benefit for the Blue Star music camp for youth. 142 Throckmorton Theatre (Mill Valley). 415.383.9600, bluestarmusiccamps.com

22 Fanfare Luncheon The San Francisco Conservatory of Music presents its sixth annual fanfare luncheon featuring guest of honor pianist Yuliya Gorenman. SFCM (SF). 415.503.6291, sfcm.edu

24 Installation Dinner The Marin County Bar Association inducts new officers and directors for 2009. A silent auction benefits the Marin Justice Center and Legal Aid of Marin. The Spinnaker Restaurant (Sausalito). 415.499.1314, marinbar.org

24 WildCare Attend a volunteer orientation and learn to feed and care for orphaned and injured wild animals. WildCare (San Rafael). 415.453.1000, wildcarebayarea.org

27 Alan Zweibel The award-winning writer for Saturday Night Live, Monk, It’s Garry Shandling’s Show, Curb Your Enthusiasm and other shows is in conversation with comedi-

an, actor and producer Ed Crasnick. Osher Marin JCC (San Rafael). 415.444.8000, marinjcc.org

31 Open Auditions Mountain Play is holding open auditions for its 2009 production of Man of La Mancha. Come ready to sing, dance and act. College of Marin Fine Arts Building (Kentfield). 415.383.1100, mountainplay.org

31 Laughter in Bloom See Eddie Carroll become one of America’s most beloved entertainers, Jack Benny. Osher Marin JCC (San Rafael). 415.444.8000, marinjcc.org

NATURE WALKS/TALKS

Ongoing Sonoma History Local actor George Webber morphs into Mark Twain, as he retells the history of Sonoma (Sonoma). 707.694.5097, georgewebber.com

1 Marin Sierra Club The social event of the year for environmentally-minded hikers includes a potluck picnic on top of Mount Tamalpais after an easy hike. Meet at Miller and Locust avenues (Mill Valley). 415.461.9255, sanfranciscobay.sierraclub.org

3 Sunset Hike and Dine Join this local club for a monthly two-hour hike on moderate to steep trails on Mount Tamalpais with a midhike wine and cheese break. Reservations required. Mountain Home Inn (Mill Valley). 415.331.0100

10 Moonlight Hike Join the Marin Moonshiners for a monthly three-mile hike to experience the sunset, moonrise and a picnic. Reservations required. Pelican Inn Pub (Muir Beach). 415.331.0100

14 Master Gardener Class The BelvedereTiburon Landmarks Society is hosting a special hands-on rose pruning workshop. Art & Garden Center (Tiburon). 415.435.1853, landmarks-society.org

15 Nature of the Bay Join wildlife biologist Susan Wainwright de la Cruz as she discusses ducks that winter in the Bay Area. Richardson Bay Audubon Center and Sanctuary (Tiburon). 415.388.2524, tiburonaudubon.org

21 Marin Scuba Club Connect with other members of the scuba and free diving community. Seafood Peddler Restaurant (San Rafael). 415.453.9556, marinscuba.org

RETAIL THERAPY

Christopher Peacock Cabinetry See the designs that changed the look of the modern kitchen as the San Francisco Design Center welcomes Christopher Peacock. Christopher Peacock Cabinetry (SF). 415.692.5002, peacockcabinetry.com

Kate Somerville From her medi-spa in West Hollywood, Kate Somerville offers clients custom skin care by combining medical science with botanical elements. See her line of skin care products at Neiman Marcus. Neiman Marcus (SF). 415.362.3900, neimanmarcus.com

Kiehl’s Since 1851 The famous New York–based purveyor of skin- and hair-care products has a new North Bay location. The Village at Corte Madera (Corte Madera). 800.543.4572, kiehls.com

Viva La Juicy The latest launch from the always-hot Juicy Couture product line is another winner. The fragrance features the scent of mandarin orange, wild berries, honeysuckle, gardenia and creamy amber. Juicy Couture (Corte Madera). 415.927.2797, juicycouture.com

TRAVEL BUZZ

Acqua di Roma Gian-Paolo Veronese has opened a sanctuary spa in the Italian tradition. The spa offers tradition European-style treatment combined with an emphasis on wellness. 415.434.2100, acquadiroma.com

COPIA Attend a short Wine Tasting 101 class on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays that will help Napa Valley visitors get the most out of their winery experience. Learn spit-bucket etiquette, get a list of “don’t miss” wineries and receive a free Wine Country Passport full of values. $15. 707.259.1600, copia.org

Furnace Creek Inn & Ranch Resort As it gets cold this winter a name like Furnace Creek sounds more and more appealing. This winter the resort is offering a “Stay and

Peninsula Beverly Hills Experience the city like a local

Ah, Beverly Hills, land of the celebrities, legendary Rodeo Drive and yearround sunshine. Recently, the luxury Peninsula Beverly Hills hotel unveiled the Peninsula Academy, first created at the Peninsula Hong Kong location to give guests personalized instruction in key aspects of the city’s culture and lifestyle, such as tai chi, calligraphy and C hinese dumpling making. The Beverly Hills location had a harder time pinning down what exactly its city’s culture was all about. Lucky for guests, the five-star hotel got it right, unveiling unique experiences led by some of the best instructors in the industry. Guests’ options include starring in their own Hollywood movie, complete with an Emmy-nominated producer and crew following their every move, or discovering their inner surfer on the beaches of Malibu with celebrity instructor Rod Samper—the guy behind Tom Cruise’s and Cindy Crawford’s skills. Samper brings all the equipment and even lets the other die-hard surfers in the water know you’ll need some room to practice. After, guests enjoy a picnic on the beach (or if you’re lucky, at one of Samper’s celebrity client’s homes). For those who tremble at the idea of public speaking, revel the thought of being the next singing sensation or perhaps want to gain a British accent for the day, the academy offers lessons with Bob Corff, a voice coach who taught Cate Blanche tt to sound like Katherine Hepburn in The Aviator , and Jake Gyllenhaal to sound like a cowboy in Brokeback Mountain Fitness buffs or those who want to look like one can work their muscles with Alonzo Cannon. The trainer has worked with actors like Colin Farrell and groups like the Dixie Chicks, to create customized regimes. Guests can go for a run with Cannon on a Santa Monica Mountain trail or stay local with a personal training session in the hotel’s fitness center. Contact the Peninsula Beverly Hills Hotel concierge for details. 310.551.2888, peninsula.com.

Play” golf package for accommodations and golf on its year-round course. Rates are $204 at the ranch and $338 at the inn thru February 13. 888.236.7916, furnacecreekresort.com

Hotel Abri Enjoy a “Suite Night on Union Square” and a real girl’s night out in January. Check into a two-room urban suite, enjoy a cocktail from the in-room bar and then hit the town. The concierge will make arrangements for dinner and VIP entry into the best clubs. $389. 866.823.4669, hotel-abri.com

Hotel Vertigo In celebration of the 50th anniversary of Alfred Hitchcock’s masterpiece Vertigo, Hotel Vertigo debuted in San Francisco’s Union Square this winter. Watch out for the mysterious room number 13 full of memorabilia. 800.553.1900, personalityhotels.com

Island Hotel Newport Beach Experience all that Newport Beach has to offer—or just stay in and savor breakfast in bed with the Bed and Breakfast Package. Package includes breakfast for two in the privacy of your room and complimentary valet parking. $279 per night. 888.321.4752, islandhotel.com

Kaua‘i Marriott Resort & Beach Club This 356-room resort is located on Kalapaki Beach close to all kinds of outdoor activities. The resort is offering an “EcoAdventure Package” this winter that includes room, breakfast and the chance to choose two out of five adventure packages. $455 per night. 800.220.2925, kauaimarriott.com

Kimpton Hotels The Argonaut Hotel, Harbor Court Hotel, Hotel Monaco San Francisco, Hotel Triton, Hotel Palomar San Francisco, Prescott Hotel, Serrano Hotel and Sir Francis Drake invite you to participate in “Relaxation Month” this January. Nurse your holiday hangover and contact your favorite hotel to see what packages are being offered. 800.546.7866, kimptonhotels.com

Ka‘anapali Beach Hotel Maui’s oceanfront hotel, located on 11 lush acres along Maui’s fabled Ka‘anapali coastline, has a “Family & Friends” package to help you chase away

the winter blues. The package includes two nights’ accommodation for four people, car rental, daily buffet breakfast and more. $499 for four. 800.262.8450, kbhmaui.com

Laguna Cliffs Resort and Spa Located on the coast of sunny Orange County overlooking Dana Point Harbor, Laguna Cliffs has 10 different escape packages to choose from, including a family package complete with pizza and soda. Packages begin at $259 a night. 949.661.5000, lagunacliffs.com

Larkspur Hotel Union Square Enjoy Union Square shopping, dining and entertainment as part of the “Park and Play” package, which includes accommodations for two, valet parking, continental breakfast and cable car day passes. $239. 800.553.1900, hotelunionsquare.com

Little River Inn Crashing waves and breathtaking views make for a picture-perfect wedding with just two or 200 on the North Coast. 888.466.5683, littleriverinn.com

Ojai Valley Inn and Spa The Ojai Valley Inn has two exciting programs in January, including a mixologist dinner January 8 and a literary club luncheon with Today Show travel expert Peter Greenberg January 22. Packages start at $300. 888.697.8780, ojairesort.com

Pura Vida Adventures The surf and yoga specialists for women announce a new beachfront location at the Hotel Tropico Latino located on a local surf break in Malpais, Costa Rica. Pura Vida is now offering $100 off for Marin Magazine readers who book a trip through August 2009. 415.465.2162, puravidaadventures.com

Sonoma Valley The three-month Season of the Olive celebration is back in the Sonoma Valley through February. The eighth annual Olive Festival is a celebration of the olive harvest and an epicurean showcase with many local restaurants and lodges offering special packages. Important events include Martini Madness on January 9 and the Feast of the Olive Dinner January 24. 707.996.1090, olivefestival.com

Villa Florence This Union Square hotel recently reopened with a new look and design. 415.397.7700, villaflorence.com

Tunisian Vegetable Tagine Insalata’s,

San Anselmo

Traditional Middle Eastern tagines are prepared in conical-shaped earthenware pots, also called tajines, which cook the contents in their own juices. A Dutch oven or heavy-bottom sauté pan is a good substitute. The spice mixture for this Tunisian stew complements most root and green vegetables.

SPICE MIXTURE

1 teaspoon ground turmeric

1 pinch saffron threads

1 star anise pod

B/c teaspoon ground ginger

1 teaspoon ground coriander

1 teaspoon ground cumin

B/c teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon grated orange zest

B/i teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

B/c teaspoon kosher salt

INGREDIENTS

7 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

1 yellow onion, thinly sliced

1 carrot, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces

1 sweet potato, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces

1 parsnip, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces

1 fennel bulb, trimmed and cut into B/i-inch pieces

1 red bell pepper, seeded, deribbed, and cut into 1-inch pieces

1 yellow bell pepper, seeded, deribbed, cut into 1-inch pieces

2 zucchini, cut into 1 B/c inch pieces

1 cup water

1 (14 B/c-ounce) can peeled and chopped tomatoes, with juices

1 cup canned chickpeas, drained

B/c cup currants

COUSCOUS

3 cups vegetable stock

D/e teaspoon salt

1 B/c cups couscous

2 tablespoon olive oil

B/c cup shelled pistachios

1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro for garnish

COMBINE all the ingredients for the spice mixture in a small

bowl and stir to blend. Heat a large Dutch oven or heavy sauté pan over medium heat. Add 3 tablespoons of oil and sauté the onion for about 7 minutes, or until soft. Stir in all of the spice mixture and sauté for 2 minutes. Transfer the onion mixture to a bowl.

In the same pan, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat and sauté the carrot, sweet potato and parsnip for 10 to 12 minutes, until crisp-tender.

Using a slotted spoon, transfer to the bowl with the onion. Reheat the pan, add 2 tablespoons of oil, and sauté the fennel and peppers for 5 minutes, until crisp-tender. Add zucchini and cook for 5 more minutes.

Return all the vegetables and onion mixture to the pan. Add the water and the tomatoes and their juices and simmer for 15 minutes. Stir in the chickpeas and currants and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes, until the vegetables are tender. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Just before serving, make the couscous: Combine the stock and salt in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Whisk in the couscous and olive oil.

Turn off the heat and cover the pot with a lid. Let stand for 7 to 10 minutes. Fluff with a fork and fold in the pistachios. Serve warm with the vegetable tagine. Garnish the tagine with the cilantro.

Serves 6 as a main course.

Organic Marin

RECIPES FROM LAND TO TABLE

Written and photographed by Tim Porter and Farina Wong Kingsley and produced by Marin Magazine, this is a seasonal cookbook that celebrates the organic farmers and ranchers of Marin County. Flavor will feature a recipe from Organic Marin each month. The book can be purchased at local bookstores or by going to marinmagazine.com/ organicmarin.

DINE OUT

CORTE MADERA

BENISSIMO Italian Benissimo means “really really good” in Italian. From margherita pizza to veal parmigiana to mocha mud pie, Benissimo serves a taste of Italy in a casual neighborhood venue. 18 Tamalpais Dr, 415.927.2316, benissimos.com

CALIFORNIA PIZZA KITCHEN Cal/Eclectic Be prepared for chaos. Easy place to meet with kids; Mom/Dad can enjoy a tasty Thai crunch salad and decent glass of wine while the little ones feast on basic kid-size portions of pasta and pizza. 347 Corte Madera Town Center, 415.945.0401

IL FORNAIO Italian Sausalito’s Larry Mindel hit a home run with this upscale Italian 23-restaurant franchise. Besides the award-winning breads, pizzas and pastas, the menu boasts a variety of salads and noncarb entrées. 223 Corte Madera Town Center, 415.927.4400, ilfornaio.com

IZZY’S STEAKS & CHOP HOUSE American The legendary San Francisco steak house has moved north. Known for great steaks and seafood as well as its fine wine selection, this is a great spot for a group or intimate dinner for two. 55 Tamal Vista, 415.924.3366, izzysrestaurant.com

LA MAISON DE LA REINE Vietnamese A refreshing change amid the plethora of Italian, Mexican and Chinese options. The crunchy cabbage chicken salad with peanuts, fresh spring rolls, and combinations of pho are delicious. 346 Corte Madera Town Center, 415.927.0288

MARIN JOE’S Italian Pasta and other Italian dishes have been served up here for over 50 years. Pick from soup, salad, seafood mesquitegrilled or sautéed meats and over 10 pasta options guaranteed to satisfy. Have a drink and hear local musicians at the well-known piano bar. 1585 Casa Buena Dr, 415.924.2081, marinjoesrestaurant.com

MAX’S CAFE American Located across from Town Center, Max’s is renowned for casual ambience and large portions. The menu changes with the season but features year-round favorites like matzo ball soup and BLTs. Besides decadent portions or comfort food and desserts, the menu also offers seasonable local produce and healthy items too. 60 Madera Blvd, 415.924.6297, maxsworld.com

PACIFIC CATCH Pan-Asian This well-priced fresh grill eatery offers a bounty of Pacific Rim—inspired small or main plates, like the generously portioned wasabi bowls filled with rice (white or brown), veggies and your choice of fresh or raw fish,

chicken or beef. 223 Corte Madera Town Center, 415.927.3474, pacificcatch.com

P.F. CHANG’S CHINA BISTRO Chinese As of 2008, Marin diners don’t have to travel in order to enjoy the famed orange chicken, salt-and-pepper calamari or Mongolian beef. The restaurant serves lunch, dinner and takeout. 301 Corte Madera Town Center. 415.413.9890, pfchangs.com

RICK’S WINE CELLAR California This one-room, bar and wine shop is located at the same spot as Marin’s first wine bar, which opened back in 1988. Now it’s owned and operated by Marin natives Rick and Candy Mendell, whose customers call it the “Cheers of Corte Madera.” Offerings include a glass, a flight or a bottle, all of which pair nicely with the cheeses, salami and hot paninis. 207 Corte Madera Ave, 415.927.9466, rickswinecellar.com

FAIRFAX

DEER PARK VILLA Italian This “best place for a party” (Pacific Sun) sits on four garden acres; the Ghiringhelli family has been turning out Italian favorites here since 1937. Come for the famous veal parmesan—or your next big celebration. 367 Bolinas Rd, 415.456.8084, deerparkvilla.com

IRON SPRINGS PUB & BREWERY American Grab a beer and a grilled portobello mushroom sandwich—which one Chronicle reviewer calls “the best mushroom dish I have ever tasted”—at the former Ross Valley Brewing Company. 765-A Center Blvd, 415.485.1005, ironspringspub.com

PANCHO VILLA’S Mexican A Fairfax favorite for over 30 years. Since 1976, head chef Francisco has been turning out treats like chile relleno stuffed with jack cheese, cilantro and onion and crab enchiladas topped with a mild tomatillo sauce and sour cream. 1625 Sir Frances Drake Blvd, 415.456.4331, panchosfairfax.com

SORELLA CAFÉ Italian Not only is the food satisfying and tasty; the service is friendly and the ambience is warm and inviting. 107 Bolinas Rd, 415.258.4520

GREENBRAE

CAFE Z American A pleasant surprise in the Bon Air shopping mall. Dishes like grilled chicken pesto panini and savory crepes have quickly made this intimate spot a local favorite, and inventive meals keep people coming back for more. 282 Bon Air Center, 415.461.9444, cafez.com

JASON’S Italian The restaurant’s new Greenbrae location (it was formerly on Andersen Drive in San Rafael) fills the space that was formerly Giorgio’s. A crowd of regulars enjoys creative seafood dishes with Italian flair. Enjoy the ceviche, crab cakes or blackened salmon on the large outdoor covered patio. 300 Drakes Landing Rd, 415.925.0808, jasonsrestaurant.com

WIPEOUT BAR & GRILL American Belvedere residents Nancy and Scooter Simmons, known for the popular Chevy’s chain, have brought their San Francisco location of the surf-themed Wipeout Bar & Grill to the Bon Air Center. The restaurant features a full bar, outdoor patio and familyfriendly items like sandwiches, burgers and pizza in a T-shirt-and-sandals atmosphere. 302 Bon Air Center. 415.461.7400, wipeoutbarandgrill.com

KENTFIELD

HALF DAY CAFE American A tucked-away setting of intertwining ivy and great white windows makes the perfect breakfast nook. The setting is casual but elegant; the menu includes lattes, exceptional pastries and much more. Dine on the outdoor patio or inside where the view is just as divine. 848 College Ave, 415.459.0291

WILLIE’S CAFE American Stop here for down-toearth atmosphere and reasonable prices. This cozy spot offers breakfast, lunch and dinner; favorites include corn pancakes and veggie frittata. 799 College Ave, 415.455.9455

LARKSPUR

CJ CHINESE CUISINE Chinese Great spot to satisfy a craving for wonton soup before catching a show at the Lark Theater; lunch and takeout are popular too. 435 Magnolia Ave, 415.924.0717

E & 0 TRADING COMPANY Southeast Asian Chef Edwin Cabriloa-Torres is keeping the restaurant’s innovative plates like Indonesian corn fritters and Thai seafood clay pot as tasty as ever. Without reservations, try a spot at the large communal table. 2231 Larkspur Landing Circle, 415.925.0303, eotrading.com

EMPORIO RULLI Italian Pastry chef Gary Rulli is renowned for his Northern Italian specialties and treats. The Larkspur location (there are three others) is a popular spot for lunch as well as coffee and a sweet. 464 Magnolia Ave, 415.924.7478, rulli.com

FABRIZIO RISTORANTE Italian Traditional Italian dishes with an extensive wine list from regions all over Italy; outside seating makes the experience even more special. 455 Magnolia Ave, 415.924.3332

LARK CREEK INN American This flagship eatery for the Lark Creek Restaurant Group opened back in 1989 and was hailed by the New York Times as having “the best home cooking you can imagine.” It remains a perennial special occasion spot and is still known for inventive country cooking—as well as a cozy bar scene. 234 Magnolia Ave, 415.924.7766, larkcreek.com

LEFT BANK RESTAURANT French Known for award-winning French cuisine and its lively brasserie ambience, this corner spot has rated high with locals for well over a decade. Those with

a petite appetite/budget can opt for happy hour (4–6 M–F) and enjoy appetizers, all priced under three dollars. 507 Magnolia Ave, 415.927.3331, leftbank.com

MARIN BREWING CO American Grab a cold beer made right on site and pair it with fish and chips—fresh cod dipped in Mt. Tam pale ale batter, served with steak fries and homemade tartar sauce. 1809 Larkspur Landing Circle, 415.461.4677, marinbrewing.com

PICCO California Chef and celebrated restaurateur Bruce Hill deserves the accolades he has received for this eclectic shared-plate heaven. Dishes like mini-burgers and seasonally driven menu items, along with risotto made every half hour, keep people coming back. The Picco Pizzeria and Wine Bar next door is cozy (not many seats) but already famous for its wood-fired pizzas, great wine selection and soft-serve Straus Family Creamery ice cream. 320 Magnolia Ave, 415.924.0300, restaurantpicco.com

RUSTIC BAKERY California Organic mouthwatering pastries, breads, and sandwiches are on the menu here. The Meyer lemon mascarpone danish and the bacon, avocado and heirloom tomato sandwich with mesclun are perennial temptations. 1139 Magnolia Ave, 415.925.1556, rusticbakery.com

TABLE CAFÉ Indian/American Indian-inspired cafe offers a unique menu featuring entirely organic ingredients. Dishes include seasonal salads, incredible soups and fresh juices. The specialty of the house is dosa, filled with a variety of ingredients and served with savory homemade chutneys. You can also take home a choice of three or four gourmet dinners freshly packed daily. 1167 Magnolia Ave, 415.461.6787

TAM CELLARS Wine bar This wine shop includes an elegant bar with seating for up to 36 people, 30 wines by the glass and tasting flights. Tam Cellars specializes in hard-to-find wines and small production wineries. Enjoy a glass or bottle to pair with the selection of appetizers. Live music on Thursdays. 1803 Larkspur Landing, 415.461.9463, tamcellars.com

THE MELTING POT French Just across the street from the Larkspur Ferry terminal is a round red-brick haven for fondue fans. Share the “Big Night Out” feast featuring chef’s specialties, or design your own spread with cheese fondue, salad, choice of meat entrée and chocolate fondue dessert. 125 E. Sir Francis Drake Blvd, 415.461.6358, themeltingpot.com

YANKEE PIER American This family-friendly casual clam shack is harbored in a quaint house built in 1924 as a private residence. Though known for beer-battered fish’n’ chips, clam chowder and tasty salads, Yankee Pier serves fresh seafood delivered daily from both coasts with special dishes by new chef Brian Beach. 286 Magnolia Ave, 415.924.7676, yankeepier.com

SURGERY

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Internship and Residency in General Surgery

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CALL THE SHOT!

CALL THE SHOT has a simple premise: Tell us what this is a picture of and win a $100 gift certificate for Wipeout Bar & Grill in Greenbrae.

To win, you must be specific. Sure, it’s a yacht club, but what city is it in? Even better, give us the name of the cove where it is located. Hint: It’s a great place for a launch on a sunny afternoon.

MILL VALLEY

BALBOA CAFE MILL VALLEY California The San Francisco institution makes its debut in Mill Valley. Come for the pan-roasted Alaskan halibut or risotto but stay for the amazing burgers. 38 Miller Ave, 415.381.7321, balboacafe.com

BUCKEYE ROADHOUSE American Oysters Bingo, baby back ribs and chili-lime “brick” chicken are a few of the satisfying, comfort-food-type menu items that have made this classic roadhouse a favorite since the ’30s. The warm dark-wooded bar with red leather booths is a popular spot for cocktails, conversations or a light meal. 15 Shoreline Hwy, 415.331.2600, buckeyeroadhouse.com

BUNGALOW 44 American Much like sister restaurant Buckeye Roadhouse, Bungalow 44 offers a mean dose of homey carbo- and lipidladen dishes, such as the burger, fried chicken and truffle fries, as well as a few lighter items. The bar is a neighborhood favorite, serving up tasty spirits and eye candy. 44 E. Blithedale Ave, 415.381.2500, bungalow44.com

CACTUS CAFE AND TAQUERIA Mexican Recently under new management; the food is better than

Here’s how to play: Go to marinmagazine.com, agree to the rules and submit your answer. Simple. We’ll choose the winner randomly from all the correct answers. Good luck!

And the winner is: Amy Harris of Mill Valley won November’s Call the Shot by identifying the bridge at the San Geronimo Golf Club.

ever. They still offer the lunchtime bargain burrito, as well as fish tacos and Caesar salads with grilled chicken or shrimp. Be sure to opt for the diablo sauce on enchiladas and burritos. 393 Miller Ave, 415.388.8226

CAFE DEL SOUL California Beware of addiction. Once you stop in for the deliciously fresh Hummus Yummus wrap, you’ll have to come back to sample the chipotle Sunrise Rice Bowl; then it will be the Thai It Up wrap with peanut sauce washed down with ginger limeade that brings you back, and so on. Casual lunch spot, great for takeout. 247 Shoreline Hwy, 415.388.1852, cafedelsoul.net

DIPSEA CAFE Comfort One word: biscuits. This longtime breakfast spot has been serving up tasty pancakes and egg dishes with homemade biscuits since 1986. Try a biscuit with a poached egg, a biscuit with sausage—or just plain butter. Lunch specialties include BLTs and tuna melts and generous Cobb salads. Now serving dinner. 200 Shoreline Hwy, 415.381.0298, dipseacafe.com

EL PASEO French Keiko Takahashi, a prominent Tokyo chef known for her modern French cuisine, transports her flair to Mill Valley. With a cottagelike feeling, this fine dining restaurant serves meals

that are nothing less than exquisite. Reservations recommended. 17 Throckmorton Ave, 415.388.0741, elpaseorestaurant.com

FRANTOIO RISTORANTE ITALIANO Italian

Known for its in-house olive press, superior olive oil and excellent Italian cuisine, this is a great location for large groups. Ask to sit in the press room for private parties. 152 Shoreline Hwy, 415.289.5777, frantoio.com

INDIA PALACE Indian Known as “that great restaurant in the Travelodge,” India Palace is a favorite among the takeout crowd; however, eating on site is a treat too. 707 Redwood Hwy, 415.388.3350

JOE’S TACO LOUNGE Mexican A longtime local favorite, Joe’s serves up regular fare such as tasty fish tacos, burritos and enchiladas as well as more unusual items like Mexican pizza, tofu salad, and crab tostados. Colorful interior and (usually) quick service makes this a fun, easy stop. And if there are too many unsupervised kids for a peaceful meal, takeout is easy too. Alone? Grab a magazine and seat at the counter and enjoy the action. 382 Miller, 415.383.8164

LA GINESTRA Italian A favorite family spot for over 30 years; getting a table or booth can take a while. While this old-school Italian eatery is known for traditional pastas, veal dishes, pizzas and dry martinis, the familiar wait staff is also part of the attraction. 127 Throckmorton Ave, 415.388.0224

LUCINDA’S MEXICAN FOOD Mexico Singled out for “best burrito” by the Pacific Sun in 2005, this is a prime place to grab lunch and head back to the office. 930 Redwood Highway, 415.388.0754

MAMA’S ROYAL CAFE American No one should miss this fabulous kitsch-decorated spot. Appetizing crepes, brioche French toast and other breakfast treats are served all day; stay awhile and try the sandwiches for lunch. 387 Miller Ave, 415.388.3261

MARIA MARIA Mexican The menu at Maria Maria draws from diverse regional cuisines of Mexico, including slow braised duck tacos, guacamole prepared tableside and Guajillo Marinated Red Snapper Filet. 651 E. Blithedale, 415.381.1070. mariamariarestaurants.com

MILL VALLEY COFFEE SHOP American Sure, it could use a steam clean, but the regulars keep coming back for the pancakes and eggs. Great place to bring the kids. 4 Locust Ave, 415.388.6958

PIAZZA D’ANGELO Italian It’s always a party at this long-standing hot spot. A great place to meet up with friends for a fresh plate of pasta, zuppa di pesce or pollo novello, or make some new friends at the bar. 22 Miller Ave, 415.388.2000, piazzadangelo.com

PIATTI RISTORANTE AND BAR Italian Reopened, after an extensive remodel, with chef Chris Fernandez on board leading the kitchen with a menu coinciding with seasonal food from local producers. The crudo and pizza are not to be missed. 625 Redwood Hwy, 415.380.2525, piatti.com

RAIN TREE CAFÉ American/Homestyle In the Strawberry Village shopping center American fare: soups, salads, burgers, sandwiches and gourmet crepes. Savor the Mill Valley Crepe: smoked salmon, capers, spinach, and Dijon in a fresh warm wrap. Breakfast is served all day. 610 Strawberry Village, 415.380.8886, caferaintree.com

SMALL SHED FLATBREADS California As a slow food chef, Ged Robertson uses only local, mostly organic ingredients. Crowd favorites include the Mt. Tamal-Pie, a delicious fresh salad atop a flatbread. 17 Madrona St, 415.383.4200, smallshed.com

THEP LELA Thai This jewel is tucked away in the back of the new Strawberry Village. Diners come for the tasty kee mao noodles, pad thai, fresh rolls and extensive bar menu. It’s also a great place for lunch. 615 Strawberry Village, 415.383.3444

VASCO Italian Whether you’re at a table, the bar or the back counter, you can expect an intimate and tasty dining experience at this one-room trattoria. Don’t miss trying one of the restaurant’s pasta dishes or thin-crust pizzas. 106 Throckmorton Ave, 415.381.3343

NOVATO

AURORA RISTORANTE ITALIANO Italian Locals have already discovered this cheery and bright new Italian restaurant serving large portions of traditional food. Enjoy your meal on the large outdoor deck. 8 Commercial Blvd, 415.382.8488

BOCA STEAK & SEAFOOD South American

Serving up an Argentinean-inspired menu in Novato with much ado. House specialties include provolenta, gambas al ajillo, and empanadas, as well as hand-cut (grass- and grain-fed) steaks. 340 Ignacio Blvd, 415.883.0901, bocasteak.com

CACTI GRILL American Grill A former bell tower church, the family-friendly restaurant now boasts a covered patio and serves a 21-day dry-aged steak and filet mignon enchiladas. 1200 Grant Ave, 415.898.2234, cactigrill.com

FINNEGAN’S MARIN American This pub-style restaurant features tasty appetizers, grilled flatbread pizzas and entrees including New York steak, garlic herb chicken and a braised beef and pork ragu that will really stick to your ribs. Wine, beer and cocktails are available. 877 Grant Ave, 415.899.1516, finnegansmarin.com

PORTELLI ROSSI Italian The owners of Kitchen at 868 Grant have reopened as Portelli Rossi—which means red door in Italian. This casual cafe offers huge portions (most priced under $20), a garden patio and a family-friendly environment. 868 Grant Ave, 415.892.6100, portellirossi.com

WILDFOX American Perched on the hillside off Highway 101, this rustic mesquite grill offers a menu full of comfort food and drinks, like the smooth cosmos, and seafood risotto, with bits of butternut squash. In the mood for a cigar? The restaurant has an extensive list. 225 Alameda del Prado, 415.883.9125, wildfoxrestaurant.com

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ROSS

CAFE MARMALADE French A quaint one-room coffeehouse centrally situated near Ross Common. Get there early for the full selection of pastries to enjoy with fresh-squeezed orange juice. 22 Ross Common, 415.461.2205

MARCHÉ AUX FLEURS French This gem of a restaurant serves up locally farmed produce, wild and fresh seafood and free-range meats prepared with an artisan’s touch. The wine and beer list is extensive. 23 Ross Common, 415.925.9200, marcheauxfleursrestaurant.com

TRATTORIA FRESCO Italian Every neighborhood deserves a one-room trattoria like this one. The service is friendly and the farmers’-market-fresh food is fabulous—especially the gnocchi. 13 Ross Common, 415.464.0915

SAN ANSELMO

AVA California Chef Dan Baker, of Marché aux Fleurs in Ross, has another winner with AVA, which features a California-only wine list and a menu where nearly all the ingredients come from within 100 miles—if not the Marin County Farmers’ Market. The small menu includes seasonal flatbreads, pasta and six seasonal main dishes. 636 San Anselmo Ave, 415.453.3407

CUCINA RESTAURANT AND WINE BAR Italian Proprietor Jack Krietzman (of Pacific Heights’ Jackson Fillmore) has brought Milan to Marin with his 42-seat family restaurant. Relax with a glass of wine and have a slice from the to-die-for thin pizzas, topped with items like truffle oil and fontina cheese. 510 San Anselmo Ave, 415.454.2942

DEBBIE DOES DESSERT Bakery Besides sweets, the menu offers tapas on weekends and savory dishes such as grilled duck aux pêche with lavender honey sauce on galette de mais. 556 San Anselmo Ave, 415.721.2901, debbiedoesdessert.com

FORK California This intimate spot was awarded “Top Food in the Bay Area” by Zagat for 2007. Opt for the five-course tasting menu or seasonal à la carte options. The three-course special for $20 is available during the first seating. 198 Sir Francis Drake Blvd, 415.453.9898, marinfork.com

INSALATA’S Mediterranean Award-winning chef Heidi Insalata Krahling offers Mediterranean and Middle Eastern dishes prepared with local organic produce and artisan meats. 120 Sir Francis Drake Blvd, 415.457.7700, insalatas.com

LOCOCO’S PIZZERIA Italian Worth driving to from all over Marin, and it’s an easy place to meet with friends and family. The pizza crust is divine as is the house salad. Easy spot to come with the entire family. Closed Mondays. 638 San Anselmo Ave, 415.453.1238, lococossananselmo.com

PLAYDATE CAFÉ American Parents on the run love to stop in for a sandwich while the kids toss and tumble. 101 San Anselmo Ave, 415.459.7529, playdate-cafe.com

TACO JANE’S Mexican Named after the owner’s mother, this casual but colorful place welcomes the whole family. Don’t miss out on Jane’s handmade agave margarita or griddled plantains with Jane’s crema. 21 Tamalpais Ave, 415.454.6562, tacojanes.com

SAN GERONIMO

TWO BIRD CAFÉ California This roadside cafe has it all, including fresh fish and goodies from the garden. These guys were doing local and sustainable before it was so popular. 625 San Geronimo Valley Dr, 415.488.0105, twobirdcafe.com

SAN RAFAEL

BOMBAY GARDEN Indian The restaurant offers a large menu of richly flavored Northern and Southern Indian Cuisine. There are often Bollywood movies or videos playing on a flat-screen TV to add a little entertainment to the meal. 909 Fourth St, 415.459.9555, dinebombaygarden.com

CAFE GRATITUDE Raw The waiters might push the affirmations theme a bit too much, but the tasty (and healthy) food is worth it. Besides the knowledge you’re supporting local farmers and sustainable agriculture, the raw food and vegan samosas are hard to resist. Best to bring a group and sample lots of items on the menu. 2200 Fourth St, 415.824.4652, withthecurrent.com

CREPEVINE American Bistro/Creperie Offering casual dining, outdoor seating and a diverse menu of savory crepes (such as the Italian crepe filled with roasted peppers, eggplant, onions, artichoke hearts, tomato sauce and mozzarella). Sweet and savory crepes are available all day long, as is breakfast. 908 Fourth St, 415.257.8822

MULBERRY STREET PIZZERIA Italian Chef Ted Rowe won first place in the Food Network Television Pizza Challenge with his Mushroom Lover’s Pizza—sautéed mushrooms in a creamy garlic sauce atop a fresh pizza crust. Located across from the Smith Ranch Road movie theaters, it’s a great place to grab dinner and a movie. 101 Smith Ranch Rd, 415.472.7272, mulberry-streetpizzeria.com

SABOR OF SPAIN Spanish Named Best Tapas/ Small Dishes restaurant in Marin by the Pacific Sun in 2006, this Spanish-wine bar is a great place for a date or a big party. The gazpacho is world class here and a must-try. 1301 Fourth St, 415.457.8466, saborofspain.com

SAN RAFAEL JOE’S Italian Guido and Theresa Farina are now running this Marin institution, which has been famous for serving up sophisticated yet casual Italian fare since 1947. The Pacific red snapper meuniere and roast sirloin of beef are standouts. 931 Fourth St, 415.456.2425, srjoes.com

SEAFOOD PEDDLER Seafood A great place to seek out fresh seafood in a warm and inviting environment. Varieties of East and West Coast fish flown in daily. Dine indoors or out, or better

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yet, rent out the banquet room for a party. 100 Yacht Club Dr, 415.460.6669, seafoodpeddler.com

SOL FOOD Puerto Rican With south-of-theborder treats like yellow rice, beans, plantains and authentic Puerto Rican dishes, this tiny one-room eatery on Fourth Street just off Highway 101 can be hard to get into, but worth the wait. 732 Fourth St, and 901 Lincoln Ave, 415.451.4765

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SUSHI TO DAI FOR Japanese Snagging a seat in this popular sushi spot can be a challenge, but patience will be rewarded with tasty and fresh sashimi, unique sushi rolls and great prices. 869 Fourth St, 415.721.0392

THERESA & JOHNNY’S COMFORT FOOD American Cooking like Mom used to make. Stop in for eggs Benedict, tuna melts, coffee and some of the best milk shakes around. 817 Fourth St, 415.259.0182, theresa-and-johnnys.com

SAUSALITO

ANGELINO RESTAURANT Italian Father-andson chefs Pasquale and Alfredo Ancona offer handmade pastas and seasonal antipasti at this authentic Italian restaurant, which has been serving food from the Campania region for the past 24 years. 621 Bridgeway, 415.331.5225, angelinorestaurant.com

ARAWAN THAI RESTAURANT Thai Known for its consistently tasty Thai food and efficient, gracious service. For light fare try the imperial or Siamese rolls (vegetarian), or dig into the delicious pad thai noodles or garlic and pepper prawns. Arawan Thai has been a local favorite for over nine years. 47 Caledonia St, 415.332.0882, arawan.com

CAFFÉ DIVINO Tuscan Locals come for the tasty pastas and salads, as well as coffee drinks, in a funky one-room setting. Free delivery in Sausalito. 37 Caledonia St, 415.331.9355, caffedivinosausalito.com

FENG NIAN Chinese Busy at lunch and dinner, this spacious hangout has been a popular spot for wonton soup, potstickers and daily specials for nearly two decades. For an indulgent treat order the Szechwan crispy calamari or honey-glazed walnut prawn. Free delivery. 2650 Bridgeway, 415.331.5300, fengnian.com

FRED’S Coffee Shop A local hot spot for over 40 years. Don’t miss the famous deepfried French toast or the traditional Swedish breakfast. Not a breakfast person? The bacon bleu cheeseburger on a sourdough roll with fries is delicious too. Open daily 7 to 3. Breakfast served until 2. 1917 Bridgeway, 415.332.4575, fredscoffeeshop.com

GAYLORD INDIA Indian Rated a “Restaurant of Excellence” by Zagat, Gaylord’s new location in Sausalito also features million-dollar views of San Francisco and the bay. All the dishes including samosas, curries and tandoori are made with fresh local produce, seafood and artisan meats. 201 Bridgeway, 415.339.0172, gaylord.com Visit marinmagazine.com/vip and sign up for Marin Magazine’s VIP E-Newsletter. You will be automatically entered to win Mamma Mia! The Movie on DVD. Hurry, only 10 DVDs available!

HORIZONS California Chef Leo Correa has been cooking up great dishes at this restaurant with a view for more than 20 years. The delicious clam chowder and succulent lobster tails will keep you coming back. 558 Bridgeway, 415.331.3232, horizonssausalito.com

KITTI’S PLACE Pan-Asian Watch out Comforts (aka the best chicken salad in town): Kitty’s serves up a delicious crunchy fresh chicken salad, as well as light tasty spring rolls too. Popular with the lunch and take-out dinner crowd. 3001 Bridgeway, 415.331.0390

LE GARAGE French Olivier Souvestre left his position at executive chef at San Francisco’s Chez Papa Bistro to open his new waterfront cafe in Sausalito with partner Bruno Denis. Le Garage features standard French bistro fare like croque monsieur and brunch items like eggs Benedict with an emphasis on fresh seafood and a large selection of charcuterie . 85 Liberty Ship Way, 415.332.5625

MURRAY CIRCLE American Enjoy the sun on the deck of this Cavallo Point restaurant. Locals say they come back for the fresh seasonal ingredients like wild sturgeon and Wolfe Ranch quail that chef Joseph Humphrey cooks up. 601 Murray Circle, 415.339.4750, cavallopoint.com

PARADISE BAY American Enjoy the sun or dine under the stars at this waterfront restaurant. Locals say their favorites are the organic beef sandwiches and fresh Maine lobster clubs. 1200 Bridgeway, 415.331.3226, paradisebaysausalito.com

PICCOLO TEATRO Italian Travis Flood takes over as executive chef and brings breakfast, finger foods, main courses and wine to the table. 739 Bridgeway Blvd, 415.332.0739, piccoloteatrodisausalito.com

POGGIO Italian A great place to celebrate a special occasion or simply enjoy a night out. Executive chef Peter McNee cooks up delicious Northern Italian cuisine using fresh and local ingredients, including produce from the nearby Poggio chef garden. 777 Bridgeway, 415.332.7771, poggiotratoria.com

SAYLOR’S RESTAURANT AND BAR California/ Mexican Owner and chef Sean Saylor has created a new menu, keeping some traditional favorites, and has moved the restaurant to a new location. The large menu is impressive and the bar’s selection of more than 100 tequilas is hard to beat. 2009 Bridgeway, 415.332.1512, saylorsrestaurantandbar. com

SCOMA’S Seafood Whether it’s for the view of San Francisco or the historical background, visitors flock to this location for a romantic setting. The array of fresh seafood and meat dishes are appetizing as the Italian pasta dishes. 588 Bridgeway, 415.332.9551, scomassausalito.com

SUSHI RAN Japanese Fresh, innovative small plates are just big enough to share, the traditional sushi is melt-in-your-mouth good and the wine, cocktail and sake lists keep the pickiest barfly well satisfied. Even the prices don’t deter the herd of

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news from the north

Legends of Wine Winemaker Dinner Series

In case you were looking for an excuse to spend a weekend in Yountville, V Wine Cellar will be co-hosting a winemaker dinner series with Vintage Inn and Spa on a at least six Friday nights throughout 2009. Scott Lewis of V Wine Cellar has chosen winemakers who will pair their vintages, library collections, basically the best of their best with local chefs, villagio.com

Winter Wineland

Silly for Sake

For those who want to venture from the grape varietals on their next northern adventure, check out Go Fish in St. Helena for exotic sakes. Stuart Morris, their resident sake expert is heading to Japan this month in a quest to pass the KikiSakeShi; the equivalent of the Master Sommelier test for sakes. If he passes he will be one of only 6 Americans to earn this degree. Regardless of the results, Morris will return to create his sake/sushi pairings every Tuesday night through winter. gofishrestaurant.net

Head north on January seventeenth and eighteenth for the seventeenth annual Winter Wineland. Visit over one hundred winery members of the Wine Road in the Dry Creek, Russian River, and Alexander valleys as they open their cellar doors for a post-holiday celebration in which guests have the opportunity for an exclusive taste. The participants include some old favorites like J Vineyards and La Crema as well as boutique producers like Artiste and F. Teldeschi Winery. This is a great opportunity to meet winemakers, taste limited production wines, new releases, and library wines as well enjoy food parings and tours at select wineries. wineroad.com

sushi enthusiasts, who line up nightly to partake; reservations required in main room. 107 Caledonia St, 415.332.3620, sushiran.com

TASTE OF ROME Cafe, Italian Italian-style sandwiches, wood-fired pizza and great coffee make this a favorite place to hang out and people watch. 1000 Bridgeway, 415.332.7660, taste-of-rome.com

WELLINGTON’S California British transport Jeremy John and his wife Jill have created an expansive (2,400-square-foot) wine bar with a homey feel, board games, views of the bay and a worldly cellar featuring affordable bottles and special reserves. The menu offers wines by the glass for $5 to $20 and tasting flights of any three wines for $12. 300 Turney St, 415.331.9463, wellingtonswine.com

WINSHIPS RESTAURANT American The more than four decades old nautical-themed restaurant is luring locals and tourists with hearty breakfasts and lunch options like tender fried calamari, clam

strips, mussels and a giant prawn cocktail. 670 Bridgeway, 415.332.1454, winships.com

TIBURON

THE CAPRICE California Expansive Angel Island and San Francisco skyline views and an intimate atmosphere make this waterfront restaurant a top pick for romance. Beyond these attractions, locals like it for the food, including a three- to five- course menu created by executive chef Gregg Sessler —who according to Michael Bauer “has crafted a menu that can stand up to the big boys.” 2000 Paradise Dr, 415.435.3400, thecaprice.com

COTTAGE EATERY California This one-room, recently remodeled eatery is the latest restaurant addition to Tiburon’s Ark Row. Having opened to rave reviews, owners Edward Carew and Jennifer Rebman, both formerly of New York—each with stints cooking at Gramercy Tavern—are attracting regulars with seasonal entrées like grilled branzino served with boulanger potatoes, watercress and a

taggiasca olive vinaigrette and crispy suckling pig with Umbrian lentils, braised romaine, tomato and saba. Open Thursday through Sunday. 114 Main St, 415.789.5636, thecottageeatery.com

GINZA Japanese The old Tiburon Tommie’s space on Main Street has been buffed and polished and reopened as a sleek, upscale sushi spot with the famous waterfront San Francisco views. This intimate setting offers menu items like sliced yellowtail, avocado, radish sprout, tobiko and spicy ponzu sauce as well as a variety of tempura and terriyaki dishes. The double hamachi roll is not to be missed. 41 Main St, 415.789.5123, ginzasushi-tiburon.com

GUAYMAS Mexican Situated right next to the Tiburon ferry terminal on the waterfront. The touch-it-you’re-so-close city views and outdoor seating makes it a great place to bring visitors on a warm summer night. Happy hour is 5 to 7 p.m. Monday through Thursday. Menu includes specialties like puerco macho—pork loin chop with grilled plantain, topped with an ancho chile, garlic and onion sauce. 5 Main St, 415.435.6300, guaymasrestaurant.com

MILANO Italian Located in the Cove Shopping Center, this family-owned neighborhood spot is known for its pasta and friendly service. A good place to take the kids—or catering option for your next birthday party. 1 Blackfield Dr, 415.388.9100

NEW MORNING CAFE American Sit outside or indoors, casual cafe. On a sunny morning, tables will be filled with locals enjoying the sun and extensive breakfast menu; lunch served as well. 1696 Tiburon Blvd, 415.435.4315

ROONEY’S CAFÉ & GRILL American If you’re old enough to remember Cheers on prime time, here is your dinner spot. There’s not a long bar, nor a bartender named Sam (he’s across the street); however, there is an undeniable neighborhood feeling in this one-room cottage dining room. 38 Main St, 415.435.1911

SAM’S ANCHOR CAFE American Everyone knows Sam’s deck is the prime spot for brunch on a lazy sunny Sunday, and its bar is the town’s historic watering hole, but Sam’s is also a great place for lunch or dinner. Enjoy trans-fat-free calamari, fresh fish, seasonal salads and pastas. 27 Main St, 415.435.4527, samscafe.com

SERVINO RISTORANTE Italian With people like Warren Buffett and Bill Gates raving about his pizza, Angelo Servino is doing something right. Some people come for the spacious and popular bar; some people come for the great food and friendly service; the titans of industry, it seems, opt for the pepperoni. Spacious bar, and weekend music is also a big draw. 9 Main St, 415.435.2676, servino.com

SWEDEN HOUSE BAKERY Swedish A cozy spot and local favorite; the blue storefront opens into bay front windows with sweeping views of Racoon Straits and Angel Island. The menu is straight from

Stockholm with Swedish and Danish pastries in the morning and open-faced sandwiches, Swedish meatloaf and light salads for lunch. 35 Main St, 415.435.9767

THREE DEGREES California Opt for the outside patio, white tablecloths in the dining room, or the swank modern setting of the bar, and enjoy the local, seasonal menu options like grilled Niman Ranch New York “cowboy” strip steak or seasonal risotto. 1651 Tiburon Blvd, 415.435.5996, threedegreesrestaurant.com

WEST MARIN

DRAKES BEACH CAFE Local If you’re OK with the long drive, you can’t beat the view and the fresh local ingredients used to make the burgers, salads and soups at this casual spot (Inverness). Walk on the beach after lunch. 1 Drakes Beach Rd, 415.669.1297, drakesbeachcafe.com

OLEMA INN California One of the most charming settings around, this inn and restaurant is a great destination lunch spot for a Sunday drive, or dinner Wednesday through Sunday. The menu includes imaginative combinations using regional and organic greens while the bar features a full wine list (Olema). 10000 Sir Francis Drake Blvd, 415.663.9559, theolemainn.com

PARKSIDE CAFE American Most people know it as the ultimate breakfast spot (think Guatemalan scramble or waffle with blood orange–strawberry compote and whipped cream, alfresco) but lunch and dinners are great here too. Choose from an array of organic locally grown produce and artisan meats and wild seafood. The grilled quail, Hawaiian butterfish and the rib-eye steak are standouts (Stinson). 43 Arenal Ave, 415.868.1272, parksidecafe.com

PINE CONE DINER American Just off the main road, Joannie Kwit has re-created the ultimate neighborhood diner. Vintage china and homemade curtains complement the eclectic but homey menu featuring local fare. A favorite for locals as well as tourists, bicyclists and motorcyclists (Point Reyes Station). 60 Fourth St, 415.663.1536, thepineconediner.com

SAND DOLLAR American Originally built from three barges in Tiburon in 1921, the Sand Dollar Restaurant was floated to Stinson that same year and still exists today. Enjoy live music along with local barbecued oysters and New England clam chowder. Sunny deck for afternoon enjoyment (Stinson). 3458 Shoreline Hwy, 415.868.0434, stinsonbeachrestaurant.com

SURFER’S GRILL American The view doesn’t get better than this—nor does the surf salad. Built right out on Stinson Beach, this casual lunch spot offers up tasty fresh organic salads alongside corn dogs, burgers and fries (Stinson). Stinson Beach Park, Hwy 1, 415.868.1777, surfersgrill.com

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Elana Maggal

Yoga Journal, San Francisco

Yoga Journal has spent the last 30 years reporting on the increasing popularity of yoga. The magazine has the largest circulation in the country and holds several national conferences a year, including its annual Colorado conference. “Yoga Journal’s mission is to be the best yoga media company in the world,” conference director Elana Maggal says starting with the magazine that has built up a circulation of 360,000 since 1975. “We do this by offering readers and conference participants the most up-to-date, medically accurate information available on yoga while inspiring them to improve their health and well-being through yoga.”

What is your competitive edge?

Yoga Journal has access to the best yoga teachers in the world, who fill our pages and conferences, the best writers on the subject, and a dedicated staff who work cohesively to bring our visions alive in the world.

What makes your work worthwhile?

Seeing how yoga changes people’s lives by making them happier, healthier and better able to handle the stresses of everyday life.

Five years from now, what changes will your business experience?

We see more emphasis placed on Web development including providing deeper content, building a Web community and producing online video.

Yoga Journal, 475 Sansome St, Suite 850, San Francisco, 415.591.0736, yogajournal.com

Bruce Pratt, Michael Rogers, Daniel Chador

The Gables Inn, Sausalito

Built in 1869, the Gables Inn Sausalito is a beautifully restored historic inn in the center of downtown Sausalito. “Accommodations offer direct views of San Francisco, private balconies, wood-burning fireplaces and bathtubs with spa jets,” says owner Daniel Chador. “And that is topped off with wine and cheese in the evenings and a beautiful continental breakfast every morning.”

What is your competitive edge?

Offering personal service far exceeding the norm, in addition to highly coveted amenities such as complimentary on-site parking, sets us apart from our local competitors.

What makes your work worthwhile?

Hosting the evening wine and cheese reception is an absolute pleasure. Nothing beats being able to provide our guests with the ability to relax and socialize with one anther.

What makes you excel at what you do?

Our genuine passion for delivering the best possible guest experience drives us to excel at hospitality. The satisfaction of our guests is paramount and influences our every action.

What makes your work worthwhile?

Being able to offer the personal touches and witnessing how greatly they are appreciated makes our work a rewarding experience and encourages the continuation of our efforts.

The Gables Inn Sausalito, 62 Princess St, Sausalito, 415.289.1100, gablesinnsausalito.com

MARIN ADVERTISERS SPEAK UP

Jeff Symonds

Rolling Thunder, San Rafael

For over 20 years Rolling Thunder has been integrating custom home theater, home audio and mobile electronics systems and has been voted Best Home Theater Company and Best Car Audio Store in Marin. “We are passionate individuals committed to the design and installation of entertainment systems of exceptional quality, performance and reliability,” says owner Jeff Symonds.

How does your experience affect your approach?

With experience comes wisdom. Our focus is precision while being flexible to the nature of life, allowing us to offer solutions that others may not consider for the optimum result.

What other ways is Rolling Thunder serving our community?

As a certified Green Building Professional and Certified Green Business in Marin, we are in action to bring more awareness to the way we touch and move in the world.

Which product or services are the most popular?

We started installing high-end car audio systems, which are still popular. However, our custom and lifestyle home theaters and distributed audio systems are the most popular.

What is the funniest thing that’s happened recently in your business?

I almost got angry one day last week.

Rolling Thunder Group, Inc., 3241 Kerner Blvd, San Rafael, 415.456.1681, rollingthundergroup.com

FAIRFAX

Small-town life in the gateway to West Marin

BY DANIEL JEWETT PHOTOS TIM PORTER

Tucked away between San Anselmo and the San Geronimo Valley along winding Sir Francis Drake Boulevard is a (sometimes) quiet little town of just over 7,300 people with a rich history, passionate citizenry and a unique mix of small-town feel and big-town rebelliousness.

Maybe rebelliousness isn’t quite fair, but Fairfax and its citizens like to do things their own way and in the process have formed a unique community that is unlike many you would typically find in Marin. And most wouldn’t have it any other way.

“We have a cornucopia of riches. We have an active nightlife with music—good music—in

multiple venues, for example,” says vice mayor David Weinsoff. “Where else can you raise a child in a place with schools so remarkable and still be only 16 miles from San Francisco and 18 miles from Point Reyes? If that isn’t heaven on earth, I don’t know what is.”

Indeed, music and art seem to play large rolls in the town iconic singer and songwriter Van Morrison called home in the ’70s—his parents even owned a record store in town for many years—and where the psychedelic bands Jefferson Airplane and the Grateful Dead played a famous softball game in the 1960s and groups of young people still hang out and play guitar in the afternoon sun. The town supports its artists as well with an artist-in-residence program that began in 1992 and is now served by Shoshana and Sam Parry. If you are looking for well-known local artists look no further than painter Tim Horn, nationally known novelist Anne Lamott or United States poet laureate Kay Ryan—all of whom call Fairfax home. Although Fairfaxians such as these have reached out and touched the world with their art, the typical resident seems happiest strolling down Broadway Boulevard—running parallel to Sir Francis Drake Boulevard, Broadway forms the heart of the downtown area—and chatting with other locals.

“If I can work it out in my day to not leave Fairfax, that is a perfect day,” confirms Weinsoff, who works from home. “I don’t even like to go past San Anselmo.”

An environmental lawyer, Weinsoff moved to Fairfax in the mid-’90s after his wife was hired at Ross Elementary School and before prices climbed too high. “At that time, an environmental lawyer and a public school teacher could afford to buy here,” says Weinsoff, adding that the issue of affordable housing is a big one facing Fairfax in the future. “Shouldn’t police, teachers, firefighters and city staff be able to afford to live in town?”

Weinsoff spends a great deal of time working right on his front porch, which borders the undeveloped 99-acre Wall Property, a favorite spot for hikers, and says people are always stopping by to offer opinions on city issues.

“They are not shy about sharing their concerns,” he says with a laugh, adding that citizens attend city council meetings eager to participate. “We have very robust meetings; the council and staff are always very well prepared because the citizens are so well prepared and so involved.”

Many of these opinions likely brew and percolate from discussions held at local coffee shops, bars, eateries and markets, including the Coffee Roastery, Perry’s Delicatessen,

Nave’s, 19 Broadway, Peri’s Silver Dollar, Good Earth Natural Foods, the soon-to-reopen Sleeping Lady and BookBeat.

“My store is focused on community. I like it to feel like patrons are coming home to books, coffee and music,” says BookBeat owner and Fairfax resident Gary Kleiman. To that end, Kleiman made the decision early on to change

what started out as traditional bookstore into a coffeehouse within a bookstore. That meant fewer books (he reduced shelf space even more by facing all the book covers outward) and more room for people. “It’s a real central place for Fairfax and for community,” Kleiman adds. “And if we don’t have the book you want, I’ll order it; I order books every day here.”

The focus on community, art and music, the small-town feel and the politically focused

and engaged citizenry recall an America from a not-too-distant past.

“It’s approximately the same place I moved to in 1975,” says real estate agent and resident Ryan Murphy. “Fairfax is like a ’60s time warp; it’s safe, no parking meters, and it is protected from development.”

Murphy, who currently works for Bradley Real Estate and has the distinction of having represented numerous sellers and buyers

in Fairfax over the years, says the market in Fairfax is pretty stable.

“We are fortunate to have not been pummeled too badly; we’ve had little or no foreclosures,” he says, chalking some of that up to the residents themselves. “People here seem to have less of a tendency to own a lot of stuff and get in debt.”

So what is it going to take to get into Fairfax? Buyers can look at one of the 30 to 40 houses usually on the market costing an average of $724,000. On the upper end of the scale expect to find some homes in the milliondollar range and a handful at about $2 million or more.

If you do buy here, be sure to bring a guitar, paints or that novel you have been working on—Fairfax just might be the perfect place to help those creative seeds grow.

The Mansion, set in a 24 hour guarded avenue in Highgate, is one of the finest new homes in London.

Approximately 16,400 square feet of light drenched space, with generous and thoughtful living accommodation.

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GYM ♦ INDOOR POOL ♦ STAFF QUARTERS

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PRICE UPON REQUEST ♦ PLEASE CONTACT US FOR DETAILS ON THIS & OTHER PROPERTIES AVAILABLE

EXCLUSIVE U.S. REPRESENTATIVES FOR HARRISON VARMA, LONDON

Chelsea E. Hardesty • Principal / Realtor®

104 Tiburon Blvd., Ste 150 • Mill Valley, CA 94941 415.300.6881 • chardesty@visionrealtors.com

www.ChelseaEHardesty.com

Redefining Service in Real Estate

Karen Z. Hardesty • Principal / Broker 104 Tiburon Blvd., Ste 150 • Mill Valley, CA 94941 415.265.3344 • kzhardesty@visionrealtors.com www.visionrealtors.com

Leslie,

McGuire Marin Welcomes

Chris DeNike & Sharon Faccinto

Sharon and Chris focus on the communities of Southern and Central Marin and have experience ranging into some of Marin’s most expensive properties.

They have a generous “Giving Back to the Community: Donation with Sale” Program benefiting local causes.

Chris has enjoyed living in Marin and practicing the art of real estate for well over a decade. After living and working overseas and broadening his perspective on diverse people and cultures, he moved to San Francisco where he developed Sweet Heat restaurant. Chris shares his well developed expertise and resources for helping sellers prepare their homes to maximize their market appeal. “His anticipation of our needs and his careful, professional and gracious handling of all of the details of a complicated real estate transaction, made our move seem easy! His patience, promptness and guidance were just what we needed and the result is very satisfied and loyal customers.”

Sharon’s practice is focused on providing thorough, thoughtful, long-term guidance to buyers and sellers in Marin. Her clients commend her ability to look beyond the deal to be a trusted advisor on all their real estate needs. They cite her professionalism, her thorough understanding of Marin residential real estate, and her problem-solving skills. Buyers moving to Marin from other areas recommend her for her knowledge of Marin’s parenting resources, from schools to Mothers’ Clubs and playgrounds. She has lived and worked in Tahoe and Paris, and been a top producer in Marin real estate for several years.

Chris Denike 415-250-8052• cdenike@mcguire.com

Sharon Faccinto 415-272-3799 • sfaccinto@mcguire.com www.SouthernMarinHomes.com

Brian Byers

Brian started out post-college in the design and manufacturing of licensed products for professional sports teams and many popular bands including the Grateful Dead, Neil Diamond, Santana, and Bob Dylan.

His years of successfully negotiating licensing contracts and managing tens of millions of dollars for the top names in the entertainment industry, gave him an advantage in launching a top producing real estate career.

For nearly a decade, Brian has been providing his clients with complete commitment, responsive communication, and superb negotiation skills to help them achieve the best possible real estate service available.

Brian and his wife Cathie, an occupational therapist for the Corte Madera/Larkspur School District, live in Corte Madera with their son Ben.

In his career with prior companies Brian has been awarded:

•2007 Top 2% Countywide Top 1% Nationwide

•2007 Winner of the prestigious Opus Award

•2006 Agent Achievement Achievement Award

•2005 Agent Achievement Achievement Award

•2003/2004 Top producing Agent

Brian Byers

415.602.7915 • bbyers@mcguire.com RealtorofMarin.com

Experience. Excellence. There are reasons many of the best agents and discriminating clients choose to work with McGuire. Legacy: one family, three generations — since 1919. Luxury and Leadership: the premiere luxury real estate company in the Bay Area — an affiliation with the most powerful real estate network in the world. It’s never just a house to us — it’s always a home. Discover more about how we endeavor to make McGuire the Home for your life.

Real Estate Expertise

Jim King has proven experience in providing superior service for real estate buyers and sellers. With strong negotiating skills, creative marketing talent, in-depth knowledge of Marin neighborhoods and schools, and extensive real estate industry knowledge, Jim has the necessary expertise in all facets of property acquisition, development and disposition. If you are in the market to buy, sell or develop property, then please give Jim a call at 415.384.2229.

Situated on an approximately 28,000 square foot lot with an intimate view of the Bay, spanning San Francisco, the Golden Gate Bridge, Sausalito and Mt. Tam, this property offers a buyer endless potential. The existing three bedroom, two bath home is in original condition and can be remodeled and expanded upon – or create your own dream estate.

New innovative green modern home

with exquisite details & healthy features that will enhance your life

Green Features Include Solar Thermal Hot Water System with Radiant In-Floor

Heating •Green Insulation: Soy, Bonded Logic and others •Professional European Energy

Ef fi cient Chef’s Kitchen and Wine Cellar

•FSC Certi fi ed solid Rose Teak fl oors •Large custom Blomberg Low-E Sliding Doors and Windows •Hand-crafted French Lime Plaster

Exterior Finish + MORE

Custom Features Include Oak Panelled walls with 24 x 24 limestone fl oors •Direct elevator access to your home •Approximately 2200 SF living space - water views from most rooms •3 wrapping terraces 600+ SF: Fossil Slate, Ipe wood, Sand finished cement •3 bedrooms, 2.5 baths •Approximately 3000+ SF, lush low-water usage indigenous landscape + MORE

Price Upon Request

Green Home: 90 Cazneau Avenue

Sausalito, California

Corey Graham Decker Bullock Sotheby's International Realty

www.deckerbullocksir.com www.coreygraham.net

c.graham@deckerbullocksir.com 415.971.0167

CAZNEAUpads’ long-awaited new home was twice featured on Discovery Channel’s Planet Green Network, “Renovation Nation” program. CAZNEAUpads www.cazneaupads.com

“Healthy Modern Living” See our other green homes Visit www.greenpads.com

Architect: Rempel Architects www.rempelarchitects.com

Sheltered from the Storm

The Fall of 2008 will be remembered in Marin County real estate as the beginning of the last great buying opportunity. How long it will last is unknown. Our projection is 3 years or less.

All markets, real estate included, move in cycles, with euphoria soon countered by phobia. Even at its peak, Marin real estate was not over-valued. Why? The future value of the land . There is a very limited supply of buildable land in Marin County, with pristine environment and temperate climate, with great schools and safe neighborhoods, so close to San Francisco, and the technological epicenter of the world. Considering the burgeoning global population and fi nite resources, we are, and will be, sheltered here from so many storms.

Prices may fall in the short-term due to fi nancially distressed situations, and the resulting forced liquidations; then home valuations (by comparison to recent sales) will be skewed lower for a time. But investment money and families will seek safe havens (which Marin certainly is) and will bring valuations back in line with the lands’ future worth.

Home Buyers and Valuations: Start first with the value of the land and the reasons why; then the value of the home itself. Prices of Marin homes are, and will be--for a time--undervalued. Th inking in generations, one (or more) home(s) in Marin will be prized by your children, grandchildren, and beyond: when they might otherwise fail to afford Marin even as successful young professionals.

Home Sellers: Finding the best buyer for any home will take a perfectly constructed and flawlessly executed marketing plan. To catch a Bluefi n, you must properly fish for one. The days of throwing a week-old piece of ham on a hook and tossing it over the side of the boat, while chatting on a cell phone, are over. Within The DuPont Group, we analyze decades of data for our valuations, cross-platform market to the world, and then juggle to sell your home to the best buyer for top dollar. Our results speak for themselves.

Our market commentary and data analysis can be found in our quarterly newsletter. Please email us to subscribe.

The DuPont Group

Decker Bullock Sotheby’s International Realty

11 Roseville Court, Tiburon 11Roseville.com

$3,245,000 19 Belvedere Avenue, Belvedere 19Belvedere.com

408 Tennessee Glen Way, Mill Valley 408TennesseeGlen.com

28 Vine Avenue, San Anselmo 28Vine.com

20 Marguerite Avenue, Mill Valley 20Marguerite.com

$2,788,000

$2,780,000

$1,325,000

$999,000 134 W. Blithedale Avenue, Mill Valley 134WBlithedale.com

$889,000 1410 Vistazo Street West, Tiburon 1410Vistazo.com

Extraordinary Sausalito Parcels

WolfbackEstate.com Flat Ridgetop: Lots 3, 4, 5 2.6 acres $18,000,000

WolfbackRidge.com

$887,000

Coming Soon

• Dwell Magazine “Home of the Year” in Sausalito ~$3,995,000

• A Mill Valley Craftsman’s remodeled Strawberry home ~$1,700,000

• Best Deal in Mill Valley: Modern aficionado’s project ~$965,000

• Cow Hollow Family view home steps to Union Street center ~$5,000,000

• Seacliff Golden Gate Sentinel: Voted “Best View” in SF ~Upon Request

2008

Home Sales:

• 9 Wilkins Court, Tiburon

• 324 E. Strawberry Drive, Mill Valley

• 30 Laurel Grove Ave, Kentfield

• 355 Vista Linda Drive, Mill Valley

• 260 Esperanza Street, Tiburon

Sold Listings:

• 110 Hazel Avenue, Mill Valley . . . . . . . . .110Hazel.com

• 5 Monte Vista Avenue, Mill Valley . . . . . 5MonteVista.com

• 108 Homestead Blvd., Mill Valley . . . .108Homestead.com

• 30 S. Knoll Road, Mill Valley

• 33 Shell Road, Mill Valley

Wolfback Ridge: Commanding Views of San Francisco & Bay

Hawk Hill

Raccoon Straits

19 Belvedere Avenue

Kent Woodlands Contemporary

Contemporary home ideally located in the flats of Kent Woodlands on approximately 1/2 acre mostly level lot with pool and cabana. Features of this well appointed home include:

* Level lawn and private well for irrigation

* Separate one bedroom guest house

* Large sky lit kitchen with walk-in pantry, huge center island with sit-down breakfast counter, built-in desk and adjacent patio fountain and gardens

* Formal living room with fireplace

* Dining room with built-ins and double French doors

* Separate study and family room with adjacent patio and pool area

* Top-floor mastersuite with sitting area and pool access.

Exclusively Offered at $3,250,000

Please call for more information and a tour.

Greenbrae Oasis

Greenbrae

Come home to this charming classic 3+ bedroom Greenbrae oasis. Take advantage of the all day sun from the private back deck with its large swimming pool and beautiful Mt. Tamalpais views, or enjoy the fully fenced flat front lawn. With its designer kitchen, spacious great room and amazing Mt. Tam Views from many rooms this home has something to offer everyone!

This beautiful home has been extensively remodeled with dual pained and mullioned windows throughout most of the house. Main floor includes formal entry, great room complete with fireplace and large dining area with amazing Mt. Tamalpais views, bright kitchen, and a private guest suite

Downstairs are 2 additional bedrooms including a well appointed and spacious master suite with Mt. Tamalpais views, large family room/den (could be used as 4th bedroom) which opens on to the deck and pool area, laundry room, remodeled bath and ample storage.

Exclusively Offered at $1,589,000

Please call for more information and a tour.

Ultra-contemp, 3-level, ±3,813 sf, w/ stainless steel & glass thruout. Kappe+Du arch. 5 bd, 4.5 ba... $3,995,000

Stunning Paradise Cay ±4000 sf hse. Sunny & bright. New kit, famrm, mstr, baths, & huge deck/dock. 4 bd, 4.5 ba… $3,450,000

Expanded and remodeled, wndrfl new kit/fam, top-flr mster, gated, private, pool, 6 bd, 4.5 ba… $3,775,000

Lease. World-class contemporary with riveting views of entire San Francisco Bay area, 4 bd, 5.5 ba… $25,000/mo

REDUCTION

Riveting San Francisco and Bay views, stunning kitchen/family room, 5 en suite bd, 5.5 ba… $6,995,000

±4200 sf home w/ adjac. sep buildable lvl lot w/ stun. SF skyline vws, lg open rms w/ tall windows, hdwd flrs, deck, 5 bd, 4.5 ba… $6,250,000

Eleg ultra-contemp architect-designed home, breathtking vws span. SF & 4 bridges, stun. grt rm, circ. glazed galleria, 4 bd, 3.5 ba… $5,995,000

6,500+ sf of dramatic interior, gorgeous kit/fam, library, level lawn, 3-car gar, 6 en suite bd, 6.5 ba… $5,995,000

2 LOTS SOLD

3 separate waterfront lots, west side, Mt Tam through San Francisco skyline views... $4,500,000 - $5,000,000

REDUCTION

Rare opportunity for level lawns and gardens in combination with sweeping San Francisco skyline and bay views; gated, private and sunny location; and separate level and legally buildable parcel. Dramatic, contemporary interior with designer finishes, large open rooms, high ceilings, hardwood floors, beautiful gourmet kitchen and walls of windows. Top-floor master suite with fireplace, sitting area, beautifully-finished walk-in closet and lavish limestone bath with jetted tub, large open-stall shower and unobstructed San Francisco views. Exquisite outdoor living with beautiful entry garden, view-side terraces and decking, barbecue station, spa, rock walls and the rare, expansive level lawn. Five/six bedrooms, four and one-half baths, au pair, separate buildable parcel…

$6,250,000

Elegant, ultra-contemporary, architect-designed home completed for the current owners in 2004, with breathtaking views spanning San Francisco and the Bay’s four bridges. Entry level great room with stunning kitchen, dining area and living room with tall windows, circular glazed galleria and view-side terraces. Four bedrooms, three and one-half baths, family room and gorgeous movie theater… $5,995,000

For more information, visit globalestates.com

PAUL HAWKEN

BY MIMI TOWLE |

Who could be more appropriate to start off our 2009 Dialogue than Paul Hawken — innovator, thinker and entrepreneur? This year, in particular, is pregnant with anticipation of change, as well as the queasiness of the unknown. And regardless of political persuasion, we can all appreciate Hawken’s message of optimism. Hawken along with his partner Dave Smith opened the first Smith & Hawken retail space in downtown Mill Valley in 1982, bringing a bit of creativity to the garden. He authored four books wearing his passion on his book jackets: Growing a Business (1987), The Ecology of Commerce: a Declaration of Sustainability (1993), Natural Capitalism, Creating the Next Industrial Revolution (1999), and in 2008, Blessed Unrest At last year’s Bioneers conference in San Rafael Hawken explains the subtext to his latest tome, How the Largest Movement in the World Came into Being and Why No One Saw It Coming. He describes this “movement” as humanity’s immune response to the ills of our society: social injustice, corruption and pollution. In other words, it is about the ability to heal that is intrinsic to our species. Self-reliance anyone?

You could live anywhere. Why Marin? Because I always have the wild to my back and a great city in the other direction. I could not live in an urban environment. I need to see coyote scat and pileated woodpeckers within shouting distance of my home.

What makes you happy in Marin? The hidden ocean coves, the remaining dirt farmers, the farmer’s markets, the quality of the air coming off the Pacific and through the forests, the Hispanic community in San Rafael, Sol Food in San Rafael, Avatar’s in Sausalito, the children’s drumming circle at the Depot in Mill Valley the night Obama was elected.

What gets on your nerves here? The tacky 101 corridor in San Rafael, the antiquated building codes that assume we will have abundant cheap energy in the future, the starter mansions going up in Mill Valley and other towns, the lack of bike paths, the high speed limits, the attendant noise and lack of safety for pedestrians.

What’s your personal idea of luxury? Fresh food, Indian summers, being with my partner Mariel, a full moon sitting on the ridge above my house.

What do you value every day? My children and the people I work with at Pax, Highwater Research, and Biomimicry Ventures.

What person has influenced you the most? Buddha.

What’s been the most fulfilling moment in your work? I love public speaking and every so often the time, the speech, and the audience all come together in a way that is transcendent.

What’s a Marin stereotype that works? Whole Foods.

What stereotype doesn’t fit? Whole Foods.

Do you have a favorite Marin view? The coastal trail behind Mt. Tam looking down to Stinson and out to the Farallones.

What do you like about yourself? That I still want to learn.

How do you want to be remembered? That thought does not occur to me. It is cool if I am forgotten as long as I feel I was helpful when I was alive.

PHOTO: BARBARA RIES

Tuscan style mansion, panoramic views of San Francisco Bay, and Golden Gate Bridge, 5 bedrooms, 6 full & 2 half baths TIBURON

Vineyard estate on 42 acres with panoramic views, spacious wine cellar with tasting room 6 bedrooms, 5 full & 2 half baths