Farmers Markets: Grand Lake and other AIM

Squash Blossoms at the Grand Lake Farmer's Market in Oakland.

I attended a public meeting earlier this week in Oakland about the Grand Lake Farmer's Market, and the non-profit group AIM (Agricultural Institute of Marin) that organizes it and other farmer's markets in the Bay Area.

Heirloom Tomatoes at the Grand Lake Farmer's Market in Oakland.

 Two above and below: highlights from December 2015.

On background: there have been various complaints in the past, and AIM has a new CEO, Andy Naja-Riese, who gave a nice overview of his experience and how his background meshes with the objectives of AIM. He stressed the fact that they are trying to bring local produce from farmers, ranchers and fishers, along with local vendors of prepared foods, and local artisans.

White Eggplant at the Marin Farmer's Market in San Rafael.

 Above and two below: highlights from December 2015.

Naja-Riese puts emphasis on nutrition and getting more nourishing local foods to the community, especially via SNAP, WIC and the elderly.

Base Camp Bakery breads at the Grand Lake Farmer's Market. They use local grains in their products.

Oakland city council member Abel J. Guillen presented the speakers and helped facilitate the meeting with Andy, Tanya Small and others.

Melons at Grand Lake Farmer's Market.

Sebastopol Farmer's Market, September 2016.

Other AIM staffers were on hand to help answer questions during the Q&A and then during mini group discussions--very helpful, great communication skills, good listening skills and facilitating input from the community. Going into this meeting I suspected there was going to be a confrontational vibe, and instead it was all about everyone not just giving input but making tangible helpful suggestions, working together to brainstorm and talk out issues whether about parking, resolving problems during the market, and community input outside the room.

Oyster Mushrooms at the Grand Lake Farmer's Market.

French-style Sausages available at the Grand Lake Farmer's Market.

There was a good amount of talk about education outreach--AIM facilitates visits to farms for school kids, and there was talk about whether school kids can learn to garden and compost in their community or school grounds, or trying to change the relationship with local businesses that perhaps have been adversarial in the past to one in which we work together and start on a new foot.

Summer Squash on display at the Grand Lake Farmer's Market.

 Two above and below: highlights from December 2015.

Other discussion addressed transportation issues, and zero waste/compost.

Pies for sale at Grand Lake Farmer's Market.

Grand Lake Farmer's Market in Oakland happens every Saturday 9am to 2pm.

Marin Farmer's Market occurs every Thursday & Sunday 8am to 1pm, at the Marin Civic Center in San Rafael.

For more information on these and other farmer's markets, check out the website for the Agricultural Institute of Marin https://agriculturalinstitute.org


Photographs courtesy of Robin MacLean.

Sardine Can Restaurant in Vallejo

Crab Louie Salad at the Sardine Can


The wildly popular Sardine Can Restaurant is located at Vallejo's Marina, and is well know for seafood dishes and hosting live Jazz on Sundays. 

Cajun Fettucine. Sausage, chicken, prawns, bay scallops and shrimp in a slightly spicy tomato sauce. This same sauce is used in the next dish as well, punctuated with cayenne pepper, likely made with Louisiana Mirepoix, the "holy trinity" of onion, bell peppers and celery. The sauce is seasoned with a bit of salt, garlic and pepper. It is served hot over very soft fettucini noodles which readily absorb the flavors of the sauce and the surf and turf meats. Served with garlic toast.

Creole Scallops. Same tomato sauce as above, with noticeable chunks of the "Holy Trinity" Mirepoix, and the scallops were very tender and cooked perfectly. Served with garlic toast, brown rice (perfectly cooked) and zucchini strips cooked just enough so that they are tender, but they still have some bite to them, and lightly seasoned.

Crab Louie Salad. Fresh crab, cooked lightly, with egg, tomato, cucumber over lettuce with Louis sauce and lemon.

But perhaps best of all is the ambiance, with a seat next to the Vallejo Marina.

Sardine Can Restaurant

(707)553-9492

Kaigan Sushi in East Vallejo

Grilled Squid at Kaigan Sushi.

Kaigan Sushi

2138 Springs Road

Vallejo, CA 94591

707-645-8218

Price: $$

Closed Sundays & between 2:30 & 5pm

Kaigan is a long time Vallejo sushi restaurant in East Vallejo on Springs Road. Judging from their reviews in the restaurant, it looks like it’s been around in Vallejo at least 20-30 years. On our recent visit we saw a number of Japanese dishes on their menu and enjoyed a variety of dishes.

Poke is the hottest dish on the West Coast and elsewhere around the nation, but one thing you don’t see very often is Hawaiian style Poke, as they served us at Kaigan: Sashimi-grade Tuna chunks on tops of cucumbers, topped with Seaweed Salad. Everything was perfectly fresh, and the tangy Seaweed Salad was especially outstanding, sprinkled with sesame.

We ordered a Sashimi Plate that offered prime slices of Ahi Tuna, Hamachi, Salmon, and a white fish I couldn’t identify at first, that was utterly sublime: White Tuna. Pretty sure I’d never experienced White Tuna before.

All these dishes were simply prepared, and the best of all was the Grilled Squid. Grilled Squid Rings and Tentacles, served with lemon (and some chile aioli). Clearly this was freshly caught Squid, which is pretty easy to find in Vallejo and throughout the Bay Area, but strangely not that many restaurants serve it. There’s no restaurant in Vallejo better when it comes to fresh seafood.

El Tesoro Mazatlan: Mexican Cuisine in East Vallejo

Lengua Tacos at El Tesoro.

El Tesoro Mazatlan

658 Benicia Road

Vallejo, CA 94591

707-980-7711

Price $ 

Standard Mexican selections with an outstanding salsa bar and traditional Mexican entrees.

Burritos are very popular here, starting at $6.75, and we’ve also seen folks ordering Carne Asada Fries.

On our visit we tried a variety of tacos: all the meats are good, but the Lengua (Tongue) is especially outstanding, slow-cooked for an ample amount of time, thus very tender and flavorful. The tacos are slightly more expensive than what you see around the Bay Area, but they are much larger, thus, it’s a much better deal, on larger crispy tortillas, and topped with generous portions of meat, lettuce, guacamole and sour cream. Two of three of these are enough to satiate most appetites. 

El Tesoro’s Ceviche is another highlight, fish tenderized with lime, and accented with chiles, cilantro, chopped onion & tomato.  The ceviche was also served on a crispy tortilla—a great deal for the money.

Napoli Pizzeria & Italian Food in Vallejo

Slice of Pesto Fresco Pizza at Napoli in Vallejo.

Napoli has been around for 50 years, and is a prime example of Old School in a good way. Vallejoans have every right to brag about Napoli, as their Napoli Pizza is right up there with the best thin crust NY Style Pizza you can find in North Beach. The Italian sausage is much better quality than what you usually find, and there’s a number of options in terms of toppings—you can get a meat-oriented pie, or you can go vegetarian. We recently ordered a Pesto Fresco pizza, and it was fabulous. 

However, Napoli has good game with more than just Pizza. We recently tried their Italian Wedge Salad—a wedge of Iceberg Lettuce, generously covered with home made Roquefort dressing, blue cheese and bacon crumbles, with diced tomatoes. We’re talking generous portions here, and great counterpoint between the fresh lettuce and salty cheese and bacon. We also quite enjoyed the Gina’s House Salad: carrots, beets, kidney beans, onion and salami over lettuce, thoroughly enjoyable with either Italian or Ranch dressing. 

And don’t count out Napoli’s pasta dishes. We recently tried their Beef Ravioli, covered in a tangy tomato sauce—the pasta pillows with perfect texture, filled with homemade beef sauce. And there’s also Napoli’s In-house prepared Lasagna, traditional style casserole with layers of noodle, beef, and three cheeses. 

Last time we were there we noticed that Napoli’s also has some Vallejo-made beers on tap, from both Mare Island Brewing Co. and Napa Smith. It’s the perfect place for a big family meal, or with your friends to watch sports. 

Above and below: Napoli's Lasagna.

Beef Ravioli.

Above and below: Italian Wedge Salad.

Gina's House Salad.

Above and below: Pesto Fresca Pizza.

Napoli Pizzeria & Italian Food

124 Tennessee Street

Vallejo, CA 94590

707-644-0981

napolipizzavallejo.com

Royal Feast: Chinese Cuisine in Millbrae

We've been hearing the praises of Royal Feast for years now, so today (7/12/18) when errands brought us to Millbrae, we decided to stop in for lunch. Downtown Millbrae, close to the transit hub, and the airport, is full of great Asian restaurants. Royal Feast is a good first place to stop if arriving at SFO, or good last meal before departure.

Above & below are the Szechuan Style Dumplings: plump, robust, each dumpling with much more filling than I'm used to encountering. Minced pork and cabbage inside the dumpling, the chile based sauce has peanuts, scallions, some garlic, the flavors bright and spicy. The dumplings surely are made in-house, the texture gives it away. 

Above & below: Fish (Ling Cod, today) Fillet with Garlic & Eggplant (Chinese) Clay Pot. Very fresh fish, and I figured it must be Ling Cod, since that's in season locally, and it's what the fishers are catching and sending to market right now. The sauce is nicely balanced, not too salty, only a touch sweet, with very vibrant spices--all the spices in these dishes tast very fresh, like they were roasted and ground fresh. Great array of texture and flavor in this dish.

Above and two below: Mapo Tofu. Extremely aromatic from the szechuan, black and white peppercorns, intensely spicy, strong umami flavor in the sauce, likely a blend of yellow and black bean sauce with meat stock, probably pork or chicken or both. Luscious silken soft tofu holds nicely the flavor of the sauce and the spices. Best version of this classic Chinese dish I've ever had.

Above and below: Signature Quick Boiled Lamb Noodle Soup. The base is a very rich, thich lamb bone broth, noodles perfect texture, just past al dente, absorbing the umami broth. Lamb pieces quite tender and very flavorful. With it's simplicity and earthy grounding, a perfect way to end the meal after three very spicy dishes.

Royal Feast

148 El Camino Real

Millbrae, CA

650-692-3388

millbraeroyalfeast.com