Fenix919 Fourth St.
San Rafael
(415) 994-2042
Southern French cuisine
Lunch and dinner Tues.-Sun.
Brunch weekends
Entrées (dinner): $12-$28
Full bar, great wine list
With Marin’s rich roots in music, it’s no wonder Fenix fits right in. It’s a live music venue that features a large dining area in front of the stage, a wine bar in the rear and a full bar and lounge in front that serves happy hour from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. with its own menu (items are only $5 each)—as well as a bar menu. There’s wine tasting on Thursday evenings (when we visited, it was Trecini’s Italian-inspired, food-friendly offerings).
The first thing to know about Fenix is that it’s quite popular and reservations are a must. There’s live music six nights per week and one day at lunch, and every show is streamed live via high definition video and sound online, and most shows are archived so you can view them at your leisure. If you choose to sit at the bar, you can watch what’s happening onstage on a video monitor there.
Owner Laura van Galen and executive director Merl Saunders, Jr., opened the venue in January 2013. Shawn Paul, executive chef, creates delicious food with lovely presentations—color, texture and flavor mix very well in each. Even the water served is triple-distilled on the restaurant’s own system.
From the bar menu, we had pied de couchon (yep—pig’s feet). The meat is removed from the foot and rolled up, then golden fried on the outside and served with mustard cream sauce (excellent way to cut the fat) and pommes frites. The bar itself specializes in multicolored cocktails. We especially enjoyed Fenix rising—a tart, citrus-heavy selection with hibiscus syrup on the bottom that rises to the top as you’re drinking.
The dinner menu is broken into sections including overtures (appetizers), interludes (salads), accompanists (meats and cheeses), octaves (entrées) and side notes. The standout overtures for us were the fresh barbecue shrimp with rich Anson Mills grits as well as the similar, vegetarian option of wild chanterelles and creamy, rich grits, which has mascarpone and truffle oil, topped with shaved parmesan-reggiano—delicious.
For entrées, we had Sonoma duck breast, with crisp skin and served medium rare. It came with sweet, braised fennel, black garlic, white carrot, vadouvan spices, a sweet chestnut purée and anise hyssop. The 72-hour sous-vide short ribs are super tender, with a light and lovely parsnip purée, crisp cooked carrots, onions and asparagus and a sweet bordelaise sauce.
For dessert, we enjoyed a thick, dense chocolate pot de crème, topped with whipped cream and served with flaky pastry bites, house made truffles and fresh berries. The “donuts and coffee” are New Orleans-style beignets (five) with espresso soda and dark chocolate sauce. How sweet it was!
