Terrapin Crossroads
100 Yacht Club Dr.
San Rafael
(415) 524-2773
Homegrown Food & Music
Dinner Tues.-Sun.; Brunch Sat.-Sun.
Entrées (dinner): $11-$28
Full bar; nice wine list
First off, I must say that, as a long-time Grateful Dead fan, I was elated to visit bassist Phil Lesh’s newest venture—and it went beyond my expectations. Set alongside the canals of San Rafael, Terrapin Crossroads is a true gem.
Its large bar and lounge and its multi-level, open dining room look out toward the water and expansive patio. The booths and tables have leather seating, musician photos adorn the walls and a petite grand piano is right in the middle of the action. You can often find live music in the bar and restaurant, and there’s an adjacent space that offers ticketed performances. The place has a great, happy vibe that extends to its service, drinks and farm-to-table food.
A Hendrick’s Gibson and a Firestone “Wookey Jack” black rye IPA (dark, spicy, molasses) from the extensive beer list got the rhythm flowing right. They went great with the Hangtown Fry: three herb crepes with spinach sautéed in bacon fat (what? yum!) with a fried oyster topped with bacon—delicious. A basket of Tabasco onion rings served with aioli and ketchup started sweet and ended with a perfect kick, while the burrata crostini had thick bread slices topped with tomato conserva, garlic and plenty of burrata topped with spinach and olive oil (a different presentation of burrata for us—we’re used to seeing the items separated on the plate). The salad special of fresh Dungeness crab piled atop spinach with shaved fennel, julienned jicama and blood orange segments was fresh, crisp and light with sweet crab and a mild lemon vinaigrette.
As far as main dishes go, the menu is extensive and ranges from wood-fired pizzas to meat, pasta, vegetarian and seafood choices, many of which are offered in half-sizes. We chose balsamic glazed pork ribs with grain mustard potato salad. The ribs had a smoky, sweet edge and were so tender they barely required chewing. The butternut squash ravioli were large, plump and not overly sweet, topped with shaved parmesan, sage brown butter and fresh pomegranate seeds. Both went really well with the 2009 Dimanche Cabernet Sauvignon-Syrah blend (berry nose, velvety, rich).
We ordered coffee drinks for dessert (mine had Frangelico) and my companion came up with a crazy concoction that the server was most excellent about accommodating (very sweet). They went down smooth with our warm bittersweet chocolate cake with Frangelico, hazelnuts and chocolate sauce (a light-in-texture cupcake with whipped cream and a molten center) and caramel pot de crème (caramel fans, this is for you!) topped with peanuts, marshmallow cream and sea salt. The entire experience was a rare and different tune we can’t wait to revisit—that patio is calling my name for sure.
