Staycationing

I want to share a great ‘staycation’ location if you live in or near the San Francisco Bay Area. Nick’s Cove is situated in Tomales Bay and oozes the kind of haute-rustic charm I love. In high season, it’s definitely out of our price range but we were lucky enough to take advantage of winter rates (which ran through the end of March). We stayed in Jerry’s Cottage and it could not have been more perfect for two adults, two children and one delirious dog. Yes, we brought our little scout, Scout, and she was in doggie heaven the entire time. Whether sitting on the wrap-around deck with Paul and the boys to chasing oyster shells flung into the ocean, Scout experienced 24 hours of bliss as only she can.

My bliss was of a different sort. From the amuse bouche of homemade macaroni and cheese presented upon our arrival to the complimentary en suite goodies (non-alcoholic drinks, fruit and chocolate) and gourmet dinner across the street, the culinary highs just got higher. We had an amazing dinner overlooking the water: Hog Island Sweetwater oysters, grilled hearts of Romaine salad (which the boys loved), seared foie gras with cara cara marmelade (which Dane and Tate tasted and pronounced “ok” – we, of course, thought it was top notch), Dungeness crab cakes, and slow braised beef shortribs. The sunset over the water (against a hilly backdrop no less) came in like a cue from Cecil B. DeMille. After dinner, we had a great chat with the couple who run the place; they were selecting heirloom seeds for the restaurant’s kitchen garden and couldn’t have been nicer or more welcoming. We ended the night sitting on the porch, looking at constellations. Heavenly.

Nick’s Cove may be found online at http://www.nickscove.com/.

Happy local travels!

kathy