Where to eat in Point Reyes Station
The Insider guide to Point Reyes Restaurants, Cafes, Diners & Local Food
Places to eat in Point Reyes Station
Other restaurant guides: Inverness, Marshall, Stinson Beach & Bolinas
SIDE STREET KITCHEN
Point Reyes Station
Restaurant: Lunch , Dinner , Weekend Brunch
Beer & Wine
Let’s start with the newest addition to the local food scene. Have you heard of Side Street? It’s just across the street from Cowgirl Creamery, and I’m amazed how many visitors completely miss this little gem.
Go here for slow cooked meats, classic roast chicken, whole roasted trout. The food is satisfying, well executed and clean. Enjoy your meal with wine, beer or an excellent French press coffee. Don’t miss the apple fritters!
The restaurant is bright and welcoming, with a charming Retro West Marin meets Neighborhood Paris Bistro feel. The service is consistently excellent.
There are umbrella’d tables outside, and if you’re with your dog, the outdoor seating area is pet friendly.
While calling this place “fast food” would be so wrong, considering what that’s come to mean, let me just say that food comes out pretty quickly. Which makes this a great place to get truly fabulous food, to go. You might not look at this place and think, “Here’s a place to grab a quick meal.” But it is.
It’s one of my go-tos to quickly put together a really nice picnic hamper, or pick up a family-size roast chicken and potatoes dinner for short-notice guests. (speaking of kids, even picky ones get quiet and chow down on chicken and potatoes)
If you’ve rented a cottage and want to grab a nice dinner to bring home and eat in front of the fire or on the deck after a day spent hiking or kayaking, go here. Order your meat, some sides and get some wine. Fast, easy, and when you get home and tuck in, you’ll be happy.
“It’s a trek for me to make it out to West Marin on a weekly basis, but if I could I would for the pork belly Benedict brunch special with poached egg and arugula. Also served on the BLTs, the meaty slab atop sliced sourdough softened by creamy hollandaise is worth a journey.”
-Leanne Battelle, Marin Independent Journal
What’s Good
So, I’m with Leanne on the subject of the pork belly. Whether it’s in a sandwich or holding up poached eggs smothered in Hollandaise, I’d go for it (and have done!).
The rotisserie chicken is outstanding, with crisp skin and well seasoned with herbs. And while the locally sourced, high quality meat is definitely the star, the vegetable sides aren’t merely a way to round out your meal. They are fantastic, in their own right, and even eaten entirely on their own with some bread and a nice glass of wine.
My favorite autumn and winter vegetable dishes here are the crispy Brussels sprouts, buttery broccolini and the roasted spaghetti squash with hazelnuts, brown butter and pomegranate molasses. In summer it’s got to be salads and their epic creamed corn.
Even though the focus is on meat here, you can see why my vegetarian friends are always able to find something to love when we come here. They also rave about the vegetarian cassoulet, which is an entree.
The rotisserie trifecta here is tri tip, pork belly and chicken. I have nothing but praise for each, and it’s often hard to choose, even though I live here and can come often.
The tri tip sandwich is a must-try. The luscious slabs of slow cooked beef are paired with feta, red-onion jam and smoked portabello mushroom, all just barely tucked into a pillowy soft ciabatta—you can see why choosing is sometimes a challenge.
Side Street Kitchen website (415)663-0303
Specials
Station House Cafe is a Point Reyes Station Classic.
Whether you’re cozying up with oysters and drinks in the bar, or tucking in to their Friday Night Fish & Chips feast, you’ll always find something to love at the Station House Cafe. It’s my go-to to meet up with friends for a gorgeous bowl of chowder or one of their meal sized salads.
They’ve got a great cocktail list and serve up some excellent desserts, so go on…enjoy!
Station House Cafe Calendar
(415) 663-1515
OSTERIA STELLINA
Delicious farm to table Italian inspired fare. Go here to share small plates, enjoy local oysters, try their outstanding gourmet pizza.
Their lunch menu is shorter than their dinner offerings. They have a good assortment of small plates and starters, pizza, their much-loved gourmet grilled cheese sandwiches, and a couple of hearty dishes like seafood stew. Oysters are also available at lunch.
The dinner menu opens up many more options, and shines with seasonal delicacies—made with local ingredients—some of which are even grown on the restaurant’s own farm. The meat and fish are impeccably sourced.
They have an excellent wine list, so definitely take a look. And even though it’s hard to hold back, if you leave room for dessert, you’ll be happy you did.
Cafe Reyes
Cafe Reyes is best known for their wood fired pizza. But they also serve delicious salads, oysters and huge slices of fruit pie. You can eat indoors, or at one of their outdoor park bench-style tables.
Toby’s Coffee Bar
This tiny coffee bar is located inside of Toby’s Feed barn and serves delicious local, organic baked goods, coffee and espresso drinks.
Bovine Bakery
Stop in here for a sweet treat: cookies, scones, muffins, tartes and more. They also have daily oven baked pizza by the slice. No espresso here, but they do make very good drip coffee, and serve Chai Baba.
Cowgirl Creamery
The Cowgirl Cantina is a take-away deli that sells gourmet sandwiches, salads and wine. There’s also a cheese bar, where you can sample and purchase local cheese, and they carry a tempting selection of gourmet foods: from pancetta to compote to amazing gourmet crackers. The perfect place to stock your picnic basket.
Marin Sun Farms
Marin Sun Farms has both a restaurant and a must-visit butcher shop just outside of downtown Point Reyes Station. Dave Evans, who has deep local family roots as a rancher, raises grass fed beef on the rolling grassland along the coast. You’ll also find goat, pork, lamb and duck in his meat case and on his menu.
Palace Market
You’ll find a take away deli counter at the back of the market that serves hot and cold food (including breakfast), plus soft serve ice cream made from local buffalo milk. On summer weekends, they set up a BBQ in the parking lot, where you can pick up BBQ and burgers fresh off the grill.
Whale of a Deli
Whale of a Deli is both a small bodega, selling chips, candy and soda, as well as a deli counter that serves up sandwiches, pizza whole and by the slice, and Mexican food. They also have a Double Rainbow ice cream counter.
Whale of a Deli has no website
Station House cafe
This is the place to go for cocktails, excellent bar snacks, live music (Sunday nights from 5-8). They have a thoughtfully curated wine, beer and spirits list, at friendly prices, especially on Thursdays, when they offer a select list of wine at half off. Aside from the Saloon across the street, The Station House has the only full bar in Point Reyes Station.
Check out their happy hour specials, Monday-Friday from 3-6pm!
Old Western Saloon
Overflowing with both character, and characters—our local dive bar is a great place to stop in for cold beers, bracing cocktails, live music and dancing, and to soak up a piece of history.
LOCAL WINEMAKERS & TASTINGS
Don’t miss a chance to taste some of our local wines. My favorite place is Heidrun Meadery. It’s just up the road from downtown Point Reyes Station and they make their own sparkling mead. It’s amazing stuff, and they’re open for tastings.
see their tasting schedule
wine lists
In addition to Station House Cafe’s full bar, you’ll find excellent wine selections at Osteria Stellina & Side Street Kitchen.
Places to Buy Wine & Beer
You can buy bottles of wine to take away for picnics or to take back to your room or cottage. Palace Market is the place to go, but you can also find wine at Cowgirl Creamery Cantina.
Paul Knight & Friends
December 16 @ 5:00 pm - 8:00 pmNew Copasetics
December 23 @ 5:00 pm - 8:00 pmThe Sorentinos Unplugged!
December 30 @ 5:00 pm - 8:00 pmJon Otis & BluBeatz New Year’s Eve Bash
December 31 @ 6:00 pm - 9:00 pmPaul Knight & Friends
January 6 2019 @ 5:00 pm - 8:00 pmFoxes in the Henhouse
January 13 2019 @ 5:00 pm - 8:00 pm
full bar
happy hour 3-6 weekdays
Live Music Sundays 5-8pm
50% off select bottles of wine on Thursdays
