Bungalow Kitchen by Michael Mina 5 Main St., Tiburon 415-366-4088 Bungalowkitchen.com/tiburon
Parking: Valet and street Open Wednesday and Thursday, 5 to 10 p.m.; Friday, 5 to midnight; Saturday, 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and 5 p.m. to midnight; Sunday, 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and 5 to 10 p.m. (Closed Monday and Tuesday)
sparkling we’d been drinking—and a glass of sparkling replaced it literally within seconds. Our entrees arrived with similar expedience. The King salmon ($42) was served atop toasted farro in a red-wine reduction—a generous portion, crisply seared on the top and seasoned liberally. The New York strip ($82), meanwhile, featured oak-grilled American Wagyu in a smoky pastor sauce that managed to liven up the already intense flavor of the beef. The dinner culminated with a slice of 10 layer white cake, sweetened by orange peel zest and a tangy lemon compote—an exquisite end to the meal. By the time we departed around 9 p.m., the Bungalow clubhouse was just getting started—a group of women were celebrating a birthday in the Salon Room, chaise lounges near the bar were buzzing with tipsy chatter and a server at a table behind us was wheeling in a piping hot Lobster pot pie (another Mina James Brown, the Rolling Stones and Pink Floyd are among the many wall-lining images of icons from the 1960s and ‘70s.
The main dining room and bar look out onto the SF Bay and cityscape
(the Salon), a light bayside nook for brunches (the Sun Room) and more. The weekends offer late-night events with DJs, dancing and drinks. On that, the drinks menu is a deep dive into pretty much everything stocked at the bar—dozens of vodkas, gins, rums, tequilas, not to mention a tally of American and international whiskys too long to count (the Japanese mash alone number nearly 20)—in addition to a selection of “signature libations.” From those, we sampled the D’yer Mak’er, a crisp jolt of Jamaican rum mixed with Thai iced tea, cinnamon, allspice and lemon. The drink is pronounced like the word “Jamaica” spoken in a cockney accent, a subtle reference to a reggae-ish Led Zeppelin song from the early 1970s—one of many points or reference to Seventies AOR strewn throughout the Bungalow clubhouse, where various walls are lined with framed photos of the Rolling Stones, David Bowie, Patti Smith and other icons of the era. It’s all very Marin. The service for our table was largely flawless—with spot- on recommendations from our helpful server, short wait times between courses and a good rhythm of check-ins (neither too frequent nor too sporadic). At one point, a server mistakenly refreshed our table glasses with flat water, instead of the
signature dish) to a foursome of wide-eyed patrons. Groucho Marx once quipped: “I refuse to join any club that would have me as a member.” It’s a funny quote. But I’ve a feeling he’d be hard pressed to turn down this place.
Jason Walsh is editor in chief of NorthBay biz magazine and northbaybiz.com. A North Bay native, he’s spent his career covering the news, lifestyles and people of Sonoma, Marin and Napa counties. When not up to his elbows in page proofs, you can find him and his family exploring all corners of the North Bay from their home base in Novato.
February 2024
NorthBaybiz 53
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