Restaurants around Pt. Reyes
 

My husband and I will spend a few relaxing days around Pt. Reyes in July. Any thoughts on restaurants in the area for lunch or dinner? Good food, not too fancy.....

There are a couple of very casual places in Pt. Reyes Station for lunch, the Station House Cafe, for example.

For a bit nicer dinner, you might try the Olema Inn, about 10 minutes south on Rt. 1 at the junction of Sir Francis Drake. I haven't eaten there in several years, but it used to be quite good and has gotten decent reviews lately.

Anything else will be a bit more of a drive. There's a great lunch place for fresh oysters, north on Rt. 1, by the side of the highway, but I don't know the name. Maybe someone else?

From my brother who lives in Pt. Reyes Station:

Tony's Seafood in Marshall (10 minutes N of Pt Reyes Station on Hwy 1) is open Fri, Sat, Sun. Very good, casual setting right on the water.

Pine Cone Diner in downtown Pt Reyes. Cowgirl Creamery in downtown Pt Reyes are both very good.

Olema Inn is the best restaurant in the area, Old hotel restored. Fairly expensive.

The fresh oyster place is just a little ways past Tony's, same side of the road.

Marilyn (Hello!)
are you thinking of Hog Island Oyster
Co. ?
Tony's is good is you like your entree's fried and your oysters BBQ.
In addition to the Pine Cone diner and Station House, we also like the Olema Farm House(Across from the Olema Inn)
for casual.
For a special dinner I'd vote for Manka's over the Olema Inn.
I hope your weather in July is as beautiful
as it is here today !
R5

Thank you, razzle, yes. I couldn't think of the name! (Hi back atcha!)

But Tony's also had oysters on the half shell last time we were there (not that long ago) and they were delicious -- better than the BBQ or fried oysters which were not the local fresh ones.

Manka's is probably the best restaurant around, but I wasn't sure how far it was from Pt. Reyes.

One more from my brother:

In downtown Pt Reyes there is an excellent taqueria (Taqueria la Quinta). Cheap prices and good food.

Thank you all for your wonderful insights. I feel very prepared and we will certainly not go hungry!

Olema Inn has gotten very good again. Manka's is over the top IMO and I used to eat there alot. Both will be casual
but nicely so. You could wear jeans @ Olema Inn but I'd not do so @ Manka's.

I haven't eaten @ Pine Cone Diner but probably will on an upcoming trip. The recommendations to do so come from R5 a most reliable source.

Hog Island Oysters always ..we used to rent a house in Marshall and hold big oyster BBQs. The oysters always came from Hog Island.

The Marshall Store apparently has Oysters to eat but I haven't tried it yet.

Tony's is OK but you can only get oysters with bbq sauce which is not my favorite(I'm a garlic butter gal).

Station House in downtown Pt Reyes is very casual. I'd stick with fish and chips or a Niman Ranch burger. If you are going to be there on a weekend in July..make reservations.

If you venture up the coast a bit you can find some other places to eat. Stormy's Bloomfield Tavern (in Bloomfield to the right as you come up Hwy 1) is only open Thurs, Fr,Sat and Sunday. I haven't eaten there in years but it used to be a huge amount of good food including great clam chowder.

Our trip in two weeks will include a dinner @ The Seaweed Cafe in Bodgea Bay thanks to R5 again. They have a website. CHeck it out.

You can also buy tasty treats @ Tomales Bay FOods including Cowgirl Creamery cheeses. The Bovine Bakery has great breads and such. Palace Market is a grocery store that will provide you with whatever else you need. You can also check out Toby's Feed Barn. I think the Farmers Market is on Saturdays @ Tobys. Try some Strauss yogurt and milk while in town. It will defy anything(dairy) you have had before except in Europe.

So Pam, are you going to stop by and say hello? :-D

M~if we're invited absolutely! How about Sunday. We're leaving late afternoon and heading back to Oaktown.
We'd love to meet the "children".

I'll email you.

Just FYI: if your trip happens to include a Monday, both Olema Inn and Manka's have "locals nights" but you don't actually have to be a local to take advantage. Manka's price fixed dinner normally runs $58.00 (except on Saturdays when it is $88.00) but on Mondays they will let you order individual courses from their set menu. By eliminating courses you can save a bit. Wine is not included and reservations are an absolute must. To save more money, bring your own wine. I believe the corkage fee runs about 20.00, while the wine they sell runs about 15.00 a glass.
On Mondays Olema Inn offers a menu of "small plates" which are intended to be shared. The portions are actually very generous, and fairly reasonable. For an example, a bowl of truffled mashed potatoes cost us $4.00, and a huge plate of fried crawfish ran about $8.00. There is always a wide selection of salads, and, of course, fresh Tomales Bay oysters with a variety of toppings. Both restaurants are wonderful, though Olema Inn is far cheaper, and I have had appallingly bad service at Manka's.
My favorite Point Reyes lunch would be driving to the Marin French Cheese Company in Nicasio to pick up some camembert, brie, fresh sourdough, olives and salami, and going on a picnic at the Point Reye's lighthouse.(Love the cheese at the Cowgirl Creamery, but it is not cheap!)

I wanna go !
R5