The Best Places To Eat In Marin County California

Ever wondered what’s on the other side of the Golden Gate? That beautiful place is called Marin County–surrounded by the bay, Mount Tamalpais, and an endless amount of trees. Marin is known as the place where the Grateful Dead and Carlos Santana came to hang out in, and of course known for its beautiful views and eco-friendly residents. Aside from the breathtaking scenery, Marin is also home to some incredible places to enjoy food. Here are our top picks.

1. Sol Food

Restaurant, American

Sol Food is a Puerto Rican restaurant in the heart of San Rafael, CA., but anyone who has been there can say that it felt more like a visit to Puerto Rico. With a line around the block and Congo drummers entertaining the crowd, this is Marin’s most vibrant place to eat. Whether it’s a couple on a first date or a group of friends reuniting from college, Sol Food is the right fit for anyone on any occasion. As for the food, which even Guy Fieri had to check out, most would call it ‘irresistible.’ The menu incorporates Puerto Rico’s native food of plantains, rice, beans, and meats. Pair your meal with a orange-mango iced tea, better known as Te Helado, and you’ll be sure to have a meal of a lifetime. Next time you’re in the area, be sure to stop here. With the building’s lime green paint job, there’s no way you’ll miss it.

2. Sam’s Anchor Café

Restaurant, Seafood, American, Dessert

Sam’s is the perfect place to eat while looking out at the waterfront of the San Francisco Bay. Located in Tiburon, CA, this restaurant is praised for its delicious seafood and captivating views of the city’s skyline. With its open deck seating on the water, it is a great place to go for a get together with friends on a sunny day. Visitors often come in by boat and park on the ramp, once hungry from a day full of sailing on the bay. Some of the menu’s best dishes include a fantastic Fish n’ chips, fried calamari for starters, and fresh oysters. Those who save room for dessert should try the peanut butter pie and chocolate torte. Be sure to watch for hungry seagulls during your visit.

3. Woodland’s Café

Cafe, Restaurant, American, French

This café is the right mix of modern and cozy. Located in Kentfield, CA, Woodland’s offers some of the best breakfast and lunch plates in Marin. The inside part of the restaurant is designed beautifully, allowing for a ‘fancy cabin’ feel. Outside, visitors will find more seating to enjoy some fresh air, accompanied by twinkling lights. For breakfast, the stuffed French toast is a must, along with the huevos rancheros. For lunchtime, you can go light with a delicious blackened shrimp salad, or go all in with chorizo pizza. They don’t serve dinner, but why bother when breakfast and lunch are satisfying enough. Aside from the menu, the service here is spectacular. Waiters and waitresses genuinely care about your experience at Woodland’s and always greet customers with a warm smile. Woodland’s is wonderful for a meal with friends or a family get together.

4. Café Del Soul

Café Del Soul

If you’re looking for a hearty, healthy place to eat, Café Del Soul is your best bet. This place strives to serve its customers, fresh, organic, and non-GMO food. The café offers a relaxed feel with cozy velvety couch-chairs, and beautiful paintings and photographs hung up on the walls. The ambiance is welcoming and anyone can sense that Café Del Soul dedicates its work to the well being of people. The menu offers a variety of grains such as brown rice and quinoa, beans, avocado, curry and many soups. If you’re craving something fruity to drink then try a delicious Strawberry Passion smoothie or a kale juice, if feeling leafy and green. Café Del Soul is the place to go for healthy food lovers.

247 Shoreline Highway, Mill Valley, CA, USA +415 388 1852

5. The Lunch Box

Deli, Restaurant, American

This gourmet deli is the perfect lunch stop for a day out in beautiful West Marin. With its location in Stinson Beach, a little town nestled between the Pacific Ocean and Mt. Tamalpais, locals, bikers, and foreign visitors fill this place up on both sunny and foggy beach days. Since it is technically a ‘to go’ restaurant, there is limited indoor seating, but the outside area offers cute benches where friends and families can enjoy their sandwiches. However, with the beach only a walk’s distance away, why worry? The Lunch Box makes outstanding gourmet sandwiches–the crowd favorites are the Salmon Po’Boy and the Baby Beef Sliders–as well as healthy yet savory salads, which you can add grilled chicken, salmon or steak to. For the kids, there is an assortment of snacks from the good ol’ basic candies to Marin’s local Fiorello’s Artisan Gelato. The LunchBox is the place to go when you get hungry from a long day of lying in the sand.

Since you are here, we would like to share our vision for the future of travel - and the direction Culture Trip is moving in.

Culture Trip launched in 2011 with a simple yet passionate mission: to inspire people to go beyond their boundaries and experience what makes a place, its people and its culture special and meaningful — and this is still in our DNA today. We are proud that, for more than a decade, millions like you have trusted our award-winning recommendations by people who deeply understand what makes certain places and communities so special.

Increasingly we believe the world needs more meaningful, real-life connections between curious travellers keen to explore the world in a more responsible way. That is why we have intensively curated a collection of premium small-group trips as an invitation to meet and connect with new, like-minded people for once-in-a-lifetime experiences in three categories: Culture Trips, Rail Trips and Private Trips. Our Trips are suitable for both solo travelers, couples and friends who want to explore the world together.

Culture Trips are deeply immersive 5 to 16 days itineraries, that combine authentic local experiences, exciting activities and 4-5* accommodation to look forward to at the end of each day. Our Rail Trips are our most planet-friendly itineraries that invite you to take the scenic route, relax whilst getting under the skin of a destination. Our Private Trips are fully tailored itineraries, curated by our Travel Experts specifically for you, your friends or your family.

We know that many of you worry about the environmental impact of travel and are looking for ways of expanding horizons in ways that do minimal harm - and may even bring benefits. We are committed to go as far as possible in curating our trips with care for the planet. That is why all of our trips are flightless in destination, fully carbon offset - and we have ambitious plans to be net zero in the very near future.