Point Reyes Part 3
Saturday Afternoon and Evening
We took a break from visiting artists’ studios by driving into Point Reyes Station. There were four things we wanted to do. The first was to find
Tamales Bay at Point Reyes
an ATM. Buying the bowl wiped us out of cash. Our second errand was to buy some cheese. Point Reyes has many dairy farms and cheese, along with oysters, are what the area is famous for. On Third Street is the Tomales Bay Food Company. It is a small selection of shops selling food from the area. At 1.30 on the Saturday it was packed. There were many cheeses to choose from and I could not decide which one to buy. In the end I chose a small selection from Cowgirl Creamery an a bag consisting of their Original Blue, Matos’ St George, Mt Tam and a goat cheese called California Crottin. The bag also contained bread and butter pickles but I misread it assuming there was bread and butter inside not knowing that there was such a thing as bread and butter pickles. I still have a lot to learn.
Tom and I sat outside on a bench and sampled the Matos’ St George cheese and watched what was going on. There were lots of people sitting on the grass eating their picnics and children were playing. More and more people were arriving to shop. Amongst all this, a young man was balanced on top of a four foot post performing some sort of Kung Fu exercise. For about fifteen minuts he carried on totally engrossed while people walked past, just giving him a casual glance. Hey, this is Marin and that’s what folks do round here. Just another day in Point Reyes Station.
Our next task, and the most important some would say, was to get a drink. Opposite Toby’s Feed Barn, where they hold a farmers market every Saturday, is The Western Saloon and this is where we headed. Outside Osteria Stellina – where we will be eating tonight – there were people waiting for tables but The Western had only a few customers. We took a seat at the bar and ordered a couple of beers. The lady who served us didn’t appear very friendly at first but she warmed up when we asked if she was serving when Prince Charles and Camilla came into the bar four years ago. She certainly was and told us all about it. Tom and I were in Point Reyes Station that day and were standing in the crowd outside the bar. It was a big occasion for us. It is the first time Tom had ever seen any of the Royals and I got to shake hands with both the Prince and his Duchess.
Our last visit was to the Pelican Gallery on the main street. A lot of people were walking round clutching the Point Reyes Open Studios brochure but the Pelican Gallery was not part of it and therefore not very busy. Inside the gallery were lot of large photos printed onto canvas and there were quite a few I would not mind hanging on my wall.
Back on the road again and there were just two more studios to visit today. They first was to Bruce Mitchell, the wood sculpture, who we missed earlier on. His studio was located in Sherwood Road. Bruce specializes in large sculptures and bowls. In the garden outside were a few of his bigger pieces. They are nice but not for us. Where would be put it if we bought one? Also outside he had a large work area with a sawpit. Inside there were more large sculptures and a lot of bowls. I circled the studio studying his bowls and some of them were really nice. There are made out of many different types of wood. It was interesting to observe the different grains in them. I had the urge to pick them up just to run my hands over their surface and to bury my nose inside to smell them, but resisted.
Our very last studio visit was right opposite our B&B so we parked the car and walked across the footbridge over the creek in the middle of Inverness Way. Abbie Durkeee uses mixed media in her paintings. Her studio is also her house so you walk straight into her front room. Several of Abbie’s paintings are displayed on the walls of her sitting room and every one of them told a story. One told the story of her grandmother and displayed a photo of Abbie as a young girl, a loaf of bread, a jar of bread and butter pickles (what a coincidence) and lots of butterfly wings fixed to the bottom third. Abbie collected the wings when she was cycling on the Big Island in Hawaii. Monarch Butterflies migrate to Hawaii and a lot must perish. She said there were millions of wings lying around and in a car they would not have been seen but when you are are riding a bike you see much more. Abbie picked up a discarded Marlborough cigarette box and placed the wings inside. The box protected the wings form being damaged as she continued her ride. Butterfly wings represent family and community to Abbie. Just off the living room is Abbie’s workroom and there was a canvas she was working on and other projects in works. Everything looked highly organized. As we were leaving she us she has a completely different display each day.
Another view of Tamales Bay
Next door to Abbie at 2 Inverness Way we noticed a sign which said ‘Shaker Shops West’ so we went inside to have a look. There were many Shaker items and gadgets like kitchen utensils, coat hooks and children’s toys plus Shaker chairs, tables and a chest. The furniture is well designed, functional and appealing but also very expensive.
Back to the B&B for a spot of relaxation before heading back to Point Reyes Station for dinner. The fresh cookies were out in the sitting room and I picked up a couple as we walked past. They were delicious.
At 5.45 we turned up at Osteria Stellina only to be told our reservation was for 6.30. It was a very busy place with all the tables occupied and people waiting, so we went off to find some amusement before returning at the appointed time. For ten minutes we browsed the books in Point Reyes Books but it closed a 6. There was nothing else to do but to return to the car and listen to the radio for half an hour.
At 6.30 we tried again and only had to wait five minutes before our table was ready. It was not the best table in the house because people were constantly knocking the back of Tom’s chair when they walked past and every time the door opened I got a blast of cold air but these are the only negatives of the whole experience. The chef and owner is Christian Caiazzo. Originally he worked in high profile restaurants in New York and San Francisco but had to give up when he was in a bad car accident. After some painful rehabilitation he moved to Point Reyes Station where he first work at Cowgirl Creamery and then opened a coffee bar before opening Osteria Stellina.
To start with Tom had half a dozen sweetwater oysters. They were served in their half shells on a bed of ice with a cocktail sauce and a lemon flavored dipping sauce. I had roasted brussels sprouts and walnuts. Both were lip smackingly good. For Tom’s main course he had braised goat and I had Osso Buco with mashed potatoes and kohlrabi and broccoli rabe. Tom said the goat was very good. Mine was delicious. To finish Tom had the flourless chocolate desert and I had the cheese selection which consisted of three local cheeses – a soft goats cheese and two from the Cowgirl Creamery (Mt Tam and Red Hawk) served with a membrillo (quince preserve) and bread & butter. It was all washed down with a couple of carafes of house red. We both came to the same conclusion – it was the best dinner we’ve enjoyed for some time.
We were in the restaurant for nearly two hours but never realized it had been that long as we were having the time of our lives. The end of another perfect day.
January 13 2010 06:51 pm | Special Places
