Most recently, the powerhouse vegan chain Veggie Grill closed several locations. Lingering effects of the pandemic and the ever-evolving vegan industry are causing us to welcome and part with restaurants on the regular.

Or you can follow the Marin dining scene at /therealdealmarin.Have you noticed an uptick in restaurant openings and closures? It’s not just you. Send her an email at with your comments or restaurant recommendations. Leanne Battelle is a freelance food writer.

They continue to fine tune recipes, and will be more than ready for what surely will be a patio-to-be when sunny days arrive. With a penchant for detail, skill in the kitchen, a kind nature and heart for serving food at its best, they have a winning formula. Sheehy and Eoff are off to a great start with an admirable effort to bring their passion to fruition. Corn even makes an appearance in the house-made chichi morada ($4), which blends Peruvian purple corn, pineapple and spices. There’s a small selection of California wines by the glass ($9 to $14) or bottle ($30 to $64). Two homemade sauces grace the table if a taste boost is necessary.įor beverages, local is the focus with a range of beers on tap and in the can ($5 to $7), including Fort Point, Fieldwork and less known brewers like Pine Street Brewery. The flavors don’t stand out, and pepper jack cheese, chipotle and honey don’t elevate it enough. The filling-to-tortilla balance is too uniform. The veggie fillings, including the sweet potato quesadilla ($10) and often one of the specials, don’t stack up quite as well. A strong spicy kick comes from serrano peppers so avoid these if you can’t take heavy heat. Shredded white meat chicken is simmered in a red sauce, and is served with melty crème fraiche, slices of charred onion and sprigs of fresh sunflower sprouts.Ĭeviche tostadas ($13) are made with fresh, raw, wild pacific rockfish blended with red onion, shaved fennel, pineapple chunks and an avocado puree. The result is a lighter textured tortilla that doesn’t drown the fillings.Īnother menu highlight is the recado rojo tacos ($11). Here, it is ground daily, pressed and then cooked on a large, rotating griddle. The corn tortillas are made using a technique called nixtamalization, which is a method of preparing the maize by soaking it in an alkaline solution like pickling lime, making it more digestible and increasing nutritional value and flavor. The two, along with two additional partners, decided to turn their passion for South American cuisine and this newfound corn purification process into Mas Masa. A small production process in his studio apartment followed, as did a reconnection with Will Eoff, whom he had met during a two-year teaching and surfing jaunt in Chile. The difficult challenge of finding a purer product on the shelves or over the counter led to an internet search for organic heirloom corn and the purchase of a hand-cranked mill. “What I had been eating all those years suddenly felt like a lie,” he says. A realization hit that all of those corn tortillas eaten to sustain days on the waves in his youth, were actually laden with unhealthy ingredients. Helena, his mission started there while studying the cuisines of Mexico. A recent graduate from the Culinary Institute of America in St. This scene is the dream of chef and co-owner Patrick Sheehy, a SoCal native, surfer and Mas Masa visionary. And clearly, a piece of that is the desire to please people through good, clean food, carefully curated and crafted. The relaxed sense of contentment seems to emanate from a mindset that balance is important in life. “Fast casual” is literal and accurate, but too industry-sounding for this place. Approach the counter and the first impression is how nice everyone is. Wood tables with metal chairs set with red cushions, and stools along a wall of windows looking out to the street, create a comfortable eating environment. This space lures with visions of a cerveza and fresh tacos at a picnic table surrounded by blooming succulents and reggae tunes.Įnter the restaurant, and a laid-back, yet efficient, surfer vibe is discernible. On a rainy night, the fully refreshed interior of what was formerly Lydia’s Kitchen, beckons with warm light. Mas Masa, the new restaurant in Fairfax that fuses Latin American and California cuisines, announces itself brightly among storefronts on Bolinas Avenue.

Mas veggies taqueria corte madera