Buckeye Roadhouse, Mill Valley, California

Went this past Sunday around 2:45 to have a bite to eat in the bar. Eating in the bar is much more enjoyable than the restaurant, which sometimes feel a little too stiff. It's not the wait staff or anything, just the tables are close to one another and you feel like you need to act grown up to be there. So, the bar is much more my speed on normal days. They even sat me at a booth, which made me happy. I ordered their highest priced chardonnay from Napa at $13/glass. Wish I could remember the name, but I wasn't planning to start this blog this week. Generally, there higher priced chardonnays and pinots by the glass are how I like them, big bodied. I once ordered a glass of chardonnay there for $20 and it was so buttery and oaky it almost could hit you in the face. Anyway, I was in heaven with whatever Chardonnay I ended up with, being it was my first real Cali wine in a while - the ones you generally find back East aren't as in your face bold.

The menu arrived and actual tears welled up in my eyes. The beautiful bounty of ingredients found on the menu was refreshing change from the East. This is the way to live, I thought. They brought out the sourdough bread and sweet butter, which I devoured even though I had planned to skip it altogether. You can't beat the sourdough bread of the Bay Area. Come on, your here, forget the carbs for now. Then, it was on to my favorite, the grilled artichoke. No other restaurant does this dish with such flavor. The garlic aoili dipping sauce is to die for. Waiting for my egg white omelet to arrive after about 40 minutes of my arrival and order, the waiter comes out to tell me the brunch menu stopped and I could no longer get the omelet. Confused, I asked why the order wasn't put in or why I wasn't notified sooner. He tried to blame it on the hostess, but it was his fault. Yet another person who can't take responsibility for their faults. He's the one who put in the order (or rather forgot to on time...) So, I was hating on him for awhile but luckily the staff changed over for dinner and I got some goofy guy who kept staring at me. I ordered a salad, nothing interesting, as I was pretty full from all that damn bread I ate. Besides, it was Day 1 in Cali, and I didn't want to feel fat the whole trip for once. I don't think I even looked at the dessert menu before heading out. All in all, this place is excellent with a decent selection of vegetarian options. If you're a fish eater, there's definitely a good choice on the menu. 7.9.6
15 Shoreline Highway, Mill Valley, CA (415-331-2600) www.buckyeyeroadhouse.com