Everybody knows The Spinnaker in Sausalito, even if only from driving by it. Perched on a rocky spit and with the dining room cantilevered just a few feet above the bay, it's got a spectacular view that takes in Belvedere and Tiburon, the East Bay, San Francisco and the Golden Gate Bridge, whose tower tops peek over Sausalito's picturesque hills. Another thing it's got is a reputation as a tourist trap. My definition of tourist trap: lots of tourists, nice setting, high prices, lousy food. But here's a surprise: The Spinnaker's food is good. Haute cuisine, no. Edgy, no. But a menu of well-prepared dishes, yes. The Spinnaker's been around forever, seemingly. I went there as a child in the '60s and was mesmerized by all the water traffic passing by the restaurant's glass walls. And 40 years later, I defy anyone to resist the charms of bay-watching. On a recent day, myriad sailboats gently dipped up and down as they passed by; a big two-master with an elegant prow anchored nearby; freighters slowly plied the waters near the bridge; and a flock of cormorants standing on the rocks dried themselves, some flapping and shaking, others taking a more patient approach, letting the sun warm their outstretched wings. Inside, people waiting for a table fell into similar camps, with some twitchy and annoyed at a 15-minute wait on a busy Sunday afternoon and others relaxing with a drink or just sitting and enjoying the view. There really is no "bad" seat in the house; every table has a great view, though people at window-side don't have to look past others to enjoy it.
On a weekday at noon the restaurant appeared full, but they found room for two of us without any waiting. Someone was singing the Happy Birthday song at the far end of the room, while nearby voices speaking at least five different languages wafted around us--interesting background sound as we read the extensive menu. Seafood is emphasized at the Spinnaker and we decided to go with the flow.
A cup of New England-style clam chowder ($4.50) is rich, with a smooth, creamy consistency and a hint of dill. It has a nice balance between thick vs. thin, and seafood vs. dairy. The chowder is a good lead-in to the shrimp salad sandwich ($11.75), a huge affair made with fresh herb bread. Bay shrimp are lightly bound with ranch dressing, then set atop romaine lettuce and sliced tomato on a big slab of herb bread, and topped with another slab of bread. Too much bread, really, so I wound up eating forkfuls of shrimp--which were tender and delicately flavored by the dressing--and leaving the outsides. The big pile of shoestring potatoes was daunting, too. A small bowl of crunchy coleslaw, spiced with ginger and garnished with a few chunks of apple, carrot slivers, olives and pepperoncini, made a nice counterpoint.
The Spinnaker salad ($15.25) mixes crisp romaine lettuce with scallops, bay shrimp, calamari and surimi crab. Surimi is imitation crab--fish that's been flavored to taste like crab. My husband Gourmando calls it Crab-U-Lux in a nod to Madison Avenue, since they would have you believe it's just as luxurious as the real thing. Genuine crab would have been better, of course, but served this way, where the surimi didn't have to carry all the flavor of the dish by itself, the surimi was fine. A sharp Italian vinaigrette bound all the flavors together, and the salad, of which there was a ton, was quite good.
A few days later, the Sunday crowd overflowed, but a supposed 20-25 minute wait turned out to be only 15, so we took our bar drinks back to the table. This time we were seated at the end of the dining room, where it feels as if you could reach out a hand and touch the boats and kayaks floating by. On a sunny day, it can't be beat. The crunch of the wheat toast in Gourmando's crab, shrimp and avocado clubhouse sandwich ($14.95) set off the creamy, delicate filling, and was echoed in the crispy shoestring potatoes on the side. Daughter Jessica, in a brunch mood, ordered eggs Juneau ($13.25), a sort of eggs Benedict with smoked salmon. Hers was the only disappointing dish, with a couple of flat English muffins topped with salmon, eggs, a miserly portion of Hollandaise, and, improbably, a small green olive standing upright on each muffin--making them look like they just won a wet T-shirt contest. You may argue that the stingy hand with the Hollandaise was because salmon really shouldn't be paired with Hollandaise--and I agree--but if you include it at all, why hold back? The result was a rather dry, lackluster dish, though the accompanying fruit cup and saut ed new potatoes were good. Undeterred, however, Jessica took in the view and sighed, "All these yachts going by…you feel like you're on a cruise ship or something." The clubhouse sandwich ($10.95), a classic roast turkey and bacon pairing, redeemed things. The roasted flavor of the turkey came through, bacon crunched satisfyingly and avocado slices added richness. It really is a cut above most club sandwiches.
Desserts ranged from cr me brul e, to chocolate cream puffs, to tiramisu and berry trifle. We all thought the bread pudding ($6.50), with a custard tunnel and buttery Jack Daniels sauce, was serviceable. Nicely moist, it managed to avoid the pitfall of dryness that sinks some versions, though it could have used a bit more flavor.
But here's the bottom line: sticker shock. Our lunches averaged about $25-$30 per person, including drinks. It's true, servings are generous and no one goes away hungry. But you're paying for the view. Without a doubt, that view is spectacular. We've taken out-of-town relatives and guests to the Spinnaker, and will continue to do so. But as a daily diet, it's on the rich side.
