Blog by: Maelynn Le
13 March 2022
All photos were taken by myself
Photo: Johnny Doughnuts
San Rafael is a suburban city located in Marin County which is about 40 mins away from San Francisco. The North Bay tends to be a place where not a lot of people visit (except Sonoma and Napa, CA). When I was in San Rafael, I thought it would be a nice idea to do a food guide so if you ever visit San Rafael, you know where the best eats are! I feel San Rafael is a great city with a lot of small businesses and food places a lot of people don’t know about. Whether you are making a pit stop or visiting San Rafael, here are the top food places you should go to if you are ever in San Rafael!
Johnny Doughnuts
Photo: Johnny Donuts
Do you love donuts? Johnny Doughnuts is the perfect place to get some donuts! They have many locations and the one I went to was in San Rafael! They have a variety in terms of the type of donuts they have. Some choices are raised, old fashioned, bismark (the ones with filling inside them), croudough, etc. This place even has other sweet treats such as cinnamon rolls and apple fritters as well. Johnny Doughnuts also have a wide variety of flavor to choose from! I got their Lime marscaopne Bismarck and Strawberry Raised Donut and I gotta say, their flavors are on point! Their flavors are not overpowering, they they are nice enough that you get the flavor of the donut!!!! The Lime marscaopne had a nice tarty sweet flavor that I liked and the dough was perfect. I would say the strawberry flavor was very nice in my mouth but I tend to not like raised donuts as much only because there’s a lot of dough that I can‘t eat but the flavors are on pointt! Overall, this place is a must of you are in San Rafael! Come get yourself a donut!
2. Miracle Mile Cafe
Photo: Avocado Toast
It has been a Miracle that I found this special hidden brunch gem in San Rafael! You want some amazing brunch in San Rafael? Miracle Mile cafe is the place to go! One of my favorite brunches I ever had and this place doesn’t disappoint! Their cinnamon rolled pancakes are a major must when you come to this cafe. Literally, they taste 100 times better than regular cinnamon rolled buns. When you drizzle that syrup on that pancake, the first bite is heaven in my mouth. That sweet and buttery pancake with that light sweet syrup is just the best flavor combination than a regular pancake. The sweetness was just right and I was able to eat all of it since it was that light and not a sugar overload. This would be the most highly recommended item I would get at this place.
3. Uchiwa Ramen
Photo: Vegan Ramen Shio (Light Veggie Broth)
Best ramen in the North Bay! Book mark this place!!! Need some authentic ramen and appetizers? This ramen spot in San Rafael is the perfect place to slurp some delicious ramen! My favorite bowl would have to be the vegetarian bowl because of that hearty rich miso broth with the vegetables is heaven in my mouth! 😍 The noodles were firm and the flavor of the miso broth was flawless! I also recommend their fries because of the flavor of the sauce they provided! If you dip those fries in that house made sauce, that sauce has a nice kick in terms of spicy ness!
4. Kura Cafe
Photo: Organic Hojicha, Coconut taro ube affogato, Lychee dragon fruit, and Ichigo (Strawberry) bingsoo
You guys craving boba/desserts? Located in Downtown San Rafael, this cute dessert spot is for you! Continuing my San Rafael staycation with boba! Kuma cafe serve great boba and the flavors of the teas are a great sweet treat for your perfect day! If I’m being honest, the strawberry bingsoo was amazing! That had to be the most softest bingsoo ever than other places where the ice is mainly chunky! I felt the ice was very smooth and it’s just better for my mouth if the ice is smooth and not chunky! I also love how decorative the tops are in each of the desserts and drinks! It adds a nice aesthetic touch to the drinks! I did think that getting their recommend sweetness was a bit too sweet so I recommend getting 25% for all of the drinks!
5. Fourpoints by Shearton Bar and Lounge
Photo: Charred Brussels Sprouts, Sonoma Field Greens and Vegetable Dip
Located at the Fourponits Hotel in San Rafael, their bar and lounge is perfect to relax! If you are staying at FourPoints San Rafael and need some thing to eat, the Bar area is the perfect place to get some delicious snacks! Huge shout out to Executive chef Damien Jones and Matt who planned this menu and executed each dish! My favorite dish would be the Carter Brussels sprouts because you not only get that charred flavor from the Brussels sprouts, but also, the acidity that they added was awesome! There were also nuts added on top of the dish which gave the dish a nutty flavor also which is so satisfying! I also loved the dip on the at vegetables dish! The dip is kind of like a pesto except more creamy. When you dip the vegetables in that dipping, it has the aromatic flavors of pesto and I love pesto! Overall, great dinner and I loved the dishes Damien Jones did! Check out the outdoor patio too and eat outside by the fire! It was quite cozy!
6. Soul Foods
Photo: Maduros (Sweet, fried, yellow Plaintains
Best Peruvian food in San Rafael! Sol foods has gotta be one of my top favorites in San Rafael! I only got some Maduros because I wasn’t super hungry for lunch. Anways, I never had Plaintains before so I found Sol Foods and a lot of people recommended me this place to try. I felt so bad I wasn’t hungry because everything On the menu looked delicious! At least I tried Maduros which was a sweet fried yellow plantain. I honestly loved it! The fried aspect of the plantain and the sweetness was awesome and the flavor was delicious! I never had plantains before but they were honestly amazing and delicious that I would want to order another one! It almost tasted like sticky rice (zongzi) from the Chinese culture which I love. The plantains weren’t super mushy as well so I loved to soft texture of the plantain.