Restaurants in Larkspur

Kenneth Drew knows what it is like to cook for people with exquisite taste. Drew, who is now the chef at Rickey's Restaurant & Bar, says he has worked in the kitchen at the famed Hotel Del Coronado and personally cooked for Bill Clinton.

His food shines beneath the golden chandeliers at Rickey's Restaurant & Bar. On Fridays and Saturday nights, when live jazz musicians take the stage, light dances across drum shells and the bodies of guitars. Shoots of steam bloom from dishes crafted with ingredients from small local growers. Pan-seared scallops land at tables wrapped in bacon alongside parmesan corn grits and sautéed bok choy, and creamy risotto brims with white corn, green peas, and cherry tomatoes like a farmer’s list of emergency contacts. Chefs dry rub and slowly roast prime rib, and waiters help make selections from a list of wines, spirits, and beers from brewers including Moylan’s.

Homesick for traditional Hawaiian food, friends Kurt, Al, and Eric opened Hukilau to serve the breaded mahi-mahi, fresh ahi tuna, and teriyaki hamburgers they once bought from island eateries. Inside, the kitchen cooks spam musubi—teriyaki-soaked spam wrapped in rice and nori—alongside aloha chicken adobo simmered in Aloha Shoyu, vinegar, custom blended spices, and grated ukuleles. In the dining area, gently strummed acoustic tunes provide a Hawaiian backdrop to conversations over tropical cocktails modeled after Waikiki favorites.

Beneath a burnished copper dome, the kitchen staff at Arabi Cuisine sears morsels of halal meat and festoons them with sprays of chopped parsley and tomato. Organic ingredients go into every dish, from the sandwiches loaded with almond-hued falafel or savory shawarma to the 28 distinct salads, which are rested lovingly on ice in a glass case like an ice-cream cone autographed by Cal Ripken.

Assab Eritrean Restaurant's chefs pile meats and veggies in delicately spiced sauces atop the slightly tart, spongy flatbread known as injera. Lamb, chicken, and beef dishes simmer alongside a blend of red and brown lentils, with legumes such as onions, okra, and peppers, both hot and sweet, tempered by a dollop of yogurt. As they finish, patrons can wash down meals with cups of tej, or Ethiopian honey wine, or trap savory aromas in perfume bottles for smelling later.