Unique Places to Eat Dinner in Northern California

by Erin Caslavka

Whether you call it jantar (Portuguese), middag (Danish), or cena (Italian), “dinner” in any language is the daily meal we look forward to the most. Maybe it’s the chance to relax at the end of a busy day, or the opportunity to gather with friends and family over a sumptuous feast. Or maybe it’s the anticipation of a night that will never be repeated. If you hunger to take part in a unique dining experience, here are five places in Northern California where you can take the evening’s meal to a whole new level.

1. Forbes Island, San Francisco, CA

It probably goes without saying that if you’re a millionaire, you can pretty much design any kind of home you want. That certainly held true for ‘floating home’ designer and builder Forbes Thor Kiddoo, who (in 1978) decided he wanted a truly one-of-a-kind house for himself. The result is one-part fantasy island and one-part pirate ship. Hauled to the docks just off Pier 39 in downtown San Francisco, the ‘island’ is actually an above and underwater house - complete with English Tudor paneling on the interior walls, and a 40-foot lighthouse that’s equipped with an authentic Fresnel Lens.  Enjoy an appetizer such as Wild Mushroom Ragout with Soft Goat Cheese at sea level, or down below where portholes offer you a (murky) view of the SF Bay.

2. Harley Farms, Pescadero, CA

There’s nothing more enticing than looking out the window of your dining room to see freshly-picked vegetables that moments later end up on your plate. Let’s face it, the Farm-to-Table movement has definitely taken the concept of ‘fresh food’ to loftier heights. To make the experience even more heavenly, this well-known goat farm hosts monthly dinners in the barn’s attic at their Alice in Wonderland-style wood table.  The menus change quarterly, and include whatever farm vegetables are appropriate for the season. Downstairs, a small shop offers goats’ milk products such as soft cheeses and body lotions for purchase.

3. Napa Valley Wine Train, Napa, CA

One of the most unique ways to view the Napa region is via an antique, fully-restored vintage train that’s comprised of vintage Pullman Dining and Lounge cars, and a 1952 Vista Dome rail car. The three-hour roundtrip journey covers 36 total miles, but the leisurely pace allows you to enjoy your meal as well as after-dinner drinks and dessert. Inside the waiting room at the train’s station, an onsite store offers wines by the bottle, which you can take onboard and drink with your meal for a slight corkage fee. (We chose to bring along our favorite organic wine, which we picked up en route before arriving.) The tracks the train runs along were originally laid in the 1860s to bring guests to the resort town of Calistoga so they could ‘take in the waters.’ But on your journey, you’ll pass by wineries and outdoor restaurants, as you waive to onlookers from your comfortable swivel seat.

4. Opaque at Crimson Lounge, San Francisco, CA

Imagine allowing your sense of taste to be unhampered by your sense of sight. “Dining in the Dark” is a concept that originally began in Zurich but has now travelled stateside.  Immersed in total darkness, diners are led (yes, by the hand) to their tables, where they experience a three-course dinner while completely enveloped in darkness. Served by blind or visually-impaired servers (that have been trained to work in the dark), you’ll find your sense of taste, smell, touch and hearing are all suddenly thrust into the limelight. Is it possible your conversation will be, too?

Teatro Zinzanni, San Francisco, CA

Imagine a man and a woman doing an intimate tango - filled with passion, longing, and intricate body entwinements that leave you breathless at their ability to move in unison with absolute precision. Now imagine that they are doing it 30-feet above you, suspended in mid-air. “Vertical Tango” is one of the acts you might encounter at Teatro Zinzanni - a weird, wacky and wonderful compendium of stage acts and a five-course dinner that’s one-part Cirque de Soleil and one-part culinary creativity. While you dine beneath an antique Belgian spiegeltent on a meal that might include entrees such as Grilled Flat Iron Pork, or a Tarte Provencale, you’ll watch the show (which changes seasonally) as it unfolds before you.

FAST FACTS

Forbes Island: (415) 951-4900, www.forbesisland.com

Harley Farms: (650) 879-0480, www.harleyfarms.com

Napa Valley Wine Train: (800) 427-4124, www.winetrain.com

Opaque at Crimson Lounge: (800) 710-1270, www.sf.darkdining.com

Teatro Zinzanni: (415) 438-2668, www.love.zinzanni.org 

Photo credits: Erin Caslavka; Jon Deinzer; iStockphoto.com; Teatro Zinzanni