I was delighted by the laidback atmosphere of The Altamont General Store, a counter-service restaurant and market in Occidental, the secluded town in Sonoma County with a population of 1,000. The casual restaurant makes a credible sausage breakfast sandwich ($16.50), slicked with romesco, but the Hawaiian-inspired plate lunch ($21) stole the show. I went with shrimp, which was slightly crisp and doused in a spicy-sweet sauce. It was rounded out with toothsome rice, creamy mac, miso broccoli and piquant, tangy kimchi.
9 a.m.-7:30 p.m. Thursday-Saturday. 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Sunday-Monday. 3703 Main St., Occidental.altamontgeneralstore.com/
I had one of the greatest fish soups I’ve ever tried at Mountain View’s HalalStreet Xinjiang Cuisine, which specializes in Northern Chinese and Uyghur cuisine. The hulking sea bass in a green peppercorn broth ($58.98) arrives at the table bubbling with fury. While the fish was tender and flaky, I couldn’t get enough of the pickled cabbage. The decadent broth is more numbing than spicy, but keep drinking and your sinuses will loosen. I recommend trying it with a group of friends. Or tackle it alone, if you’re brave enough.
11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m., 5-9 p.m. Monday-Friday, 11:30 a.m.-4:30-9 p.m. Saturday-Sunday. 174 Castro St., Mountain View. halalstreethotpotxinjiangcuisine.com/mountain-view or 650-386-5103
I had wonderful snacks on a recent visit to the Restaurante Latino Los Sazones de mi Tierra, a new Guatemalan restaurant in San Leandro. The restaurant excels at crunchy appetizers like tostadas topped with sliced beets, boiled eggs and a spiral of ketchup. The standout was the garnaches ($15), 10 cracker-sized tostadas adorned with ground beef, tomato sauce and pickled cabbage. I like to think of them as improved Lunchables…