When anyone asked longtime Bay Area chef Justine Kelly if she would ever open her own restaurant, she swore no, often using expletives. Operating a restaurant just seemed too daunting, she said.
The exception: It would be worth the effort in her hometown of San Anselmo.
Last year, Kelly received an unexpected offer to become the executive chef and partner of Tụ Tập, a modern Vietnamese restaurant opening July 29 at 625 San Anselmo Ave., a few minutes from the house where she grew up.
The restaurant aims to bring an “urban experience” to suburban diners who are spending less time in San Francisco post-pandemic, co-owner and restaurant veteran Adam Block said, with cocktails served from an expansive rooftop patio overlooking Mt. Tamalpais, small bites prepared at a copper-topped raw bar, and a wide-ranging Vietnamese menu offered in a high-ceilinged dining room. Its arrival is highly anticipated in the sleepy North Bay town: During renovations over the past few months, hundreds of people attended tours of the space that Block offered when San Anselmo Avenue closed for open-air concerts on weekends…