2 weeks Ago
Bubbala’s in San Anselmo offers black and white cookies. (Courtesy of Bubbala’s) Bubbala’s in San Anselmo offers bagel sandwiches with lox. (Courtesy of Bubbala’s) Bubbala’s recently opened in San Anselmo.
(Courtesy of Bubbala’s) Loveski Deli in Larkspur will offer catering platters and dinner kits for the holidays. (Sherry LaVars/Marin Independent Journal) Bubbala’s in San Anselmo offers black and white cookies. (Courtesy of Bubbala’s) Jewish-inspired deli, bakery and cafe Bubbala’s in San Anselmo brings together father-daughter culinary duo Greg Bernson and Janelle Loiselle, who share the classic comfort foods of their heritage with a few unique twists.
The Red Hill Shopping Center eatery is ready to hit full stride after its early November soft launch garnered more attention than predicted, prompting a candid Facebook post acknowledging they were overwhelmed by the love and “eaten out of house and home.” “Any problems have been volume-driven, which we didn’t expect on day one,” Bernson says. “Now that it’s been a few weeks, we know how much corned beef, chopped liver and pastrami to make and are there on the matzo ball soup, cheese blintzes and market salads.
” As for the pastrami that Bernson takes pride in curing, smoking and steaming himself, he’s nearly back on track after a smoker malfunction forced him to temporarily outsource it. The menu features bagels and schmears, breakfast dishes, hand-carved meat and tuna, egg and chicken salad sandwiches and chicken schnitzel. Novato resident Alex Tishman of Fire Swamp Provisions supplies seeded sourdough, cornmeal rye, challah and Parker House buns for the sandwiches.
Bernson’s California-driven offerings include a veggie omelet; burrito with egg, brisket, cheese, potatoes, horseradish sauce and pico de gallo; and the “good intentions” salad with kale, red cabbage, broccoli, grapefruit, avocado, roasted chickpeas and lemon tahini dressing. Loiselle regularly replenishes the bakery display that recently featured cupcakes, hand pies, black and white cookies, macaroons, rugelach (chocolate and cinnamon walnut), coffee cake, chocolate halva twists and chai scones. Although the holiday menu has not been finalized, Bernson anticipates it will resemble the offerings for the High Holidays in October with bagel boxes, white fish, smoked salmon, schmears, bagels, briskets and rugelach.
Bernson grew up on the East Coast, where his grandfather held court in the kitchen and the family cooked, talked and gathered. “That’s where it all started,” says Bernson, reflecting about his trajectory that includes earning a degree from the Culinary Institute of America and operating several successful cafes and catering companies in both Connecticut and the Bay Area. When he landed in Marin more than a decade ago, he found the area lacking in the Jewish foods of his childhood, so he got to work perfecting his longtime favorite recipes.
Loiselle lives with her husband and young children in Fairfax and has also followed a gastronomic path. After graduating from the Institute of Culinary Education in New York, she honed her skills in professional kitchens there and in Los Angeles and San Francisco. The space that once housed Jillie’s Wine Bar and Shop, which closed in 2022, has been transformed into a homey and unpretentious deli with a dining area, ordering counter, open kitchen and baking section.
Outdoor tables are available on the front patio. Bubbala’s is open from 7:30 a.m.
to 4 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays and 8:30 a.
m. to 4 p.m.
weekends at 906 Sir Francis Drake Blvd. in San Anselmo. Closing time is expected to stretch to 5 p.
m. soon. Check the website for updates at bubbalas.
com . Online ordering is scheduled to start this week. Latkes and trays Loveski Deli in Larkspur is celebrating the Festival of Lights with an array of catering platters featuring latkes, bagels with spreads, smoked fish, deli meats, vegetables, sandwiches, salads and pastries.
For a full meal, choose one or more Hanukkah dinner kits for two complete with wild mushroom kugel, braised brisket, potato purée and mini sufganiyot. Preorder for pickup between Dec. 24 and Jan.
1, excluding Dec. 25 when the restaurant is closed. View the full menu at loveskideli.
com and pick up orders at 1813 Larkspur Landing Circle in Larkspur. Sausalito’s sweet stroll Celebrate the season with a showcase of edible art at Sausalito’s 18th annual Gingerbread House Tour and Competition through Dec. 31, organized by the Sausalito Chamber of Commerce.
A record-breaking 29 restaurants, boutiques, galleries and other businesses have created candy-coated displays built around four themes: storybook tales, salty Sausalito, cultural celebration and sea life adventures. Many stops are sweetening the experience with exclusive discounts and seasonal menus, including specialty cocktails at The Trident, Poggio, Copita Tequileria y Comida, Suzette, Angelino Restaurant, Barrel House Tavern, Le Garage, The Spinnaker and Sushi Ran. The route winds from Old Town along Bridgeway and Caledonia Street to the north end.
Download a map, check out the cocktail list and vote for the best gingerbread house at sausalito.org/gingerbread-house-tour . Leanne Battelle is a freelance food writer and restaurant columnist.
Email her at [email protected] with news and recommendations and follow on Instagram @therealdealmarin for more on local food and updates on the launch of The Real Deal Marin restaurant search guide.
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