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Cove to Table: Simple Seafood Recipes from Tomales Bay’s Nick’s Cove

One half of the couple behind the restaurant highlights Northern California coastal cooking in her cookbook, 'Table With a View.'

Hugh Garvey

Achingly beautiful Tomales Bay sits at the nexus of so much that embodies the Northern California culinary dream—abundant seafood, artisanal cheese, organic farms on picturesque rolling hills with views of the sea—and Nick’s Cove and Cottages is where it all coalesces on a perfectly ramshackle jetty jutting out into the sea.

Ever since a Croatian immigrant named Nick Kojich opened a little seafood restaurant in an old herring-curing facility and started renting out waterfront cottages by the night, road trippers on Highway 1 have had a place to eat shrimp cocktail, gaze out at the water, and enjoy a view that’s barely changed for 90-some years. But what has changed is the quality of the food, an evolution jumpstarted in the late 1990s when Bay Area restaurateurs Pat Kuleto and Mark Franz bought Nick’s, restored it, and elevated the offerings. Not only does Nick’s now have its own farm that produces many of the vegetables on the menu, within 100 miles you’ve also got some of the best purveyors in the United States, many of which round out the building blocks of the dishes at the restaurant: Hog Island Oysters, Liberty Ducks, Point Reyes Farmstead Cheese, Cowgirl Creamery, County Line Harvest, and the list goes on.

Today Nick’s is owned and run by locals Dena and Hans Grunt. Dena’s new book, Table With a View: The History & Recipes of Nick’s Cove (Cameron Books; $30), chronicles the history of Nick’s and collects the recipes they’ve served over the years. It’s Northern California coastal cooking: lots of seafood, salads, Asian and Mexican influences, and a heavy dose of Alice Waters-style produce-first deliciousness. Think warm mushroom and arugula salad with poached egg, or oysters Nickerfeller—Pacific oysters spiked with buttery greens and shredded Toma, a local farmstead cheese. Here Dena shares a few recipes from the book so you can bring Nick’s serene seaside getaway vibes into your kitchen and home.

From Nick’s Cove to Your Stove: Get the Recipes

1 /3 Frankie Frankeny

Nick’s Cove Cioppino

“Cioppino is one of those San Francisco staples that relies heavily on great seafood, and our version does not disappoint,” says Dena Grunt. “The richly flavored broth provides a silky base for a profusion of shrimp, crab, mussels, clams, and fish. It takes a bit of patience and one eye on the clock to make a great cioppino, but the result is well worth the effort. Be sure to serve it with the crunchy crostini prepared here or with crusty slices of sourdough bread.”

2 /3 Frankie Frankeny

Dungeness Crab Cakes with Spicy Paprika Mayo

“Pan fried until crispy and golden brown, our crab cakes are hearty and rich, packed full of the local Dungeness crab, coated with just a thin layer of breadcrumbs to hold everything together, and drizzled with a paprika-spiced mayonnaise,” says Dena. “A simple salad of arugula, shaved fennel, and chives dressed with Champagne vinaigrette is a nice accompaniment. Of course, a glass of bubbly would also be a welcome pairing.”

3 /3 Frankie Frankeny

Homemade S’mores

“At Nick’s, we wanted to recreate that nostalgic feeling that many associate with experiences they’ve had around a campfire on Tomales Bay,” explains Dena, “so we decided to celebrate those special memories with a handcrafted s’mores kit. It comes complete with homemade graham crackers and marshmallows and locally made TCHO chocolate. The best part of this story is that we donate money from every s’mores kit we sell to organizations that help kids in the nearby city of Petaluma. So the box is both filled with good things and does good things!”

Get the Book

For More Recipes

Pick up Table With a View: The History and Recipes of Nick’s Cove.

This Came from the 2021 Waters of the West Issue—Read It Here!

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