Bottles of wine are half-price in July at chef Bradley Ogden's restaurants in Larkspur, 30 minutes north 
of San Francisco, and on this summer night, at that great rate, we girlfriends enjoyed a resplendent Marimar Torres (Russian River Valley) Chardonnay for $22 at the historic Lark Creek Inn. Down the bar, a gregarious patron was sharing a $200 bottle of Pinot Noir with those close by and unfortunately we neither got his name's or the wine's. But such is the spirit when the wine connoisseurs are out. Next door, Ogden’s other local and more casual resto, Yankee Pier, offers the same July deal. Together the two of them convey home-towney Larkspur, which is as quaint as its name.
Sheltered by towering redwoods, Ogden’s properties and the 
mountain side of Larkspur resemble a Yankee village – the small downtown is in fact is one of America’s irreplaceable “hometowns” on the National Register of Historic Places. Built within a redwood stand, the yellow clapboard Lark Creek Inn was a farmhouse-style mansion back in the 1880s, and the remains of the area’s first winery stand not far away. In this town of split personalities lie grand Victorians, Craftsman bungalows and stucco cottages – decorated by colorful gardens of hollyhocks, roses and, yes, larkspur, and protected by the foothills of Mount Tamalpais. One of the big efforts locally is to save and restore the 1936 Art Deco gem, the Lark movie theater.
The other half of Larkspur is a bayside village down Corte Madera Creek, across three village-style outdoor malls and on the east side of US 101. Transportation and water anchor this end – small homes with boat docks, biking along marshland paths, 
kayaking, sailing, houseboat “ark” communities and ferries to San Francisco and nearby 
islands and peninsulas. Close your eyes and it's a minimscule Cape Cod village. As an escape from San Francisco in the foggy summers, sunny Marin County's history is written across Larkspur’s past – Miwok Indians, whaling ships, sawmills, ranches – and now boating, hiking and preservation of lovely spaces.
Lots of things to do, along with good dining and shopping in Larkspur and other parts of Marin County, all an easy jaunt from the city or other parts of the Bay Area.
Shopping:
Downtown Larkspur: L’Ambiente (gifts, accessories, pottery and glassware), 476 Magnolia Ave. (415) 924-2936
Book Passage – well-known feistily independent bookstore that drew 1200 to an Al Gore book-signing this month for his "An Inconvenient Truth"
Town Center Mall (Container Store, Pier I, Sur la Table, See’s Candy and West Elm home furnishings, among the options)
Larkspur Landing (mostly restaurants and small businesses and a very comfortable Marriott Courtyard
The Village Mall (Nordstrom, Banana Republic, Macy’s, Pottery Barn, Crate and Barrel, among others)
Dining also includes:
Picco
Emporio Rulli cafe and bakery
Ward Street Cafe
Il Fornaio (in Corte Madera Town Center)
Noonan's (at Larkspur Landing)
