LEAH GARCHIK

San Francisco Chronicle

Leah Garchik

Thursday, May 10, 2007

Susan Prather of Richmond called KCRT, the city of Richmond's TV station, to say that for two months, her attempts to watch Richmond City Council meetings had been unsuccessful, with the TV screen reading, "This station will be with you in a moment."

Prather said the woman who took her complaint was "terrific" and laughed when Prather suggested that the malfunction was causing her to miss a lot of laughs. She told Prather that the station had received "an e-mail from Indonesia saying it was the most-watched comedy program in Indonesia."

When Prather expressed amazement that the meetings could be viewed on the other side of the Pacific -- the station was one of the pioneers of Web streaming -- the woman said, "I think they are trying to scare the Indonesian citizens with democracy."

IJ Weekend: Quaint Point Richmond offers good eats and more

Vicki Larson

Marin Independent Journal

Article Launched:05/08/2007 07:56:32 PM PDT

If the Bay Area were an extended family, then Point Richmond would be the sweet, old-fashioned grandmother who, taking you by the hand to the kitchen table, says, "Sit awhile. Eat a little something."

In this sleepy little neighborhood of some 3,000 residents, there are about 16 restaurants, two groceries and three delis.

"People come here to eat," says John Veirs, who has worked at Park Place Barbers for 44 years and has owned it for 36 years.

"There're more restaurants per person than we need," laughs Kathy Scott, who recently moved to Point Richmond from San Rafael and whose store, Art Lounge, is as outrageously colorful as she is.

Less than a half-hour away from Marin, Point Richmond is a little like stepping back in time. There isn't much to do or see in the four-block downtown, and even the No. 1 pastime - eating out - is mostly over and done with at lunch (only a handful of restaurants are open for dinner).

But there is just enough in and around the neighborhood to make a day visit to Point Richmond a must. And with its East Brother Lighthouse, a beautifully restored Victorian bed-and-breakfast, you can turn a day into an unique overnight experience as well.

Point Richmond has a long and varied past, starting as the birthplace of Richmond. It was once home to three brickyards; "the largest winery in the Universe" known as Winehaven, until Prohibition shut it down; a Chinese shrimp camp, with daily deliveries of fresh shrimp; the World's Aerial Navigation and Construction Co., the brainchild of R. H. Botts, who intended to build "steam-powered flying machines" for voyages to the North Pole; as well as bordellos, an opera house and a candy maker. By the time the Standard Oil Co. and the Santa Fe Railroad arrived in 1900, the area was on its way. Learn more about its history at the tiny Point Richmond History Association off the downtown triangle, and the Richmond Museum of History, which is not in Point Richmond but close enough and worth a visit.

It has changed names several times, too, until it started being called Point Richmond in 1915 or so. It was even once an island until the early 1900s. By 1905, when Richmond was incorporated, developers began calling it "the Pittsburgh of the West," believing it would one day become the greatest port on the West Coast. In 1979, Point Richmond was designated as an Historic District and appears on the National Register of Historic Places.

Point Richmond is also home to a Chevron refinery, whose workers fill the restaurants at lunch time as did Pixar employees until the company moved to Emeryville in 2000.

Old-timers like Veirs have seen it go through some of the changes. "It went from a blue-collar party town to more upscale. There used to be a bar almost every other door. Now we probably have more lawyers and architects," Veirs laughs.

"It's a little like Mill Valley or Fairfax in the '70s," says Mike Crowe, who moved there from Mill Valley 10 years ago, as he waited with a handful of other men for a noontime haircut at Park Place Barbers. "I like the small-town atmosphere and historical buildings. It has a lot of good food and it's on the bay. Some people jokingly refer to it as East Marin."

"It's a wonderful little community," says Fatoum Alwareeth, who with her husband, Nasser Halloum, bought the Point Richmond Market - one of the town's two groceries and directly across from each other - from her parents four years ago. "It's all about community values."

The couple offer Middle Eastern specialties at the market and once owned the town's pizzeria - it's now an Xtreme Pizza, They still own Rosamaria's Cafe, the city's only Mexican restaurant.

Point Richmond is "very cozy," says Thais Silva, who opened 25 West Caf} with her husband, John, four months ago. The Novato couple include some Brazilian specialties - Thais is from Brazil - on their menu, which attracts people from all over.

And people are loyal to the neighborhood, coming back for haircuts at Park Place Barbers even though they have long moved away. Some Pixar people still make the trek to eat at Hidden City Cafe, which had a minor role in the Pixar film "Monsters, Inc." Owner Shellie Bourgault, who worked with Alice Waters at Chez Panisse, chose the area as the home for her cafe 17 years ago because she says it harkens back to a slower era.

"The East Bay is so hustle-bustle. This seemed a little more quiet, like an old country town but close enough to the city," says Bourgault, who will close the cafe soon for a few months to renovate and add a deck.

Although the world around it has changed, in many ways, Point Richmond hasn't, she says. "That's what I like about it. That's what people come here for."

And they also come for the 99-seat Masquers Playhouse, says Ann Homrighausen of Kentfield, who was eating lunch at the Hidden City Cafe with Bridget O'Keeffe of Richmond and her 3-month-old son, Ethan.

The two are actresses and singers who met while performing at Masquers.

Homrighausen used to perform in Marin, but now only works at Masquers. She's been doing that for 20 years. "I love it here. It's such a loving, supportive, fun, insane group," Homrighausen says.

Masquers, which recently celebrated its 50th anniversary, puts on five shows a year. "She Loves Me," a musical comedy with music and lyrics by Jerry Bock and Sheldon Harnick and set in Europe in the 1930s, plays through May 12.

"I love that there's a community theater that's so much a part of the area," says Bryan Northup, the new owner of Artizmo gallery in Northgate Mall but whose glass studio and home are in Point Richmond. "My partner and I fell in love with the area. It's a little hidden city in the middle of the Bay Area."

If you're going to take in a Masquers show, plan on having dinner first. A good place is the Hotel Mac Restaurant, attached to the three-story, red brick hotel built in 1911 - the second hotel built in Richmond - and listed in the National Register of Historic Places. All dark wood, stained glass, pressed tin ceiling and dim lighting, the restaurant recalls a more genteel era, and is famous for its farm-raised catfish tacos (which, at $7 for one, was a delicious and filling deal). The theater and restaurant offer a package deal - dinner and a ticket - on Thursdays.

Kao Sarn, whose owners, brothers Joe and Jim Phoonpirom, also own Baan Thai in Orinda and Bua Luang in Albany, is another option. Or head to the Baltic Square Pub, which offers jazz Thursday nights, and blues and R&B on Friday and Saturday nights.

But the perfect time to visit Point Richmond is for lunch or brunch at any of the town's restaurants. Or stop by Little Louie's or the Point Richmond Market for lunch to go and plan a picnic.

Drive through the tunnel on Tunnel Drive with its beautiful mural painted by John Wehrle in 1996 and you arrive at Keller Beach, where you can catch a few rays with background views of the Golden Gate Bridge, and the Miller/Knox Regional Shoreline, with its many trails for walking and biking and tables for picnicking with views of Marin and Mount Tamalpais.

If you've got young ones, a stop at the nearby Golden State Model Railroad Museum, lovingly run by the East Bay Model Engineers Society, is mandatory. The museum houses three layouts - O, HO and N scale- on 10,000 square feet with detailed scenery and buildings that you'd see throughout California. Be sure to go on a Sunday, when you can see the trains running.

Travel a little farther down the road and you'll come to the Rosie the Riveter World War II/Home Front National Historical Park, which will one day - it was established in 2000 and is still under development - be the collection and coordination center for World War II oral histories and memorabilia. Nearby is the SS Red Oak Victory Ship, the last remaining Victory Ship of the 747 made in the Richmond Kaiser Shipyards.

That's also where you'll find new multimillion-dollar homes along the waterfront, with amazing bay views - what used to be the poorer part of town, observes Margaret Morkowski, president of the Women's Westside Improvement Club, the oldest continually active women's club in the state, she says.

But the older (and more reasonably priced) homes in the hills around the downtown triangle - built for refinery and railroad workers in the early 1900s - have Victorian charm. "Somehow, we love and accept each other," quips Morkowski, who moved to the Point Richmond in 1994 - she's still a newcomer, she says - after 20 years in Sausalito. "This is so much nicer," she says. "People are so much friendlier and inclusive."

A POINT RICHMOND CHECKLIST

What's happening

May 12 - Fizzy Bombs and Tub Tea. From 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., learn how to make three tub-time treats at Nova Studio's hands-on class at 24 West Richmond Ave. $45 plus $15 materials fee. Call 510-234-5700 or www.TheNovaStudio.com.

May 13 - SS Red Oak Victory Ship Mother's Day Pancake Breakfast. From 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., enjoy a pancake and bacon breakfast, tour the ship and visit the onboard museum. Tickets are $6. Berth 6A, Port of Richmond. 510-237-2933.

May 17 - Point Richmond 18th annual stroll at the triangle. From 5 to 8 p.m., featuring music, children's entertainment and free food and wine. Call 510-234-4219.

May 19 - Tela de la Vida/Fabric of Life. Miller/Knox Regional Shoreline. From 2 to 3:30 p.m., enjoy a bilingual family-friendly walk that will introduce you to birds of the bay. Call 510-525-2233.

May 20 - Spring Choirs Concert, 5 p.m., featuring the Angel and Joyful Noise choirs. Point Richmond Methodist Church, 201 Martina at West Richmond Avenue, 510-236-0527.

May 28 - Masquers Playhouse Garage Sale from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. features music and a huge sale in front of the Playhouse at 105 Park Place, along with business and garage sales throughout the neighborhood, with 10 percent of proceeds going to the theater. Maps available at the Playhouse. Call 510-232-4031.

May 29 - 55-plus Exploration. From 10 am to noon, seniors 55 and older can participate in nature study, fitness and fun on a series of regional park explorations at Miller/Knox Regional Shoreline. Call 510-525-2233.

June 8, July 13 and Aug. 10 - Point Richmond Summer Concerts. Pull up a chair from 5:30 to 8 p.m. and enjoy free after-work concerts downtown. Call 510-236-7435 or go to www.pointrichmond.com/prmusic/2007.htm.

Where to eat

- Baltic Square Pub, 135 Park Place, 510-237-4782

- Cafe Altura, 1 West Richmond Ave., 510-233-2535

- Edibles, Tewkesbury and Santa Fe, 510-234-7505

- Extreme Pizzeria, 151 Park Place, 510-620-1800

- Great American, 35 East Richmond Ave., 510-233-2223

- Hidden City Cafe, 109 Park Place, 510-232-9738

- Hotel Mac, 50 Washington St., 510-233-0576

- Kao Sarn Thai, 130 Washington Ave., 510-233-8585

- Little China, 152 Washington Ave., 510-236-9382

- LIttle Louie's, 49 Washington Ave., 510-235-3108

- Rosamaria's Cafe, 101 Park Place, 510-234-2384

- Red Pepper, 30 Railroad Ave., 510-233-6688

- Su Zhou, 199 Park Place, 510-236-2118

- 25 West Cafe, 25 West Richmond Ave., 510-237-7585

Where to stay

- Hotel Mac, 50 Washington St., 510- 233-0010

- East Brother Lighthouse, (mailing address) 117 Park Place, Point Richmond 94801, 510-233-2385 or www.ebls.org

What to see

- Golden State Model Railroad Museum, 900 Dornan Dr. 510-234-4884 or www.gsmrm.org.

- Masquers Playhouse, 105 Park Place. "She Loves Me" through May 12. 510-232-4031 or 510-232-3888; www.masquers.org

- Richmond Museum of History, 400 Nevin Ave. 510-235-7387 or www.richmondmuseumofhistory.org.

- Rosie the Riveter World War II Home Front National Historical Park, 1401 Marina Way South, Suite C. (temporary). 510-232-5050 or www.rosietheriveter.org.

- The National Institute of Art & Disabilities, 551 23rd St. 510-620-0290 or www.niadart.org.

- Point Richmond History Association, 139 1/2 Washington Ave. 510-235-1336 or www.pointrichmondhistory.org

- Richmond Art Center, 2540 Barrett Ave. Artists' reception, 6 to 8 p.m. May 18, 2540 Barrett Ave., Richmond. Call 510-620-6772 or go to www.therichmondartcenter.org.

- SS Red Oak Victory Ship, 1337 Canal Blvd., Berth 6A, Port of Richmond. 510-222-9200. www/ssredoakvictory.org.

- East Brother Island, (mailing address) 117 Park Place, Point Richmond 94801, 510-233-2385 or www.ebls.org. Day use allowed Saturdays during the summer, depending on other scheduled events. Includes boat transportation and a guided tour. Reservations required.

Vicki Larson can be reached at vlarson@marinij.com.