Hicksville

Eureka was for me a pleasant surprise. My friend Pat has lived up there for many years and she always makes joking remarks about the miserable weather and the slightly nutty people, so I was expecting a hick town with kooks and cloudy skies.

Imagine my surprise when we found bright blue skies, towering trees, an expansive and abundant bay filled with playful seals, whimsical Victorian "painted ladies," good food, cute shops and friendly people.

On a Saturday night, we discovered the newly renovated waterfront promenade and, across the street, a very nice restaurant called Café Waterfront Oyster Bar, which served a mean Spicy Shrimp Bisque. Café Waterfront is so popular that we were only able with no reservations to sit at the bar to eat dinner but the friendly staff made that a pleasure. The owner, a proud new papa, entertained us with pictures of his 18-month old son and two of the wait staff stopped by just to check on us from time to time. A couple from Sacramento took our picture for us and we returned the favor for them. We admired the decor, which was somewhere halfway between Art Nouveau and Arts and Crafts, and enjoyed the fresh seafood options.

The bisque with bay shrimp was not very spicy, despite its name, and was deliciously full of shrimp. My Beloved's New England clam chowder was among the best he's ever eaten. Both of our dinners (petrale sole and scampi) were also excellent. It was such a pleasant experience that we returned the next night and, that time, actually scored a table for two.

If you find yourself in far northern California, we can recommend Hicksville. It's a great little city with some lovely folks and good chow, too.