Tag Archives: Chef Matthew Kammerer

Lunching at Michelin Two-Starred Harbor House Inn

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An exquisite bay nut tart with creme fraiche at the Harbor House Inn.
An exquisite bay nut tart with creme fraiche at the Harbor House Inn.

Elk, CA — I have never aspired to be one of those ladies who lunch.

Somehow, so many hours squandered in the afternoon just provokes too much guilt in me.

Yet after spending a leisurely weekday afternoon partaking of a 5-course lunch at the Michelin two-starred Harbor House Inn on the rugged Mendocino coast, I could definitely be persuaded to be one now.

That’s even on a stormy day that drenched me before I made it through the front door and prevented me from taking any outdoor photos.

Six years ago, I had the pleasure of dining for the first time at this 1916 property after Chef Matthew Kammerer came on board to transform the restaurant from a wayside stop to a must-stop. That time, it was for dinner, and before it officially opened to the public (because I helped write some of their original marketing materials).

The double-sided fireplace that definitely warms on a rainy afternoon.
The double-sided fireplace that definitely warms on a rainy afternoon.
The sitting room where you can relax before being escorted to your table.
The sitting room where you can relax before being escorted to your table.

So much has changed since Kammerer took over. Most notably, the former executive sous chef at San Francisco’s Saison when it held three Michelin stars, gained his own two Michelin stars, launching this Craftsman-style inn three hours north of San Francisco in the tiny town of Elk into the stratosphere.

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Why Harbor House Inn Needs To Be On Your Radar

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Vermillion rockfish caught just off the waters at Harbor House Inn.

Vermillion rockfish caught just off the waters at Harbor House Inn.

ELK, CA — A good three hours drive north from San Francisco through winding roads of vineyards and redwoods, this place is definitely off the beaten path. But it is making quite the splash.

Built in 1916, Harbor House Inn reopened this spring with decidedly new life. New owners bought the 9-room inn in 2005, and have spent the past few years not only meticulously restoring but improving it — most notably, with the restaurant.

They doubled the size of the restaurant kitchen and managed to lure an incredible team to oversee it: Executive Chef Matthew Kammerer, former executive sous chef at Michelin three-starred Saison in San Francisco. Husband-and-wife, Sous Chef David Hopps, formerly of Saison, and Pastry Chef Elise Hopps, previously of Craftsman & Wolves in San Francisco. Chef de Partie Holden Tal from Michelin two-starred Commis in Oakland. And sommelier Corrina Straus, a veteran of both La Folie in San Francisco and Michelin three-starred Manresa in Los Gatos. Amanda Nemec, former program manager for media operations at Facebook and Kammerer’s partner, is the inn’s general manager.

The entrance to the inn and restaurant.

The entrance to the inn and restaurant.

The magnificent view from the back of the property.

The magnificent view from the back of the property.

Executive Chef Matthew Kammerer (right) in the kitchen that doubled in size.

Executive Chef Matthew Kammerer (right) in the kitchen that doubled in size.

A few weeks before it opened to the public, I was invited to be a guest to come check it all out. (Full disclosure: I was hired to write some of the inn’s marketing materials.)

The Mendocino Coast town of Ellk has all of 200 people, and this inn, situated on a bluff right over the ocean, really does make you feel a bit like you’re in the middle of nowhere. There’s little else directly around it, save for a herd of shaggy-haired Highland cattle across the road.

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