El Paseo restaurant re-opens in California
El Paseo, the third Bay Area restaurant from Tyler Florence, has re-opened in Mill Valley, California after an extensive one-year renovation.
The renovation project led by Lori Yeomans of USA Interior Design involved more than a year of internal and external work to restore the original brick and woodwork and upgrade the kitchen to current code requirements. The entire length of the brick walkway in the property was demolished and the slope was fixed to meet ADA requirements.
The interior of the restaurant is designed as universally warm space with plenty of exposed brick, dark leather and classic white table settings. Split into two rooms by the compact kitchen, the west side of the building is warmly illuminated with flickering retro gas lamps. The front room features tall dark banquettes, while the back room is adorned with a copper chimney over the large fireplace.
The layout still resembles the old El Paseo. The 130 seats are scattered over two dining rooms, a patio dining area, a self-contained bar, and an al fresco lounge. There is also a private dining area in the wine room, christened the Costigan Room, after the original architect, Gus Costigan. The curtains and carpets of the old El Paseo are replaced by chocolate brown leather booths, dark banquettes, fireplaces, old prints, and hardwood floors.
In the bar, a dressing room mirror is featured which is the Florence-Clark family heirloom with a photo of two Clark uncles in Wyoming featured in the back room. The bathroom walls are lined with pages of best-seller books from the late 1940s, paying homage to the 1947 opening of the original El Paseo.
