Sad, we were just there on a wonderful walking tour of downtown Sausalito on November 18th. The Trident was the highlight of the tour.
By Elena Kadvany, Staff WriterJan 2, 2026 - San Francisco Chronicle
A storied restaurant perched on the Sausalito waterfront, once a 1960s counterculture destination for rock stars like Janis Joplin, has closed.
The Trident, located in a prominent building whose history dates back to 1898, shuttered on New Year’s Eve, confirmed owner Bob Freeman. Freeman, who owns the building, was in talks to sell the property, but the sale fell through. With already slow sales and increasing costs, he decided to shut down the restaurant.
“Since the pandemic ... Sausalito has semi kicked back but it hasn’t come back the way it was. We don’t see as many tourists as we used to,” Freeman said. “It used to be bustling with people.”
https://www.sfchronicle.com/food/restaurants/article/the-trident-sausalito-closes-21273481.php
Greg
Quick and Dirty
A storied restaurant perched on the Sausalito waterfront, once a 1960s counterculture destination for rock stars like Janis Joplin, has closed.
The Trident, located in a prominent building whose history dates back to 1898, shuttered on New Year’s Eve, confirmed owner Bob Freeman. Freeman, who owns the building, was in talks to sell the property, but the sale fell through. With already slow sales and increasing costs, he decided to shut down the restaurant.
“Since the pandemic ... Sausalito has semi kicked back but it hasn’t come back the way it was. We don’t see as many tourists as we used to,” Freeman said. “It used to be bustling with people.”
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The City of Sausalito owns the land where the Trident’s parking is located, and sale negotiations broke down in part as a result, according to Freeman. And as the Trident struggled to stay afloat, he said he had fallen behind in paying rent. The City of Sausalito did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
A crowd listens and dances to the Rowan Brothers band at the Trident during a grand re-opening celebration in 2012.
Rashad Sisemore/The Chronicle
The two-story building on a pier, one of the first sites drivers see when they enter Sausalito, has seen many chapters. It was initially a yacht club, then a jazz club called the Yacht Dock. In 1960, famed folk music group the Kingston Trio bought the club and turned it into a live music venue and “natural foods” restaurant serving veggie burgers and brown rice pilaf; they named it the Trident in 1966, according to a history on the business’ website.
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“The Trident quickly became a gathering place for like-minded locals and celebrities from around the world, and was known for its laid-back vibe, healthy, organic cuisine, creative cocktails, comely waitresses, artistic decor, stellar views and its many famous patrons,” the website reads. The restaurant claims regulars included Joplin (who had her own table overlooking the water), Jerry Garcia, Joan Baez, Clint Eastwood and Bill Graham.
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The Trident is rich in local lore. Robin Williams reportedly worked there as a busboy. The tequila sunrise cocktail was popularized there, thanks to a bartender who served it to Keith Richards and Mick Jagger during a private party at the Trident for the start of the Rolling Stones’ 1972 U.S. tour. And as legend goes, in 1971, a group of armed men in scuba gear entered the Trident from the water via a trap door and took $30,000 in cash from a safe, later dubbed the Great Trident Frogman heist, according to newspaper reports from the time.
A psychedelic mural covers the ceiling at the Trident.
John Storey/Special to the Chronicle
The space was long known for its psychedelic-muraled ceiling; wooden, boat-like curved archways; and panoramic views of the Bay and San Francisco skyline. The kitchen’s natural-foods focus eventually gave way to seafood like cioppino.
In 1980, the Trident closed and became the Horizons restaurant. Freeman’s business, California Cafe, took over the restaurant in 1997. Freeman also co-founded the once popular, railroad-themed Victoria Station restaurant chain and is an owner at San Francisco’s historic Buena Vista cafe. (Because of this, Buena Vista’s famed Irish coffee was also served at the Trident.) In 2012, Freeman revived the Trident name.
“There’s a lot of ancient history,” he said. “We tried to keep that alive.”
But sluggish post-pandemic business, paired with a higher minimum wage taking effect in 2026 and other costs, made it unfeasible. “Every other expense is up and sales are down and those two don’t work out together,” Freeman said. “It is a sad chapter for Sausalito.”
Jan 2, 2026