601320 Thu Mar 05 07:52:04 -0800 2009 3 1 San Francisco Bay Area 0 4475743 Not what you might think. There was actually a live pet bunny in a box on the counter. A few area bait and tackle shops sometimes sell fish and I was curious to see if Norm was one of them. Nope http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/588941 This is just a shop for fishermen to grab a bite or a beer. Half the menu is bait the other is a handful of items such as a hot dog, sandwiches and teriyaki bowl, all under $4. The coffee is standard donut shop coffee and decent for its category and price. Only coffee whitener available. The woman at the shop was really nice. There are a few tables inside and some ancient blue metal picnic tables outside right next to the water. Norm's seems to always have people there which made me curious to stop by. I think it is a sort of ambiance ... a comfortable place to grab a can of beer out of the cooler and shoot the breeze with other locals. Thu Mar 05 07:52:04 -0800 2009 10264 rworange 1 4478399 "Half the menu is bait ..." Oh, I've been to a lot of sushi-ya were I suspected I was ordering off the bait side of the menu ... Fast I-80 access here on Curtola? Be nice to have as a backup pit-stop on what amounts to a pretty blank stretch of freeway. Sushi Monster Thu Mar 05 21:32:56 -0800 2009 4475743 16674 Sushi Monster 2 4478438 No ... real bait ... not sushi on the cheap ... unless your idea of sushi runs to ghost shrimp :-) Not really that I-80 accesible. If I were going to get coffee in that immediate area I'd go to Jax which is up the street and roasts its own. However, I don't think of that area of Sonoma Blvd all that I-80 friendly. The Springs exit has a lot of small places. Tennessee the next exit up has a caffino drive-thru right next to Grocery Outlet. Thu Mar 05 22:06:51 -0800 2009 4478399 10264 rworange 3 4545353 I have grown up in Vallejo since 1990 and I have never seen Norm's Bait Shop as spectacular as it is now. I know the people that works there personally for nearly ten years. Each individual there has put blood sweat and tears into that bait shop and each person working there are stand up people. All the people at the shop welcome you with warm wishes and sincere smiles. The lady there has been like a mother to me and has more integrity than most people can ever fathom. Keep an eye out for Norm's Bait Shop. The rave reviews they are receiving are just the tip of the iceberg and I am sure the menu, the bait and scenery shall continue to flourish. Fri Mar 27 19:07:50 -0700 2009 4478438 278015 adromgoole