Surf Market

Surf Market opened in 1956 to serve Gualala's logging, hunting, and fishing community and has grown into the largest supermarket on this stretch of coast, with a staff of roughly 48. Owner Steve May has worked here 30 years and owned it for 18; department heads like longtime Meat & Seafood Manager Todd Barnhouse have real tenure. Its "Made Local" program puts names and stories behind individual products rather than treating the shelves as generic distributor stock, and the seafood counter is legitimately serious — an early adopter of a sustainable-seafood program that Greenpeace ranked Number 4 in California, ahead of Whole Foods, Costco, Trader Joe's, and Safeway.

The shopping list regulars swear by: Pazzo Marco Creamery gelato and cheese (Surf is the only retail outlet outside the farmers market for this Gualala creamery — look for the Manchego-style Monsieur Phillipe), Pelican Bread's organic stone-milled sourdough baked daily in Point Arena (it sells out, so come early), and the Friday–Saturday BBQ: baby back ribs, tri-tip, rotisserie chicken, and house-made clam chowder, finished with the store's own Chile Crunch. For a shelf-stable souvenir, the local artisan pantry runs Bonanno Family olives, Little Green Bean Coffee, and Lisa's Luscious jams and chutneys — and there's a curated Four-Eyed Frog book shelf near the register.

Functions as an informal community hub for Gualala, Sea Ranch, Anchor Bay, and Annapolis — supports 44 local organizations and carries the largest magazine selection on the Sonoma-Mendocino coast. Good one-stop option for provisioning a vacation rental: produce, meat, seafood, deli, wine, and local specialty goods under one roof, sourced partly through the Mendo-Lake Food Hub.