After a dozen years operating in San Francisco’s Marina District, Causwells has planted a flag on the Peninsula, opening a sister restaurant in Menlo Park’s Springline development of restaurants and residences earlier this spring.

Opened by Chef Adam Rosenblum and Beverage Director Elmer Mejicanos, it’s a handsome restaurant with showy chandeliers and a huge wall of windows to let a lot of natural light in.

It does have its quirks, though: It’s across the street from the Menlo Park Caltrain station, which means the blaring of commuter train horns regularly, especially if you’re dining at prime-time on a weeknight. You will also occasionally see non-diners wandering into the restaurant to get to a staircase or elevator to access their apartments in the complex.

However, if you fancy a cocktail, this is the place to be. There’s even a bar cart that will roll to your table for cocktails made tableside if you are a large enough party.

The cocktails are fanciful, original, and delicious. Just consider the Deconstructed Pimm’s Cup ($19). A server will bring over an etched crystal carafe of the Pimm’s, aloe liqueur, cold-pressed cucumber juice, and ginger beer, then pour it into a glass that looks like it has marbles or mini melon balls in it. They’re actually tiny spherical ice cubes flavored with cucumber, lemon, and mint. It’s a beauty that looks like fruit cocktail in a glass with all the colors of the rainbow. It also goes down dangerously refreshingly.

The Cacao White Negroni ($18) may look like water, but it possesses that bittersweet, orange-inflected flavor of that classic cocktail. It’s made with cacao husk-infused gin to both deepen the bitterness and round it off.

The food is solid, though, probably plays second fiddle to the drinks.

A half dozen charred oysters ($28) gets sauced with herb butter and grated Romano cheese before going under the broiler to create a crisp, cheesy top. A squirt of the charred lemon is all you need before slurping up these plump, nutty tasting, umami-filled oysters.

Maitake mushroom pieces ($14) get breaded, then fried to dunk into a creamy ranch-like dressing.

From the mains, the fried chicken ($35) is an ample portion of brined, heritage chicken that remains moist even after frying. Crunchy, creamy herbed slaw accompanies it.

The salmon ($32), cooked closer to medium, was moist and arranged atop a bed of kamut with mushrooms. I give the restaurant props for using the ancient grain, packed with protein and nutrients, since you don’t see it often on menus. However, I think the cooking on it was a little uneven, as some of the grains were still tough. The kamut skirted the edge of over-salting, too. Maybe a little too much preserved lemon in the mix?

A side of chilled pole beans ($15) brought a melange of green beans, yellow beans and romano beans, nicely cooked al dente with a French-like tomato dressing and fresh herbs.

With Rosenblum being a veteran of New Orleans’ restaurants, I was eager to try the beignets ($14) for dessert. They arrived hot out of the fryer, dusted in plenty of powdered sugar. They had a heftier texture almost like a biscuit with a tenderness throughout. Salted caramel sauce came alongside to sweeten things up.

With the addition of Causwells, Springline has definitely grown into a new hub for dining and drinking.

More Restaurants To Discover At Springline: Robin

And: Che Fico Parco Menlo

And: Bubbelah