Category Archives: Restaurants

Jose Andres’ Zaytinya Finally Opens in Palo Alto

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Chef Jose Andres opens his first restaurant in the Bay Area.
Chef Jose Andres opens his first restaurant in the Bay Area.

It’s a big deal whenever a world-renowned chef opens a new restaurant. But even more so when it’s Jose Andres, recipient of two Michelin stars and two James Beard Awards, who was twice named one of Time Magazine’s “100 Most Influential People.” He not only operates 40 restaurants globally, but founded World Central Kitchen, the nonprofit humanitarian organization that is so often first on the ground at major disasters around the world to help feed those in desperate need.

It’s been a long time coming, but Andres has finally opened his first restaurant in the Bay Area. Zaytinya took two years to debut from conception through construction, and was nearly derailed by a short-lived ban by Palo Alto on gas stoves in new construction.

Last week, it opened in the former Macy’s Men’s store site at Stanford Shopping Center to great fanfare to serve Greek, Turkish and Lebanese fare. It is the sixth location of Zaytinya in the country.

Opened in the former Macy's store.
Opened in the former Macy’s store.
Outdoor dining for the warmer months.
Outdoor dining for the warmer months.
Neon at the bar.
Neon at the bar.

Although Andres wasn’t there for the opening, his presence was on display in the form of a monogrammed chef’s jacket hanging at the host stand. He also had veteran staff on hand from his other restaurants in Los Angeles and Las Vegas to ensure seamless service, as I found when I was invited in as a guest of the restaurant last Tuesday.

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Santa Clara Welcomes Jashn Restaurant

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Beef bone marrow nalli nihari at the new Jashn in Santa Clara.
Beef bone marrow nalli nihari at the new Jashn in Santa Clara.

When Vittal Shetty and Reshmi Nair — formerly corporate executive chef and operations manager, respectively, of the Bay Area’s Amber India restaurants — decided to venture out on their own, the plan was to always open their own restaurant together.

Little did they know, they joked, that it would take 11 years.

That’s because they didn’t count on the catering company that they immediately started to try to raise money for that restaurant venture turning into an immediate juggernaut.

Indeed, their Jalsa Catering & Events has grown into one of the largest and most sought-after Indian catering companies in the Bay Area. It was one of the first Indian catering companies to go beyond standard steam tables to present food with more fine-dining finesse. Shetty’s intent was to take the skills he used at Amber India and transfer them to the catering industry.

Jalsa, which means “social gathering,” caters upwards of 400 events annually, many of them weddings with as many as 500 guests, as far north as the Napa Valley and Lake Tahoe, and as far south as Carmel. It’s even been hired to do events in Arizona and Mexico.

Every restaurant has to have an Instagram-ready wall now, right?
Every restaurant has to have an Instagram-ready wall now, right?
One of two private dining rooms.
One of two private dining rooms.

“People would attend the weddings we did and ask ‘Where is your restaurant?’ because they enjoyed the food so much, ” Nair says. “We would have to tell them there wasn’t one.”

Not anymore. When the catering company relocated three years ago from Milpitas to Santa Clara (the former Justin’s Restaurant and Wilson’s Bakery site), it gained a lot more space. Enough for Jashn, which means “celebration,” to open there earlier this month.

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San Jose’s New Poppy & Claro Outperforms

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Seared salmon with cauliflower, broccolini, and cornmeal-battered green beans. Would you believe this is all of $21 at Poppy & Claro?
Seared salmon with cauliflower, broccolini, and cornmeal-battered green beans. Would you believe this is all of $21 at Poppy & Claro?

Admittedly, when I was invited to dine as a guest of a new downtown San Jose restaurant, one established by the building’s developer who had never opened a restaurant before, I arrived skeptical.

By the time I left, though, I was an avowed convert, because Poppy & Claro far exceeded expectations.

Housed on the ground floor of the former KQED office building (and former Knight Ridder building before that), it’s very much designed for the weekday work crowd, as it’s open only Monday through Friday, 7:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. However, it’s available for private events on Sundays and Mondays.

Created by the Jay Paul Company, a Silicon Valley real estate firm, it’s centrally located right next to the San Jose Museum of Art and the winter ice skating rink. There’s even outdoor seating right by the Circle of Palms Plaza.

The communal table in the shape of the state.
The communal table in the shape of the state.
The bar.
The bar.

The restaurant name pays homage to California’s state flower and the wood from the state’s native walnut tree.

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Dining at Michelin Two-Starred Enclos

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The dramatic presentation of venison tartare tartlets at Enclos.
The dramatic presentation of venison tartare tartlets at Enclos.

It’s uncommon for a restaurant to garner a Michelin star less than six months after opening.

It’s even more of a rarity to achieve two stars in that short span.

Yet Enclos in downtown Sonoma managed that impressive feat.

Brian Limoges, executive chef of the acclaimed restaurant that opened in December 2024, was caught so off guard that at first he didn’t think he had even been invited to the June ceremony in Sacramento. Turns out the emailed invitation had landed in his spam box.

Sitting in the audience of the awards ceremony, he then had a brief panic when he didn’t see Enclos listed among the new one-star recipients. But good things come to those who wait. And he and his staff were overjoyed to see they had won two stars right out of the gate.

Executive Chef Brian Limoges.
Executive Chef Brian Limoges.
The Michelin plaque.
The Michelin plaque.
The kitchen.
The kitchen.

Enclos, French for “enclosure,” is operated by Stone Edge Farm Estate Vineyards and Winery in Sonoma. In fact, you’ll find many ingredients on the restaurant’s tasting menu sourced from that verdant 16-acre farm just minutes away.

The winery is owned by Leslie McQuown and her husband Mac McQuown, a serial entrepreneur who also co-founded the Chalone Wine Group and Carmenet Winery. The couple decided to go all-in on the restaurant, and wow, has it paid off.

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Dining in Los Angeles, Part II: The Astonishing Michelin Three-Starred Somni

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A pizza Margherita that will leave you dumbstruck at Somni.
A pizza Margherita that will leave you dumbstruck at Somni.

The first time I ever dined at the French Laundry in Yountville was a seminal experience, one punctuated by a whirlwind of wee dishes that somehow possessed such outsized, intense flavors that they left me feeling as if I were tasting food for the very first time.

Earlier this month at Somni, I relived that same type of vivid, jolting excitement — but with even more whimsy, humor, and daring.

No wonder this Los Angeles restaurant garnered three Michelin stars this year practically right out of the gate after opening in November 2024.

To be fair, Somni’s original incarnation that opened in Beverly Hills in 2018 had already earned two Michelin stars before it was forced to close when the pandemic hit, the same week it would have celebrated not only its second anniversary, but Chef-Owner Aitor Zabala’s birthday.

The unassuming entrance.
The unassuming entrance.
The courtyard behind the gate, where the meal begins.
The courtyard behind the gate, where the meal begins.
The giraffe sculpture at the front.
The giraffe sculpture at the front.
A welcome note.
A welcome note.

After hunting high and low, he found the ideal space in West Hollywood to relocate in what was previously a Donna Karan store and a former music studio frequented by Jennifer Lopez.

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