Behind the Doors of Hiroshi in Los Altos

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A5 Wagyu sando at Hiroshi in Los Altos.
A5 Wagyu sando at Hiroshi in Los Altos.

It’s a good bet that not many ordinary mortals have dined at Hiroshi in downtown Los Altos.

After all, when it opened its doors two years ago, it was easily staked a claim to being the most expensive and most exclusive restaurant in the Bay Area. That’s because the Japanese restaurant, which essentially acts as your own private restaurant, serves only eight diners per night — at $400 per person on up, excluding tax, tip and beverages. What’s more, whether you were a party of six, four or two, you had to pay the full price of eight diners.

Hand-cut Japanese crystal known as Edokiriko.
Hand-cut Japanese crystal known as Edokiriko.

But Hiroshi recently changed that policy, making the restaurant more accessible and affordable. Well, sort of. The 10-course dinner now starts at $575 per person, exclusive of tax, tip, and beverages. But you need only a minimum of four diners to make a reservation now.

Owned by Chef Hiroshi Kimura and Japanese businessman Iwata Tsuyoshi, the restaurant has hosted the likes of Google co-founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page, as well as other tech titans.

Chef Hiroshi Kimura.
Chef Hiroshi Kimua.

This summer, the chef hosted an intimate group of six food writers, including yours truly, to experience his traditional Japanese cuisine served against a backdrop of dazzling art and plateware in a serene dining room dominated by 16-foot raw-edge table, fashioned from an 800-year-old zelkova tree, the same type of wood used to construct Japanese temples.

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Radicchio Dumplings For A Taste of the Italian Alps

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Easy bread dumplings that taste like Thanksgiving stuffing.
Easy bread dumplings that taste like Thanksgiving stuffing.

With winter just around the corner, you crave comfort food that will fill you up with true warmth.

The recipes in the new “Alpine Cooking: Recipes and Stories from Europe’s Grand Mountaintops” (Ten Speed Press), of which I received a review copy, do exactly that because, after all, they highlight the hearty foods of Italy, Austria, Switzerland and France.

It’s by Meredith Erickson, a veteran cookbook author, who splits her time between Montreal and Milan.

The book is a a travelogue of the picture-perfect, snow-capped Italian and Swiss alps. You just want to step inside the photos to go for a hike or schuss down the slopes.

The 80 recipes hit the spot, too, after a day of invigorating mountaineering. Think schnitzels and strudels, with plenty of cheese thrown in for good measure. Enjoy everything from “Veal Carbonnade with Polenta” and “Venison Ragout” to “Hangover Soup with Cheese Dumplings” and “Chartreuse Souffle.”

“Radicchio Dumplings” is like Thanksgiving stuffing meets matzo balls, which makes them especially appropriate to enjoy at this time of year with the holiday nearly upon us.

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A Sneak Taste of Mentone

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Michelin three-starred Chef David Kinch awaits the opening of his new Aptos restaurant.
Michelin three-starred Chef David Kinch awaits the opening of his new Aptos restaurant.

Although a 2019 opening was expected for Chef David Kinch’s newest restaurant, Mentone in Aptos, eager diners will have to wait a little longer.

Like most under-construction restaurants these days, permit approvals have taken longer than expected. So, Mentone will likely open in the first half of January 2020 instead.

That’s what Kinch confirmed last week, while hosting a pop-up at Manresa Bread in Campbell, where he debuted some of the lusty, soulful food he’ll be serving at Mentone, the first Italian restaurant by this Michelin three-starred chef.

A few pastries remaining in the case at the start of the pop-up.
A few pastries remaining in the case at the start of the pop-up.
The dining room at Manresa Bread in Campbell set with more tables for the Mentone pop-up.
The dining room at Manresa Bread in Campbell set with more tables for the Mentone pop-up.

“People think I’m purposely delaying the opening to build more suspense,” he says with a laugh. “But that’s not true. It’s out of my hands.”

Yes, after conquering the highest echelons of fine-dining with Manresa, artisan bread-baking with Manresa Bread (Los Gatos, Los Altos, and Campbell), and the spirit of the Big Easy with the Bywater in Los Gatos, Kinch is turning his attention to the cuisine of the Italian and French Riviera, from which Mentone gets its name. It’ll also be the first restaurant on the “other side of the hill” of Highway 17 for Kinch, who has called Santa Cruz home for decades.

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Autumn Was Made For Gingered Apple Pork Chops

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Easy cooking, easy clean-up in one pan.
Easy cooking, easy clean-up in one pan.

Pork, apples and grapes are an unbeatable trio especially at this time of year.

Best yet, “Gingered Apple Pork Chops” can be prepared in just one skillet. It’s practically fast enough for a weeknight meal and impressive enough looking for company, too.

It’s from the new cookbook, “Half Baked Harvest Super Simple: More Than 125 Recipes for Instant, Overnight, Meal-Prepped, and Easy Comfort Foods” (Clarkson Potter), of which I received a review copy.

The book is by Colorado recipe developer Tieghan Gerard, creator of the blog, Half Baked Harvest.

Included are more than 125 recipes, most of which take 30 minutes or less to make. As the title implies, these are dishes that make use of organized prepping, streamlined techniques, a well-stocked pantry, and helpful gadgets at times.

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Afuri Ramen & Dumplings Opens Its First California Outpost

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The famed yuzu shio ramen at Afuri in Cupertino.
The famed yuzu shio ramen at Afuri in Cupertino.

Can you stand yet another ramen joint opening in the Bay Area?

You surely can when it’s one that not only specializes in a chicken-based broth rather than pork, but also offers a unique hazelnut vegan broth.

Tokyo-based Afuri opened its first California outpost on Tuesday. The 54-seat fast-casual restaurant in Cupertino, a stone’s throw from Whole Foods, is its second U.S. locale, following the 70-seat one that opened in Portland last year, which now serves upwards of 500 bowls of ramen daily. Named for a mountain in Japan, Afuri also has a franchise location in Lisbon, with Richmond, B.C. also in the works. It expects to open another South Bay location next year, possibly in Mountain View.

I had a chance to preview some of the menu items the day before the Cupertino one opened to the public.

Order at the touch-screen kiosk.
Order at the touch-screen kiosk.

Step up to the electronic touch-screen kiosk to place your order for ramen, gyoza, rice bowls, beverages, and more. You can add extra toppings easily with the touch of a finger — or even eliminate any that you don’t want. Slide your credit card to pay; or hit a button to notify a server that you want to pay by cash instead. Then, grab a carved wooden number holder nearby and place it at your table for your server to find you to deliver the food.

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