Tag Archives: downtown Palo Alto restaurant

Meyhouse Adds Prix Fixe Lunch — and Plans for Expansion

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Braised artichoke with poached shrimp, one of the meze choices on the new prix fixe lunch menu at Meyhouse.
Braised artichoke with poached shrimp, one of the meze choices on the new prix fixe lunch menu at Meyhouse.

It’s been a remarkable journey in short order for Executive Chef-Partner Omer Artun and co-owner Koray Altinsoy who started Meyhouse as a weekend pop-up in 2017, then opened a brick-and-mortar in downtown Sunnyvale in 2018, followed by a splashy downtown Palo Alto location in 2023.

Last week, they started renovations on a third location to serve their patented modern Turkish cuisine, this one in City Center Bishop Ranch in San Ramon. It will be slightly larger than the Palo Alto restaurant. But like that one, it will also feature live jazz regularly. If all goes according to plan, the San Ramon outpost will open its doors in November, Artun said. He’s not stopping there, either, as more locations may be on the way in the future.

What’s even more impressive is that this is not only the second career for Artun and Altinsoy, but one that they had never worked in previously. Altinsoy is a tech marketing executive while Artun has a background in software and physics. As someone who has always loved food and cooking, Artun decided to embark on this next chapter after he sold his IT company.

There's outdoor seating, too.
There’s outdoor seating, too.
The dining room.
The dining room.
A peek at the grill area in the kitchen.
A peek at the grill area in the kitchen.

To say that Meyhouse is a very personal project for him is an understatement.

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Dining Outside at Rooh, Palo Alto

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The paneer chili roll embellished with Middle Eastern katifi at Rooh in Palo Alto.
The paneer chili roll embellished with Middle Eastern katifi at Rooh in Palo Alto.

When Rooh opened in downtown Palo Alto in January 2020, it announced itself with live-fire, modern Indian fare in splashy surroundings. Thankfully, it not only survived the global calamity that hit a mere two months later, but continues to take Indian cuisine to new heights now.

It even added a parklet for outdoor dining. That’s where I dined recently when I was invited in as a guest of the restaurant on a chilly weeknight. With plenty of heaters, though, as well as thoughtful floral decorations, the parklet was plenty comfortable. Even on a Wednesday, it was filled with diners, as was the dining room.

Husband and wife, Vikram and Anu Bhambri, who got their start in the tech industry, opened their first Rooh in San Francisco in 2016. It, too, is still going strong, along with locations in Columbus, OH, and New Delhi.

The comfortable parklet on University Avenue in downtown Palo Alto.
The comfortable parklet on University Avenue in downtown Palo Alto.

Executive Chef Sujan Sarkar oversees all the Rooh locations (except the Chicago one), with Chef Apurva Panchal in charge of the Palo Alto locale.

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Dining Outside at Ethel’s Fancy

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Mt. Lassen trout dressed up with chili crisp, salmon roe and peanuts at the new Ethel's Fancy in Palo Alto.
Mt. Lassen trout dressed up with chili crisp, salmon roe and peanuts at the new Ethel’s Fancy in Palo Alto.

Despite his restaurant being much-anticipated and long-delayed, even Chef-Owner Scott Nishiyama was flabbergasted at how quickly reservations were snapped up when first released for the Sept. 3 opening of Ethel’s Fancy.

But such was the voracious appetite from the start for this downtown Palo Alto restaurant in the former Prolific Oven.

Not only has Nishiyama waited a long time for this, but so has the dining public that’s been eager to experience the very personal fare from a chef who honed his skills at the Michelin-starred establishments of Daniel in New York City, The French Laundry in Yountville, and Chez TJ in Mountain View.

Chef-Owner Scott Nishiyama in the kitchen at his long-anticipated restaurant.
Chef-Owner Scott Nishiyama in the kitchen at his long-anticipated restaurant.

The wait was definitely worth it, as I found out last week when I dined at one of the outdoor tables the restaurant has set up right by its front doors.

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The Splashy Ettan Opens In Palo Alto (Which You Can Hopefully Visit When Life Gets Back to Normal)

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Crisp, fried sesame leaves with all the fixings -- at the new Ettan in Palo Alto.
Crisp, fried sesame leaves with all the fixings — at the new Ettan in Palo Alto.

Normally in this space, I try to tempt you with mouthwatering food photos and interesting insights into new restaurants that are worth a visit. However, these are anything but normal times.

So let me merely provide a diversion in this unprecedented time when we are all mostly stuck at home, and going a little stir crazy. It’s a reminder that when life does get back on track, we ought to help support our local restaurants and other businesses that will have a hard time getting back on their feet.

Last month, before widespread lock-down ensued, I was invited in as a guest of the just-opened Ettan, a splashy new modern Indian restaurant in downtown Palo Alto. It’s a collaboration between Ayesha Thapar, a real estate and fashion entrepreneur, and Srijith Gopinathan, executive chef of the Michelin two-starred Campton Place in San Francisco.

The soaring, three-story former Three Seasons restaurant space has been redone in striking shades of cerulean, indigo and bright white. The leaded glass domed ceiling remains a focal point, even more so with clusters of sparkly and sculptural chandeliers dangling from it. There’s more bling with the water pitchers and champagne buckets that are made of copper.

The expansive restaurant.
The expansive restaurant.
The artsy entryway.
The artsy entryway.

On a warm night, the outside patio is an especially inviting spot with its lounge-y loveseats and chairs, done up with plentiful pillows.

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Rooh in Palo Alto Is Smoking Hot

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Duck kebabs cooked on a mega grill at the new Rooh Palo Alto.
Duck kebabs cooked on a mega grill at the new Rooh Palo Alto.

When husband and wife, Vikram Bhambri, a Dell vice president, and Anu Bhambri, a former Microsoft senior software engineer, moved to San Jose from Seattle, they scoured the Peninsula for nine months, searching for a location to open their first Bay Area restaurant.

But the perfect locale actually turned out to be in San Francisco, which is where the couple, who also has restaurants in India, opened the modern-Indian Rooh in 2016. That was followed in quick succession by Rooh locations in Chicago and Columbus.

Now, finally in 2020, the Bhambri’s original dream has come true with the opening of Rooh Palo Alto — in a big way.

Executive Chef Sujan Sarkar in the kitchen.
Executive Chef Sujan Sarkar in the kitchen.
The custom grill that was fabricated in Atlanta to Chef Sarkar's specifications.
The custom grill that was fabricated in Atlanta to Chef Sarkar’s specifications.

It is the first of their restaurants to focus on live-fire cooking. In fact, it boasts a 13-foot-long custom grill, smoker and rotisserie. The Bhambris believe it’s the first apparatus in an Indian restaurant in the world. It can be admired behind glass from the dining room, as chickens rotate over the fire and whole pineapples hang overhead, turning soft and caramelized.

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