Just opened in February, Vicinity in Los Gatos may not have a Michelin star just yet.

But there is surely one in its future after already earning a Michelin recommendation this year.

This ambitious fine-dining restaurant was opened by an equally ambitious couple: husband and wife, Mike and Denise Thornberry. He is a senior director at Apple. She was executive vice president of global sales for Beats by Dr. Dre.

Neither had ever worked at a restaurant before, let alone owned one until they debuted the 90-seat Tasting House bistro in Los Gatos in 2021, followed by its adjacent 10-seat champagne bar last year.

Vicinity is remarkable for a number of reasons, as I found when I was invited in as a guest last week.

It’s a restaurant within a restaurant, tucked inside Tasting House. You check in at the same host stand before being escorted to a back corner of the bistro, where dark drapes are parted to reveal a door to Vicinity’s intimate dining room.

How small? It’s all of four tables. And it typically serves a maximum of only 12 diners each evening.

Vicinity is led by Executive Chef Julian Silvera, who not only oversees this tasting menu-only restaurant, but also the bistro and champagne bar menus, as well as Friday and Saturday afternoon tea service. He somehow pulls all of this off with a kitchen team of only five. And yes, that includes himself.

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