It’sDiningTime!
San Francisco/Bay Area restaurant reviews by Chris NorrisArchive for South Bay
Zafran, Santa Clara
Zafran, Santa Clara
June 2008
S’Ok. Zafran is a small Indian eatery on El Camino near Scott Boulevard. I came across this place at lunchtime after getting my car washed just down the street. While looking for a quick bite to eat without resorting to fast food, I decided to give Zafran a try. I opted for the all-you-can-eat buffet and loaded up on tandoori chicken, chana masala (chickpeas), curry vegetables, rice biryani, and more. Complete with some piping hot naan from a real tandoori oven, my lunch was fast and tasted great! On the grand scale of Indian food, as found in Bangalore or elsewhere in the Bay Area, Zafran is not especially ahead of the pack. But the service was friendly and efficient, the food was good, and you could do lots worse for lunch.
Taqueria Vallarta
Taqueria Vallarta
June 2008
S’Ok. Taqueria Vallarta is a bit of a dive joint that serves Mexican food on Scott Boulevard in Santa Clara. What’s unique about this establishment is that they’ve been around for years, and although it doesn’t look like much more than fast Mexican food, it is SO much more than that. The food here is fantastic, and after you’ve stopped in for your first time, The Taqueria will become a favorite lunch time option. Whatever you do, don’t miss the Carnitas Tacos – they Rock!
On the downside, we ordered food for about 15 people here on a take-out basis and were pretty underwhelmed. A combination of poor preparation and no good method to keep the food at temperature made this a poor experience. For example, the pinto beans were runny – like soup – while the cheese in the enchiladas was hardened. Best to order and eat on-premises.
The Grill on the Alley, San Jose
The Grill on the Alley, San Jose
March 2008
Hmmmm. The Grill on the Alley is located in the Fairmont Hotel in downtown San Jose and is typical of hotel restaurants. Overpriced food that substantially underperforms the price you pay. One weekend evening when Laura and I couldn’t get in to any of our favorite places, we were able to get a table at The Grill, have a decent meal, and head off to our movie across the street no worse for the wear. But, I wouldn’t be inclined to return unless similar circumstances prevailed. The Gill has a good selection of fish, so don’t let the name of the restaurant scare you away based on perceived cholesterol overload!
Sino Restaurant, San Jose (Santana Row)
Sino Restaurant, San Jose (Santana Row)
June 2008
Way Good. Sino Restaurant is located on Santana Row and is a Chinese restaurant started by the founder of Strait’s Café, a local restaurant specializing in food from Singapore and Malayasia. There are several Strait’s Cafes in the Bay Area, including one just down the block from Sino on Santana Row, as well in Palo Alto and San Francisco. We’ve found Sino to be every bit as good as Strait’s Café. Two great aspects of Sino are the outdoor seating, although somewhat limited, and absolutely wonderful dim sum. In fact, Sino is serving some of the best dim sum we’ve experienced south of San Francisco. We’ve tried about a dozen different types of dim sum at Sino, and found all of them to be exceptionally good. The Shanghai dumplings in particular completely take us back to eating dumplings in downtown Taipei earlier this spring. Not many foods do that!
Pedro’s, Santa Clara
Pedro’s, Santa Clara
May 2008
Hmmmm. Pedro’s is located in a very high traffic location near Highway 101 and a tremendous number of high tech companies, including Intel’s headquarters. Pedro’s has been at this location for over 20 years and is something of an institution among Silicon Valley engineers. It’s a huge place, with acceptable Mexican food, and is a popular choice for large groups who want to eat reasonably quickly, and where boisterous behavior won’t be out of place. Lunch is mob scene, while dinner is busy, but not overrun. Be careful of weekend brunch specials – the food is good, but the crowds can be immense. Pedro’s makes a pretty good margarita, making it a good “after work drink” location!
Parcel 104, Santa Clara
Parcel 104, Santa Clara
June 2008
S’Ok. I’ve had lunch several times at Parcel 104, which is located in the Marriott hotel near the Great America amusement park and a big Intel facility. For lunch, it’s your typical hotel restaurant trying to be more than it should, charging you for the effort and not the result. In previous times I’ve had the overpriced fish, which tasted fine, but wasn’t worth the $30. This time a friend and I ordered salads. I had the $20 shrimp cobb salad and he had a $20 romaine Caesar. Small servings, high prices, but tasted good. Bottom line, for a business lunch Parcel 104 is sufficiently formal and tasty to do the trick. Want a fine dining experience? Probably not going to happen here. While you’ll pay for a fine dining experience, don’t expect the food to keep up with the check.
Madhuban Indian, Santa Clara
Madhuban Indian, Santa Clara
May 2008
Way Good. I’ve been to Madhuban a few times for lunch and the food here is very good. They have an extensive buffet that includes fish, beef, chicken, lamb and goat as well as the usual wide variety of vegetable curries and such. I fell in love with a curried cauliflower that was served off a huge flat pan, probably 2 feet in diameter, heated over an open flame so that the sauce was still bubbling. That was really good cauliflower! The décor is over the top classical Indian décor, which you’ll recognize from the lounges in some of the bigger hotels found in India. If you have out of town friends who don’t eat a lot of Indian food, Madhuban will probably impress them!
Left Bank, Menlo Park & San Jose (Santana Row)
Left Bank, Menlo Park & San Jose (Santana Row)
June 2008
Way Good. Left Bank is a dependable French Brasserie with several locations in the Bay Area. I’ve been to both the Menlo Park restaurant and the San Jose restaurant situated on Santana Row. Both serve above average food and have a unique dining atmosphere. The Menlo Park location is frequented by venture capitalists, lawyers and a smattering of others at both lunch and dinner. In fact, the Menlo Park restaurant is a great choice for a business lunch since it isn’t usually packed and you won’t need a reservation. Try finding that on University Avenue in Palo Alto, the other good choice for nearby, nicer restaurants! The Santana row location has great outside seating, which makes for fine people watching and a relaxing dinner over a bottle of wine. The food is typical rustic French, consisting of steaks & fries, fish, chicken and duck. I’ve tried most of the menu over the past two or three years, and have found it to be consistent and always good.
