My partner has been given a last minute assignment necessitating a trip down to Sunnyvale / San Jose TOMORROW (Sat June 24) from up here in Sacramento. We’ll be near the San Jose Museum of Art, but aren’t locked to that specific area. It’s near the SJSU campus. I lived in Marin for a long while, but have spent very little time in Silicon Valley, and when I was there it was MANY years ago.
What’s good down there for a casual but delicious lunch? Sushi, ramen/udon, yakitori (I finally went to Binchoyaki and it was SO good) Thai, Chinese, taquerias, Vietnamese, seafood, Italian, classic bistro… open to almost any cuisine. Cheap to moderately spendy is ok.
figure a 20-30 minutes travel time from that general area. Looking closely at options at Grand Century Mall as suggested above, or considering trying our luck at Din Tai Fung in Valley Fair Mall, since I haven’t been to one since I left Southern Cal many years ago.
Also considering Kali Noodles and Tea Bar (found a good report on HO)
in cupertino/saratoga
-koi palace contempo (new version of koi palace)
-shanghai no. 1
-maragume udon (chain - in the same mall as din tai fung)
-dough zone (decent dumpling chain, also one closer to milpitas)
-demiya (japanese curry)
in san jose
-lion plaza (quan hue for banh xeo), but there’s also a bunch of other worthwhile vietnamese stalls in this foodcourt
the few times ive ventured the din tai fung, theres been a wait, so reservation is probably wise. theres also an eataly in that mall now
We got there at 11, put our names in at DTF (90 min wait!)and strolled the mall. Marugame and Shin Ramen both looked great but had no texting/buzz-when-it’s-your-turn systems. So it was a choice of standing in line for 90 minutes or getting to walk around. Picked up snacks at Eataly. Honestly, almost any of the entries at the food court at Valley Fair would be more than acceptable lunch.
great find! the handmade tortillas are really outstanding - super light and fluffy. i would rank the chicharron roja and the picadillo over the other filling options… although the surfqce area of the “authentic tacos” is larger, they eat pretty light - i would say >=4 for a meal
I’ve had XLB at a number of places and they were just fine. I’ve had them at DTF at a couple of different places and they were knee shiveringly wonderful. Somewhere I have a photo of the dumpling sagging, but not breaking, under the weight of the filling. So wonderful
Me? Anything good. My favorite restaurant in San Jose so far is a taco stand called Las Delicias De Toñita. I’m more familiar with the Palo Alto area than San Jose.
I’ve eaten at Selby’s many trips because I like the wine and environment. But I try not to drink a whole bottle of wine anymore and I can’t imagine a meal there without a bottle of wine.
Protege was fine.
Lots of good Indian. Ettan is pretty good but I liked Aurum better.
Some pretty good biang biang noodle places whose names I forget.
Tamarine, Evvia, and Italico are solid.
Taqueria El Grullense is pretty good.
I pretty much always have coffee and breakfast at Blue Bottle.
A few additional ideas - Camper (Menlo Park, New American), Ethel’s Fancy (Palo Alto, New American, Seafood), Sekoya (Palo Alto, New American), Pausa (San Mateo, Italian), Donato Enoteca (Redwood City, Italian), Che Fico (Menlo Park, Italian), Pizzeria Delfina (Palo Alto), Vesta (Redwood City, Pizza), Left Bank (Menlo Park, French), Naschmarkt (Palo Alto and Campbell, Austrian), ROOH (Palo Alto, Indian), Zareen (Redwood City, Palo Alto and Mountain View, Indian/Pakistan), Shalizaar (Belmont, Persian), Isarn Garden (San Carlos, Thai), Meyhouse (Sunnyvale, Turkish), Twelvemonth (Burlingame, Vegan)
all of honkman’s suggestions are good. Zareen’s though has gone downhill imo. If i’m looking for lunch I really just want to eat at Special Noodle Soup in Cupertino though…
