Restaurants

SOMEHOW, Thanksgiving is already upon us. That means figuring out what to eat and drink. The food is usually the easy part—turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, green beans—you know the drill. Deciding what to drink is trickier because of all that different food. You could buy a number of wines to match each stage of the feast but that’s too complicated. My advice: go with the bubbles. » Read More

CHEF David Chang, owner of the hysterically popular Momofuku in New York City, roiled the Bay Area food world last month when he quipped that “every restaurant in San Francisco is just serving figs on a plate.” The nerve! The NorCal Asia Society went so far as to cancel an event with him during his local book tour this month to promote his beautiful new book, Momofuku. Chang thinks the whole dust-up is ridiculous and encouraged San Francisco foodies whose panties are in a bunch over the comment to “smoke marijuana.” Smoke more weed? No one would go to work anymore. » Read More

DURING THE final game of the World Series last week, Sunnyvale’s Firehouse Grill and Brewery was packed. Patrons pressed against the bar with beers in hand, and every table was taken. It was hard to hear as the Yankees-loving crowd cheered the team on to yet another World Series win. » Read More

I HAVE TASTED the future of Indian food, and it’s really good. Mountain View’s Sakoon restaurant is rooted in classic Indian food that draws on regional styles from across the subcontinent, but executive chef Sachin Chopra uses that as a point of departure to take Indian food in new and exciting directions. » Read More

MARCHÉ is one of Silicon Valley’s true destination restaurants. Chef Guillaume Bienaime is creating some of the most delicious and exciting food the South Bay has to offer. Part of the restaurant’s appeal is also wine director John Sanders. Not only is his wine list a showcase of well-chosen and sometimes eclectic wines, but Sanders’ friendly and knowledgeable presence makes choosing wine a real pleasure. » Read More

LIFE DEALT Lynette and Kristen Cederquist some lemons, but instead of making lemonade, the mother-and-daughter duo made Meyer lemon marmalade as well as a whole line of jams and jellies. » Read More

DRIVING TO WORK during the big rainstorm two weeks ago, it hit me like a sheet of water from a passing big rig: I must have soup. It’s a culinary cliché, but when it’s wet and dreary I start thinking of soup. Properly motivated, my next task was to figure out just what kind of soup. My first thought was a steaming bowl of pho, pho being what I think is Silicon Valley’s most distinctive dish. But that would be too easy. The Vietnamese beef noodle soup is rightly beloved, but I decided to explore some lesser-known Vietnamese soups, known as canh. » Read More

IN SAN JOSE, newcomer Ziba Restaurant offers classic Persian food with dishes like koobideh kebabs, gormeh sabzi and fesenjoon, as well as only-in–Silicon Valley twists like a Persian beef burrito. Mexi-Persian? » Read More

MOUNTAIN VIEW’S Artisan Wine Depot is different from most wine shops. First off, the 5-month-old store is in an unlikely setting: behind a roll-top door next to an auto shop in an industrial strip of Mountain View. » Read More

THERE IS no flashing neon sign at the intersection of Saratoga Avenue and Interstate 280 to let motorists know they’re entering Silicon Valley’s ramen nirvana, but there should be. Within just a few hundred yards of this crossroads are the three best Japanese noodle soup purveyors in the South Bay. » Read More