As the economic engine of Silicon Valley continues to draw college graduates and older entrepreneurial dreamers, the region’s swelling population is as hungry as ever. Bay Area-bred locals enjoy their old haunts and yearn for novel edible experiences, while transplants from smaller towns and faraway…
Restaurants News
The Hawaiian word “poke” (rhymes with “OK” and not “spoke”) means “to cut into chunks.” More popularly, poke is a native Hawaiian pupu (appetizer)—traditionally prepared simply, with freshly caught island fish, sea salt, seaweed and ground kukui nuts. It’s akin to Hawaiian soul food, and…
Germany’s official Oktoberfest draws nearly 8 million visitors every year. Together these revelers consume a half-million chickens, a quarter-million pairs of sausages—and a whopping 1,822,787 gallons of beer. While the 16-day festival was traditionally held exclusively in the month of October, it was moved up…
The Alhambra Irish House serves a portion of fish and chips ($22) large enough to elicit a “Yabba Dabba Doo!” from the brontosaurus burger-loving Fred Flintstone. My serving of the Icelandic haddock wasn’t that much smaller than a handheld Celtic harp. The tender white flesh…
When I first checked out Chef Ron Levi’s Funny Farm last May, I was impressed with his elevated bar bites and playful takes on classic comfort food. But I was more than a bit puzzled by the location—inside the Sideline Sports Bar off Santa Teresa Boulevard in South San Jose. While…
In a parking lot near the former Memorex campus, deep inside one of Santa Clara’s sprawling industrial compounds, a crew is dramatically backlit against a red setting sun. As a graffiti-covered train rumbles past, three large, tattooed men—sporting black chef coats, aprons and backward, impeccably…
Caleb Orozco was 15 when he cracked a couple ribs. It was nothing major, the kind of injury any kid might sustain during their high school years. But there was a difference between Orozco and the other high school kids. “I had a fight coming…
It is shamefully reductive to boil an ethnic cuisine down to just one or two line items. Curry is just but of the many pungent spices found in traditional Indian food; the Japanese gourmand knows more than ramen and sushi; and they don’t even serve…
Strip malls are the great equalizers when it comes to suburban dining. The upside is that they often contain multitudes. Take, for instance, the Mercado Shopping Center in Santa Clara. There’s a Krispy Kreme Doughnuts, a Chinese chain, two burger joints, Starbucks and a pho…
Craft breweries are everywhere in Silicon Valley these days. Take a spin through any one of the South Bay’s myriad business parks, and it certainly wouldn’t be surprising to find a cohort of hop-heads fussing over a new lager, pilsner or ale. Until the arrival…
