Flowers, Fountains and Food
Combine the atmosphere of alfresco dining with a great menu, and you’re in Bay Area paradise
Diana Reynolds Roome
South Bay Accent
Outdoor eating and drinking evoke the essence of summer. Sunshine, breezes, morning mist or soft evening air can sharpen the appetite, enliven the taste buds, even spice up a conversation.
The South Bay has almost every natural advantage for alfresco tasting or feasting – mild weather, passable air quality, inspiring views, birdsong and decorative plants that grow year-round. The downside is that there isn’t an abundance of space that’s not already occupied by buildings, so a garden or patio attached to a restaurant can be barely bigger than your mother’s best silk scarf.
It takes imagination to turn that into something sensational. For restaurateurs, the trick is to provide the sense of eating “en plein air” while making sure that nobody gets too hot, too chilly, plagued by insects or sprinkled with rain. (Birdsong is fine but bird droppings are not.) We offer these outstanding choices as exceptional escapes for that special sense of well-being that comes with enjoying a good meal outdoors – whether you’re taking a break from the workaday atmosphere, pretending you’re in Italy or the French countryside, or simply experiencing the rewards of California living.
Peninsula Pleasures
Perhaps the nearest you’ll come to your dream garden is the Empire Grill and Tap Room (651 Emerson Street, Palo Alto, 650-321-3030). Verdant and lush, this secluded haven is larger than the cozy indoor restaurant and full-service bar, yet feels intimate with its ivy-clad walls, cascades of wisteria, jasmine and trumpet vine and elegant fountain made by Robert Waterman in Napa. Sitting at one of the 24 pink-clad tables, you can order a multi-course meal paired with wines from the impressive wine list, or a simple pizza, piadina, soup, salad or sandwich with a cappuccino or glass of wine. Waiters are smart and friendly, and umbrellas and heaters ensure that you can enjoy a Sunday brunch or romantic dinner regardless of weather.
For a more tropical style, you can venture into Spago (265 Lytton, Palo Alto, 650-833-1000) through a wrought-iron gate surrounded by banana palms, monstera, ferns and azaleas. In warm weather the bar is partially open to the courtyard, where eight tables shelter under a large oak tree. Murals around the bar depict happy vineyard workers and wine drinkers in a rural setting. With the sky peeking through the overhead awning and a good cocktail you might even imagine yourself in the fields with them. Appetizers range from lemon-herb blinis to prime steak tartare, though you can indulge in a full Wolfgang Puck-inspired dinner prepared by Chef Aram Mardigian, like Atlantic salmon with citrus vinaigrette and fennel, while sitting in the courtyard beneath a roof overhang that looks like the inside of a giant’s wine barrel.
Il Fornaio (520 Cowper Street, Palo Alto, 650-853-3888) draws you into its warm interior, with wood-fired pizza and bread ovens and rotisserie, through white pillars supporting the balcony of the spectacular Garden Court Hotel above. A deep green wrought-iron enclosure with planters shields you from the street if you want to bring a drink from the bar and sit outside. If you eat here, there’s a greater treat inside behind the busy, multi-room interior: a large patio enclosed within glass screens and planters of hibiscus, ficus and hydrangeas, with a striped green and cream awning and built-in permanent heaters. The round tables with white tablecloths are substantial, and invite people to get comfortable. You won’t sit in full sun here, but if it rains, the pitter- patter on the awning creates a cozy atmosphere. Indoor murals depict the outdoors as well, showing signoras chatting over geranium-potted windowsills and people toting home their morning pane. Fresh daily-made pastas are a specialty here, along with wood-fired pizzas and succulent, rotisserie-roasted meats.
For an exuberant taste of Sicily, where outdoor eating is the norm, Caffe Riace (200 Sheridan Ave., Palo Alto, 650-328-0407) is unrivalled. Tucked between two tall buildings, this surprisingly large space has a fountain in a pool worthy of an Italian piazza, but the statue in the middle is a huge joke on the classical sculpture tradition (see for yourself). The place is full of visual jollity – from the toad that pops out of a vast Sicilian urn at the entrance, to the hand-painted cart in which the owner and his family posed for a portrait. The restaurant is dedicated to outdoor eating, and can seat 164 people at tables of all sizes. It’s well equipped to shelter people from weather, with heaters and umbrellas, and even a large all-enclosing marquee. There are a few small tables inside for those mad enough to prefer them. Try melanzane all’aceto and bruschetta to wake up your taste buds before moving on to pastas, fish, steak, or home-made Sicilian sausage, served simply and deliciously grilled.
Just walking into The Duck Club (Stanford Park Hotel, 100 El Camino real, 650-322-1234), past hanging trumpet vines, hot pink geraniums and potted palms, can make you feel exhilarated. A patio at the far side of the refined, duck-embellished dining room is tastefully enclosed with bamboo, camellias and a line of fir trees making a dramatic statement along one side. If you don’t want to pay the prices you’d expect in this five-star hotel but still want to dine outdoors in style, the prix fixe early dinner (5:30 to 6:30) could be the perfect way to enjoy a summer meal outdoors. Another solution is to order a drink with appetizers or a light meal from the Stanford Lounge, and take it into the spacious courtyard outside. Here you will join startlingly lifelike bronze sculptures of Ben Franklin and Thomas Jefferson (though they’re clearly preoccupied in writing the founding documents). If you manage to get one of the four ample glass-topped tables and angled umbrellas, you will feel like a celebrity yourself among the manicured box hedges, luxuriant pots of flowers, and a stone fountain whose watery music accompanies the discreet crunch of the graveled terrace.
At Cool Café (Cantor Arts Center, Stanford, 650-725-4758) you might wonder if you’ve stepped onto the set of a French film director. Sitting beneath a white umbrella, your eye travels down a stylish flight of steps to a green lawn and to the left, beyond a row of cypress trees, a garden jam-packed with Rodin sculptures. Here you can indulge your eyes and taste buds with a delectable cup of soup and chunky sandwich or salad made with local organic ingredients, or one of a selection of homemade cakes and pies. The menu changes seasonally, but look for the free-range chutney chicken salad sandwich for a special treat. If you prefer a rustic style, there’s a long wood table with benches beneath a tree, where children can romp without going near a road or disturbing others. If you’re interested in food as art, you can always see Wayne Thiebauld’s painted cakes in a gallery upstairs, or visit Claes Oldenberg’s “Floating Peel” (a.k.a. the flying banana). For a modest price, this daytime restaurant owned by Jesse Cool offers one of the classiest combinations of great food and visual panache you’ll find anywhere on the Peninsula. It’s open one night a week for dinner, when you can order organic wine with your food.
It’s not easy to find oriental eating in an outdoor setting, though in good weather Three Seasons (518 Bryant Street, Palo Alto, 650-838-0380) seats customers in Shearer Plaza with its arched walkways and Mediterranean tiled steps. Displaying giant potted bamboos at the entrance and earthy pink-and-yellow sunrise tiles on the walls, it’s possible to feel transported here – though you may not be quite sure exactly where to until you try some of the enticing, assorted spring rolls, satays or seafood offered by this Vietnamese restaurant.
Scott’s Seafood (#1 Town & Country Village, Palo Alto, 650-323-1555) established its reputation years ago when it was located at the other end of town on Bayshore, where its cool patio made it a favorite for a hot summer evening or Mother’s Day brunch.
Now relocated to the busy Town and Country Village, wedged between El Camino Real and Embarcadero and opposite the Stanford Campus, it still aims to recreate a calm outdoor ambience. Twelve white-linen clad tables running along the front of the restaurant are snugly screened from the parking lot by planters with neatly clipped box hedges, euphorbia, lavender, and magenta bougainvillea. Sunny in the mornings, this is a popular place for a business breakfast or weekend brunch, where the extensive menu emphasizing (but not limited to) fresh fish and seafood could keep you happily occupied for some time. One brunch favorite is the Seafood Sauté, with prawns, scallops and Dungeness crab prepared in lemon garlic sauce. The roof overhang protects diners from all but the coldest weather, and heaters give it a snug feel even on cool evenings.
Southward Bound
The long terrace on the side of Park Place (10030 S. De Anza Boulevard, Cupertino, 408-873-1000) looks out over Cali Mill Park with its flower garden and green swards leading the eye to a spectacular silvery sculpture. Despite considerable traffic noise from De Anza Boulevard, this place feels like a peaceful haven, with wooden pergolas overhead supporting mesh awnings to keep out sun and weather. Beyond the boulevard, a view of hills increases the magic. Tables are earth-toned (but not rustic) and border a low wall, punctuated by trellises with flowering climbers and hanging plants. The restaurant’s warm sand-toned walls make a nice backdrop, with French windows connecting to the interior.
With a full bar, you can indulge in a cocktail or glass of wine on the terrace, with appetizers like seared rare ahi, crab and shrimp cakes, or crispy vegetable spring rolls. Square glass plates and heavy cotton napkins make even a soupcon look substantial. If you prefer, have a beer with an organic beef Park cheese burger, a pizza or baby back ribs or choose from the wide range of classic grilled meats and imaginative fish dishes.
For anyone with time to browse, Santana Row is like a bright urban garden, with flowers in oversize pots everywhere you look and a charming European boulevard atmosphere. A small park area in the center of the broad street offers public use chairs, tables and even chess sets, all of which put you in the mood for outdoor living, watching the world go by – and, of course, eating. Almost all of the restaurants here have some kind of outdoor area, though most are small and attention to detail varies.
If you approach from the south end of Santana Row you could find yourself walking straight into El Jardin de Consuelo (386 Santana Row/Olsen Drive, San Jose, 408-260-7082), opened in early May. A new enterprise by El Consuelo on the opposite corner, it’s the most atmospheric place around here for a drink and a light meal or snack. Beneath the huge oak in the center of the courtyard, you can settle down on an enormous high-backed communal bench that appears to have been hewn out of some similarly large tree or perch on authentic low-backed, leather-padded equipales from Mexico. Hector, the manager, takes pride in his imaginative cocktail menu, ranging from margaritas made with a different tequila each month to minty Mojitos, accompanied if you like by a selection of tamales, tostadas and quesadillas. These feature crisp, golden handmade tortillas, paired with such ingredients as chipotle crema fresca. “Hector’s Nectar,” a margarita made with an infusion of pomegranate, pineapple, guava and pitiya, is just one way to drink tequila from El Consuelo’s bar, which boasts a selection of 234 brands – all of them made from 100 percent blue agave.
For a more intimate experience, try Bella Mia’s shady Italianate patio (58 S.First Street, San Jose, 408-280-1993) with an ivy-clad brick wall shielding it from the parking lot in back. Here a lion’s head fountain spouts water, and a Romeo and Juliet staircase leads mysteriously off to the side. Deep green fluted colonnades emphasize the theatrical and somewhat Victorian atmosphere, though with a new chef making fresh pastas in-house you’re more likely to be concentrating on the drama unfolding on your plate. Crab and shrimp cannelloni or chicken and caramelized onion tortelloni are two good choices for a light outdoor meal, after bruschetta, fritto misto, and grilled rosemary chicken skewers have whetted the appetite. Green faux marble tabletops make a change from the ubiquitous metal mesh, and strings of fairy lights with candles complete the romantic atmosphere.
If you’re looking for an expansive sense of the outdoors, with the whiff of the ocean thrown in, head for McCormick & Schmick’s (170 S. Market St., San Jose, 408-283-7200) smack in the city center but surprisingly airy and spacious. The seafood restaurant, opened last year on the ground floor of the Fairmont Hotel’s elegant new extension, faces Cesar Chavez Plaza with its fountains, trees, grass and modern sculptures. Even the high-rise office buildings can look grand from this perspective, especially with the blue dome of the Tech Museum making its statement behind palm trees. Music in the plaza sometimes wafts across to those sitting at the 15 or so solid tables and chairs beneath forest green umbrellas. Here you can enjoy a cocktail, choose from the long menu of appetizers, or indulge in a seafood and roasted corn chowder or an entree from an impressive list of fresh fish dishes that includes such favorites as traditional oyster stew and pan-seared sea scallops.
For a more discreet experience, the patio at La Pastaia (Hotel de Anza, 233 W. Santa Clara St., San Jose, 408-286-8686) is a standout – an exercise in Mediterranean elegance, with large blue-tiled lion’s head fountains, pink terracotta walls, an exquisite tiled floor and unusual star-shaped lights. Every detail has been carefully thought out, right down to the sprightly floral plantings. There’s just one catch – regular restaurant customers are no longer served food out here. However, you can catch a whiff of this rarified atmosphere by ordering drinks and snacks in the Hedley Club, a stylish art deco bar next to the restaurant, and carrying them outside where you’ll experience an instant vacation. Alternatively, plan your next birthday, office party (for 10 or more) or even a wedding at the Hotel de Anza, and you can linger (almost) as long as you like.
When food is your priority, hop up the street a block to A.P. Stump’s Chop House (163 W.Santa Clara St., San Jose, 408-292-9928), where the recently remodeled outdoor area is shaded by large ornamental trees and an awning, and the large pink, ochre and brown patio is dominated by a chunky naturalistic fountain, gushing water in cascades. Stylish green tables and comfortably upholstered chairs invite you to linger over the substantial menu, which features the culinary masterwork of executive chef and partner, Jim Stump. Menu items change daily, but the restaurant is acclaimed for its specialty entrees of corn-fed American beef and fresh seafood, like the baked lobster tails with sautéed asparagus.
Extend the patio dining experience by ordering from a selection of tasty appetizers, from golden onion rings, piled high, to crispy calamari with fried jalapeno coins and citrus aioli. At night, strings of trailing lights give the place a festive air, and with jazz on the sound system – and live music on special occasions – this is a great spot to satisfy an outdoor appetite.
Into the Hills
For an eyeful of mountainside while you eat, the Wine Cellar (50 University Ave., Los Gatos, 408-354-4808) offers a backdrop that’s hard to match. Its patio, tucked between upscale stores and a flower-bedecked parking lot, is corralled with vine-embellished wrought-iron and shaded by beige umbrellas and oak trees. One of the oldest restaurants in the area and the only original tenant of Old Town, recent remodeling and fine details by local craftsmen give the place a freshness and vitality that makes it unique. Tabletops are hand-tiled by two of its family owners, and make an inviting place for lunch, a cheese fondue any time, or a light supper of perhaps Greek spinach salad and eggplant roulade with a cool margarita or local white wine – maybe from the Santa Cruz mountains – from the more than 100 available.
Recently remodeled, the Three Degrees restaurant at the Toll House Hotel (140 Santa Cruz Ave., Los Gatos, 408-884-1054) offers a charming verandah overlooking the hotel’s spacious inner courtyard. Here you can indulge in a quiet dinner at solidly crafted pine tables set with spring-like green and white mats and napkins, or take a drink and appetizers from the bar and sit under umbrellas in the courtyard. Brunch is another good option here, with an enticing menu that ranges from the traditional eggs benedict to cedar-planked salmon with red wine butter sauce and potato pancakes. Prix fixe Sunday champagne brunches also offer unlimited trips to the lavish appetizer, salad, pastry and – good news – new chocolate buffets.
More Alfresco Dining Choices
These restaurants also have outdoor eating areas that worthy of attention. They often have distinctive features – though some may be smaller or less self-contained.
Angelo Mio, 820 Santa Cruz Av., Menlo Park, 650-323-3665
Babbo’s, Clarion Court, 717 Stanford Shopping Center, Palo Alto, 650-321-1488
Bella Saratoga, 14503 Big Basin Way, 408-741-5115
Bravo Fono, 99 Stanford Shopping Center, Palo Alto, 650-322-4664
Café Borrone, 1010 El Camino Real, Menlo Park, 650-327-0830
Cascal, 400 Castro Street, Mountain View, 650-940-9500
Gambardella, 1165 Merrill Street, Menlo Park, 650-323-6730
Gervais, 14560 Big Basin Way, Saratoga, 408-867-7017
Gordon Biersch, 33 East San Fernando Street, San Jose, 408-294-6785
Lakeside Café, 3160 N. Shoreline Blvd., Mountain View, 650-965-1745
La Strada, 335 University Avenue, Palo Alto,
Ming’s, 1700 Embarcadero Rd., Palo Alto, 650-856-7700
P.F. Chang’s, 900 Stanford Shoping Center, Palo Alto, 650-330-1782
Steamer’s Grillhouse, 31 University Avenue, Los Gatos, 408-395-2722
The Grill on the Alley (Fairmont Hotel), 172 Market St., San Jose, 408-294-2244
Viaggio, 14550 Big Basin Way, Saratoga, 408-741-5300
Zibbibo, 430 Kipling, Palo Alto, 650-328-6722