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Psst — There’s A New Secret Burger at Bird Dog

Posted on May 28, 2018 by foodgal 6 comments

Presenting the new burger at Bird Dog (conveniently cut in half for the two of us to share).

It might very well be the best burger you’ve ever had.

But it’s not listed on the menu. At least not yet.

The only way you can try the sublime double-patty creation at Bird Dog in downtown Palo Alto is to know about it and ask for it.

So for those of you reading this, go for it. You won’t regret whispering this order to your server.

What makes this burger so special?

Lunch Is Served — At Bird Dog

Posted on June 16, 2017 by foodgal 2 comments

Your usual sandwich probably is nothing like this eel one at Bird Dog.

Bird Dog has been a hot ticket ever since it opened in downtown Palo Alto in 2015.

In April, it added lunch service, which is a much easier way to snag a table at the ever-popular restaurant run by Chef-Partner Robbie Wilson, and his wife, Managing Partner Emily Perry Wilson.

If you’re used to mindlessly grabbing a giant burrito or burger on the run, this is decidedly a more leisurely type of lunch that begs you to take time to really enjoy and marvel. That’s because Chef Wilson, who has worked previously at the French Laundry in Yountville, Craft in New York, and Maison Troisgros in France, creates food that is not only delightful but inspired. And when’s the last time you felt that way about lunch?

Happenings on the Peninsula: New Bakeries and More

Posted on September 29, 2014 by foodgal 6 comments

The “chocolate burger” at Alexander’s Patisserie. (Photo courtesy of the bakery)

Alexander’s Patisserie to Open In Mountain View on Oct. 16

The folks behind Alexander’s Steakhouse in Cupertino and San Francisco, as well as The Sea by Alexander’s Steakhouse in Palo Alto, are expanding their mini empire by opening a patisserie in downtown Mountain View on Oct. 16.

Led by Executive Pastry Chef Dries Delanghe, the new Alexander’s Patisserie will offer breads, sandwiches, cakes, tarts, cookies, macarons, chocolates and other confections, as well as Equator Coffees.

Lure + Till Takes Root in Downtown Palo Alto

Posted on April 11, 2014 by foodgal 4 comments

First of the season Alaskan halibut at Palo Alto’s Lure + Till.

What was once a senior care facility in downtown Palo Alto has morphed into a splashy new boutique hotel and restaurant.

The eight-story Epiphany Hotel, a Joie de Vivre property, opened at the end of March after aÂ year of demolition that took the structure down to the studs, followed by nearly two years of construction.

The six-story mosaic of ElÂ Palo Alto, the 1,000-year-old coastal redwood for which the city is named, was kept on the outside of the building. Moreover, throughout the structure there are nods to both that tree and to the city’s prominent place in Silicon Valley history. For instance, binary code is used as lighted artwork in the lobby. Historic maps of Palo Alto adorn hallways. Room rugs are woven with tree images. Cocoon-like “hoodie” chairs on the mezzanine not only have built-in outlets but were designed to be noise-cancelling. And perhaps in the ultimate oxymoron, the desks for all those hustle-bustle guests who never met an electronic device they didn’t like were made by the Amish.

Only in Silicon Valley: binary code as art.

The chic lobby.

Now, I’m not in the habit of snapping pictures of urinals in the men’s room. But this one was too good not to memorialize after being escorted in by the general manager. Yes, in the men’s room of a hotel just a stone’s throw from Stanford University, you will find this unique urinal, a deprecating symbol of the Big Game rivalry between the two institutions.

Palo Alto Grill Sizzles

Posted on August 2, 2013 by foodgal 10 comments

Clever and wonderful avocado corn dogs at Palo Alto Grill.

Downtown Palo Alto has a bevy of talented chefs. But now, it also has the acclaimed Ryan Shelton, who’s the executive chef and partner of the Palo Alto Grill, which opened its doors in April.

A San Jose native, Shelton has amassed quite a reputation, having worked in Europe and Asia before becoming pastry chef at Chez TJ in Mountain View, then chef de cuisine at Baume in Palo Alto, where he helped that restaurant garner two Michelin stars. Most recently, he helmed the kitchen at vintner Randall Grahm’s Le Cigare Volant in Santa Cruz.

Shelton is continuing those high standards at the Palo Alto Grill, as evidenced by my visit recently, when my friend Donna treated me to dinner for a belated birthday celebration.

The 80-seat dining room is warm and clubby with dark wood tables, exposed wood beams, brick accents and a black granite bar. On an early evening, it gets plenty of light, too, from floor-to-ceiling windows.

Steak is front and center on the menu. But there’s so much more, too.

You know you’re in the hands of a restaurant that cares about the details when the bread basket comes out. It’s filled with warm house-made focaccia and chewy pretzel sticks. Alongside is a ramekin of creamy mustard cheese sauce. You could fill up on this alone. But save room.

Forget the low-carb diet here. Don’t pass up the pretzels and focaccia.

The dining room.

That’s because you have to order the avocado corn dogs ($7) under the small plates portion of the menu. There are no hot dogs in this version. But you don’t miss them. What you get instead are nuggets of creamy avocado on sticks that are breaded in the familiar cornmeal batter, then fried until golden. The sweetness of the batter plays nicely with the richness of the avocado. A chipotle mustard sauce adds smokiness and a dash of spiciness. It’s the kind of nosh all too easy to reach for in the company of a cold beer. Three come to an order. So, if there’s two of you, you may end up fighting over the last one. Just sayin’.