Tag Archives: Roland Passot

Meso Brings Modern Mediterranean to Santana Row With Pedigreed Chef

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Bull's blood beets and their greens on a bed of labneh at the new Meso.
Bull’s blood beets and their greens on a bed of labneh at the new Meso.

Renowned Chef Roland Passot now boasts a trifecta of restaurants at San Jose’s Santana Row. Joining his LB Steak and Left Bank Brasserie, his new Meso opened its doors in November in a newer section of the mixed use complex right near tech firm Splunk.

The modern upscale Mediterranean restaurant not only sports an elegant design by Oakland’s Arcsine, the firm that also created the look of Duende in Oakland and Wursthall in San Mateo, but a head chef with an impressive background. Executive Gregory Short spent many years working at The French Laundry in Napa before taking the helm of Masa’s in San Francisco. He even lured fellow French Laundry alum Pastry Chef Eva Wong to join him at Meso.

While a master at French food and techniques, Short acknowledged there was a learning curve for him when it came to Middle Eastern cuisines. But as he told me a few weeks ago when I was invited in as a guest of the restaurant, he combed through a myriad of books to hone in on the distinct flavors of the region.

The bar evokes Morocco.
The bar evokes Morocco.
The fountain wall in the dining room.
The fountain wall in the dining room.

Meso, which means ”middle,” immediately transports you to that area with its color scheme of cool blues of the Mediterranean sky and sea. Patterned metal screens, curved archways, and a blue-purple lighted fountain divider in the spacious dining room give the air of modern Morocco.

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Camper Stakes Its Claim In Menlo Park

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Beautiful yellowtail crudo at Camper in downtown Menlo Park.

Beautiful yellowtail crudo at Camper in downtown Menlo Park.

 

On a rainy, dreary Friday afternoon in Menlo Park, Camper was full of — yes — happy campers.

The restaurant, which pitched its home in the former LB Steak locale last year, was buzzing and completely full at lunch time, as I found when I met a friend and colleague there, with both of us paying the tab at the end.

Roland Passot, owner of La Folie in San Francisco and former owner of LB Steak, partnered with Chef Greg Kuzia-Carmel, who cooked at New York’s Per Se and San Francisco’s Cotogna, and Logan Levant, who owned Buttercake Bakery in Los Angeles, to open this smart spot built around hand-made pastas and elevated classics with global influences such as Crispy Fried Chicken “Milanese” ($14) and Overnight Yucatan-Style Braised Pork ($18).

The bar.

The bar.

The airy dining room.

The airy dining room.

It’s a handsome restaurant done up with light wood, plenty of windows, a long back-lighted bar, and a dough room just off the entrance, where you can watch the pasta being made.

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