JOYA Restaurant & Lounge

Name: JOYA Restaurant & Lounge
Address: 339 University Ave, Palo Alto, CA 94301
Phone: (650) 853-9800
Web site: JoyaRestaurant.com
Date & Time visited: Saturday, December 13, 2008, 7:00 PM
Guests: Jennifer and me
What we had: All tapas. Started with guacamole and new world chips (potato, banana, other root vegetables) and marinated olives. Jen had a glass of Marqués de Riscal Tempranillo and I tried a Cucumber Cosmo. She loved the wine, I thought my drink was interesting but probably wouldn't order it again.

Next we had: boquerone anchovy & queso fresco crostini; wild mushroom empanadas with lime scallion crema; croquetas with potatoes, passilla peppers, butternut squash and jalapeno fondue; and sizzling camarones al ajillo. Everything was, without exception, excellent. The anchovy crostini, we agreed, was the best of the lot, even though there was a slice of tomato between the queso fresco and the crostini--and we both usually don't like tomato--it worked perfectly. The croquetas were probably the weakest of the four but still had good flavor; I couldn't taste the jalapeno fondue even after dipping the croqueta again. I usually don't like mushrooms but I tried one of the empanadas with the lime-scallion crema, and quite enjoyed it. The camarones (shrimp) were served with an ajillo pepper sauce that, as Jen said, "they could serve this sauce with cardboard and it would be great." They were also served with heads, though not attached, and I'm not sure but I suspect I was supposed to eat them--I did not.

For dessert, we shared an order of churros with ibarra hot chocolate and an ice cream trio. The churros were obviously freshly made and softer than we were used to, but very good. The ibarra chocolate sauce was wonderful and reminded me somewhat of the Chantico chocolate drink formerly sold at Starbucks. The ice cream trio included house-made chocolate, vanilla and caramel ice creams with chipotle caramel and a side of caramelized spicy walnuts; all three ice cream flavors were excellent, especially the chocolate (to me) and the vanilla (to Jen).

Service: Very good, despite a couple of missteps; the pork empanadas were served instead of the mushroom, and the trio of sorbet instead of the ice cream. Both times the server apologized and quickly brought the correct item. He did come back more than once to check on us, and the bus staff kept our water glasses full.

Would we go back: Yes. I was actually a tiny bit disappointed that were seated immediately even without a reservation--because I'd wanted to check out the lounge. Next time.

Hobee's

Name:
Address: 67 Town & Country Village, Palo Alto CA 94301
Phone: (650) 327-4111
Web site: Hobees.com
Date & Time visited: Sunday, November 30, 2008, 12:20 PM
Guests: Jennifer and me

What we had: Gingerbread pancakes (me), Rudolf's Scramble (Jen).

My gingerbread pancakes were served with sliced banana, dried cranberries and sliced almonds -- very seasonal and very delicious. They were just sweet enough and didn't need any syrup, though to be fair I rarely use syrup on pancakes anyway. I would probably have liked something salty to balance the palate, like a side of hash browns or turkey bacon, but the portion was large enough that I couldn't finish the pancakes alone so I certainly didn't want to order more food to not eat.

I don't recall what was in Jen's "Rudolf's Scramble" aside from eggs and meat, but she definitely enjoyed it.

Service: Good.

Would we go back: Yes.

Firehouse Grill & Brewery

Name: Firehouse Grill & Brewery
Address: 1765 East Bayshore Rd, East Palo Alto, CA
Phone: 408-773-9500
Web site: FirehouseGrill.com
Date & Time visited: Saturday, November 29, 2008, 1:15 PM
Guests: Jennifer and me
What we had: Fish tacos (me), Black & Bleu burger (Jen)

The fish in my fish tacos was tender and well-cooked, and was lightly covered with a tangy chipotle aioli and served in fresh corn tortillas. I quite enjoyed them. The Black & Bleu burger is a Cajun-spiced bacon cheeseburger, which was so large that Jen cut it in half and was only able to finish half. It was served with better-than-average fries.

My only real complaint about this new place, which we've tried a few times, is that they don't have an alternative-meat burger, like turkey or veggie. It means I can't try any of their burgers since I don't eat beef.

Service: Spotty but friendly.

Would we go back: Yes.

Mexicali Grill

Name: Mexicali Grill
[see below for address, phone and Web site]
Date & Time visited: Friday, November 28, 2008, 7:15 PM
Guests: Jennifer and me
What we had: Camarones burrito (me), Chile Colorado (Jen), 1800 Cadillac margarita (me), Mexicali Bullet margarita (Jen)

I'd been craving a camarones (shrimp) burrito since seeing one on an episode of "Diners, Drive-ins and Dives" so when Jen suggested having dinner at the Mercado before a movie at the AMC, I jumped at the chance. The camarones burrito was perfect -- lots of shrimp, very flavorful, wet but not too wet. It was served with Mexican rice, black beans sprinkled with queso fresco and fresh guacamole. Jen said her Chile Colorado was well-made, with a tasty sauce and plenty of meat. She forgot to ask for black beans but said the refried beans were all right.

Service: Fair. A bit of a wait for water refills and to get the check, but not bad.

Would we go back: Yes.

Scott's Seafood Grill & Bar (Thanksgiving)

Name: Scott's Seafood Grill & Bar
[see below for location, phone and Web site]
Date & Time visited: Thursday, November 27, 2008, 6:30 PM
Guests: Jennifer and me
What we had: Thanksgiving dinner. We did this last year and liked it enough to return again this year. Scott's does a traditional Thanksgiving dinner, offering soup or salad, turkey or ham, side dishes and pecan or pumpkin pie for $29.95 for adults. We started the evening with drinks in the adjoining lounge; Jen had a glass of Riesling which she liked, and I had my usual dirty Ketel One martini, which was rather too dirty but not bad.

The salad was a Maytag blue with candied walnuts and dried cranberries. Very tasty. We both had the turkey, with Jen requesting all dark meat, which I don't care for. My white meat portion was fairly moist and tender -- not as good as we'd make at home, but then we don't have a kitchen to clean up afterwards -- and the mashed potatoes, stuffing and green beans were well executed though improved by a bit more gravy. The cranberry sauce was very good.

Neither of us were terribly impressed with the pie; Jen had pumpkin and didn't care for it, while I had the pecan and thought it was almost exactly like those little single-serving pecan pies sold in convenience stores. Overly sweet and not enough pecans.

Service: Excellent, not a single complaint or problem.

Would we go back: Yes.