Dan Pitt’s Opinionated Compendium of Downtown Palo Alto Restaurants
Dan Pitt’s Opinionated Compendium of Downtown Palo Alto Restaurants
My wife and I tried Oren’s Hummus Shop one Friday evening and liked (not loved) it a lot. They have six varieties of hummus entrées (plain or topped with warm garbanzos, fava beans, both plus tahini, mushrooms, or ground beef) priced from $7.95 to $9.95. You’ll find vegetable, chicken, and beef kabobs ($9.95 – $11.95 for one, $13.95 – $17.95 for two) and large Israeli and Greek salads ($6.95, $7.25). Most interesting, however, are the ten Middle-Eastern side dishes ($2.95 for one, $4.95 for two, $5.95 for three): two versions of babaganoush (Romanian with red peppers and cilantro and regular with tahini), two cabbage dishes (green and red), marinated beets, Moroccan carrots, taboule made with quinoa, matbucha (tomatoes, jalapeños, garlic, and spices), Israeli salad (small) and falafel. (Also regular and sweet-potato fries.) We got one kabob, a mushroom hummus, the Romanian babaganoush, the beets, falafel, and of course fresh-baked pita. It was plenty of food and all really tasty. If you’re facing west you can read their manifesto on the chalk board about real hummus versus store-bought. These people love their food and make it themselves.
There are some desserts baked in small local kitchens by individual people, some nice drinks (Kombucha and coconut water, for instance), and a superbly chosen selection of ten wines available by the glass ($6-9) or bottle ($24-36). (We brought our own, and I think the corkage was $10, which is high for such an informal place.) Service is friendly and casual and I liked the music, but it was not Israeli or Middle-Eastern, just a nice channel on Pandora. Sound reverberates in the place, even with the high ceiling, so I would not have wanted to spend a long evening there. But it was zippy and happy and the hummus and sides are available to go in larger quantities.
I recently reported on the demise of Kan Zeman. Well, it’s not totally dead. They moved the sign to their more informal establishment (Mediterranean Wraps, 209 University, retaining its sign), which makes the same food anyway, and they offer table service, at least out front. They also have the Lebanese wines of Kan Zeman, and I saw the owner hanging out there. So all you Kan Zeman customers need not lament totally.
Now, two other pending additions to the scene on University Avenue. Madame Tam is expanding into the former Sakura Cakes space next door to make a bar. It might or might not be called The Bar. And the capacious northwest corner of University and Waverley (383 University) that for a long time housed Jennifer Convertibles will one day become Paris Baguette, after considerable restoration. As I’m sure you guessed from the name, Paris Baguette will offer a mixture of Korean and French baked goodies and maybe some meal selections, too.
Saturday, July 9, 2011
I tried Oren’s; Kan Zeman isn’t quite dead; and more news