Ethel's Fancy

"Perhaps THE best restaurant in the Palo Alto area, and rivals high end restaurants in NYC or Chicago. Dishes that you simply*must* try: the miso cucumber appetizer, the Trout main dish and the bread dish is absolutely divine!!! We shared about a dozen plates of various sizes among six of us, including three desserts. The service (Madison!) is on par with the chef's excellence. Only one complaint...the benches were a bit hard to sit on for too long."

"Superb dining experience. I ate at the Chefs Counter and enjoyed watching Chef Scott Nishiyama oversee the kitchen produce hit after hit. The sesame pancakes were divine, and the yellowfin tuna was delicious. The pork belly - on the menu since day 1 - was perfectly sweet and crispy. Cocktails are great as well. Service is top notch. Will definitely be back here anytime I'm in the area."

"Definitely worth the splurge! Loved the flavor creativity and the service was exceptional. Chef recommended 3 morsels and 4-5 shared plates and with 3 desserts, the two of us left with very full but happy bellies The oysters were delicious. The cucumbers were crunchy and refreshing. The wagyu on the coconut fritters was over the top. Chef surprised us with the scallops which were delightful. The trout potatoes were perfectly prepared. I’d eat a half dozen of the soft shelled crab. So good. And the tonkatsu pork was also really delicious. We asked Chef to choose two desserts for us and he sent three. We both loved the tapioca and the almond cookie soft serve. The merengue straws were amazing. And who knew the upscale coconut pop tarts could be a thing? Super tasty. I also enjoyed an east side cocktail ;my favorite) and a glass of Italian red wine. My husband doesn’t drink so he enjoyed the homemade ginger ale and the non alcoholic beer (ask for it…we didn’t see it on the menu). I opted for the chef’s counter and I am glad I did. Had a nice chat with the chef/owner and told him we couldn’t wait to go back . We are now big fans and look forward to seeing what Chef does with the menu as the seasons change. We dined at 6:30 and easily found parking on the street."

"Lovely and charming special occasion place. As noted by other reviewers, it is spendy, be prepared to spend about $100 per person more or less. The food was delicious, and creative, and not too heavy. The milk bread was wonderful. But my absolute favorite was the strawberry cheesecake at the end wow that was absolutely amazing. Service was very friendly and professional. Also very nice presentation. We all loved our cocktails! Also they are very accommodating of vegetarians, we had a mixed group, some vegetarians and some carnivores. And they were able to alter the dishes accordingly."