St Michael's Alley

03/17/09

Moved to new place and worth the wait

by michaella

I went to lunch at the new St. Michael's Alley on Thursday. It was amazing. The new space has a bar, and casual tables, the colors are warm and inviting. The owners are were there to answered many questions my husband had about the 300 yr. old walnut tree made into the bar and the beautiful farmhouse windows. We started with the Wild Mushroom Cake with creamy garlic herb sauce. Fantastic, I had the Tossed Baby Green Salad with warm walnuts, and warm herb encrusted goat cheese, dried cranberries. The salad was delicious and filling. The cold crisp greens with the warm goat cheese was perfect. My hubby had a bowl of New England Clam Chowder. A bit different than usual with a bacon taste, big clams and potato, very good but different. He followed with a grilled chicken sandwich with prosciutto and fontina cheese on sour dough. Again, a mixture of texture and taste that works. We look forward to dinner next and having drinks on the new patio. Well worth the wait St. Michael's Alley. Good job we will be back with friends.

• Pros: Seasonal menu, fresh good food, warm and inviting
• Cons: Didn't see any

12/09/08

Best brunch in Palo Alto

by kxjin

My favorite brunch place in Palo Alto. I usually get the eggs benedict and blue monkey pancakes. They can get kind of crowded though, so you may want to call ahead and get a reservation. They also have a lot of vegetarian options.

10/14/06

BEST DESSERT EVER!

by marie95120

One word: DESSERT! This place has the most delicous concoction: "PROFITEROLES WITH VANILLA BEAN GELATO TOPPED WITH WARM PEANUT BUTTER AND DARK CHOCOLATE SAUCES 6.50" Girls' night out this week, & we couldn't wait to try it, so we ordered it for an appetizer! AWESOME! We had appetizers (mussels and a delicious cheese tart). Thurs. night was the first night of their new fall menu. Between us we had duck, sole, salmon, steak, chicken, and sampled each other's dishes. I particularly loved the maple-glazed (I believe it was) salmon, but everything was very good. The green beans are even worth noting -- very fresh w/just the right amount of snap. Honestly, everyone licked their plates. The portions are not small, so we had had more than enough to eat and were actually quite stuffed. And yet, those darn profiteroles were calling to us again, if you can believe, so we had them again! We also had a couple other desserts -- yummy -- but those profiteroles were the star of the evening. The atmosphere is charming, the service very good. I've given the restaurant a 9 out of 10. The ding is for the waiter, who can make it or break it for you -- you know? He was attentive enough, but entirely lackluster and seemed bored. We asked what he would recommend, but he could not tell us because "it was the first day of fall menu." (New menu not on their website as of today.) We inquired whether they were asked to sample the dishes so they could comment to diners, and he said no. Had he been a little more engaged, this place would be an easy 10++. By the way, this is the first restaurant review I have ever written -- in fact, the first review of ANYthing I've ever written. I was even more detailed, but I was about 1000 words over the limit! I hope things don't go down hill now with the place and I end up steering you wrong. I feel like I'm setting someone up on a blind date! Anyway, if you go, I hope you enjoy it!

• Pros: Dessert, charming atmosphere, service
• Cons: Our particular waiter could be more familiar with the menu and pump up the personality a bit.