This modern Vietnamese restaurant at the top end of University Avenue has been serving shaking beef, lemongrass sea bass, and hoisin lamb chops since 2002. Owned by two sisters, the space is also a rotating art gallery and a power spot for cocktails. The menu includes a few rotating favorites from Tam Tam, the slightly more casual spot they opened in 2019 and closed in 2020.

At the other budget extreme from the highest-end spots in town, there’s good hummus to be had. Palo Alto is the original location for this wildly popular mini chain, which now ranges down to Cupertino and up to San Francisco. Chef Oren Dobronsky, who’s originally from Tel Aviv, specializes in hummus bowls topped with fried eggplant, roasted cauliflower, and spiced lamb, with plenty of pita for scooping.

Chef Robbie Wilson (Le Fantastique, French Laundry, Mattei’s Tavern) brought fine-dining pedigree to Palo Alto when he opened Bird Dog in 2015, and the Chronicle declared it “one of the brightest spots on the Peninsula.” The menu ranges from raw fish and fatty meats to locally farmed vegetables and grains, highlighting ingredients like bone marrow, amberjack, and Arrowhead cabbage.

Bevri had the distinction of being the first Georgian restaurant in the Bay Area, and it’s hard to resist the khachapuri (bread shaped like a canoe and filled with melted cheese), let alone the plump khinkali dumplings. Don’t miss the wine list — Georgian wines are having a moment, but as the restaurant points out, the tradition goes back 8,000 years.

Ettan brings Michelin-pedigreed California-Indian cuisine to Palo Alto in a bright, colorful patterned space serving “grazing” snacks of oysters topped with a fennel and curry leaf ponzu and sliders filled with jackfruit. For dinner, plates of sambal shrimp and sesame leaves are piled with mint, tamarind, and crispy bits, and entrees like a whole red snapper make a full feast for two to three people and a meal worthy of a special occasion.

With an emphasis on booze, blues, and New Orleans–style bon temps, Nola is a favorite among Stanford students, now with an even larger outdoor setup for lingering brunches. The three-story restaurant meant to resemble a French Quarter building serves Louisiana classics like gumbo and jambalaya, as well as distinctly non-Louisiana dishes like roasted cauliflower tacos and hot chicken sliders. The drinks are really the star here, with hurricanes, sazeracs, mojitos, and palomas all available in pitchers, as well as a menu of mini and zero-proof cocktails.

Originally from Jamaica, chef Robert Simpson brought jerk chicken, coconut shrimp, and goat curry to sunny Palo Alto. His colorful restaurant is actually affordable enough for students, and the skinny side patio is criss-crossed with twinkling lights.

Stanford kids, software engineers, and actual children can’t resist the charms of this old-school soda fountain, which boasts a big wraparound counter and red booths. It’s classic California, originally opened in 1923, and still serving burgers, shakes, and damn good pie.

This tapas powerhouse from Barcelona opened its first U.S. location in Walnut Creek in 2015, and Palo Alto followed a few years after. If it’s a chain, it’s a fun one, with a splashy tiled space in Town & Country, where diners can feast on pintxos, paella, octopus, and gin and tonics.

If Saint Michael’s Alley is where students can take their parents, Sundance might be the right reservation for grandparents. It’s the tried-and-true steakhouse going five decades strong, with stiff drinks, clam chowder, wedge salads, prime beef, and lobster tails.

When two French Laundry alums opened Protégé in 2018, the town buzzed with excitement. Reserve the dining room for the tasting menu experience, featuring five to seven courses and culminating with a cheese cart wheeled tableside. First-timers can also feast on crab and caviar, crudo, wagyu ribeye, and Bavarian pretzels a la carte on the heated outdoor patio.

For really good tacos, locals drive north to Redwood City. But tucked away on the slightly sleepier California Avenue, Palo Alto Sol is a comfort nonetheless, serving home-style mole, saucy enchiladas, and fresh salsas.

San Francisco is known for excellent Neapolitan-style pizza, with pillowy and chewy doughs blistered in roaring ovens. But Palo Alto started throwing down when Terún moved into town. With a wood-fired oven that’s stoked and burning bright, these pies are the real deal, as certified by the Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana (aka the pizza police).

For more than 20 years, La Bodeguita has been a Cuban hideaway over on Cal Ave, complete with rum and cigars. The ropa vieja is the star: skirt steak served shredded and saucy with sweet plantains and yellow rice. But the empanadas dipped in coconut-jalapeño sauce also can’t be missed.