With pandemic restrictions finally starting to ease up, the restaurant scene in Mountain View is heating up once again. Not a moment too soon if you ask me. There’s only so much take-out a person can eat, after all.
So, call up your friends and drag them out of their Mountain View apartments kicking and screaming if you must; we’re all overdue for a tasty meal and a night on the town.
Eureka!
Fun fact: in Ancient Greek, the word “Eureka” means “I have found it” Appropriate in the case of Eureka!, because once you eat here you’ll probably be thinking you’ve found your new favorite restaurant.
Located in a historic, century-old building in downtown Mountain View, Eureka! offers up classic American bar food with an elevated twist. Whether you try the orange chili glazed chicken wings, the 28-day dry-aged bone-marrow burger, or the sherry-braised pork riblets with firecracker aioli, one thing’s for sure: you won’t go home with an empty stomach.
Cascal
It’s not every day that you find a restaurant whose décor perfectly matches its food. Enter Cascal, an upscale dining experience that doesn’t sacrifice personality for luxury. As colorful and boisterous as its unique Spanish-inspired dishes, Cascal is an ideal choice if you’re looking to impress.
Bold and inventive, Cascal’s takes on Latin-American favorites, such as the Argentinian flat-iron steak, chorizo, and lamb chops served with spicy potatoes and chimichurri sauce, prove as delectable as they are idiosyncratic.
Ephesus
Looking for something to satisfy a craving for Mediterranean? Named for the ancient city that housed the famous Temple of Artemis, the family-owned restaurant Ephesus serves up decadent Greek and Turkish cuisine that is every bit as divine as its moniker suggests.
Menu highlights include such traditional dishes as betyi (grilled minced lamb with homemade tomato sauce), iskembi korbasi (a deceptively delicious beef tripe soup), Epheseus’ signature mousakka (minced beef, eggplant, and potato topped bechamel cheese sauce).
Blue Line Pizza
Pizza may be one of the most popular comfort foods in America, but if you haven’t had it at Blue Line Pizza, you might as well have never had it at all. There’s no room for New York vs. Chicago debates here; Blue Line not only offers both styles, it does them both better than the actual restaurants that spawned them.
Don’t believe it? Try a signature pie like the Tipsy Pig, with its marinated pork, tequila lime crema, red onion, and fresh jalapeno, or the Aphrodite, with its marinated artichoke hearts, kalamata olives, and pepperoncini. One slice is all it takes to make a believer out of any devoted pizza diehard.
