The Top 100 Places to Eat and Drink in San Jose
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Rank 1. Plumed Horse
Californian New American
An elegant room in a seventies-modern cottage on the peninsula, where Chef Peter Armellino builds his California cuisine around house-made pastas and the occasional flourish—a black pepper soufflé gilded with uni and crab, vegetables treated with the same conviction as beef cheek ragu. The wine program, visible through glass behind the bar, suggests a proprietor unafraid of depth.
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- World Culinary Awards 2025 · Nominee · Latin America's Best Restaurant
- World Culinary Awards 2025 · Winner · Costa Rica's Best Restaurant
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Rank 3. The Sea by Alexander's Steakhouse
Modern Seafood
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Rank 3. Alexander's Steakhouse
American/Japanese
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Rank 5. Ettan
Upscale Indian
Srijith Gopinathan's upscale Indian restaurant occupies an airy, skylit bi-level space in Palo Alto where indigo fabrics and floral wallpaper set a refined stage. Kulchas stuffed with seasonal peas and ricotta arrive alongside bright green kale chutney, while crisp branzino meets green garlic and chili—each plate built around local ingredients and a cook's genuine conviction.
- James Beard Awards 2026 · Nominee · Outstanding Restaurateur · Srijith Gopinathan and Ayesha Thapar
- James Beard Awards 2023 · Semifinalist · Best Chef: California · Srijith Gopinathan
- Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
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Rank 7. Zareen's
Indian
- James Beard Awards 2026 · Semifinalist · Best Chef: California · Zareen Khan
- San Francisco Chronicle Top Palo Alto Restaurants
- Eater The 17 Best Restaurants in Palo Alto
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Rank 8. Jubba Restaurant
Somali
- San Francisco Chronicle Top Doughnuts in the Bay Area
- San Francisco Chronicle 2026 · #79 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
- San Francisco Chronicle Top San Jose Restaurants
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Rank 8. LeYou Ethiopian
Ethiopian
The dining room at LeYou breathes with tall plants and coffee-bag tables under glass, a contemporary setting for chef Aida Taye's lighter take on Ethiopian cooking. Her tuna kifto and crisp, chili-dusted kategna suggest a kitchen intent on reimagining tradition rather than merely preserving it.
- Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
- San Francisco Chronicle 2025 · #46 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
- San Francisco Chronicle Top Peninsula and South Bay Restaurants
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Rank 8. Bo Ne Phu Yen
Vietnamese
- Los Angeles Times 2025 · The 101 Best Restaurants in California
- San Francisco Chronicle 2025 · #42 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
- San Francisco Chronicle Top Peninsula and South Bay Restaurants
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Rank 8. Evvia Estiatorio
Greek
A wood-fired hearth and copper vessels warm this central Palo Alto dining room, where grilled vegetables emerge smoky and tender, lamb souvlaki stays impossibly moist, and pumpkin cheesecake balances sweetness with poached fruit. The scene runs formal and prices follow accordingly, though lunch offers a lighter touch.
- Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
- San Francisco Chronicle Top Palo Alto Restaurants
- Eater The 17 Best Restaurants in Palo Alto
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Rank 8. Little Blue Door
Cal-Indian
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Rank 17. Mi Rinconcito Oaxaqueño
Oaxacan Mexican
- San Francisco Chronicle Top Peninsula and South Bay Restaurants
- San Francisco Chronicle Top San Jose Restaurants
- The Infatuation The Best Restaurants In San Jose
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- San Francisco Chronicle 2026 · #87 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
- San Francisco Chronicle Top Peninsula and South Bay Restaurants
- San Francisco Chronicle Top San Jose Restaurants
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Rank 17. First Born Los Gatos
Fusion Vietnamese
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Rank 17. Protégé
Contemporary New American
Chef Anthony Secviar, a French Laundry alum, pairs refined but unfussy cooking—think sablefish with sweet onion dashi, morel lasagna—with a sommelier's wine list in a relaxed modern room. The lounge's à la carte and trolley desserts balance the tasting menu's ambition without pretension.
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Rank 21. Petiscos
Portuguese Mediterranean
At a corner bar alive with the hum of Portuguese conversation, small plates arrive meant for sharing—broa, octopus salad, grilled sardines—each one a study in restraint and imported authenticity. The braised pig ears, dressed in citrus and herbs, taste like home cooking elevated just enough to matter.
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Rank 21. Zola
French
Zola trades pure formality for the ease of a French bistro steeped in California light. Mussels swim in vermouth cream; a soft egg breaks over Parisian gnocchi thick with mushrooms; filet mignon arrives with pommes purées and sauce Périgueux. The room splits between intimate dining and a livelier bar where cocktails and a wine list balancing Bordeaux with Napa feel equally at home.
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- Sprudge The Sprudge Guide To Coffee In San Jose, California
- San Francisco Chronicle The Best Coffee in the Bay Area
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Rank 24. Ramen Nagi
Japanese Noodles
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Rank 24. 10 Butchers Korean BBQ
Korean Barbecue
- San Francisco Chronicle 2025 · #74 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
- San Francisco Chronicle Top Peninsula and South Bay Restaurants
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Rank 24. Coconuts
Caribbean
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Rank 24. Rooh
Progressive Indian
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Rank 24. Ethel's Fancy
Californian New American
Chef Scott Nishiyama trades fine dining for casual California cooking, crafting a small shared menu where swordfish katsu meets spiced kumquats with understated grace. Rustic-elegant rooms and desserts like hojicha tapioca pudding with rice cracker bark make this Palo Alto spot feel like a refined dinner at a friend's table.
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Rank 24. Kunjip
Korean
- San Francisco Chronicle 2026 · #67 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
- San Francisco Chronicle Top Peninsula and South Bay Restaurants
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Rank 24. Bevri
Georgian Eastern European
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Rank 33. A Slice of New York
NY-Style
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- San Francisco Chronicle Top San Jose Restaurants
- San Francisco Chronicle Top Peninsula and South Bay Restaurants
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Rank 33. Duc Huong
Vietnamese
- San Francisco Chronicle Top Peninsula and South Bay Restaurants
- The Infatuation The Best Restaurants In San Jose
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Rank 33. Le Papillon
European
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Rank 37. LUNA Mexican Kitchen
Mexican
The moon rises over San Jose in the form of a kitchen where owner Jo Lerma-Lopez sources Rancho Gordo beans and Mary's chicken, then presses fresh tortillas by hand for crisp fish tacos and sizzling parrilladas that taste of real conviction. The cantina hums with the ease of a place built on principle rather than trend.
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Rank 37. Orchard City Kitchen
International
A shopping-center outpost where Jeffrey Stout orchestrates a roving menu of global small plates meant for shared eating. Hamachi arrives with avocado-dill purée and sunomono's bright vinegar; shrimp-and-pork dumplings carry a dusting of peanuts and chili oil heat. The room—polished bar, sprawling patio—rewards the kind of crowd willing to order wide.
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Rank 37. The Bywater
New Orleans-inspired Cajun & Creole
The zinc bar gleams under pressed tin, and jazz spills from speakers as an open kitchen stacks bottles of hot sauce like trophies. David Kinch's New Orleans love letter serves andouille gumbo z'herbes, oyster po'boys with white chile sauce, and a chocolate-pecan chess pie that tastes like devotion. Locals arrive early; the spell holds.
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Rank 40. Mediterranean Wraps
Mediterranean
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Rank 40. Tai Zhan
Hong Kong-Style
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Rank 40. Dio Deka
Greek
A fireplace anchors the stylish dining room where Los Gatos money gathers to eat Greek food that transcends taverna conventions. Pan-seared local salmon arrives with roasted peppers and artichokes; braised beef cheek fills delicate grape leaves. The wine list trades predictability for Greek discovery, and the burnt-honey mousse with almond and lemon justifies saving room for dessert.
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Rank 40. ASA South
Californian New American
A sleek dining room with silver-bark wallpaper and a horseshoe bar sets the stage for cooking that balances ambition with levity. The kitchen excels with a rigatoni so layered with mushrooms and supporting players that the menu abandons listing ingredients, and with sustainably sourced fish prepared across a menu that accommodates multiple appetites without compromise.
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Rank 40. Vina Enoteca
Italian
An Italian owner's passion project in an industrial-chic space with soaring ceilings and soft leather chairs. House-made pastas—particularly spinach tagliatelle wound with local pork and beef ragù—anchor a kitchen that sources heavily from Stanford Education Farm and crafts its own breads and pizzas. Friendly, efficient service whether you're at the bar or the table.
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Rank 40. Lookout Coffee
Coffee
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Rank 40. Terún
Neopolitan
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Rank 40. Wildseed
Californian
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Rank 40. Saapaaduu
Indian
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Rank 40. Naschmarkt
Austrian/German
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Rank 40. MoDo
Hawaiian
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Rank 40. Mariscos El Charco
Mexican
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Rank 40. Be.Stéak.Ă
Steakhouse
Chef Jeffrey Stout's steakhouse trades in Mediterranean flourishes—clams casino with pepperoni, rigatoni all'amatriciana—but the real draw is beef handled with precision: a bacon-wrapped filet arrives glossy with horseradish cream and demi-glace, sided by king oyster mushrooms. The room maintains an elegant composure that feels neither fussy nor austere.
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Rank 40. Aurum
Contemporary Indian
Aurum wraps diners in jewel tones and eclectic glass, a sleek Indian dining room where Chef Manish Tyagi resurrects forgotten regional recipes with precise, varied seasoning. Lamb skewers perfumed with roasted spices and tapioca kheer that transcends its humble origins mark a kitchen uninterested in the expected.
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Rank 40. CA Bakehouse
Southeast Asian
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Rank 40. ADEGA
Portuguese
Adega pairs a Portuguese tasting menu of sardines, bacalhau, and octopus with one of California's deepest collections of Portuguese wines. The understated dining room lets the kitchen's contemporary technique and wine program command attention.
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Rank 40. Telefèric Barcelona
Spanish
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Rank 40. Sun of Wolf
Mexican
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Rank 40. Lacàphê
Vietnamese Coffee
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Rank 74. La Jacaranda Oaxaquena
Oaxacan
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Rank 74. Nanos Chicharrones
Mexican
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Rank 74. Sekoya
Mediterranean
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Rank 74. Meyhouse
Turkish
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Rank 74. Saint Michael's Alley
Californian
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Rank 74. President's Terrace
Californian
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Rank 74. Mariscos Costa Alegre
Mexican
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Rank 74. Zona Rosa
Mexican
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Rank 74. Macarena
Spanish
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Rank 74. Bertucelli's La Villa
Italian
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Rank 74. Falafel's Drive-In
Middle Eastern
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Rank 74. Walia Ethiopian Cuisine
Ethiopian
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Rank 74. INDO Restaurant & Lounge
Indonesian
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Rank 74. Green Lotus
Vietnamese Vegetarian
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Rank 74. Fitoor
Modern Indian
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Rank 74. Tamarine Restaurant
Modern Vietnamese
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Rank 74. Acopio
Mexican
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Rank 74. Back A Yard Caribbean Grill
Caribbean
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Rank 74. La Foret Restaurant
French
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Rank 74. Gombei
Japanese
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Rank 74. Royal Thaali
Vegetarian Indian
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Rank 74. Pho Ga Nha - Chicken Pho House
Vietnamese
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Rank 74. Annachikadai
Chettinad-Style
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Rank 74. Sifu Wong Kitchen
Chinese
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Rank 74. Mariscos El Aguachile 8
Michoacán-Style
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Rank 74. Mommy's Bánh Mì
Vietnamese
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Rank 74. Hue
Vietnamese
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Rank 74. MYSelera Bistro
Malaysian
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Rank 74. Pho Duoi Bo
Vietnamese
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Rank 74. Thiên Long Restaurant
Vietnamese/Chinese
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Rank 74. Zeni Ethiopian Restaurant
Ethiopian
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Rank 74. Tay Ho
Vietnamese
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Rank 74. The Yellow Chilli
Indian
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Rank 74. Oklava
Turkish
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Rank 112. Koi Palace
Cantonese Chinese
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Rank 113. Manresa Bread
Bakery
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Rank 113. Manresa Bread
Bakery
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