Los Altos Real Estate Blog

I recently had the pleasure of visiting The Elephant Bar in Fremont, CA.  While not my normal destination, I visited the restaurant with a group of colleagues for a social event.  We didn't have or need a reservation and the restaurant was more than willing to accomodate my group.  First off, let's talk about hospitality.

I got to the restaurant at 12PM to have a light lunch and get some work done before the meeting.  I grabbed a spot at the bar and the bartender, Jeanine, showed me a great seat and was ready to take my order immediately.  I explained that I wanted to hang out for a couple of hours and she was very helpful with pointing out a power plug for my laptop and told me the best table in the restaurant to do my work.  She got me a glass of water, took my order promptly and made sure I had everything I needed.

My order came out fast, hot, and delicious.  I had a french dip and a side salad with fat-free ranch.  It was one of the lowest calorie meals on the menu, a good value at about $10 and tasted great.  When I was done, the table I could work at was cleared and I got to work.  Another waitress, Casey, was kind enough to ask if I needed anything from time to time and Jeanine kept checking on me as well.  For the next 90 minutes, I always had a full water glass and pleasant smiles.

The staff all appeared to work well together and kept things flowing from the kitchen and bar like a well oiled machine.  As other patrons showed up, they got everything taken care of nicely.  When my group started to arrive, they knew exactly where to send them and got us set up at the most convenient area in the bar, put tables together, and got drink orders right away.  We were very well attended to.

I highly recommend this particular Elephant Bar and encourage you to try others in your area.  If this one restaurant is any indication, you'll have a very nice dining experience.

We all know that Santana Row is one of the best destinations for fun, food, clothes, and nightlife in the Bay Area, especially the South Bay.  So, when things change there it's usually (and hopefully) something really good.  Well, one of the newest additions is a restaurant called The Yard House.  It's lively, fun, and a beer drinkers paradise.  What really tips the scale is the food.  It's not only good, it's got a good shot and getting Michelin recognition - in my opinion.

First, let's start with the beer.  There is a huge variety and they do change what they offer.  The old classics are on there (Guiness, Newcastle, etc) but they've also got variations of each classic beer - usually a small, craft beer or premium quality beer all served from the tap.  To decide what you want, they've organized each beer by style with descriptions of the general taste of each style.  For me, that's a huge help so I can figure out what I want with whatever I'm going to eat.  If I want a sweet beer, I can find it easily.  If I want something tangy, no problem.

The service was impeccable when I visited.  The waiter was nice, knowledgable and took our order quickly.  When we ordered our beer we also ordered a spicy tuna roll appetizer.  Here's where things go "gastro-pub" in a hurry.  When the spicy tuna roll arrived it wasn't the usual presentation you see everywhere else.  It was a giant spicy tuna roll with a bottom layer of edamame (in place of the usual rice), then spicy tuna, avacado, and shaved seaweed on top presented on a big white plate.  Truly gourmet food served in...a pub.

The rest of the meal was ordered off the Happy Hour menu; a pizza, beef sliders, and a salad.  The pizza was a BBQ chicken that just blows you away with flavor.  The slides reminded me of White Castle, but only by looks.  The taste reminded me of a filet mignon burger I had at "The Ivy" in Los Angeles years ago.  When it came down the the salad (their house salad) it also went above and beyond with flavor.  It had the perfect combination of lettuce, tomato, and dressing. There was a nice shaved corn topping that added some panache.

The prices are reasonable, especially considering the quality, but it's definitely not in the "everyday dining" category. As a hang-out spot, I'd put it at the top of my list and anyone wanting a newer, fresh experience in Santana Row should be going here.  Give me a call and I'll go into more detail.  Suffice it to say, I'll be going back many more times.

I recently went back to Seascape Resort in Aptos to celebrate my anniversary on August 6th.  It was the same resort I got married in last year and I've now had the chance to experience multiple room types and the incredible service offered by their staff.  The first thing I notice as a returning guest is that many of the staff remember my wife and I.  A sure sign of a world-class resort facility is the ability of the staff to remember past guests as well as anticipate their wants and needs.  My wife and I got that in spades.

Upon arrival, we were greeted warmly and asked if we'd like to check in.  It was early (1PM) and the normal check-in time was 4PM so we weren't expecting to get into our room.  Our plan was to simply drop off a bottle of champagne (Dom Perignon) to have with dinner (the hostess at Sanderling's handled the wine and reservation perfectly!).  We were pleasantly surprised that they could get us in but also in the main building, Room 203, which made things much more convenient.  It's an ocean-view suite, perfectly situated to look past the trees but still see the beach.  It's definitely one of the better rooms in the resort.  When we stayed last year, we had a 2 bedroom villa with ocean-front views as well.  If it's within your budget, I highly recommend those.

The hotel knew it was our anniversary so they kindly brought by a complimentary bottle of champagne (a nice Domain St. Michelle brut rose) and chocolates.  That came at an appropriate time and the room service staff were very pleasant.  Otherwise, we were left to the quiet of our room and the views.  Everything was in order, our dinner reservations easily confirmed, and all we had to do was relax.

Before dinner, we stopped by the bar to enjoy our bottle of champagne before dinner.  Not only did the staff get the bottle we had stored earlier but they brought it to us perfectly chilled, poured it for us, and made sure we had everything we needed.  When we wanted to change tables, they kindly and quickly moved EVERYTHING to our new table.  They could not have done a better job.  Afterward, at dinner, we were shown to what I consider to be the best table in the restaurant.  Although all the tables are good, this one in the corner by the front windows is the best in my opinion.  It's got good views at all angles and it's situated to be ideal for 2 people.  Dinner was delicious (as always), served promptly and the staff once again impresses with seemless service.  They're so good you don't even know they're there.  Our waiter actually remembered us from prior visits, which was very nice, and everyone was friendly and conversational.

Our checkout process, at the front desk, took about 60 seconds.  All we did was drop off the keys and left.  They are extremely efficient at the front desk and know what needs to be done (or not done).  Impeccable service once again.

I've stayed at many 5-star resorts around the world and frequently compare Seascape Resort to the best.  All the famous names you've heard mentioned should include this hotel as well.  The staff are warm, friendly, and efficient, the views amazing, services are sublime, and quality is top-grade.  For a vacation at the beach, you can't beat Seascape Resort.