San Francisco’s Favorite Power Lunch Location: Tamarine

When Anne Le Ziblatt read through her restaurant’s reservation book, and kept seeing the same names pop up, she realized her Vietnam-inspired restaurant Tamarine in Palo Alto had become a power lunch hot spot. The names included Apple Inc. Chief Executive Steve Jobs, Yahoo Inc. founder Jerry Yang, and Charles Schwab Corp. Chairman Charles Schwab.

Le Ziblatt designed Tamarine’s white-linen tables and walls made from sound-absorbing material to facilitate conversation, and as a result attracted important executives, lawyers and undertaking capitalists. Not all rewards come without their faults, as she may have to occasionally move guests when they are seated too close to competitors. To avert ambitious business students who occasionally barge in seeking face time with these CEOs, all guests are asked to give their party’s name and are escorted to their respective tables by a staff member.

A two-course “power lunch menu” features options of modern Vietnamese dishes, such as seaweed-wrapped tofu served with wax beans and sun-dried tomatoes and a papaya salad with dried shredded beef. Lunch costs approximately $17, and the fashion in which they operate is designed to have customers back to work in an hour.

Tamarine is located at 546 University Ave. in Palo Alto, and is open for lunch from 11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Via: Wall Street Journal