Tokyobased restaurant expands to California
A Japanese culinary standout is making its way to California.
Afuri Ramen + Dumpling, which is known for a light, chicken broth-based ramen instead of the traditional pork broth, will open its first restaurant in the state this summer in Cupertino.
That popular bowl comes with an unusual touch: “We’re particular about all of our ingredients, but there’s one in particular that makes Afuri ramen special,” the website says. “We make our signature ramen with yuzu, a small yellow citrus fruit native to Asia. We splash it in our fresh chicken broth and we garnish it on top, too.”
Founder Hiroto Nakamura launched his ramen business — Afuri is named after a mountain — in Tokyo. The company in 2016 opened its first U.S. outpost, in Portland, Oregon. There are now two in that city, and the CEO, Taichi Ishizuki, lives there. Expansion has also taken the Afuri ramen to Lisbon, Portugal, and soon to British Columbia, Canada.
In Portland, an early review of Afuri’s delicate ramen by Portland Monthly senior editor Kelly Clarke said: “One slurp of Afuri’s signature yuzu shio broth and you get what the fuss is about: The flavors of gently simmered chicken and dried seafood mingle in a subtle soup steeped with Japanese citrus.”
Besides yuzu shio ramen, the Cupertino restaurant will focus on what it considers its other specialty, dumplings, or gyoza.
DETAILS >> 20803 Stevens Creek Blvd., Cupertino; www.afuriramen.com
Churrascaria takes over the former Momo’s space
The steakhouse Galpão Gaucho has planted a Brazilian flag in Walnut Creek.
Here, 17 types of meat are roasted on a grill imported from Brazil and served by waiters in gaucho-style attire. The site is the former Momo’s restaurant on North California Boulevard.
Walnut Creek is the fourth churrascaria in this small chain after Cupertino, which opened in early 2018, Napa, which opened in 2016, and San Antonio, Texas, the flagship, in 2015.
If you’ve never indulged, here’s the modus operandi of the Brazilian churrascaria-style steakhouse: You choose a selection of cured meats, cheeses, salads and marinated vegetables at what seems like an endless salad bar, then you sit down to a feast of grilled meats served tableside by wandering waiters. You flip up a card on your table to indicate you’re ready for more.
The soft opening is underway now. Lunch prices are in effect on weekdays only. Weekends are dinner pricing all day.
DETAILS » Lunch is served weekdays from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Weekday dinners start at 5 p.m. On weekends, meals are served straight through from 1 to 10 p.m. Saturday and noon to 8:30 p.m. Sunday. 1444 N. California Blvd., Walnut Creek; 925-278-1859, galpaogauchousa.com
Selby’s retro-glam supper club opens in Atherton
Continental cuisine — a modern version — returned last week to El Camino Real on the Atherton/redwood City border, courtesy of the Bacchus Management Group.
The restaurateurs, who own the Michelin-starred Village Pub in Woodside along with Spruce and the Saratoga in San Francisco, have reimagined the historic Chantilly building as a glamorous Hollywoodstyle supper house, circa the 1930s and ’40s.
They’ve named it Selby’s after the location at the corner of Selby Lane and El Camino.
Diners will find a luxurious space and menu to match. Bacchus and interior designer Stephen Brady have blended traditional and contemporary touches, from the dining room to the bar/lounge to the addition of a private card room.
Executive chef Mark Sullivan’s inaugural menu of updated classics features dry-aged roast crown of duck for two with Empress plum and 25-year-old balsamic vinegar; ratatouille pithivier with heirloom tomatoes, zucchini and sweet
peppers; grilled lobster with heirloom tomatoes and a French sauce vierge; and prime dry-aged steaks from California’s renowned Flannery Beef.
Executive pastry chef Janina O’leary also crosses the decades with desserts ranging from a peach Melba with raspberry sauce to a Chocolate Midnight Cake with salted caramel and fudge sauce.
On the libations side, a martini trolley makes the rounds in the restaurant, and an extensive list of global wines is offered.
The inaugural wine list numbers 4,000, with room in the cellar to accommodate up to 20,000 bottles.
DETAILS » Selby’s serves dinner nightly from 5 to 10 at 3001 El Camino Real, Atherton. Reservations: 650-546-7700, www.selbysrestaurant.com
Joe & The Juice now squeezing in Lafayette
Joe & The Juice, the hip cafe from Copenhagen
that’s been expanding widely in the Bay Area, has opened in Lafayette.
The new juicery is located at the Park Place Shops in the former Squirrels coffee shop space.
Soon to open are Joe & The Juice locations at City Center Bishop Ranch in San Ramon and Old Town Center in Los Gatos.
On the Peninsula, there are shops in Palo Alto (three of them), Redwood City and San Mateo.
Founded in 2002 in Denmark’s capital, Joe & The Juice is a coffeehouse-smoothie shop hybrid that also offers a lineup of health shakes and flatbread sandwiches.
DETAILS » The Lafayette location is open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. weekdays and 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. weekends at 998 Moraga Road. www.joejuice.com