Zibibbo

Dear Zibibbo,
Thanks for a picturesque venue with a variety of rooms and multiple bars.
Thanks for the fabulous charcuterie and cheese platters.
Thanks for Medjool dates with bacon and manchego cheese.
Thanks for the glass (or two) of vino.
Thanks for the trays of cute mini desserts as they made me feel (slightly) less gluttonous.
Thanks for providing a space where music can be played and goofy dancing can be showcased.
Thanks for the coat check folks who didn’t give me too much grief when I lost my ticket.
Thanks for a great party and fond memories.
Best,
Amy C.

I seldom write reviews, but I have to give this place a top rating. Sat at the bar, the tender (Tony) got us started with what quickly turned into a banquet. Great service, great suggestions, great food, really everything you could ask for. Definitely a pretty special place.
This is only my second review, I only write one if it’s extremely well deserved, for better or worse. If you’re the type of person that’s all sour no matter how good everything is then I don’t know what to tell you but if you’re a normal human being I’m confident you’ll love this place.

Good wine list. Average food. Overpriced. Nice ambience and service.
There are better options nearby.

Zibbibo is a fairly fancy restaurant in downtown Palo Alto. It’s somewhat hidden on a side street off of University, in what looks like a house from the front, but is a modern restaurant and bar on the inside.
I’ve been to Zibbibo a number of times over the past decade, mostly for some friend’s parties, and honestly never thought it was more than okay. My sense has always been that the food and drinks were pretty good, but they didn’t justify the price.
We had the chance to eat there again recently with another couple, and I was completely blown away. I don’t know if their dinners are just way better than their lunches or if they’ve gotten much better over the years, but this was an incredible meal.
I managed to wait three months to write this review, so my memory for details is sketchy. I’m going to list what we had here and give any information I remember, but I have to apologize for the lack of details.
Antipasti — You get to choose three items from their list. I’m sure we ordered the Cod & Potato Croquettes and the Arancini. A delicious way to start the meal.
Roti Duck — Two of us ordered this, and I’d be hard pressed to order anything else when I go back. Delicious and plentiful.
Vegetable Platter — As it turns out, we probably didn’t need to order this on the side, since the meals actually came with a nice quantity of vegetable sides, but thankfully we did order it because it was an excellent variety of seasonable vegetables all cooked perfectly.
Items we ordered that I have no specific memory of, but I’m sure were good since we walked out of the restaurant raving about everything:
Grilled Goat Cheese
Little Gem Salad
Soup
Seared Scallops
Grilled Salmon
I will definitely be back.

Just discovered this place even though it’s been around for over a decade! Everything is delicious and the atmosphere is quiet and intimate for the most part.
My favorite appetizers were the cigars (great deal) and the little gem salad (really crisp and sweet little gem lettuce) with blue cheese (i think?) and walnuts. They also have a great deal for an appetizer platter with your choice of three items (the antipasti plate).
We asked and it turns out they make everything from pasta to bread to dessert in-​house which is REALLY hard to find in this area. Awesome!
They have a lot of seating too and you can even sit in the kitchen and watch your chicken rotate on the rotisserie which is pretty cool.
Good for private parties, large groups, and so on.
Oh and if you’re a wine snob, this spot will test your knowledge! Haha.

The Israeli cigars were pretty good (tasted like mashed potatoes encased in an eggroll shell), but nothing special.
The fish that we ordered — I ordered salmon, and James a white fish — was honestly pretty terrible. Expensive and not worth it at all.
However, it is a very large space and great for group dinners! Takes reservations for larger groups.

Why don’t they have more authentic Mediterranean vegetarian dishes on their menu? I was only able to order pizza and ravioli because the actual entrée just seemed like a jumble of vegetables. They need to take a leaf out of Dish n Dash’s book. Also, this place is VERY expensive. So boys, if you’re taking a girl out here, be prepared to spend at least 80 – 100 dollars if you’re planning to get apps, entrees, drinks, and dessert (do me a favor and don’t make the girl split the bill…).
The good part: yummy hummus and israeli cigars! And decent drinks too.

I was there for a business meeting for dinner. The food was pretty average. I had the scallops for entrée. It was served on mushrooms in some sort of pasty sauce. It was full of sand! The rest of the guest seemed happy with there food but not ecstatic. Also, I had to ask for bread and we were left alone at the end of dinner so long that we were about to get up to go ask for the check.
Overall, I was disappointed.

Echoing what Joyce S said in her 2011 review — Zibibbo was a hot spot in Palo Alto 10 years ago, but it’s been on a continual decline since then.
Nevertheless, I’ve been back a few times over the past 5 years, but mostly for the great mushroom pizza. Yesterday, I went there with a group of 8, and have to say the experience was as expected.
On the plus side, the food is mostly good, but not great considering the price. The mac and cheese side dish was surprisingly spicy (I liked it, but a few other at the table did not). While waiting at the bar, the drinks were all very good and served quickly.
On the down side, the service was bad. Even though the restaurant had plenty of seating available inside and out, the host didn’t ask which area we prefer, and seated us in the patio area. He mentioned that he would turn on a heater (it was 7:30pm) but didn’t. The service was very slow all night, and the waiter never stopped by to check on us except to take the food and drink orders. After dinner, two people in our party asked for dessert menus at different times, but after waiting 25 minutes our server just delivered the check without even asking about coffee.
Normally this would qualify as two stars, but I’ll give it three for the nostalgia.

— I love the outside garden seating area.
— The Israeli cigars are amazing!
— Yummy cocktails.
— I’ve liked everything I’ve tried so far.
— Service is a bit slow, but not too bad at all.

Came here with my boyfriend’s parents on Valentine’s Day. Not bad. We got a lot of dishes and they were fine.
What to get when you are here:
— Hummus
— Eggplant or Veggie Pizza
— Brussels Sprouts
— Cauliflower
— FLIGHT OF WINE
(They give you 4, flights I see are usually 3 and either all white or all red, but they actually give you a mix of both here! For 4 2 oz (which seemed more than 2 oz) glasses.
Also, the desserts are really big. So make sure to save enough room if you want dessert.

Solid food, but I wouldn’t call most of our food particularly «middle-​eastern» (except the «israeli cigars» and prawns). A nice lunch overall, but not incredibly memorable.
Total bill $ 85, incl tax/​tip, at lunch for three people (2 small plates, 1 entrée, 1 dessert, one 3-​course prix-​fixe).
Really nice, modern, spacious restaurant with many different rooms & vibes (darker & cozier bar, very open main room with high ceilings & more private booths, a couple of outdoor areas, and I believe another bar in the back).
Service — better at the start, then dwindled & became much slower especially when it came time for desserts.
MUST-​HAVES: The prawns were the best thing we had! Profiteroles were great too.
DISAPPOINTMENTS: Carrot cake (part of the lunch prix-​fixe).
* Oven Roasted Moroccan Spiced Prawns — 4 stars
pic:
(with Scallions and Lemon. $ 16.00)
Very well done, prawns were incredibly crisp & crunchy, amazing flavor. Don’t be fooled by the very plain looking bread — it was super buttery & soft yet slightly toasted. Really delish, especially to wipe up that extra butter on the pan =).
* «Israeli Cigars» — 3.5 stars
pic:
cross-​section:
(Crispy Brik Pastry filled with Potatoes, Caramelized Onion and Chive. $ 8.00)
Texture wonderful, a nice thin crisp shell with wonderfully soft potato filling. My gripe is there wasn’t any flavor. Of course, that’s where the sauce comes in right? But it tasted like generic caesar salad dressing. Maybe acceptable at an American restaurant, but this is Mediterranean! I expect much more flavor!
* Wild Mushroom and Goat Cheese Tart — 3 stars
pic:
cross-​section:
(with Spinach, Arugula Salad and Tomato Vinaigrette. $ 19.00)
Didn’t taste any goat cheese — disappointing when you’re a goat cheese lover and seeing this on the menu has a big influence on what you order. The crust was buttery but a little too soft/​dry/​crumbly. The filling was actually pretty good, really soft, but once again — lacking in flavor! More tomato would have added some zing.
* Profiteroles — 4.5 stars
pic:
Oh very nice. Just look at the photo. Tastes as good as it looks. And the mini ‘buns’ (bread? whatever you call it) were not overly dry and stale, which happens often with profiteroles and makes them really difficult to eat with the soft melty ice cream. This one disappeared fast at our table for sure.
~~3-​COURSE PRIX-​FIXE LUNCH MENU~~
* Romain Wedge Salad — 4 stars
pic:
(with Parmesan, Croutons and blue cheese dressing)
Simple, but surprisingly nice! The lettuce was incredibly fresh and hand an amazing crunch. The blue cheese dressing packed a lot of flavor.
* Baguette Sandwich — 3 stars
pic:
(with Proscuitto, Provolone and Agresto)
Just a simple prosciutto sandwich. not bad, not mindblowing. exactly what it says it is, nothing more.
* Carrot cake — 2.5 stars
pic:
(with Caramel Sauce)
Really dry, not much carrot flavor, and this was literally half cake and half frosting! Why so much frosting, when it isnt’ even that great?
Lunch menu:
Prix-​fixe lunch menu:

This was some of the best banquet food I have ever tasted! I came by on a weekday evening for a dinner meeting with over 50 people. We were treated to lots of good wine and even better food!
We tried a sampling of the following. The «sampling» is actually unfair because the portion sizes were extremely generous! For each table of 8, we were handed two plates of each of the following dishes:
— Spinach Salad with spiced nuts, Point Reyes blue cheese, hard boiled eggs, and smoked bacon vinaigrette. This was really tasty. I liked the fact that they went east on the vinaigrette but it was obviously still present. The portion size was HUGE! We had a hard time finishing both of the generous portions provided.
— «Israeli Cigars»: Crispy Brik Pastry filled with Potatoes, Caramelized Onion and Chives. These were so good. They are basically seasoned mashed potatoes wrapped up to resemble egg rolls that you dip into a yogurt-​based sauce. There were plenty of these to share, and I definitely got a second portion because I love me some potato products! I would highly recommend these as an appetizer to be shared.
— Iron Skillet Roasted Mussels with Drawn Lemon-​Herb Butter. I wasn’t sure what to make of these sizzling cast iron platters when they were brought out. How do you cook mussels on a sizzling platter without overdoing them when the plate is so hot? Well these were perfectly done and super hot. The portion size, again, was very generous. I liked how sizzling hot the mussels were, no sandy ones, and the butter made it that much more luxurious tasting. I would order these again.
— Pepper Crusted Top Sirloin with Soft Polenta, Grilled Onions, Oven Dried Tomatoes, Basil and Red Wine Sauce. This steak was grilled medium rare and already sliced for us. It was tender and juicy, and I especially liked the tomatoes and sauce that accompanied it.
— Rosemary Scented Chicken with Warm Potato and Baby Greens Salad and warm vinaigrette. Tasty bone-​in chicken that was still juicy. I got a leg piece that was a bit difficult to cut, but it was still very tasty. I also enjoyed the accompanying roasted Yukon gold potatoes and the salad and vinaigrette dressing. A very tasty entrée.
— We also got the Platter of Seasonal Vegetables which included Brussel Sprouts with Caramelized Onions, Walnuts, and Preserved Lemons, Baby Carrots with Sage and Butter, and Sautéed Spinach with Currants and Toasted Pine Nuts.
All in all, a feast of epic proportions. All of the dishes delivered!
I can’t remember exactly what we had for dessert, but I remember it was tasty too. I will definitely return to Zibibbo for future meals. I remember that the service was fantastic as well. My water and wine glasses never went empty!

At first glance, from the street, Zibibbo looks like a cute, quaint little house made into a restaurant. Once inside, it is the complete opposite! What a magnificent architectural masterpiece! If your eyes float around following the walls to ceilings, there are several different textures, patterns and layouts.
The food here is marvelous! What we indulged in this visit:
Shaved Fennel & Arugula Salad with scallions, mandarin orange slices, olive oil and lots of pepper. This could be a meal all it’s own– It’s crispy, light and absolutely delightful.
Salmon with Lemon couscous and honey based Moroccan BBQ sauce lightly glazed over a top. This dish was off the charts. By far, the absolute best salmon I have had this entire year! Cooked to perfection with just the right amount of sauce. Be weary, it may be way too much for one sitting– I ate half for lunch and half for dinner and it was still just as marvelous the second time around!
I can’t believe I missed out on the Israeli Cigars– which gives me the perfect excuse to go back soon. Ahh… Now to find my next victim to take me out fine dining and wining. :-) Just kidding! Whether it be solo, for work or on a date– I will be back soon to Zibibbo– This relationship between the two of us has only just begun.

A classy, upscale Mediterranean restaurant in Palo Alto with a Happy Hour to warm the cockles of a die-​hard Unilocaler’s heart, Zibibbo is a reliable favorite destination of mine, especially when I’m eating out with a group of friends.
I’ve visited here a dozen times in the past couple of years, including two after-​play dinner discussions with my theatre group, and have always come away happy. I particularly like the ambiance (especially the bar!)
, the food is tasty and well presented, and the service is very attentive.
What exactly is it I like about the bar’s ambiance? It’s got large disc chandeliers hanging from the ceiling that provide dim, comfortable lighting for the couch-​intensive bar area, and there are cushioned stools available at the bar’s counter. The overall ambiance is very relaxed; it’s enjoyable to sit there, especially on a cold Winter’s evening.
So why bother sitting in Zibibbo’s bar? It’s all about the Happy Hour! Each and every day, between 4 and 6, WHATEVER you crave from behind the bar — wine by the glass, cocktails, crushed shells from the Egg of the Phoenix, needles made from vegetarian dinosaur bones, or shoes crafted out of leather made from the skin of left-​handed virgin unicorns… What’s that? They don’t have crushed shells, needles, or shoes behind the bar? Well you can’t have ‘em then! What they do have back there, you CAN have, and between the aforementioned hours, it’s all 50% off! But wait, there’s more — this HH also features a cornucopia of awesome appetizers for $ 8 each. Sure beats a poke in the eye with a sharp stick if you ask me…
On to the restaurant! Meals include complimentary crusty bread with butter
. While the bread is good enough to quicken the heart of the carbo-​whores among us, it would be a serious threat if it were served warm.
The last time I stopped by for dinner, I was on my Basil Gimlet kick, so that was the cocktail I ordered
. It turns out Zibbibio makes a decidedly decent Basil Gimlet; not as good as Rye or Singlebarrel’s, but still quite serviceable.
Next up, Israeli Cigars — a Carboholic’s dream if ever there was one! These babies are an appetizer to die for
. Sort of like fried eggrolls filled with potatoes and carmelized onions, they’re similiar to a samosa made with phylo dough. Israeli Cigars will always have a soft spot in my heart; given my druthers, I’d just make a meal out of a dozen of them! Fortunately, I have a Will of Iron (not to mention a Head of Granite) so I made do with just the two provided in a single order.
My entrée was the Flat Iron Steak with Brocollini, Cipollini Onions, Fingerling Potatoes, and Red Wine Demiglaze
. It was flavorful and well seasoned; while it came out too rare, I sent it back and the 2^nd time was the charm :-)
Happy Hour fare not withstanding, Zibbibio might be a touch on the pricey side, but it’s a reliable, solid destination that will deliver the goods for you time and again. Four stars!

This was place fine. I went there for a business dinner, and so I was a bit distracted, but I do have a recollection of it being a fine place, though nothing to get all hot and bothered about. It was nicely decorated inside, even if the entrance was a bit awkward and cramped (you walk right into the bar, squeeze through to the hostess stand, and then have not much space for waiting.
The food was pretty good, though everything I had was too wet and too oily. The shaved fennel salad was really a bunch of greens with some fennel and a few pieces of orange. LOTS of oil. The salmon with pecans was good but also oily and perhaps a bit overcooked.
The service was ok, if a bit hurried. We had to keep telling the waiter that we were not yet ready to order and then that we were not yet done eating. I hate when that happens.
All-​in-​all, a fine place, to which I’d go back, but nothing absolutely special.

If you’re looking for a place to have a group meal, this restaurant offers a prefixe menu and a variety of dishes. Whether you want sandwiches, pasta, or pizza, you’re sure to something edible. The soups don’t have much flavor and the desserts, such as sponge cake, are simple.
Service is fast, responsive and friendly. The ambiance is inviting, but a bit cold. Parking can be tough on the street, but there is a lot nearby.

Great ambiance good service and the food was delightful. For appetizer, we had hummus, red beets and an assorted meats. All were delicious and perfectly prepared.
I had the flat iron steak and it was delicious. Definite recommend!

We had a company party here and I was super duper excited to try their food! I’ve been to Zibibbo once BUT only to buy a couple of «Lulu gourmet Food products» since they carried them here. At the time, the man (I think he was a bartender/​server) was friendly but the manager/​host was a bit unfriendly. He asked what I needed and simply walked away. very weird!
Anyway, our company party was OK! We got the room in the «middle» of the restaurant with ALL Glass transparent doors… kinda felt like we were some fish in an aquarium… basically all other diners could see us and even «heard» us! So it didn’t feel private.
The waitress who served us was very very very nice though. She helped us taking pictures and poured wine and champagne during the event. She was super sweet!
We all loved the hors d’œuvre. it was certainly the BEST part of the meal! We got some delicious crab cakes. they are not «fake» crab cakes. I could actually taste the crab meat… yumm! I ate like 4 of them LOL!!!
I also had the spanakopita. also very delicious! The skin was very crispy and flaky and the inside was creamy but not overly rich.
Portion wise, though, I thought they kinda skimp on it! Seriously, we had about 20 people and they only had one small tray each of the hors d’œuvre .only got refilled once, I think!
For the meal, we started with some salad with vinaigrette dressing, sliced pear, and crumbled goat cheese. One of the salad on the table was a bit overly salted but they quickly replaced it! Extra point for service!
The appetizer was Moroccan style Shrimp (seems like they’re famous for this). They were good BUT again… portion was a bit small, in my opinion. The food was served family style and they place TWO plates of shrimp for a table of 8 – 10, there were only about 8 – 10 pieces of shrimp on each plate. Ok, I guess. it was just «appetizer» but it kinda made the whole thing felt «skimp» and not «festive» due to the small portion.
For entrees… served family style was «thinly sliced» leg of lamb (see photos), small cut of BBQ salmon and messily cut and un-​evenly-​seasoned chicken.
See my photos, seriously, it’s a table of 8−10… and there were only 7 pieces of salmon… hmm lets do the math here. weird? The lamb was very thinly sliced AND also probably had only about 10 – 12 thin slices for the whole table. They were very generous with the chicken though BUT they were not pleasant looking because of the way they plated them… some with the skin facing up, some facing down with some RED (blood) on the bone! I took a piece of breast with a drummette attached to it and the middle part was not cooked. Flavor wise… the chicken was not seasoned enough, I certainly can cook a much better chicken at home! the lamb was pretty good but without the sauce it would be a tad dry and had no flavor. The onions and carrots that came with the lamb were really sweet and delicious though. Lamb was the first dish that was finished! The salmon was a bit fishy but not bad. and most of us didn’t care for the couscous because it was a bit too sweet.
The dessert was the most disappointing ever!!! I’m guessing they didn’t make them in house! I tried the pecan tart, the skin tart was good but I didn’t care of the pumpkin/​pecan filling. The chocolate cake was ok, the cake was a bit dry and it was just «sweet.» There was also a mini sized muffin. ok taste.
What’s also upsetting was that they were supposed to box the leftover. but they threw away all the leftover chicken. weird! Not sure if there was some kind of miscommunication or what. but well luckily the chicken was not the crowd favorite anyway :)
Parking was also tough as in downtown PA. most parking spots are 2 hours max only! But luckily none of us got a ticket! lol.
Anyway. I probably will give Zibibbo another try… maybe not for an event but for a regular lunch or dinner. I saw their menu online and some things really sounded really delicious!

I am happy to report that I’ve discovered yet another great happy hour in the Peninsula. Daily from 4−6pm, Zibibbo offers delicious appetizers for $ 8 each and a whooping 50% discount on all their yummy specialty cocktails, glasses of wine, AND everything else behind the bar. Yes, EVERYTHING. This makes me happy! So happy that I had to order the Merry Edwards Pinot Noir, usually priced at $ 18 a glass (I’m not that rich… yet) and now available to me to savor at $ 9 — which my wallet happily allows.
The asparagus soup with roasted morel mushrooms and truffle oil was pretty delicious. Maybe a little lighter on the truffle oil next time. Both the artisanal cheese plate and the assorted charcuterie plate were extremely satisfying and accompanied by crackers, nuts, jelly, olives, etc.
Next time I’m going for the iron skillet roasted mushrooms and the moroccan spiced prawns. And maybe some pork pâté so my personal trainer has his work cut out for him the next day ;-)
Thank you, Zibibbo, for expanding my choices of happy hours in Palo Alto, I’ll be back this week!