Eulipia Restaurant & Bar

I love to go to Eulipia before the Theatre. The food is great; the prices are reasonable; the service is friendly and attentive. And there’s never any wait for tables (which is a mystery to me because it’s such a nice restaurant.) They have been closed for renovation for quite a while. I just called to check and the gentleman who answered said it would be about one month until they’re open again. Can’t wait!

Eulipia catered a dinner for nine at our home, it was fantastic. Steve the owner and his son Mike arrived 90 minutes before the guests to setup. The meal was delicious, it included filet mignon and halibut entrees, beet salad and bananas foster. Bartending service and a wonderful selection of wines were provided. The service was excellent. Steve made it so easy, he took care of every detail and they left the kitchen spotless. Our guests had a wonderful time and we are all looking forward to visiting Eulipia in the near future. Highly recommend!.

Walter was wonderful and so was the food, ambiance and display. Was in San Jose for the weekend and bought a Groupon for this place. My friend lives in SJ and had never been there. We both rate it with high marks. Dinner at 4:30pm on Sunday is a good choice as we got lots of attention. Thanks Walter, we hope to be back.
P. S. The dirty windows on the outside were a deterrent at first glance, but once we entered everything changed.

My friends and I were only having an appetizer here, so we ate at the bar and had drinks. What a friendly and good bartender. He made the experience fun and I will definitely be back.

I set out for Eulipia with my theatre group a couple of Saturday nights back for a post-​play discussion of City Lights Theater Company’s production of Santaland Diaries.
Because I prefer to go out with my group immediately after the play, lately we’ve been taking in matinée performances, then going out to an early dinner. Santaland Diaries (a holiday comedy written by David Sedaris) is a fairly short one-​act play, so we went to the 8pm show and planned to find a restaurant we could go to at 9:40pm for drinks, dessert, and (for some of us) a late dinner. What I didn’t count on is that most fine-​dining establishments in downtown San Jose roll up the sidewalks and close their kitchens by 9:30…
I Unilocaled a few possible targets the previous Thursday, then called and asked about late night arrangements for a party of eight. Eventually, I settled on Eulipia, which is walking distance from City Lights. The manager I talked to said they’d be happy to keep the kitchen open for our 9:40pm arrival, and that they could easily put a large table together for our post-​theatre discussion.
The evening of the play, I called a few hours before curtain to confirm our reservation at Eulipia. Everything was all set (or so I thought), but the best-​laid plans of mice and men often go awry…
The group and I arrived at Eulipia’s front door at exactly 9:40pm. The door was locked!!! I saw there were still people inside at the bar, so I knocked, and Dave the bartender came over and opened the door. He explained that the kitchen was closed, and there was no record of our dinner reservation!
Now, what would have otherwise been a one-​star review gets totally turned around by Dave and his can-​do, totally amazing and professional approach to customer service. After I explained what had happened, Dave let us in, then took a minute to rearrange some tables so we’d have a good place to sit for our discussion. He took our drink orders, the went and called one of the departed kitchen staff back to the restaurant so we could have the full dessert menu in addition to drinks.
Dave turned what could have been a disastrous end-​of-​the evening totally around for us. He was friendly, solicitous, engaging, and went the extra mile to give us the best experience possible.
We ended up having a wonderful conversation and a very pleasant time in Eulipa that evening. The group’s discussion of the play, combined with the warm atmosphere and the friendly vibe in the restaurant made the time fly by, and we left to allow Dave to close up for a 2^nd and final time that night at 11:15pm.
To acknowledge Dave’s 11^th hour save, I’m adding three extra stars to the one star I would have given Eulipa had we been turned away at the door. I’ll be back one of these days to do an update with a full review of Eulipia, but in the interim, I hope management appreciates the kind of exceptional employee they have in Dave.

It’s been awhile since I’ve been here. My past experiences were excellent. This night was not. Disclaimer it was the Friday after Thanksgiving. but. they were out of everything. Many people in our party were told more than once that the item they ordered was not available. One person was told that 3 times. Not one after the other .but order, sit for 5 minutes, waiter returns. «uh, were out of that», orders something else. waits 5 mins. waiter returns. «uh, yeha, that one too.» Which is fine, that happens, but I would have expected a free drink or dessert. but nothing. Also I ordered fish and it was below average in every way and it was 30 dollars. not a big fan, won’t be back.

It makes me a little sad to see how far Eulipia has fallen.
Went out with friends and had dinner there before going to the opera. Two times we were asked if we were going to the opera and twice we said yes. Even still, we didn’t have time for dessert or even an after dinner cappuccino… that’s just not right.
Basically:
the service was slow
the waiter never poured our wine
the service was slow (needed to be said again)
the pesto sauce with my pasta was watery (pasta was not fully drained)
the waiter showed up with the bill and didn’t bring a dessert menu. we had to ask to for it.
we ending up scurrying across the street to make it in time for the opera when we allowed an hour and half.
did I mention the service was slow?

I wanted to like Eulipia, I really did. It has been in downtown San Jose since I was in my 20s (now you know how old I am). I hadn’t eaten there in probably 20+ years. I tried eating there a couple years ago. I made reservations, but when I’d arrived I was ignored so long I finally left. And the place wasn’t even busy that night. But I thought I’d try it again, so my husband and I made reservations for this evening, and thankfully this time we weren’t ignored.
The staff was very nice an the service was prompt at first. I was getting my hopes up. I ordered the beet salad, which was very good, and the filet mignon. My husband ordered the mushroom soup and a scallop appetizer, because he wasn’t super hungry.
They brought the salad and soup out fairly quickly, but the main course took a long time to prepare. When we finally got our food, both my husband and I noticed that the vegetable side dish of asparagus had grit in it. The filet and the scallops were good, but not great, and for the price I expected more. My filet was rather fatty and the scallops were a little fishy, which indicated that they weren’t as fresh as they could be. But seriously, grit in the asparagus? Doesn’t the cook staff know how to wash asparagus? We complained to the waiter and he reduced our bill, but it’s not about the money. That’s not going to make me want to come back. It’s about the food, people, the food!
The worst part was that shortly after we left the restaurant both of us had upset stomachs. I don’t think we’ll ever go back. I’m only giving it two stars, instead of zero, because the wait staff were all so nice. The owner needs to hire himself better cook staff to run the kitchen.

The personable Mark greets you and starts the beginning of a great dinner.
The food is perfect, wouldn’t change a thing.

It was Happy Hour and the downstairs was completely empty except for the two elderly people finishing up their early meal. I sat at the bar hoping for a delicious glass of wine and a quick artichoke. After 20 minutes I realized the only waiter/​bartender was upstairs servicing a large party. I left, went down to South First Street Billiards, asked for a taste of their best wine, took one sip and headed back out the door to Eulipia hoping to get some service. It was fate.
I sat alone at the bar and looked up to where the bartender/​waiter was seating more people in the large party, opening a bottle of wine and caught my eye long enough to motion that he’d be right with me. And he was.
Haven more then made up for the time spent waiting. He went out of his way to accommodate my request for off-​the-​menu garlic bread (which was amazing — cheese, pesto and tons of buttery garlic). The artichoke came and the first half was eaten with the lemon aioli, but I asked for a creative, spicy sauce for the second half. He worked with the chef to come up with a sauce that was delightful.
On top of this, the Merlot was lovely. It was a perfect beginning to a fabulous night. I can’t wait to come back for more specialized treatment. I’m a fan!

Do you want to be able a reserve a room or a time for a date night go here (to Eulipia).
[If you want to get your plans Shut down go to Olive Garden, Cheesecake, and all Restaurants that apparently don’t take reservations anymore… Doesn’t matter my money was well spent on this amazing place. Nothing against the other Restaurants because I do go there religiously as well but telling me I cannot book a room or table for 10people because you don’t take reservations «but come the day of even still may not a table ready»? I laughed and said «you’re kidding right.» ]
So I recently experienced the food from Eulipia since I myself am a Chamber member and the Manager happens to be providing food for us. Tasting great pasta and deserts, from that moment I had to know who this was because I was to plan a surprise event for my partner and I simply had to have this food again.
So I called and from Day one of my conversation with the Manager he had made it his duty to accommodate to my needs so sweetly and very kind to my wallet. Emails were replied to very promptly which he had also emailed me the Menus to view to see what I would have like to have served for my Partners Surprise Dinner. The selections were great, and he even customized his own menu for the Dinner. That was just the topping on the cake. I was also able to view the Private room before my guest had arrived. Got to meet the server who was to bring all the meals to the guest and he was delightful as well. The Location is great (room was perfect!)
Loved the whole ambiance. I can continue on all the things the manager Mark did to make this the most perfect evening in our week but just come and experience it for yourself. My guest were happy and delighted to eat more.
Thank you EULIPIA !!

This used to be one of the premier restaurants in downtown San Jose, but after three mediocre visits over the past three years, I’m afraid this place has seen better days.
The positives:
Great location, nice décor, very accommodating hostess/​waitress, and nice warm bread. My wife’s mahi mahi was excellent, as were all of our side dishes.
The negatives:
Roast chicken was very dried out. The kitchen seemed to be very backed up. Other tables also seemed to be frustrated about the delivery time. On a Saturday night, during prime time, there were only ten tables occupied in the whole restaurant. We were seated at 630pm. We didn’t have enough time for desert or coffee because we had an 800pm performance. That’s slow.
Three mediocre visits in a row is not a coincidence.

I totally threw the bartender here for a loop when I ordered a Hennesey Sidecar last night. But, she rose to the occasion and made a perfect one! My wife loved her cosmo, too.
Another San Jose Stage opening night gala done very well.

I came here with nique for our month-iversary…yes we still celebrate monthly, so what?.. and i was definitely not in love with it. We ordered the gaspacho. Okay, I ordered the gaspacho because i had never had it before and it sounded interesting. That was my first mistake, gaspacho isn’t nearly as appetizing as it sounds in the description, it’s like eating ketchup. Seriously, pour some ketchup in a bowl, add some fresh basil, perhaps some parm cheese and croutons, and viola! You have gourmet gaspacho! I don’t hold this one against the restaurant, it was my decision to try it out. I’m sure that it was good for what it was, but it’s not for me.
After we ordered, we were informed that they ran out of bread… on a Friday night around 8 o’clock you run out of bread? that’s not good at all. :(
After the ketchup, came the fried calamari. Nothing special. Mostly tubes, i’m a fan of tubes and tentacles, so i would have liked more tentacles, but whatever. This wasn’t my pick, i also feel like ordering calamari at a restaurant is a like a waste of a dish, especially at a pricey restaurant because you can get it anywhere and it really doesn’t vary a whole lot from one place to another, at least in my experience.
Next came the beet salad. This dish was excellent, very simple and fresh. Red beets, oil, arugala, fresh pepper, and it may or may not have been served with cheese, i can’t recall at the moment. Portion was small, but it was packed with flavor.
And finally the main course, Nique ordered the filet, like she always does, and i ordered the hanger steak. They were both excellent, though again a bit on the skimpy side. The sauces went great with the meats, not too salty like i was anticipating.
All in all the food was good, 4 stars. And the service was fine. But the fact that they ran out of bread really irked me.
In terms of ambiance, this place is pretty nice… but it was dead! most of the people there were older, lots of gray hair. Not that that’s a bad thing, but the energy in the place just wasn’t doing it for me. I suppose this place would be nice if you are really looking for a quite place to eat with a loved one… or if you’re old, but other than that i don’t think i would really recommend this place to anyone.
Funny thing is, on that note, this is the PERFECT place to take my mother-​in-​law, she loves places like this! but it’s not for me.

They have fixed their credit card system so it no longer prints the full CC number on the receipt.
The food is always excellent, the service is great and they take the passport unlimited discount card.

After 5 years of going here before just about every single SJ art event we attend, I think it’s time to officially declare time of death on old downtown staple Eulipia.
Things have been going downhill for the last year or so, but we kept going more out of inertia than anything. I guess we both hoped the bad experiences we were having were flukes. Sadly, they were not.
The last several dining experiences were poor– slow, poor service, lukewarm food and despite giving ourselves 2 hours for dinner, we were really squeezed to get out of there on time.
This last experience was the nail in the coffin. We had been sitting there for 45 minutes before my dinner partner finally asked about the whereabouts of her salad at which point she was informed they were having some «trouble». Now, I used to be a server– so I totally understand but the waitress should have communicated to us sometime before waiting 45 minutes for a salad. Long lags continued– I ended up canceling part of my order, and my dining partner’s salmon arrived (stone cold) 10 minutes before we needed to leave.
And, as if all this wasn’t bad enough, the waitress was snotty and rude and the manager/​owner never even bothered to come over and apologize.
So, that’s it for us and Eulipia. Even in these tough economic times, we were willing to pay a premium to go there because it was a «tradition». But, this is one tradition we’re going to have to break for good.
I’d love to hear any suggestions anyone has for other restaurants to eat at in that area. If it’s good, it’ll likely become our new «old standby».

The owner is cool since I know him. The service is cool.
I would never eat here. I’ve had their food. I’ve had better. I’ve actually helped clean up the place, and it needs to be cleaned more often.
However. This place needs Gordon Ramsey. I would like to see Gordon Ramsey in Michael’s face. Kitchen Nightmare anyone?

Saturday nights are good for dinner and theater!
Reservations were at 6 p.m.
The restaurant was empty! The host polite. We were seated in a corner booth. White table clothes, clothe napkins, simple white dishes, silver wear and one glass votive with oil to light the table. He had the Eulipia House Salad which consisted of Raspberry Balsamic Vinaigrette, Crumbled Bleu Cheese and Candied Walnuts. His main course– the Pan Seared Mahi Mahi with Jasmine Rice, Asparagus & Meyer Lemon Butter. I had the Grilled 10 oz. Angus New York Steak with Garlic Mashed Potatoes and Asparagus. The service was wonderful– very attentive and polite without bothering our conversation. Our water glasses were always filled and so was my iced tea. The iced tea was a delicious passion fruit flavor, not the Paradise brand but something equally yummy if not better.
Our desserts– Apple Crisp Ala Mode (with cranberries) and Crème Brulee. The Apple Crisp was good but the Crème Brulee was better. I knocked off one star because this restaurant was expensive. The food was good but the price point was slightly high. As a side note 15 minutes after we were seated the restaurant became packed with people. I would not go out of my way to eat here but would again because its close to the SJ Rep.
Noelle’s Notes: Diana Krall music softly playing in the background, dinner & dessert by candle light in a quite and pleasant atmosphere. No other steak can compare to the Met in Seattle, not going to order steak if I’m not at the Met.

Food. two stars. Our waiter and service…5 stars =
Average of the two: three stars.
This place used to be hoppin in it’s heyday. We went there on a Friday night and downtown is D-​E-​A-​D. I thought maybe there was some nuclear terrorist evacuation in order we didn’t know about by the looks of things. This is the second time I’ve been here. Same waiter… nice guy, good personality, very attentive. I think he was the ONLY waiter working this particular Friday night too. My steak was nothing to write home about. I have had better at half the price. My bf’s pasta dish was, as he said, «eh.» He said his salad was good. The last time, I had an appetizer artichoke and it was good. I had better at that little place up at the Santa Cruz summit on Hwy 17 that closed up a few years back and it wasn’t quite as expensive either. I guess the bottom line is, the food is so-​so, the service was great. I think I am being generous with the three stars but since the waiter was working so hard and so nice… but, we probably won’t be going back to pay those prices for so-​so food.

Were it not for the great service I’d give them 1.5 stars.
I think I am being too generous giving 3 stars.
Went there @ 6:20 for dinner to catch a performance by Symphony Silicon Valley (not to be confused with Silicon Valley Symphony) across the street.
Our waiter was very nice and considerate enough to brief us about how much time we have to place our order and choose the number of courses accordingly given our concert starts at 8.
Food was another story. For that price I’d expect a lot fancier food, better ingredients, and a heck of a lot better cooking technique.
OK, the salmon was not slimy and stale as one reviewer mentioned, at least it did not stink.
But if you are not sourcing top grade material, a quick caramelizing using a hot hot skillet and finishing in the oven would mask the not so superior quality. Pan searing it in medium heat with some whacky cashew sauce on top just exposes all the negatives.
Seafood pasta could use fresher mussels. Many of them did not open enough to convey confidence to the diners (heck cook them a bit longer!) The pasta itself is bland but the sauce on the bottom is rich but not well tossed with the pasta. De-​vein the Costco shrimp and dust your frozen-​then-​thawed scallops with something before searing it in high heat (yes, high heat PLEASE).
Thank goodness the dishes werent over seasoned like Bella Luna @ Palo Alto.
C’mon guys, you can do way better than this with just some minor changes.