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Eater
10-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Eater
A Cocktail Bar With Dim Sum To Debut Next Week in Central Square
A menu of craft cocktails and dim sum that doesn't take itself too seriously is headed to Central Square on Wednesday, July 16, from local restaurant veterans Brian Callahan and Zimu Chen. The new cocktail bar, called Darling (464 Massachusetts Avenue) — a reference to the phrase 'Kill Your Darlings' meaning don't be precious about your creation – is located in the old Mary Chung's space, which has seen a complete overhaul. 'I thought of Central Square being, you know, quirky. It's vibrant, it's a little weird,' Callahan (previously of Row 34 and the now shuttered Tiger Mama and Orfano) told Eater. 'We wanted Darling to have character, we wanted it to have a lived in feel, but we also wanted it to feel kind of nice. So I think there's a really nice balance in the space.' The team took down the old wallpaper and found exposed brick walls that they left in place. They also commissioned a partial mural from artist Julia Purinton. The interior sign at Darling. J.M. Leech The dining room at Darling. J.M. Leech Food is traditional dim sum style, according to menu, created by Executive Chef Mark O'Leary (previously of Shojo, O Ya, and JM Curley), will blend nostalgic American dishes with Chinese dishes – think filet o' fish bao – along with favorites like tonkotsu xiao long bao, red braised pork ribs, and egg custard tarts. The libations include dazzlers like a clarified milk punch drink called Hope I Packed a Parachute, a cognac and condensed milk cocktail inspired by Hong Kong French toast that's fittingly called HK French Toast. A low ABV drink called Sweep the Leg employs a fairly modern cocktail technique called the switching method: To make this cocktail, Valdespino Fino Inocente sherry is frozen, and the water content is removed and replaced with housemade tomato water, resulting in a briny, tart cocktail that Callahan told Eater is 'really nice, delicate, but with touches of umami and vegetable notes.' Callahan and Chen (formerly of Eastern Standard, Coquette, and Mariel) emphasize impermanence and experimentation. They're planning on switching out specials daily, and are hoping it encourages a dialog between the bartenders and the guests. 'If they have a drink that they like, and then come back and it's gone, they might be bummed,' Callahan told Eater, 'It's our job to make sure we have something else on the menu for every type of person, so they can find something new – we'll have seasonal ingredients on hand to make something similar – opening up a great conversation.' The cocktail bar is open Tuesday through Thursday from 5pm to 12am, Friday and Saturdays from 5 p.m. to 1 a.m. and Sunday from 5 p.m. to 12 a.m. Reservations are available via Resy. The Common Trope cocktail. J.M. Leech
San Francisco Chronicle
05-06-2025
- Business
- San Francisco Chronicle
Big cookies arrive to big lines, plus more new Peninsula and South Bay food
Pudgy cookies, late-night Korean barbecue, Laotian smashburgers: The Peninsula and South Bay food scene saw exciting additions in recent weeks. Fans lined up for cookies in Los Gatos. A popular dim sum chain opened a shiny new outpost in Palo Alto. A new sweets shop specializes in Persian-inspired desserts. There's a lot of new food out there; read on for more on eight new Peninsula and South Bay food businesses. Hit cookies get their own home Batch 22, a popular South Bay business known for its oversized cookies, opened a bakery in Los Gatos to much anticipation in May. Co-owner Amy Wong, who left a marketing job to start the cottage food business in Cupertino in 2020, built a loyal following for her thick, 6-ounce 'pudge' cookies, inspired by New York City's famous Levain Bakery. The rotating menu includes flavors like chocolate chip, earl grey milk chocolate and dark chocolate-orange (as well as a few smaller, thin cookies). The best-seller is the ube dulcey, made with the purple Filipino yam, caramelized white chocolate and toffee. The Los Gatos bakery is airy and colorful, with one wall carved in the shape of a cookie with bites taken out of it. Batch 22 often sells out; check Instagram or call 408-827-4184 to find out what, if any, flavors are left. 15466 Los Gatos Blvd., #113, Los Gatos. Dumplings descend on Peninsula mall Bay Area mini dim sum chain Dumpling Time brought its latest outpost to the upscale Stanford Shopping Center in Palo Alto. With it came a slew of new dishes, debuting here and then rolling out at all Dumpling Time locations, like pho-flavored xiao long bao filled with beef broth and a twist on mapo tofu with deep-fried batons of tofu served over a shiitake mapo sauce. The new menu is courtesy of Dustin Falcon, who comes with experience at the three-Michelin-star French Laundry and now serves as corporate executive chef for Omakase Restaurant Group, which runs Dumpling Time as well as Niku Steakhouse and Prelude in San Francisco. The new restaurant has an ample outdoor patio, dumpling bar and view into the dumpling-making process in the open kitchen. Dumpling Time became known first in San Francisco for handmade dim sum and oversized soup dumplings, and has since steadily expanded throughout the Bay Area. Sunnyvale now has an outpost of popular East Bay Korean barbecue restaurant. Don Blanc, one of the Chronicle's picks for the Bay Area's top Korean restaurants, is known for meat cooked on cast iron grills (including a specialty in beef intestine) and a lively vibe. The menu also includes Korean specialties like marinated raw crab, fried chicken and beef tartare. While the Oakland original stays open until 2 a.m. on weekends, Sunnyvale closes at midnight daily. Plus, a Korean kimbap specialist arrives A local kimbap shop just opened, devoted to the Korean sushi rolled with fish cake, spicy beef, Spam, pickles and other fillings. Bibimmate, located inside a San Mateo ghost kitchen, comes from Seonghye Park-Kwak, a local veterinarian who's long wanted to open a kimbap shop, according to a social media post. 66 21st Ave., San Mateo. Lao food truck debuts Enter: A rare Lao smashburger. It comes courtesy of Szn N Spice, a new food truck parked in Redwood City. The burger comes with double beef 'sai oua' patties (made in the style of the Lao sausage), pickled onions and cucumbers, American cheese and a Thai chili crema. Also on the menu are chicken satay, truffle fries and beef croquettes. A sweet new dessert shop Petal's Creamery is now scooping ice cream and serving desserts in Los Gatos. The new shop, elegant with pastel-green walls, black-and-white checkered floors and tufted banquette seating, serves creative, Persian-inflected ice cream flavors like orange blossom creamsicle, cardamom-chocolate and 'rozu' (rose plus yuzu). Toppings come in the form of saffron brittle or sour cherry sauce. A glass case is also stocked with Persian-inspired desserts. Con Azucar Cafe's calling card is an Instagrammable giant concha, and it's now available in Redwood City. The San Jose cafe's second location just opened on Middlefield Road with coffee, iced horchata and conchas in a colorful, almost arcade-like space. A nostalgic Italian-American joint Mountain View is home to a new Italian-American restaurant from the team behind popular Peninsula pizzeria chain Doppio Zero. Johnny & Sanny's — a twist on the names of co-owners Gianni (Johnny) Chiloiro and Angelo Sannino (Sanny) — is serving Italian-American classics like chicken parm and housemade pastas, plus Roman-style pizza.
