Ethel's Fancy

4.9

529 Reviews

$50 and over

Californian

Make a reservation

2 people

Jan 25, 2025

7:00 PM

Booked 36 times today

Experiences are available.

Innovative
Good for special occasions
Lively

A hip and fun restaurant with chef's counter dining, serving thoughtful American cuisine, with an emphasis on local seasonal products.

Ethel's Fancy is open at 5 PM Tuesday - Saturday.

We have a small dining room with a limited amount of reservable tables. We do keep our Bar seats and a table in the restaurant open for people to walk-ins. Walk-ins are on a first come basis.

Please do not make multiple reservations with the intention of combining reservations to increase party size.

All guests must be present before your party will be seated.

To help provide a seamless experience for all our guests, we have allocated 2-hours for your group of 2 to 4 people.

Additional information

Dining style
Casual Elegant
Price
$50 and over
Cuisines
Californian, Japanese, Contemporary French / American
Hours of operation
Tue–Thu 5:00 pm–9:00 pm Fri, Sat 5:00 pm–9:30 pm
Phone number
(650) 561-4860
Website
http://www.ethelsfancypa.com/
Payment options
AMEX, Mastercard, Visa
Dress code
Business Casual
Executive chef
Scott Nishiyama

Location
550 Waverley St, Palo Alto, CA 94301-1720
Neighborhood
Palo Alto
Cross street
University Avenue & Waverley Street<br />Hamilton Avenue & Waverley
Parking details
Public Lot
Additional
Beer, Cocktails, Corkage Fee, Full Bar, Gender Neutral Restroom, Non-Smoking, Patio/Outdoor Dining, Private Room, Wheelchair Access, Wine

Experiences

Valentine's Weekend 2025
$170.00 per person
Feb 14, 2025 - Feb 15, 2025
Reservations for Valentine’s Weekend 2025 are now available! On February 14th and 15th, Ethel’s Fancy will be showcasing a special 4 course prefix menu filled with a few surprises and some seasonal favorites, including our delectable house baked Rouge de Bordeaux Milk Bread. In true Ethel’s style, there will be multiple dishes in every course and everything will be shareable, providing the perfect environment to celebrate with loved ones or just a fun night out with friends. Price: $170 per person excludes tax and gratuity.

What 529 people are saying

Overall ratings and reviews

Reviews can only be made by diners who have eaten at this restaurant

4.9

4.9 based on recent ratings

4.9Food
4.8Service
4.8Ambience
4.5Value

Noise • Moderate

Loved For

San Francisco Bay Area
Innovative
San Francisco Bay Area
Californian
Peninsula
Best Overall
Peninsula
Best Food
Peninsula
Innovative
Peninsula
Hot spot
Peninsula
Californian

Review summary

AI-generated from verified diner reviews

Ethel's Fancy offers a delightful dining experience in Palo Alto, showcasing "incredibly delicious and unique food" with a creative menu that combines Japanese and American flavors. The service is praised as "fantastic," and the ambiance is lively and modern. Chef Scott's innovative dishes and attentive staff ensure guests leave with memorable experiences.

529 Reviews

a
anne
New York City
7 reviews
5.0
7 reviews
Dined today
1. Overall 5
2. Food 5
3. Service 5
4. Ambience 5
Excellent food, service and ambiance! Loved it and look forward to going again soon!
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A
Allison
Denver
2 reviews
5.0
2 reviews
Dined 1 day ago
1. Overall 5
2. Food 5
3. Service 4
4. Ambience 5
We love it here! Each time we go we say it’s the best it’s ever been! We will dream of the rigatoni until we see you again
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K
Koba
San Francisco
2 reviews
5.0
2 reviews
Dined 6 days ago
1. Overall 5
2. Food 5
3. Service 5
4. Ambience 5
The food was amazing and our waitress was wonderful. We had the bread, prawns, cucumber and pear salad and then trout for the main. For dessert the chocolate caramel tart and sesame seed ice cream with raspberries. Everything tasted amazing but trust me on this the bread was to die for. Get it.
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A
Anne-Marie
VIP
San Francisco
2 reviews
5.0
2 reviews
Dined on January 12, 2025
1. Overall 5
2. Food 5
3. Service 5
4. Ambience 5
We were seated in the back room, which was wonderfully quiet, with tables spaced so it didn’t feel cramped or overcrowded, but we could see into the main dining room, with its lovely decor and elegant and energetic feel. Excellent food and cocktails!
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F
Fiona
VIP
London
17 reviews
4.0
17 reviews
Dined on January 11, 2025
1. Overall 4
2. Food 5
3. Service 4
4. Ambience 4
Excellent food, desserts not at the level of the morsels and mains.
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H
Haley
San Francisco
1 review
5.0
1 review
Dined on January 10, 2025
1. Overall 5
2. Food 5
3. Service 5
4. Ambience 5
Everything was fantastic! The cocktails were fun and tasty and the food was delicious. The pork belly was the star of the show for us!
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M
Mario
VIP
San Francisco
18 reviews
5.0
18 reviews
Dined on January 9, 2025
1. Overall 5
2. Food 5
3. Service 5
4. Ambience 5
First time eating there, we went with another couple and shared a variety of dishes. Everything was outstanding, except for the dessert which was ok but not great. Definitely will be back.
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F
Ferdinand
VIP
San Francisco
11 reviews
4.0
11 reviews
Dined on January 9, 2025
1. Overall 4
2. Food 5
3. Service 5
4. Ambience 4
Quality of food is the focal point here. And that’s why we keep coming back.
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M
Margarita
San Diego
1 review
5.0
1 review
Dined on January 8, 2025
1. Overall 5
2. Food 5
3. Service 5
4. Ambience 5
Everything was very tasty. Service was superb. Dishes were a little bit small for the price but overall, I had a wonderful experience. Versatility in taste and texture. Kudos to the Chef!
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M
Monica
San Francisco
10 reviews
3.0
10 reviews
Dined on January 5, 2025
1. Overall 3
2. Food 2
3. Service 4
4. Ambience 3
Second time dining here and similar impressions as first time: Service was great (shout out to Brian!), though a touch TOO attentive (two or three attempts (not by Brian) to remove glasses/plates before we were finished!) Ambiance is meh - hard chairs, tables too close together, dining room too chilly. Lilliputian cocktails and laughably small wine pours (alas, increasingly typical of restaurants at this price point so I guess I need to just accept paying $30-$40 for one tiny cocktail and a teensy weensy glass of wine). I could forgive meh atmosphere and a few service bobbles if food were outstanding, but I found most items to be oversalted and rather pedestrian. Tiny gem lettuce salad had no depth of flavor. Pork belly was on the dry side and unremarkable. Rigatoni had some complexity and depth of flavor, but too much salt. Tempura prawns were the best item we had. A chocolate dessert with a dollop of rosemary cream was inedible (bone dry crust, chocolate that just tasted chewy and "off") so we exchanged it for the soft serve, which was... well, soft serve.
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FAQs

Ethel's Fancy is rated 4.9 stars by 529 OpenTable diners.

Yes, you can generally book this restaurant by choosing the date, time and party size on OpenTable.

Make a reservation

2 people

Jan 25, 2025

7:00 PM

Booked 36 times today

Experiences are available.

550 Waverley St, Palo Alto, CA 94301-1720

Additional information

Cross street
University Avenue & Waverley Street<br />Hamilton Avenue & Waverley
Neighborhood
Palo Alto
Hours of operation
Tue–Thu 5:00 pm–9:00 pm Fri, Sat 5:00 pm–9:30 pm
Price
$50 and over
Cuisines
Californian, Japanese, Contemporary French / American
Dining style
Casual Elegant
Dress code
Business Casual
Parking details
Public Lot
Payment options
AMEX, Mastercard, Visa
Executive chef
Scott Nishiyama
Additional
Beer, Cocktails, Corkage Fee, Full Bar, Gender Neutral Restroom, Non-Smoking, Patio/Outdoor Dining, Private Room, Wheelchair Access, Wine

Website
http://www.ethelsfancypa.com/
Phone number
(650) 561-4860

Ethel's Fancy

Make a reservation

Additional information

Experiences

Valentine's Weekend 2025

Menu

What 529 people are saying

Overall ratings and reviews

Loved For

Review summary

FAQs

How is Ethel's Fancy restaurant rated?

Is Ethel's Fancy currently accepting reservations?

Make a reservation

Additional information