Saint Michael's Alley

We came here for a team dinner the other night. Food 3/5 : Food was okay. Nothing stood out expect the guava sorbet. I've never had guava sorbet anywhere else, it was perfectly made.Service 5/5 : Service was great, nothing to complain about at all. We were a large party and they were quite attentive and served all the dishes well in time, neither tried to rush us nor made us wait too long. It was perfectly balancedAmbiance 4/5 : We got the outdoor seating which is now covered with white curtains. It got a bit chilly, considering its winters but they were very nice to turn on extra heaters to make it comfortable. The outdoor looks pretty in the summer when the curtains are off but nothing extraordinary about it in the winters

Came here on a Tuesday night and it was fairly busy (good sign!) but had a reservation so didn't have any issues waiting. Got way too much food for 2 people and left very full and satisfied.Ahi tuna tacos: these were a special of the day. Light, refreshing, and tasty. Liked the mix of texture!Wild mushroom cake: this was extraordinary. The flavor, the texture (both the dense and earthy inside and crunchy exterior).Rack of Lamb: risotto was tasty and lamb was cooked well. The rack of lamb was smaller sized but at least they gave a decent amount. Overall a decent dish.Butternut Squash Ravioli: wow this was a star. The ravioli was STUFFED with butternut squash. And the brown butter sauce, mixed with the roasted squash and caramelized onions- just phenomenal. This is a must get.French Fries: I ordered these on a whim. They were just okay in my opinion. Tasted fine although didn't have much crunch. Wouldn't order again.

I no longer work along Homer Avenue, but I miss St. Mike's. When they had lunch service available, we would go here to welcome new colleagues and also celebrate retiring ones. After 7.5 years of service, I left my organization and a dear volunteer took me to dinner here. It was just as I remembered-- beautiful inside, intimate and delicious. I really do wish they would bring back the lunch service as it was on the affordable side but maybe they don't have quite the numbers coming back into the office during the day to justify it. Wish they could be open for lunch or brunch on Sundays at least. I would drive to Palo Alto from about an hour away now just to come here if they were open for lunch. Their service is wonderful and a nice ambiance. Love to support local businesses.

Saint Michael's Alley is a far bigger restaurant than I expected and beautifully decorated. .Julie welcomed me., Alex was our main waitstaff. We had one other individual that waited on us. Service by all 3 was excellent! Environment was inviting/welcoming,and quite beautiful. It's off the main drag of University Ave, which allows a bit more Intimate dialogue and better parking.. I had the mussels which were underwhelming and lacked wine and seasoning..My friend had the duck, which was a beautiful serving size and cooked perfectly. The profiteroles were not anything to talk about.The cheesecake, which I asked to be plain without raspberries or coulis, was lemony and delicious. Overall, I would go back again and try different items on the menu. Worth a second chance!

Excellent service. We got the great booth in the bar. Food was also great! Just a nice overall atmosphere, especially for the holidays. Will be back for sure

Booked Saint Michael's for a work Jeffersonian dinner, and was excited to try after looking at the menu.We got the bruschetta ($14) and avocado and burrata toast ($17) for apps. Nothing notable. For mains, they seemed to have a lot of good options. I tried the seared wild sea scallops ($40). Tasty, but this was actually the tiniest entree I've had in my life. 3 mini scallops, 2 bites of noodles, nothing else. Regrettably, I feasted off of bread after to fill myself up. Others agreed that their portions were abnormally small as well. For dessert, we tried the chocolate mousse, cheesecake, and pineapple bread pudding. The mousse was probably my favorite - the pudding was just okay. Ambiance was really nice for a group dinner. Service was okay - our waitress was kind, but seemed a bit uneasy/new to the restaurant. Overall, I'd choose a different spot next time to get more bang for my buck.

I don't know why this keeps happening but every so often I'll be asked on a date and the guy will describe the restaurant he chose to me as "a favorite of Bill Clinton". This also happened to me when I lived in Arizona and I feel like 42 really missed his calling by having his main thing be "President" when he really could have been "Big Restaurant Guy".Anyway, we went to this favorite of Bill's on Friday and had a wonderful experience. Our waiter mentioned it was his first time memorizing the specials and he did an excellent job! He checked on us several times, refilled our water glasses often, and our food was delivered quickly.The vibe in there is lowkey fancy but not SUPER fancy. I did that awkward dance outside while I was parking where I parked at the same time as another couple in the car next to me, and then we all got out of our cars at the same time and walked in together even though we didn't know each other, and then were seated near each other and did that thing where we pretended to be friends and waved from our tables and pointed at our food and gave each other thumbs ups. I can't remember why I started telling you about this but I think it was because they were like an older fancy couple and that's kind of the feel of this place.The food was excellent! I had a caesar salad with chicken and a side of fries, my date had the scallops, and we shared two of the specials- the prosciutto and watermelon appetizer, and the chocolate lava cake dessert. Everything was delicious and I can see why this place is a presidential fave. Nice job Bill.

I had family in town the week of thanksgiving and we decided to book a reservation here. So glad we did! The brussel sprouts were delicious! I ordered the salmon and it was great as well. Ended the night with shared tiramisu and herbal tea. I would definitely come back.

Came by for dinner the other night and it was a mediocre experience. Saint Michael's Alley is located in Downtown Palo Alto on the street level of a condo building. Made a reservation online and our table was ready in the dining room upon arrival.Dining is available in the dining room, bar room, or outdoor. Staff was courteous and some even wore a mask.Started off with the bread basket and it was a touch weak. The bread was pretty crispy and didn't taste super fresh. The butter was on the harder side too...Moved on to the mushroom cake and it also wasn't too fresh, despite being a special for the restaurant. I felt there was too much breading and the oil quality for frying the cake wasn't the freshest...The brussel sprouts were decent and was perfect for sharing.The crab toast was lackluster as it felt like it was canned crab with a mixture of some vegetables over a fresh piece of toast.The scallops were the highlight of the meal although I wasn't a fan of the lentils.Finished off the meal with the profiteroles which was ok. The puff didn't taste too fresh and the highlight were the candied walnut and the flavorful ice cream.~$60/head after tax and gratuity for dinner.

I went here for a lunch meeting. We were sitting outside, which was not noisy, even though it was a busy street. We had salads, which were good-sized. We both had dinner appointments. Great service and great food.