Tamarine Restaurant

Excellent food. Liked everything we tried, clay pod cod is my favorite. Service was great well!

We stopped by this restaurant in downtown Palo Alto, drawn by its great location. Unfortunately, the experience didn't quite live up to expectations.The garlic noodles were the standout dish, absolutely delicious and probably some of the best we've had. Our kids loved them! The coconut shrimp appetizer was also really good. However, the entrees were a disappointment. The claypot cod was overwhelmingly sweet, making it hard to enjoy, while the seabass, despite having a nice char, lacked seasoning and flavor. It was served with a mango salad with glass noodles, which was extremely dry and came with no dressing.We also weren't happy with the wine selection. We specifically requested a semi-sweet wine that wasn't too dry, but what we received didn't match that at all.To top it off, the service fell short--the staff wasn't receptive to feedback, which made the overall experience even more underwhelming.

Best pho in my life... I was hungry, looking for a pho place and I went in this restaurant on a whim while walking on the street of Palo alto. Then after I entered into, I found it's a fine dining of southern asian. Although I found it's not the right place to have a pho here (you can always have it in less pricy place), I was craving about pho then so I just ordered a pho.. And OMG.. probably the best choice I made in 2025 so far.. It is really good and different..meaning that whenever I have pho in other pho places, I have to struggle w digestion afterwards but I never felt that discomfort or digestion problem here. And for the meat, I could tell they use high quality meat..Very impressive pho... I also had the tamarine shrimp. It's good but not my style. I should've ordered some other things like most of other tables have. And people working here are very kind.

Overall we had a wonderful meal! Everything was very flavorful and had its own special touches to it. The different sauces, textures, and spices. This is not your traditional Vietnamese place - it has its own fusion and twists. I really appreciated the unique touches and flavors and quality. We left feeling more than stuffed! My top 3 would have to be the blue crab nori tacos, tuna tartare, tiger prawns with garlic noodles. We had:Taro root rollsBanh mi roti Tuna tartare 3 orders of Blue crab nori tacos Green papaya saladTiger prawns and garlic noodlesWild pepper duck Egg tofu and veggiesShaking beefLemon grass sea bass with mango vermicelli Lava cakeCoconut tapioca with passion fruit For next time I would prob skip the banh mi roti. I prefer a very light flakey roti and this was much heavier and dough like. The taro root roll didn't give me taro vibes which I was a bit disappointed but none the less still good. However, if you are a taro lover you may be disappointed if you're expecting more of a taro taste. As for the dessert it was okay- nothing too unique to different from other dessert menus. We had the chocolate lava cake and coconut tapioca. The passion fruit in the tapioca was a bit too sour for me. Lemon grass bass was okay but some in our group really loved it. Really wish I opted in for the clay pot cod. It is always a plus when places have great cocktails - star of the show was " sunrise in Hanoi" and prob one of the best drinks I've had in a while. Very refreshing, slightly sweet but not overly sweet, and citrus touches. We also had the coconut mojito which prob wasn't my cup of tea, and a mezcal cocktail - but all very beautiful and flavorful. Excited to try more things next time such as the cod, empress rice, and the crab soup!

**Overview**Visited Tamarine on Valentine's Day with a 6:30 PM reservation. Unfortunately, we were seated outside as indoor tables were fully booked. It was a chilly evening, and they didn't have enough heaters, which made dining outside very cold.**The Food**- Salt & Pepper Calamari: The highlight of the night! Tender calamari with a flavorful salt and pepper seasoning. A dish we thoroughly enjoyed.- Garlic Noodles: The flavor was good--garlicky and full of umami. However, the choice of noodles (thin, ramen-like) wasn't our favorite and felt mismatched for the dish.- Shaking Beef: The sweet-savory sauce was delicious and complemented the dish well. While the beef wasn't the most tender, the refreshing greens paired nicely and balanced the flavors.**The Experience**The outdoor seating felt like an afterthought; it was on the side of the building and lacked ambiance, which was disappointing for a Valentine's dinner. Combined with the cold weather, it detracted from the overall experience.While the food was good, the overall experience didn't justify the high pricing, which likely reflects the downtown Palo Alto location. Unfortunately, given the ambiance and outdoor seating situation, we probably wouldn't return.

If you're in the area... highly, highly recommend Tamarine! The restaurant has so many fantastic qualities: the service is great, the interior is just beautiful (definitely felt under dressed), and of course, the food.... Amazing. I live about a 30 min drive away, but hopefully I'll get to eat here again just to try their other foods!Per the recommendation of our waiter, we got the ceviche for appetizer (it's currently not posted on the menu), and nori crab. They were both so, so good. Don't sleep on the shrimp heads in the ceviche: I was going to pass on them (because they kind of give me the ick), but they stuffed it with something delicious (I honestly don't know what!). The rest of the seafood was on point. The nori crab though was probably my favorite thing that we ate here: crispy seaweed with a good ratio of crab inside. Honestly, when I was researching restaurants for my husband's big 4-0, this fish was what caught my eye. Very happy they have it on the menu right now since there are seasonal items!Since the entrees are good for two people, my husband chose the shaking beef - he was kind of iffy on choosing it, since (in his words) "how good could it be?" Well... it was the best shaking beef he's ever had. Now, to be fair, shaking beef isn't particularly amazing in other restaurants so the bar isn't TOO high. But I will say, their beef was incredibly tender (unlike others where you chew for days). We paired the entree with cauliflower and coconut rice. In my opinion, these three plates didn't really go well together - but they were good individually. Coconut rice had a nice fragrance to it. The cauliflower was my least favorite - nothing really special about this dish. I do like how they have cashews in it though - gave the dish good texture.As I mentioned earlier, the service was great. Waiters were attentive, food arrived in a good cadence, and everyone was friendly. And the best part of it all? The price point isn't that and at all, considering how nice it looks inside and the friendly service. To end the meal, we ordered the banana dessert... can't go wrong if you choose it!I tried to find a Michelin restaurant for us to eat lunch at, around the Peninsula, but there aren't too many open during lunch time. I'm super, super happy that Tamarine IS open for lunch... we had a truly fantastic meal. Fingers crossed I'll come back again soon!

Came here for an anniversary dinner and food was overall good. Upscale Vietnamese fusion with good ambiance. We were warmly greeted by the staff when we first entered and brought us to our seats. Ordered the shaking beef, tiger prawn garlic noodle, papaya salad, lychee cocktail, and molten chocolate lava cake to end the night. Prawns were succulent and noodles had a good bounce to them, shaking beef was flavorful and tender, while the salad and cake were standard.

I would have made it a 5 star but I had forgotten that the menu changes every so often. I came back here because I really wanted the Pineapple pudding but after having ate the dinner, I was presented with the dessert menu -- no pineapple pudding! A little disappointing for me, as that was the whole reason I came back. And the new desserts didn't hit. But I do have to say that the front staff were really nice and accommodating this time around.

Back to Tamarine after 10+ years and it is still good and relevant. I was here for a business dinner and the other person chose this. The food and service were on point like I remember when I used to frequent it regularly until I got bored. The roti appetizer was a little heavy but everything else was good. The tiger prawns with garlic noodles was my favorite.

Came by for dinner the other night and it was a decent experience. Tamarine is a Vietnamese Asian fusion restaurant that is featured in the Michelin guide. Dining is available indoors, at the bar, as well as outdoors on the heated sidewalk.Made a reservation via OpenTable and our table was ready upon arrival. Staff were dressed in black. Our waiter did a great job of suggesting dishes.Started off with the tea leaf beef which was fragrant and juicy. This was served with some fish sauce. The duck rilette was passable as the duck was dry and the bread at the bottom was pretty hard.The banh mi roti was excellent. Super flaky roti served with a curry dipping sauce.The garlic prawn garlic nooodles were excellent. The garlic noodles were fragrant and the garlic prawns were cooked to perfection.The lemongrass sea bass was tasty although the flavors were more muted. The side of papaya salad was great too.The coconut tapioca dessert was a light and refreshing way to finish off dinner and reminded me of traditional che in Vietnam.The chocolate lava cake was decent.~$115/head after tax, gratuity and 4% SF mandates.