Chez TJ is an experience, as always. The food was very good, though there were so many ingredients in a single plate that sometimes the tastes got a little muddled. The service was lovely, and the fact that the server sometimes couldn't remember all of the many ingredients in each plate was charming. A standout was Ted Merkel, sommelier. Ted was enthusiastic about the wines and other drinks in a way that brought joy to all of us at the table. Thanks for a great experience, Ted!
JCB94086
We've been dining here since the late 90s and it is always a special experience. The chef delivered two of our courses himself which was really great. He is really going places, I think. Seems to have lots of ideas, makes good food, personable. It's been a few years since we've been to Chex TJ but we'll be back sooner now!
Foodlover
My wife and I been coming here since 2008. If we want to host a special friend or family, this is our go to place. We've had spectacular menus and not so spectacular over these years. This year, it is spectacular! The food taste really good, presentation is beautiful,and service has shot up tremendously. They deserve another Michelin star!
Kishor Bhat
We tried the Garden Menu and quite enjoyed the experience.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
BobR
The artistic small bites are admirable, but one hardly gets a chance to find the taste. The servers descriptions are too fast to digest them, and interjected questions only recover a fraction of the descriptions. We have experienced a wine pairing in Turku, Finland which really created a wonderful symbiosis of wine and food. We did not experience that here, but it is probably a rare experience.
PatrickD
What a treat. The food was magical and chef managed to accommodate one of our guests' food restrictions without losing his magic. The sommelier's pairings and knowledge are amazing. The staff is attentive without being overbearing. An awesome experience worthy of TJ's star
RichardL
Each course was outstanding, and the unveiling of the meal was special. Each of the staff knew each dish's components and described them artistically. And my wife received a special birthday cake!
Ben S
fun times you should do it at least once be prepared to spend $1000
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Susie Preston
My daughter and I just dined at Chez TJ for the first time. We had heard such good things about Chef Stan's food and we were excited to try it. It was spectacular! What a fabulous evening we had. The ambiance was lovely, the staff was friendly and professional, and the food was the star. Each course was a combination of flavors and textures that were both beautiful and delicious. Only to be perfectly complemented by the wine pairing suggested by Ted, the excellent Sommelier. And those desserts. Wow! What a finish to an incredible meal. We ended our evening with a tour of the garden which looks lovely. We can't wait to come back in the summer months to enjoy that as well. Thank you Chez TJ for a wonderful experience!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Zoey Preston
I rarely write reviews, but I’ve been to several Michelin-starred restaurants and I’ve never experienced one-star food at this level. Every bite was unique, nuanced, complex and packed with flavor.The canapés were all surprising, and the perfect way to wake up your tastebuds. From that point, every course worked together to create an incredible experience that ended with two fun and delicious desserts.Ted’s wine pairings were absolutely perfect and he was a blast to have at the table—the way he expertly described wine was clear and very high-level, yet still fun and relatable.Service was warm and friendly and the house was cozy and inviting. So unique to be dining in a historical space! We sat inside, but look forward to coming back when the weather is warmer to experience their outdoor area. And the garden is beautiful—such a unique element. Make sure you ask for a tour!All in all, there’s something really exciting going on at Chez TJ. Chef Stan Michalski’s food is truly next-level and I can’t wait to come back and try more.
Came here for my birthday with my husband. It started off well but it went downhill from there. The two of us have many Michelin stars under our belt; Chez TJ missed the mark.We enjoyed the staff’s lively and friendly attitude. But there were several bumps along the way which soured our experience here.(1) I communicated that my husband has a seafood aversion, to which the restaurant responded it would be no problem. They confirmed the seafood aversion upon our arrival, and mentioned that the bass for one course would be replaced with pork. The bass course came and went, the pork substitute was missing entirely from the plate. The server didn’t mention pork at all when describing the plates (perhaps in an attempt to pull a fast one/hoping we had forgotten??) My husband’s plate ended up being just a tiny slice of heart of palm with dollops of puree. At this point, we thought maybe -we- had gotten it wrong. But our menus at the end of the meal came, confirming that pork was on the menu but missing from his plate. We brought this up with the server, who then made a couple of trips back and forth from the kitchen, each time adding extra lines to the story. Apparently the cook on the pork was overdone, and Chef decided not to serve it last minute in an attempt to keep the meal moving. Sure that’s fine, but why hide it from the start? We got nothing more than a verbal “sorry,” which frankly is unacceptable for a meal that cost $668 out the door between food, wine, and mandatory 20% service. Base price is $225 per person; short changing someone a protein course in a situation like this is certainly material. When we had brought up feedback with Selby’s, another Silicon Valley dining cornerstone, they immediately gave us a $150 gift card to come back. Also, there were a number of ways to keep the meal moving while still acknowledging the mistake, perhaps more heart of palm in that dish or a bigger protein portion for the next dish they were still cooking.(2) Michelin or not, my yardstick is whether my water glass ever drops below half. We had to flag a server to have our water glasses refilled.(3) The pacing between the courses was awfully slow.(4) There was only one bathroom available for guests. For a packed Saturday night, it was often occupied. The bathroom wait was often 5-10 minutes. Once during the meal, the bathroom was full when my husband tried it. A server told my husband he would fetch him from the table when the bathroom opened up. Well, he never ended up coming back to fetch my husband. He had to just physically guess and check every so often.(5) We sat in the portion of the dining room that was closest to the kitchen. We heard the kitchen manager yelling (not nicely) at the others to pick up the pace. My husband and I weren’t the only ones to notice this, another couple were shocked as well. And mind you, this wasn’t a one off outburst. It was a constant stream of barking.(6) When I ordered a glass of SauvBlanc, the server poured the entire glass immediately instead of checking the taste with me first.All to say while the steak and the black sesame dessert were highlights, I doubt we will be visiting again.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 4
Service: 1
Great food but not worth $600+ for 2 people, no wine. It was a wonderful experience. Unique flavors. Beautiful presentation. Impeccable service! But for a 1 star Michelin, that price isn't justified. Tip included and a health fee. Skip it!
JackieW
Exquisite food and service. Total experience was exceptional. We particularly enjoyed the excellent wine, choices, and expertise from Sommelier, Ted Merkle. . An all round amazing evening
anastasiya verenitch
We had a tasting menu dinner with my husband . The food was ok, really nothing special. We’ve been to many different Michelin restaurants and this one didn’t impress us at all. The service was great in the beginning but then our waiter got busy with other tables. He recommended 2 wines that were completely out of our tastes .. when he was pouring our wines, he spilled a couple of drops on the white table cloth . And finally , the atmosphere and the interior design didn’t impress at all. The lamp on the table had dust on it and the bathroom wasn’t clean .
Chez TJ is an experience, as always. The food was very good, though there were so many ingredients in a single plate that sometimes the tastes got a little muddled. The service was lovely, and the fact that the server sometimes couldn't remember all of the many ingredients in each plate was charming. A standout was Ted Merkel, sommelier. Ted was enthusiastic about the wines and other drinks in a way that brought joy to all of us at the table. Thanks for a great experience, Ted!
We've been dining here since the late 90s and it is always a special experience. The chef delivered two of our courses himself which was really great. He is really going places, I think. Seems to have lots of ideas, makes good food, personable. It's been a few years since we've been to Chex TJ but we'll be back sooner now!
My wife and I been coming here since 2008. If we want to host a special friend or family, this is our go to place. We've had spectacular menus and not so spectacular over these years. This year, it is spectacular! The food taste really good, presentation is beautiful,and service has shot up tremendously. They deserve another Michelin star!
We tried the Garden Menu and quite enjoyed the experience.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
The artistic small bites are admirable, but one hardly gets a chance to find the taste. The servers descriptions are too fast to digest them, and interjected questions only recover a fraction of the descriptions. We have experienced a wine pairing in Turku, Finland which really created a wonderful symbiosis of wine and food. We did not experience that here, but it is probably a rare experience.
What a treat. The food was magical and chef managed to accommodate one of our guests' food restrictions without losing his magic. The sommelier's pairings and knowledge are amazing. The staff is attentive without being overbearing. An awesome experience worthy of TJ's star
Each course was outstanding, and the unveiling of the meal was special. Each of the staff knew each dish's components and described them artistically. And my wife received a special birthday cake!
fun times you should do it at least once be prepared to spend $1000
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
My daughter and I just dined at Chez TJ for the first time. We had heard such good things about Chef Stan's food and we were excited to try it. It was spectacular! What a fabulous evening we had. The ambiance was lovely, the staff was friendly and professional, and the food was the star. Each course was a combination of flavors and textures that were both beautiful and delicious. Only to be perfectly complemented by the wine pairing suggested by Ted, the excellent Sommelier. And those desserts. Wow! What a finish to an incredible meal. We ended our evening with a tour of the garden which looks lovely. We can't wait to come back in the summer months to enjoy that as well. Thank you Chez TJ for a wonderful experience!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
I rarely write reviews, but I’ve been to several Michelin-starred restaurants and I’ve never experienced one-star food at this level. Every bite was unique, nuanced, complex and packed with flavor.The canapés were all surprising, and the perfect way to wake up your tastebuds. From that point, every course worked together to create an incredible experience that ended with two fun and delicious desserts.Ted’s wine pairings were absolutely perfect and he was a blast to have at the table—the way he expertly described wine was clear and very high-level, yet still fun and relatable.Service was warm and friendly and the house was cozy and inviting. So unique to be dining in a historical space! We sat inside, but look forward to coming back when the weather is warmer to experience their outdoor area. And the garden is beautiful—such a unique element. Make sure you ask for a tour!All in all, there’s something really exciting going on at Chez TJ. Chef Stan Michalski’s food is truly next-level and I can’t wait to come back and try more.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Restaurantji Recommends
Came here for my birthday with my husband. It started off well but it went downhill from there. The two of us have many Michelin stars under our belt; Chez TJ missed the mark.We enjoyed the staff’s lively and friendly attitude. But there were several bumps along the way which soured our experience here.(1) I communicated that my husband has a seafood aversion, to which the restaurant responded it would be no problem. They confirmed the seafood aversion upon our arrival, and mentioned that the bass for one course would be replaced with pork. The bass course came and went, the pork substitute was missing entirely from the plate. The server didn’t mention pork at all when describing the plates (perhaps in an attempt to pull a fast one/hoping we had forgotten??) My husband’s plate ended up being just a tiny slice of heart of palm with dollops of puree. At this point, we thought maybe -we- had gotten it wrong. But our menus at the end of the meal came, confirming that pork was on the menu but missing from his plate. We brought this up with the server, who then made a couple of trips back and forth from the kitchen, each time adding extra lines to the story. Apparently the cook on the pork was overdone, and Chef decided not to serve it last minute in an attempt to keep the meal moving. Sure that’s fine, but why hide it from the start? We got nothing more than a verbal “sorry,” which frankly is unacceptable for a meal that cost $668 out the door between food, wine, and mandatory 20% service. Base price is $225 per person; short changing someone a protein course in a situation like this is certainly material. When we had brought up feedback with Selby’s, another Silicon Valley dining cornerstone, they immediately gave us a $150 gift card to come back. Also, there were a number of ways to keep the meal moving while still acknowledging the mistake, perhaps more heart of palm in that dish or a bigger protein portion for the next dish they were still cooking.(2) Michelin or not, my yardstick is whether my water glass ever drops below half. We had to flag a server to have our water glasses refilled.(3) The pacing between the courses was awfully slow.(4) There was only one bathroom available for guests. For a packed Saturday night, it was often occupied. The bathroom wait was often 5-10 minutes. Once during the meal, the bathroom was full when my husband tried it. A server told my husband he would fetch him from the table when the bathroom opened up. Well, he never ended up coming back to fetch my husband. He had to just physically guess and check every so often.(5) We sat in the portion of the dining room that was closest to the kitchen. We heard the kitchen manager yelling (not nicely) at the others to pick up the pace. My husband and I weren’t the only ones to notice this, another couple were shocked as well. And mind you, this wasn’t a one off outburst. It was a constant stream of barking.(6) When I ordered a glass of SauvBlanc, the server poured the entire glass immediately instead of checking the taste with me first.All to say while the steak and the black sesame dessert were highlights, I doubt we will be visiting again.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 4
Service: 1
Great food but not worth $600+ for 2 people, no wine. It was a wonderful experience. Unique flavors. Beautiful presentation. Impeccable service! But for a 1 star Michelin, that price isn't justified. Tip included and a health fee. Skip it!
Exquisite food and service. Total experience was exceptional. We particularly enjoyed the excellent wine, choices, and expertise from Sommelier, Ted Merkle. . An all round amazing evening
We had a tasting menu dinner with my husband . The food was ok, really nothing special. We’ve been to many different Michelin restaurants and this one didn’t impress us at all. The service was great in the beginning but then our waiter got busy with other tables. He recommended 2 wines that were completely out of our tastes .. when he was pouring our wines, he spilled a couple of drops on the white table cloth . And finally , the atmosphere and the interior design didn’t impress at all. The lamp on the table had dust on it and the bathroom wasn’t clean .
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 2
Service: 1
Mmmm yummers