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Hotel restaurants are easy to overlook if you are not staying at the hotel. That is a mistake around Palo Alto. One of the best-known Japanese restaurant names in the world sits in a downtown hotel lobby. A Michelin-listed dining room overlooks the hills at the top of Sand Hill Road. The Four Seasons across Highway 101 is a long-running venue for business dinners. On El Camino Real, family-owned and chain hotels run all-day restaurants with pools, patios and free parking.
Every restaurant and bar here is open to the public. Each was confirmed as operating in 2026 through the hotel's own website or a verified page on this site. Hotel restaurant hours change more than most, especially for lunch, so check the restaurant's page before you go. For room details, see our where to stay guide.
At a glance
| Restaurant or bar | Hotel | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Nobu Palo Alto | Nobu Hotel, 180 Hamilton Ave. | Destination dinner downtown |
| Madera and Madera Bar | Rosewood Sand Hill, Menlo Park | Breakfast meetings, special dinners, terrace drinks |
| Quattro | Four Seasons, East Palo Alto | Business meals, weekend brunch |
| President's Terrace | Graduate, 488 University Ave. | Rooftop drinks |
| Dinah's Poolside Restaurant | Dinah's Garden Hotel, 4261 El Camino Real | All-day casual meals by the pool |
| The Sea by Alexander's Steakhouse | Dinah's Garden Hotel site, 4269 El Camino Real | Seafood and wagyu dinners |
| Wild Onion Bistro and Bar | Hotel Citrine, 750 San Antonio Rd. | Casual meals in south Palo Alto |
Nobu Palo Alto, 180 Hamilton Avenue
The Nobu restaurant opened on the ground floor of the Nobu Hotel Palo Alto on July 7, 2017. The San Francisco Chronicle covered it as Nobu's Bay Area debut. It serves the Japanese cooking with Peruvian influences that chef Nobu Matsuhisa made famous. The dining room opens onto the lobby bar and an interior garden courtyard.
The ground floor also holds the Nobu Lobby Bar and a cafe in the lobby lounge. The restaurant's website describes the cafe's espresso drinks, ube and matcha lattes and a tea program. It is a public restaurant, so book ahead for weekends and big Stanford weekends. University Avenue and the Caltrain station are a short walk away.
Madera, Rosewood Sand Hill
Madera is the signature restaurant at Rosewood Sand Hill, 2825 Sand Hill Road in Menlo Park, about a mile west of Stanford. It is listed in the MICHELIN Guide. The hotel's website lists Madera for breakfast and dinner. Private dining rooms inside the restaurant hold up to 16 guests.
Madera Bar serves cocktails and light bites on a terrace facing the Santa Cruz Mountains. On a clear evening it is one of the best views from any bar in the area. Because the hotel sits in the middle of the venture capital district, weekday breakfast in the dining room is a favorite for investors and founders. Seasonal programs have included afternoon tea and holiday dinners.
Quattro, Four Seasons Silicon Valley
Quattro is the main restaurant at the Four Seasons Hotel Silicon Valley, 2050 University Avenue in East Palo Alto, on the Palo Alto side of Highway 101. Part of the dining room sits in a glass cube that projects from the front of the building. According to the hotel, Quattro serves breakfast, lunch and dinner on weekdays and breakfast, brunch and dinner on weekends. A sunny terrace adds outdoor seating and a private room seats up to 20.
Quattro Bar has a wraparound bar with cocktails and small plates. The lobby lounge serves coffee and pastries daily and afternoon tea on weekends. Diners who are not staying at the hotel get free self-parking and valet, which helps explain Quattro's popularity for business dinners. Downtown Palo Alto is about a mile and a half away.
Downtown hotel bars
President's Terrace, Graduate Palo Alto
The Graduate by Hilton Palo Alto occupies the 1929 Hotel President at 488 University Avenue. Its rooftop bar, President's Terrace, has drawn locals as well as guests since the hotel opened in January 2023. There is also an all-day cafe on the ground floor. Parking is valet only.
el Prado, 520 Cowper Street
el Prado is not built around a destination restaurant. Its reopening announcement described a breakfast cafe beside a two-story glass solarium and a second-floor bar serving Spanish-inspired bites and cocktails. It is a quiet place for a drink a block from University Avenue.
El Camino Real: all-day hotel dining
Dinah's Poolside Restaurant and The Sea
Dinah's Garden Hotel has been family owned since 1957 and its history begins with a roadside restaurant. Today the property has two restaurants. Dinah's Poolside Restaurant is the casual one, open for breakfast, lunch and dinner every day in a bright room with floor-to-ceiling windows over the pool. The hotel describes California cooking with Asian influences from chef Gerardo Naranjo. It books through OpenTable.
The Sea by Alexander's Steakhouse shares the site and is the formal one. It is a dinner-only seafood restaurant from the Alexander's Steakhouse group, with Japanese influences and serious steak, including A5 wagyu. It books through SevenRooms and does not seat guests under 7. Our Dinah's Garden Hotel page covers the property.
Wild Onion Bistro and Bar, Hotel Citrine
At Hotel Citrine, 750 San Antonio Road, Wild Onion Bistro and Bar serves breakfast, lunch and dinner. Marriott's dining page notes three hours of free valet with validation for restaurant guests. The AC Lounge at the sister hotel next door serves pastries and coffee in the morning and drinks in the evening.
More hotel restaurants on El Camino
- Poolside Grill, Sheraton Palo Alto, 625 El Camino Real. Breakfast with Starbucks coffee, California-style food and cocktails by the pool, plus the Cardinal Lounge.
- Café Soleil, Westin Palo Alto, 675 El Camino Real. A breakfast buffet and specialty coffee in the morning and happy hour later in the day.
- The Kitchen at Palo Alto, Hilton Garden Inn, 4216 El Camino Real. Breakfast, happy hour and dinner, with a bar and a kids menu.
A short drive away
- Porta Blu, Hotel Nia, Menlo Park. Coastal European and Mediterranean cooking, according to the MICHELIN Guide. See our Hotel Nia page.
- Menlo Tavern, Stanford Park Hotel, Menlo Park. Seasonal California food, a cozy bar and courtyard fire pits at 100 El Camino Real.
- ROGER, The Ameswell Hotel, Mountain View. California food for dinner nightly and weekend brunch, with a daily happy hour.
Tips for dining at hotels
- Ask about parking. Quattro gives diners free parking and Wild Onion validates valet. Downtown hotels rely on valet or city garages.
- Use hotels for breakfast meetings. Madera, Quattro and Dinah's all serve a full sit-down breakfast in a quieter room than most cafes.
- Check the bar menu. Hotel bars often serve food later than the dining room.
- Book for big weekends. Commencement and football weekends fill hotel dining rooms with guests. If you need a room too, compare hotel rates near Stanford early.
For more ideas on meals that suit a meeting, see our business lunch guide.
Good to know
- All of these restaurants are open to non-guests.
- The Sea does not seat guests under 7.
- Parking at the Graduate is valet only.
- The Four Seasons is in East Palo Alto, on the Palo Alto side of Highway 101.
Frequently asked questions
Can you eat at hotel restaurants in Palo Alto without staying there?
Yes. Every restaurant on this page is open to the public. Nobu Palo Alto, Madera, Quattro and Dinah's Poolside Restaurant all take reservations. Quattro offers diners free parking and Hotel Citrine validates valet for Wild Onion guests.
When did Nobu Palo Alto open?
The Nobu restaurant at 180 Hamilton Avenue opened on July 7, 2017, on the ground floor of the Nobu Hotel. It serves the Japanese and Peruvian influenced cooking chef Nobu Matsuhisa made famous, with a lobby bar and a cafe.
Is there a rooftop bar in Palo Alto?
Yes. President's Terrace is the rooftop bar at the Graduate by Hilton Palo Alto, 488 University Avenue. The RH Rooftop Restaurant at Stanford Shopping Center is a skylit top-floor dining room rather than a hotel bar.
Which hotel restaurant near Palo Alto is in the MICHELIN Guide?
Madera at Rosewood Sand Hill in Menlo Park is listed in the guide. It serves breakfast and dinner and its bar terrace faces the Santa Cruz Mountains. Porta Blu at Hotel Nia in Menlo Park also appears in the guide.
Where is a good hotel breakfast in Palo Alto?
Dinah's Poolside Restaurant serves breakfast every day beside its pool on El Camino Real. Madera at Rosewood Sand Hill serves breakfast with a view of the hills. The Four Seasons' Quattro serves breakfast daily and brunch on weekends.