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Instagram is the culinary world’s app of choice. Sure, you need that other app or a website to post your newsy bits, but chefs and their followers like to showcase fabulous food in an online photo gallery, without all those distracting words and links. Increasingly, restaurants are also finding that “Insta-worthy” decor — art-filled niches, neon sign backdrops and selfie spots — can be a huge plus, drawing both new and return customers who love to put themselves front and center, along with the food and drink.
Here’s a roundup of fun and photogenic places we like:
Food blogger Alejandra Gonzalez and chef-restaurateur Alex Garcia promised customers “Cafe de Olla y Mucho Más” — Mexican spiced coffee and much more — when they opened the area’s first Latino-owned urban coffee bar earlier this year.
The “much more” is some serious Instagram cred, and that’s got customers lining up out the door most days. The cafe menu has them making repeat visits.
For Instagram photos, the dominant feature is the swing hanging from the ceiling with its cheeky admonition, “Siente el Pedorro,” slang for “Sit your booty down,” Gonzalez says. Few can resist it, least of all the children who come with their parents. On the back wall is a painting of Frida Kahlo.
What to order: In the morning, try a mini pan dulce (served in the basket of an adorable small wire bicycle) and cinnamony Cafe de Olla or Horchata Latte. At lunch or later, go for the Torta de Jamon, ham on toasted telera bread with queso fresco, pickled jalapeño and cilantro, and the Pepino con Limón, a lime-cucumber refresher with a chamoy rim.
Details: Open from 5:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. weekdays and 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. weekends at 101 E. Santa Clara St., San Jose. www.conazucarcafe.com
If you haven’t already, you need to check out the OG of Instagram-worthy Bay Area spots. You’re likely to find your jaw dropping at your first visit — and truth be told, subsequent visits — to any of the Thai restaurants from chef Kasem “Pop” Saengsawang and wife Iing Chatterjee.
Thousands of silk blossoms cascade over patios, wind across ceilings, dangle down the interior corners. Stunning chandeliers — crystal in Oakland, gold in Menlo Park — hang over the central tables. “Hello Gorgeous” reads the cursive neon sign on a flower-bedecked wall.
There’s expansive seating at both locations, but waits for tables are common. You could order takeout or delivery, but who would want to miss this ambiance?
What to order: Saengsawang offers contemporary interpretations of the bold, flavorful Thai food he grew up with. For lunch or dinner at Farmhouse, crispy chicken is a must, either the Hat Yai Fried Chicken with dipping curry, roti and blue rice, or the Farmhouse Wings with chili plum sauce. After that, seafood plates, bowls of curry and Wagyu-filled rolls beckon. Son & Garden serves breakfast and lunch — omelettes, scrambles and seven types of benedicts — plus a Cherry Blossom tea for two.
Details: Farmhouse Kitchen is located at 336 Water St. in Oakland and 1165 Merrill St., Menlo Park. Both are open daily for lunch and dinner; check https://farmhousethai.com/ for hours. Son & Garden is open from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily at 1195 Merrill St. https://sonandgarden.com/menlo-park
India’s visual heritage provides the backdrop at Ayesha Thapar’s contemporary Cal-Indian restaurant, which has won accolades for both decor (Thomas Schoos, designer) and cuisine (Srijith Gopinathan, executive chef and co-owner).
This space is an Instagram gallery unto itself, starting with the majestic indigo-colored antique front doors. They open into the massive art- and tile-decorated dining room with the mezzanine and glass dome above. Scene-setting spots include the wooden box art of the artist Ramachandran, the portraiture of photographer Rohit Chawla and the streetscapes and landscapes by Gautam Vir Prashad.
Want a whimsical shot? Head to the patio where you’ll find a charming canopy of upside-down umbrellas.
What to order: In 2021, the Michelin Guide honored Ettan as a “new discovery,” citing the “impressive” Gopinathan and his “unique brand of upscale Indian cooking.” Big hits on his small-plates menu include Red Chili Octopus, Kerala Fried Chicken, Sesame Leaf Chaat and the irresistible Monkey Buns baked to order in a cast-iron skillet and served with spiced eggplant chutney and house-churned butter.
Details: Open for dinner from 5 to 9 p.m. Tuesday-Thursday, 5-10 p.m. Friday-Saturday, 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. for Sunday brunch and 5 to 8:30 for Sunday dinner. Lunch hours are being added soon. 518 Bryant St., Palo Alto. www.ettanrestaurant.com
You can bet that a bakery that specializes in ube — the purple yam so prevalent in in the Philippines — is going to make the most of that color in all of its lavender, plum and violet hues.
For owner Gemma Ballesteros, combining the flavors of her heritage with American favorites like cupcakes made sense when she embarked on a baking career after her daughter, Marley, was born. After all, she says, “Every Filipino dessert comes in that flavor.”
At her downtown shop, customers like to pose in front of the “Hella Dope & Delicious” sign, the flower wall display — or head outside with their towering purple desserts for a Hayward streetscape.
Want to take selfies elsewhere? You can book the food truck, which goes by the name Marley’s Streats, to bring the sweet stuff to your home party.
What to order: Current bestsellers are the Flan Ube Cheesecakes (two desserts in one), Flanana pudding (bananas pudding with flan), Flandesals (a riff on Filipino sweet bread) and ube milkshakes.
Details: Open from 3 to 8 p.m. Tuesday-Friday, noon to 8 p.m. Saturday and noon to 5 p.m. Sunday at 838 B St., Hayward. www.marleystreats.com
The K Cafe is billed as an Asian French fusion cafe, which sounds charming enough, right?
But behind the doors on this busy thoroughfare is a veritable floral-filled fairytale land with enough chandeliers and mirrors to rival Versailles, making this a perfect space for bridal and baby showers, birthdays and girls’ days out.
Owner Kayla Dinh hit upon a winning combination when she decided to offer brunch on weekdays. The restaurant is pleasantly filled from late morning on Tuesdays through Fridays and packed on weekends, with the line of customers stretching through the garden patio and down the street.
What to order: Benedicts and Chicken and Waffles are the big brunch hits here. And if you’re a fan of that savory Vietnamese classic, Shaking Beef, it’s available with eggs, salad and a croissant. As for desserts, the chef’s flavored cheesecakes are popular, as is the weekends-only amaretto carrot cake.
Details: Walk-in sitting only; reservations for private parties and other events. Open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekends and 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuesday-Friday and 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekends at 923 S. Bascom Ave. www.kcafesj.com
Ice cream or boba tea? You can plot your Instagram strategy while waiting in line and figuring out what to order. Will you pose with a colorful boba tea positioned just so on the winged wall? Or with a wildly colorful soft-serve sundae in front of the neon “Sweet as a Devil, Fresh as an Angel” sign?
Founder Sophie Kim’s dessert shop at The Veranda encourages customers to mix and match … you can add boba, sprinkles and sticks to your sundae or crown your tea with a swirl of soft serve. And did we mention that they bake mochi doughnuts too? Those come in 10 flavors: chocolate, cookies & cream, cookie monster, matcha, milk & cereal, pistachio, strawberry, Thai tea, tiramisu and ube.
If Concord is a little far afield for you, another Devil & Angel is coming to the other end of the Bay Area. Look for an opening at the Great Mall in Milpitas in three to six months.
What to order: Are you feeling angelic or a little devilish? The soft, waffle-like angel cone is shaped like a taiyaki fish; he perches atop your soft serve. The devil cone is a crunchy waffle-style cone; have it filled to your heart’s content.
Details: Open daily from 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday-Thursday, and 9:30 Friday-Saturday at 2025 Diamond Blvd., Concord. https://devilnangel.com/
If you’re going to name your place the Funny Farm, there are certain expectations you need to meet. Co-owners Ron and Monica Levi deliver on all, from what she calls “twisted” comfort food to delightfully wacky decor.
The funky street-art-meets-pop-art mural that covers an entire wall is a prime spot for selfies. But virtually everything is a photo op in this colorful and corrugated space. There’s the display case of glass jars stuffed with, uh, stuffed animals; the furry columns that sport googly eyes; the large slinkies hanging from the ceiling; the Lego-patterned kitchen doors; and the sign near the cash register that exhorts you to “Get your fat pants ready” before you peruse the menu.
“When you walk in, there’s going to be a response,” Monica says, and she’s right.
What to order: Consider one of chef Ron’s crazy-delicious riffs on classics featured on the “Man vs. Food” television show: The Monte Cristo Reeto, which is wrapped chimichanga style and deep-fried, and the UFO Burger, with a crispy cheese frico.
Details: Open from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Wednesday-Thursday, 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday, 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday and 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday at 3245 Stevens Creek Blvd. Look for them to trick out their South San Jose location, 4898 San Felipe Road, in the future. http://funnyfarmrestaurant.com/
You may be tempted to start taking selfies as soon as you walk into the micro-roaster Tellus, with its many Instagram backdrops. Instead, heed the advice of the large neon sign: “But First, Coffee.”
Order, take a few sips, then make the rounds.
There are the cozy seating areas framed by luxurious drapes, a lovely option. The beautiful brick walls, no adornment needed. The mounted array of glass coffee-bean dispensers, a strong vertical shot. An all-black wall, so dramatic. And then there’s the greenery. On the back wall, dozens of live plants, their foliage dangling from six shelves, await your closeup.
What to order: Pour-overs are the specialty here, with customers going for the Terra, a single-origin Sumatran dark roast, and the Mellonia, a single origin from Costa Rica. Breakfast sandwiches on fresh croissants and avocado toast are popular early in the day; come lunchtime and later, it’s the Argentinian empanadas with chimichurri.
Details: Open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday-Saturday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday at 1410 N. Main St., Walnut Creek. www.telluscoffee.com
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You don’t have to be a sushi lover who indulges in wasabi to be drawn to the “Hot Like Wasabi” sign surrounded by red silk flowers for a photo before you sit down, between courses or when you leave.
“Our goal is to continue to stay current with food, drinks and atmosphere,” Musterer said. “Our customer base loves to take pictures of their experiences. From sushi rolls to sake bombs to our interior design, it all adds to our brand and the customer experience.”
And it won’t stop with the wasabi wall. Look for more social media photo ops in the future here as Sushi Confidential commissions additional graphic design murals.
What to order: Rolls inspired by South County — the Morgan Hill Baked Mushroom Roll and the Crispy Gilroy Garlic Roll — join the signature Cabo Conspiracy and Geisha Girl rolls on this expanded menu.
Details: Open from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday, 2:30 to 9 p.m. Monday-Wednesday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Thursday and 11 a.m. to 11:30 p.m. Friday-Saturday at 17340 Monterey Road, Morgan Hill. www.sushiconfidential.com
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