Eating Out RESTAURANT REVIEW
Emerging star on Castro La Fontaine a solid hit with only a few minor misses by Dale F. Bentson mechanical engineer by training, Hasan Yildiz has a passion for food that has led him on a quest to cook and learn. After several apprenticeships, he became the head chef at Mountain View’s Vaso Azzuro, a position he held for eight years. For his first restaurant, Yildiz embraced the name La Fontaine, to honor the great 17th-century French poet and fabulist whose books he was read in nursery school. There’s much I like about the fivemonth old Italian-French restaurant and bar on Castro Street in Mountain View. The food is well prepared by a sure hand in the kitchen: flavorful, fresh, with ample portions at reasonable prices. Service is attentive, the wine list is adequate and a full bar never hurts. I also like the cosmetic upgrades, which give a more refined contemporary feel than predecessors B’Zu and Zucca with new tables
Magali Gauthier
A
Veronica Reyes and Arif Duman serve customers at a La Fontaine outdoor table.
and chairs, hardwood floor and a viewing window into the kitchen. A long-out-of-use wood-burning oven is being restored for making pizzas. Many familiar elements remain: the extended mirrored wall, the angled bar, indoor/outdoor seating options. It’s just much snazzier now. There are, however, some frontof-the-house details that need tweaking. Details that taken independently might not be significant, but cumulatively affect overall impression. As in so much of life, details spell the difference between ordinary and remarkable. For eating establishments, it is the difference between being regarded as someplace exceptional or as just another dining option along restaurant row. On a recent visit, I found the bound menu was accompanied by an untidy creased sheet of paper listing the restaurant specials. That evening, there (continued on page 34)
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