Local Union 271

Decided to stop by here for dinner with my friend before heading off to my class at Stanford.
It was very crowded when we first walked in and we were greeted by a friendly waitress. We were seated and given a menu along with a happy hour menu. From this point on, it went South.
I noticed that the prices for the food were a bit high. Ok that’s fine, I’m in Palo Alto downtown and inflated prices are to be expected. We ordered a burger and bbq ribs.
To make a long story short, the food was terrible. I base my burger reviews off of the In-​N-​Out rule, where if I’m having a burger at a restaurant (meaning that it is pricey), the burger has to at least taste better than an In-​N-​Out burger. Sadly this was not the case. The ribs were not impressive either.
Will most likely not return here for food. It does seem like a good place to chill for students and/​or for happy hour after work though.

Unbelievable! I went to get seated for 5 adults and a child and was refused service. The reason? First, the hostess asked if the child can sit in a regular chair. We said no– the baby is 4 months old. Then she asked if the child can sit in a booster. We said no but we have a stroller that she can sit in. The hostess was all befuddled and confused and went to ask the manager what to do. The manager came back and told us they could not handle a baby carriage because the restaurant needed to conserve space because of how crowded it was… 90% of the room was EMPTY. Then I asked if we could just replace a chair for the stroller… Her face conveyed her clear confusion and said they couldn’t because of its limited space. Again, the restaurant was nearly empty with only a couple people eating outside.
Clearly, the hostess and the manager had no idea what they were doing. They refused service to a group with a child because of a non-​existent issue.
This restaurant needs to have a staff with basic understandings of families with children.
Moreover, they were so rude to us!
Unbelievable!

Came here for lunch. The décor is cute and the service was good. I really like the idea of farm to table but the food here was just decent. I just got back from Kauai this morning and had some of the most amazing farm to table meals so my expectations were high. We ordered a couple of egg dishes and they were good. Nothing stood out as spectacular but we may come back to try different dishes next time.

Thomas was our server again tonight! He is seriously the best. So friendly and great energy. I love the food here, but the amazing service keeps me coming back. Thanks Thomas! You always put a smile on our faces!
–Tatiana and Celia!

Amazing farm to table restaurant. Fist place I have ever been with a bacon bar. Yes I said bacon. Totally divine country style bacon. Loved the chicken pot pie. The tomato soup had an unexpected you my twist– truffle oil. Great wine selection at reasonable prices. Excellent service. Glad to see this place added to University Avenue.

Without question, best tuna appetizer I’ve ever had. Get the tuna tower– amazing. Also, the burger and chicken pot pie are both amazing. All of the food is super fresh and delish! Cute atmosphere too. Love this place.

This place is overrated. Throw-​up in the bathroom sink and no running water, bland food and really poor service. Perhaps if you drink a lot the food will taste better. There are so many options in Palo Alto — skip this place.

Came for dinner right during peak hours. Sushi Grade Line was amazing. The wasabi mayo on the side — mmm I still dream about that dish. We also got the Pot Pie which was on point. The two dishes went well together. Service was very good and the environment was great. Can’t wait to come again.

I use to walk past this place, thinking I knew what it was. Maybe Crepes? Turns out it’s farm-​to-​table. Fresh food, I enjoyed finding out about it, and how it works from the bartender Jen. She mentioned that it comes from local area farms and such. I can from brunch a while back and she served me– and again more recently. She is like a ninja. I don’t even see my water replaced. Also, I suggest bacon chips… I also enjoy the mimosa trees they make for Sunday brunch. Good to share with others or half of a tree, is good for just you. I don’t cook, so I enjoyed getting fresh food– and knowing where it came from (not a freezer, not processed). The interior is so awesome, overall I Love this place!

Delicious and pretty food!
The restaurant had a pleasant and comfortable atmosphere. I ordered the avocado toast, I thought ingredients are key to this food.
And i saw a mimosa tree which other table ordered. I should really try that next time!!!

Great place to hang out after work! Great happy hour. Must try the Devil Eggs!
I was also happy to know that they sometimes serve IPA on tap with happy hour pricing

This place is great. The service is awesome and the food is always on point. Please don’t change anything. The ingredients they use are delicious and everything is very well executed.
Eating there is always a treat

Had Sunday brunch here not too long ago. Service was great, wish I knew our servers name I had the mimosa tree *chug chug* Awesome to try different flavors, my favorite being the pineapple jalapeño. $ 20 is a little pricey in my option for shot glass sized tasters buuuut oh well lol
I ordered the Santa Barbara Fish Co. Smoked Salmon Sandwich which was reaalllly good. I have a soft spot in my heart for all things salmon related so I was pumped. Salmon was thick cut and not overpoweringly smokey which was nice. The bread, amazing! The green goddess sauce that came with it was a great pairing

Local Union is so good for a happy hour! Coworkers and I have been here several times and are always satisfied with the food and service. My recommendations include:
The sangria: absolutely sweet and delicious.
Chicken tacos: Two fully loaded tacos for $ 6? Yes, please! These are more than enough.
I also have tried the meatballs, spinach dip, and deviled eggs. It’s hard to go wrong with their food.
The only unfortunate thing about Local Union is that, outside of happy hour, the food is way expensive.

3 Stars
Why?
Awesomeness
— décor and lighting
— music
— corned beef hash with hollandaise and runny egg (it was a daily special item)
Not so awesome stuff
— pricey, pricey, pricey
— coffee grounds in the coffee (hint: they’re not supposed to be there)
— salmon Benedict was a huge letdown (just didn’t taste good)
I would only come back if the corned beef hash was on the daily special menu.

We had dinner tonight and we loved it.‘we ordered the beets salad and spinach deep.
We enjoyed every bit of it.
The ambience, service a the food were great.
We will be back.

I stumbled upon this restaurant when during a casual stroll on University Avenue. At first glance, this place looks really hip and feels super inviting.
Despite the trendy interiors I decided to sit outside since the weather was great and heard at least 6 – 7 people passing by wanting to try this place at some point (so it wasn’t just me — this place does look good!) I had the Chicken Taco and a Cappuccino. The Tacos were quite good although the Guacamole tasted a bit funny (nothing too bad, I promise — just didn’t taste like the kind of Guac I’m used to).
The service was prompt and the coffee was good. I’d probably go back here with a group again and try other things on their menu before giving my final word.

The vibe of this place is what I aspire my home to be. From the décor to the friendly service, they’ve got ambiance down. I also appreciate that they locally source many of their ingredients. There is room for improvement elsewhere.
My friends and I came for brunch and truth be told, I judge a brunch spot on two things — the mimosas and the eggs. They get an A in mimosas because of the variety. Traditional OJ, cucumber honey, pineapple jalepeño; there is a mimosa for everyone here. The yolks of my over easy eggs were cooked all the way through, so C– on the eggs. I ordered the «Local Moco» and getting the right yolkiness is key to this dish.
My only other complaint is the server forgot to place the order for a couple of our appetizers, so they awkwardly came out after our entrees. Minor mistake here.
Would I eat here again? Definitely. But you can bet I’m not ordering eggs next time.

I really wanted to like this restaurant, but it seems I’ve had an abnormal experience.
I came in the wintertime (I guess there’s no such thing in the Bay though), and I sat outside with the heat lamps. They really turn up the lamps! I was down to my last layer and still felt warm. However, I learned sitting outside was definitely the better option, even though the servers were probably less attentive. When I stepped inside to use the restroom, I realized half the restaurant smelled horrendous… reminded me of animal poop whenever I visit farms. I’m not sure if there was something wrong with the sewage or bathrooms, but my friends also smelled it too upon entering the restaurant.
Even with the diversity of the menu, they manage to make everything pretty healthy (albeit bland). I enjoyed all the vegetable options. They even have free oranges at the door!
I ordered the trout, and I almost choked on all the bones! They were extremely small, and there were actually dozens in the tiny pieces they gave me. My friend ordered the exact same trout, and hers only had a few bones. But seriously, this is America, and when I order fish I expect it to be deboned! I ended up having to eat with my hands since the bones were quite discreet.

This place is a gem in Palo Alto. It has great ambiance, plenty of space, and great service. Both times I’ve been here I’ve come with a group of five or more. They don’t take reservations, and we were promptly seated both times. The service is on point.
The décor is a marriage of rustic and industrial. The bathrooms are always clean. I’ve only had drinks and appetizers, both were a hit. The tuna tower was delicious and enough for everyone in our group to enjoy.
Looking forward to coming back for brunch and trying the mimosa tree!

My last review was on the low end so I felt the need to update it. I’ve had two more experiences with Local Union since then and both have been good. The first time I got a take out turkey sandwich and the thing was HUGE. It was served as an open faced sandwich with the cheese melted beautifully on top. The turkey was cut thickly too and the sandwich ended up being both my lunch and dinner.
Second time, I ate there for lunch and ordered their soup and salad combo. I think the soup was a tomato bisque and it was to die for. I was very satisfied with the amount of food I was given, everything tasted fresh and crisp.

This place alriiiiight. Checked out the Unilocal and decided to try it out.
Their sandwich menu was pretty much the size of their salad menu, which was weird… And since I don’t eat bacon, that dramatically reduced the menu options for me, though I’m sure I could have removed them if I had wanted. Anyway, after agonizing over the menu for a solid 10 minutes, I decided to go with mint tea (hey it’s January and it be cold, at least for the Bay Area), Mary’s Tuscan Chicken Sandwich (substituted the Tomato soup for the Special soup: Roasted Butternut Squash Soup, which was an extra two bucks), and eventually got an Apple Cobbler for dessert (shared it with my coworker).
Okay the mint tea was horrible. The smell of the tea bag was like a spearmint gum and I HATE that smell. It’s like a sickly sweet mint and was NOT appealing. I decided to try it anyway and it was as imagined, not good. They had a lemon wedge on the plate and I squirted some in there. It made it worse –_​_​_​_​_​_​_​– so after 2 sips I put it aside and asked the waitress for some water instead.
Got my sandwich in a timely fashion, which was nice. The Roasted Butternut Squash was pretty good. I have no complaints over this soup, in fact I’m sure I would order it again if I came back to this establishment, if it was still available since it was a special. The sandwich was decent and pretty good proportion. It was moist, had a lot of flavors going for it. I only ate one half because I didn’t want to eat too much but I would have totally consumed it immediately if I wasn’t being so conscious about my proportions. I also wanted to leave room for dessert. They also gave a side of pickles, which I usually love. However, these were those bread and butter pickles, which are sweet… and the ones I don’t like. Could have done without those.
Decided to share an apple cobbler with a coworker (felt okay about it since I hadn’t eaten both halves of my sandwich). It was honestly really good, though I wish they had given more ice cream to cobbler ratio because once all the ice cream melts away, there is just an unbearable amount of cobbler left over that is difficult to get through. But otherwise a decent dessert.
Will I come back? Probably. Not immediately though but at some point.

This review is for their happy hour:
In terms of choices, its your average happy hour. About 6 mixed drinks on the list for $ 6 and 6 food items for $ 6. They could offer more but what they do offer, they do pretty well. The drinks are really stiff! That alone gives them an additional star. Most places water down the crap out of HH drinks so it was nice to get a good buzz going with just 2 moscow mules.
The produce is locally sourced and the meats are sustainably raised if you are a enviromentally conscious. Ordered the open face grilled cheese (HH $ 6) and a cup of tomato soup ($ 3). Nice pairing and it was fresh. Might not be the most exciting but good comfort food. The HH smoked chicken tacos which came as 2 large soft tacos loaded with shredded cabbage and shredded chicken. Definitely worth the price.
Nice open restaurent with a front patio. We sat outside to people watch. Service was fast and efficient. Overall, this place is worth a visit during HH (5−6pm Mon-​Fri)
4 stars

Decent food concepts, just ok execution.
It was Saturday early afternoon, and we were strolling around downtown University Avenue looking for a quick lunch. We saw Local Union 271 bursting at the seams with people and hadn’t heard much about it, so we decided to check it out.
The staff quickly seated us, and we were greeted within seconds. We ordered an appetizer, salad, and entrée to share. Our appetizer and salad were delivered within 5 minutes, and the entrée was delivered soon thereafter.
The Deviled Eggs had a light flavor of horseradish and mustard. The yolk filling was slightly too creamy for my preference and there was too much yolk, but the real bacon bits added nice texture contrast and seasoning.
***** CULINARY CONUNDRUM — DEVILED EGGS *****
When making Deviled Eggs, it’s typical to end with extra yolk filling on hand. The extra is because of the additional stuff the chef adds to the yolk mixture (horseradish, mustard, mayo, and relish are standards. bacon, cornichon, celery, house pickled chilies, chives, and truffle oil/​salt are expert level). At Local Union, they used their extra deviled yolk filling as a glue to stick the Deviled Eggs in place on the serving plate. The result is that they use more yolk than exists naturally or compared to most other deviled eggs. They serve almost a standard Deviled Egg’s worth of yolk on top AND on bottom of the egg white. Too much yolk — the ratio is all off.
The Watermelon and Feta salad was refreshing and had great flavor balance. I wish they’d skipped adding other salad greens beyond mint — the other greens were a distraction from watermelon and feta flavors. The dish didn’t have enough mint to compliment each bite of the melon, and the melon pieces were served as an unwieldy large stack with the feta placed as a layer between slices of melon. The unwieldiness of size (melon) and mix (feta and mint) resulted in an inconsistent variety of flavors per bite. This dish could work better if the melon was pre-​cut bite size and already mixed with crumbled feta and a balanced chiffonade of mint.
Ahi tuna tacos looked bad — so bad that I didn’t try them. The tuna didn’t look fresh. It looked slimy and not intensely fresh. Most tuna is frozen near when its caught, well before a restaurant receives it. I’m guessing the tuna we were served had been frozen, thawed, re-​frozen, and re-​thawed at least once. The menu describes the ahi tacos as Poke like. False. We received undressed and unseasoned tuna, which we also saw delivered to two other tables. The cabbage underlying the tuna wasn’t seasoned or dressed either, but the corn tortillas looked beautiful (somewhat freshly made and recently griddled). The tacos didn’t look so bad that we sent them back, but we probably should have. I picked at the side salad and a piece of cabbage, and I later wished I hadn’t even done that.
Overall, the menu stands as a relevant and contemporary set of flavors and ideas, but Local Union’s execution falls short in overall experience delivery. The bustling ambiance is fun, and service was on point. Sitting at the bar looks like it could be its own fun experience.