Came by for dinner the other night and it was a tasty experience. DEMI is an upscale version of the Demiya chain located in the outskirts of Downtown Palo Alto making parking a breeze. The kitchen seemed to be staffed by Japanese and Gaijin's were taking care of the front of the house. Made a reservation and our table was ready upon arrival. There is a ductless air conditioner although it wasn't on and the door was wide open during my visit. The interior was rather cute. Started off with the Japanese milk bread and it was decent. The versions in Japan are better. The whipped butter was on the harder side. The versions in Paris are miles better. The highlight of the meal was the grilled prime yakinuku steak which was extremely flavorful and cooked to a medium rare as requested. Loved how this was served over a bed of carefully curated vegetables. Clientele seemed to be a mix of tech/AI bros along with some boomers. ~$61/head after tax and gratuity for dinner. read more

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The food is shockingly sweet. The presentation is beautiful but the ginger pork tasted like candied pork and the mentaiko pasta also tasted sugary with not enough mentaiko for my taste. Ive never had Japanese food taste so sweet before so i was shocked. The table next to us also commented on how sweet the food tasted. Its a pity, its a gorgeous resultant but they do need to fine-tune the taste of the dishes imo. read more

DEMI - Japanese Near Me - Palo Alto, California

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Japanese comfort food and a good-very good level. Went here on a Sunday evening with reservations. Seated right away, waters came quickly and the server was very helpful in pointing out their most popular dishes. Here's how I would grade what we ordered: Takoyaki: B+ Furikake Steak Fries: B+ Pork Curry Empanada: B Omurice: A- Cabonara: A- Corn: B+ Monaka Matcha: A- Yuzu Sorbet (tended toward ice cream): B Overall solid food and well prepared. Portions were of decent size so you won't come away hungry. The decor is nice, not high end. Prices aren't the lowest in town, but the quality makes it worth the price. We'll be back to try some other dishes. read more

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Came in on a weekend night and waited about 30 minutes to be seated with no reservation. In short, the food was great but the kitchen takes a long while. Even a single empanada took nearly 40 minutes to get to the table before any main dishes came. It's a very small restaurant and we slowly watched the place clear out as we waited for our food, and even noticed many tables who were seated after us eat first. This place could also use some better dishwashing as we had several dirty dishes we asked the swap out. On the bright side, the servers were super friendly and apologetic. Beef empanada - really flaky, soft on the inside, and unique flavor Pork curry doria - the cheese was the highlight of the plate, as the rest of it was pretty bland Japanese carbonara - only get if you like your spaghetti al dente, as it was definitely on the harder side read more

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Had reservations for Friday night at 7:45pm for a party of 3. The place was small and packed. Despite the reservation, we had to wait an extra 15 minutes before being seated. What we got: - Creamy Shrimp Empanada ~ creamy, savory interior wrapped in flaky buttery crust. Came fresh right out of the oven! - Beef Curry Empanada ~ Very homey curry interior, with a crispy and buttery crust. Came out fresh and steaming. Ours was slightly burnt on top, but still delicious nonetheless! - Yuzu Kosho Peperoncino Pasta ~ Semi-oily from the olive oil, but carries big flavor. Crispy fried garlic adds flavor and texture, while the yuzu kosho cuts through with its bright, tangy flavor. However, the Pasta was too al dente for my liking. - Omurice ~ THE DEMI-GLACE SAUCE! A great balance between buttery, tangy, and tomatoey. The sauce was so good, I had to ask multiple waiters to see if I could figure out the ingredients to the recipe! Highly recommend. All in all, pretty decent. Would return to try their lunch menu! read more

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We came to celebrate my friend's birthday and the staff were very kind and helpful, they made him feel very special. The place was very small and cozy, they did leave the door open all night which was interesting. A small note we did family style to try everything, and before the dishes came out the server places all the extra utensils for sharing down. This was very considerate but a little overwhelming because we had a bunch of extra silverware on the table. I would recommend placing a few sets down as the dishes are coming out so things can be more organized. Carbonara pasta: 8/10 this was my favorite from the meal! It's not very Japanese though, very creamy and you can taste the egg which is interesting, large portion for sharing Salmon pasta: 6/10 I normally don't like salmon pasta but the sauce was a little watery and tasted a bit bland, large chunks of salmon though Calamari katsu: 7/10 can't really taste the calamari, the breading on it was a little heavy, smaller portion Omurice: 8/10 tasted like ketchup rice Milk bread: 7/10 good bread but not amazing, not sure what butter was paired but it was on the salty side (champagne butter?) Mushroom Empanada: 4/10 we had the beef curry one and shrimp one too I think those were better, the mushroom one just tasted like mushroom and mozzarella cheese that was hardened Soft shell crab katsu: 6/10 dry and breading bad, crab not juicy Yakiniku beef: 7/10 it was ok not amazing, just tasted like marinated beef 6/10 overall for me, it's comparable to GIWA so if you like GIWA you'll like this place. I didn't think the food was amazing, I didn't really taste the Japanese in the pastas, and the food was just okay and not WOW. They did surprise my friend with ice cream for his birthday which was very sweet but it was as we were paying so it was a little awkward. I think Ethel's fancy which is near by is a better choice and around the same price. read more

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We tried Demiya years ago and were excited to hear about Demi by chef Demi Ebara. Demiya: casual Japanese comfort food Demi: refined sit-down Japanese-Western fusion in a more upscale environment The restaurant is very small maybe 10 or so tables but they do take Yelp reservations. Food was good but they do have some kinks to work through as food took awhile to come out. read more

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This place is so good. I tried two empanadas and the herb chicken flavor is so good. The contrast between the flaky crust and the soft chicken makes it so hard not to get. The beef one has japanese curry inside and it has a strong scent of curry but not that potent of spice. The chicken karaage was pretty solid too. This was one of the first times that i ate karaage and didnt need the mayo. The hamburg was sweet and savory, the carbonara was rich and creamy. The combination of the two was so hard to beat. I highly recommend this place. read more

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A new gem in Palo Alto! This spot serves modern Japanese food with classic dishes like chicken katsu, Japanese curry, and omurice and also, more fusion dishes like Japanese empanadas, Japanese carbonara, and mentaiko cream pasta. Right now, the space is small and cozy, with around less than 10 tables for parties of 2-4 people. The space fills up fast right now and you'll have to wait. However, they did mention that they're opening up an outdoor garden soon that will have additional seating. The staff were very friendly. Here's what we ordered: The Pork Curry Empanada had very flaky crust and was packed with a flavorful pork curry. The Mentaiko Cream Pasta was the best bite! The sauce was rich and creamy and the mentaiko flavor really came through. I would absolutely order this again! We also got the Chicken Katsu Japanese Curry. The chicken was juicy and the curry was good, but we weren't fans of the breading on the outside. They also serve Japanese breakfasts in the morning. I'll definitely be back to try that and to see how the new outdoor space adds to the experience! read more

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New Japanese fusion spot in downtown Palo Alto, 1 street north of University and located next to Ike's. Came on a Friday for lunch around 1pm. Place is small, probably 10-12 tables. Had to wait a couple minutes for some people to finish up which was fine. Waiters were good and very informative of menu and letting us know which has been popular to that have given them feedback. My friend wanted a curry dish and I wanted a pasta dish, so we were able to share a little of each for us to try both. My friend ordered the Katsu Curry. Fried chicken katsu over rice and curry sauce with carrot, potato. The chicken was fried well and the chicken wasn't dry. Overall a solid dish. My friend said she enjoyed it and wasn't able to finish as it was too much for her. I ordered the Mentaiko pasta. It was flavorful and wasn't too heavy. It was basically noodles without any protein, so I'd suggest ordering a karaage plate if you're trying to hit your protein goals. The noodles were thin and not chewy and the sauce was light and not too heavy. Overall really good, but not spectacular. I think I'd like to comeback and try the carbonara pasta, karaage and an empanada. read more

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Japanese breakfast was legit and a real surprise to see. The dashi omelet was heavenly and the side dishes were each a treat Mentaiko spaghetti was also good though I preferred the carbonara pasta more read more

DEMI - Japanese Near Me - Palo Alto, California

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I have to go all the way to Palo Alto for Japanese food? Yes you do if what you want is traditional Karaage, fried chicken or Japanese breakfast. On our first visit, we had the karaage. It was a very generous portion. The chicken was moist. The coating was perfect. It's not so much as fried chicken in the United States. It's very light. It was plated with green beans in a sesame dressing. This was delicious and I don't usually like green beans, it also came with a generous amount of rice and some pickles and a mayonnaise based dipping sauce. The restaurant is small so it's best to make a reservation and required to make a reservation on Sundays when they serve breakfast. Reservations are available through the Yelp app parking at 1 o'clock on a weekday was no problem on the street. read more

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This concept is really unique and I'm happy that Palo Alto gets its share of western-style Japanese food. We got seated about 45 min after we showed up, and by the time we ordered half the menu had run out so I'm sad we didn't get to try everything we wanted to (for reference, we got seated around 1pm). The staff are incredibly friendly though and very helpful. I think the chicken empanada was my favorite, though it was $9 each. read more

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Decided to check out this spot for dinner after strolling around ikea and it did not disappoint. I would definitely come back again-every dish tasted so delicious Milk bread-the bread was soft, fluffy and warm. The butter that came with it was light and flavorful Beef curry empanada-nice and flaky crust with curry beef toppings inside that weren't too over powering Shishito peppers-perfectly salted, one of the better shishito pepper dishes i have ever tasted Pork & shimeji curry doria- I wasnt too sure what to expect for this but it was rich in flavor and had a great creamy texture. Too much cheese for my preference but otherwise, this dish was crafted really well Chicken katsu-chicken was tender and moist, the batter was crispy, not thick at all. The house dipping sauce it comes with was insanely delicious that we had to order a second sauce. Servers were all nice and attentive. Really loved the vibe here! It's a small, cozy spot with a beautiful interior that feels stylish but still relaxed and approachable. read more

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Great food, great service, great ambiance. They are in soft open phase, and it's already getting busy as diners seek out this gem and come back for more. Tried dinner menu, will also try Japanese breakfast and lunch menu, soon. read more

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Cute Japanese restaurant that's in soft opening, one block away from University Ave. Their soft opening lunch menu has quite a few options, ranging from Japanese empanadas to pasta. We opted for their omurice and Japanese carbonara, and it didn't disappoint! The lunch set came with a house salad and potato salad that were both tasty. The omurice had a fluffy egg with a really good gravy sauce over it. The carbonara was creamy without being heavy, with a unique corn-taste to it that reminded me of corn portage soup. Both were really good dishes that we wouldn't hesitate to order again. Good service and ambiance. Highly recommend giving them a try! read more

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Food , service and space were great. Ordered the chicken curry it was good but it was too expensive considering there are other options out there so it's a one and done for me. read more

DEMI - Japanese Near Me - Palo Alto, California

Food was very good. My wife calls it comfort food. We had omurice, pork empanada and menchi katsu burger. We'll be back to try their curry dishes and other lunch plates. Service was very attentive. We had one mishap with our empanada but the servers were right there and made things right. Best to make reservations or it'll be a wait if you drop in. Very casual ambiance. read more

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i was unexpectedly in palo alto for the day and visited for lunch. demi is a yoshoku restaurant located in the old poke one location. front of house is helmed by two personable waiters and quality is pretty good. liked both the carbonara and the katsu curry. carbonara could use a bit more pepper but the rest of it is very by the book -- al dente spaghetti, clingy cream sauce, shimeji mushrooms, and a hint of dashi. katsu is well fried with a nice fat cap, curry has more depth than expected. overall pleasant spot, they seem very geared towards business lunches read more

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Fascinating food/flavor combinations Unparalleled server hospitality Attractive course presentations/pacing read more

Ordered the carbonara, pork katsu, and empanada and the food was great! It did take a while to come out but understandable since they're just opening and are ramping up. Our servers were amazing and super friendly! The one negative thing - there is an older tall employee (not sure if he was a supervisor but he was sure acting like one) that was very off-putting. First of all when we walked in, he said there would be a 2 hour wait and that there was a waitlist but he wouldn't help us get on the waitlist... and after talking with another employee (a lady that was very helpful) it turns out there was indeed a table available for us to sit immediately. I brushed it off assuming he must have just been occupied with the busy dinner crowd, but during the entire dinner I can hear him micromanaging the other servers (who were super amazing and didn't need to be micromanaged) and making demeaning comments to them. Please remember... it's not only the customers that deserve respect, but also your peers as well! read more

DEMI - Japanese Near Me - Palo Alto, California

Everything was SOOOOOO GOOD! We wanted to try this place for a while and I'm glad we were in the area too. The service was great, the ambiance was super relaxing and clean! The food was absolutely 10/10, we will definitely be coming back to try the dinner menu! read more

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rarely leave negative reviews, but this was an extremely frustrating experience. We waited 90 minutes and eventually left without being seated. The biggest issue is that they seriously need to fix their Yelp waitlist system. If customers are being given an estimated wait time through Yelp, the restaurant needs to manage that list properly and provide accurate updates. Having people wait 90 minutes with no clear communication is unacceptable. I understand restaurants get busy, but there needs to be a better system in place. Unfortunately, after wasting an hour and a half waiting, we decided to leave. Very disappointing experience. read more

We had to go after looking at the menu. There are few yoshoku restaurants in the Bay Area so we were excited to see a variety of traditional and creative interpretations of western style menu items. We decided that it was worth the hour and half wait but were startled to get a text saying our place in line was canceled. Luckily we were already in front of the restaurant and the front desk person straightened out the problem right away. I haven't seen a doria selection here so was excited to order the pork and mushroom curry version. We decided to split it and the very popular omurice. Luckily during our wait we had plenty of time to make menu selections and ordered right away. Two other groups had to wait quite a bit before their orders were taken. Alas after all this wait both dishes were underwhelming. They were too plain and I found the taste of the omurice sauce off-putting. I wanted a proper rich demiglace sauce for this dish. I am glad Demi is doing so well right now and introducing people to these types of dishes.i hope they develop their flavors more as the insane rush of customers die down. read more

DEMI - Omurice - Japanese Near Me - Palo Alto, California

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chef demi is there, small space, hard to reach someone by calling. expanded demiya menu, and sauces still done well, on the sweet side. mentaiko and carbonara pastas, executed decently. miso soup a bit salty. weekend breakfast to get the teishoku read more

It's still officially a soft opening, but the service was good. The food didn't take too long to arrive, and the servers were attentive. We arrived a little after 12pm on a Tuesday and were lucky to grab the last free table. We ordered chicken katsu curry and a tonkatsu sandwich. Both were very tasty, and the portions were decent. It's downtown Palo Alto, so the elevated prices were on par for the area. The sandwich was a bit messy due to the thickness of the sandwich and the tonkatsu sauce, so it would have been nice to have more napkins (just a minor nitpick). Still, it was a tasty sandwich. The chicken katsu curry was good but a bit unusual. The chicken was thick white meat instead of the expected thinner dark meat. The outside breading was slightly burnt but mostly okay. I realize that this is California and not Japan, but I think I would have preferred dark meat. The curry itself has a very good flavor, but the onions were somewhat raw and not caramelized like I expected. read more

Arthur was great! Even though it was extremely busy and a long line and wait. He chatted with us and sat us as soon as a table for two became available. Great overall service and food was delicious. Would recommend. read more

Great new japanese spot. Flavors were good. We ordered katsu curry and lunch plate. Service was quick

My group loved everything that we ordered! Everything was seasoned well, nothing was too overbearing. The House Salad was a delightful surprise and tasted amazing! The service was impeccable, checking up on us frequently to make sure everything was ok and that we had the necessary utensils. It can get pretty busy around noon but the wait time wasn't too bad. Definitely coming back read more

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Worst customer experience I ever had. Been here on a weekday noon, standing beside the door for 10+ minutes. While half of the seats were empty, we weren't allowed to go in since there was really one waitress. This really need to be improved... read more

Lovely Japanese homestyle food! This place is going to become very popular when the influencers find it. Go while it's still a reasonable wait! read more

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Food was amazing and reasonably priced. The portions were generous, and the server and staff were all very friendly and accommodating. Our server today was especially accommodating and made sure we had the best dining experience. Highly recommend this place, and I'll definitely be coming back! read more

The staff was extremely nice and able to accommodate our family of 5 by moving around a couple tables. Food was delicious! We had the emapandas, burger, Japanese carbonara, and tonkatsu curry. Would highly recommend! read more