Palo Alto, California, is knowninternationally for the city’s cultural and historical traditions, StanfordUniversity, always sunny weather, and upscale restaurants catering to theSilicon Valley crowd. A recent addition to the restaurant scene is Bon Vivant Café on a quiet side streetright off University Avenue. Bistro-style marble tables with blue glasseson them line the outer wall of the café, while stepping inside it is easy toimagine being in a Parisian restaurant. 
Spherical crystal chandeliers, oldsilver, freshly cut gardenias and potted orchids compliment the white tablecloth establishment that is also an art gallery and a music hall with a grandpiano in a corner of the spacious dining room. 
Music-themed artworks bya Moscow painter Andrey Anisimov cover the walls, and on weekends the dinersare treated to classical music, jazz, or rock and blues performances by famousmusicians from different countries. 
Bon Vivant Café’skitchen is headed by Brandon Paige,an experienced chef with Aqua (San Francisco) and MK (Chicago) stints under hisbelt. 
On the night we dined,our exquisite meal started with a glass of Provencal rose, Whispering Angel, and airy cheese puffs, gougers, served in a red enamel cocotte. 
A bowl of chilled melon soup with charred prawn, basil seed, and tarragon float came next.
Thevelvety sweetness of pureed cantaloupe was balanced out by the fleshy seafoodand minty flavors of herbs and spices. This soup alone could be well worth avisit to Bon Vivant, however, since all produce comes from the local farmersmarket, the house specials change with the season. 
Charcuterie board,suggested by our attentive server, included silky duck liver mousse, tenderrabbit rilette, salami, stone ground mustard, and cornichons. 
Black kale salad had awonderfully chewy texture and was garnished with savory parmesan vinaigretteand lemony croutons.
Although it was hard toimagine the baby beet salad ingredients on the same plate, they workedsplendidly together as a testament to Bon Vivant’s creativity and thepopularity of its original recipes created in house. Cooked red and orangebeets were served with marinated plums, cottage cheese, granola, and arugula,combining all tastes and textures imaginable. There is also a smokedtrout salad – a very satisfying dish that uses excellent house cured fish,boiled heirloom potatoes, crispy shallots and citrus crème – delish! 
Roasted sweetbreads enpapillote came as a star of the starters menu. This is a very French dish thatrequires a lot of prep work, but done right can outshine anything else. Bon Vivant’s sweetbreadswere probably the best I’ve ever tried – both in America and in France. 
For the main course, mydining companion chose an intriguing sounding roasted wild boar, prepared tochef’s specifications. That turned out to be a medium-well lean gamey loin, itstexture enhanced by soft creamy polenta, ratatouille, and olive vinaigrette. 
I was in a mood for amore conservative chicken “Grand Mere” with a side of petit carrots, Englishpeas, and in lemon-thyme jus. Its golden-brown goodness did remind me of mygrandma’s roasted chicken, but my grandma was an outstanding cook. 
Our desserts were crepeSuzette with fresh orange wedges Рa twist on a classic dish, only lighter Рandrich chocolate pot de cr̬me with shortbread cookies. 
Dining in Bon Vivant isa guaranteed pleasure, plus art and entertainment in a good company. No wonderthe place is packed for lunch and dinner, and often reserved for privateparties, birthdays, and corporate celebrations. Bon Vivant is located at535 Bryant St., Palo Alto. Call for reservations 650-485-3228 or visit www.bonvivantcafe.net. 
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