The Farmers Union
| Address: | 151 W Santa Clara St, San Jose, CA 95113, USA |
| Phone: | +1 408-277-0545 |
| Site: | thefarmersunion.com |
| Rating: | 4.2 |
| Working: | Closed 11:30AM–10PM 11:30AM–10PM 11:30AM–10PM 11:30AM–11PM 4–11PM 10AM–2:30PM |
Location
Photos 100
Reviews 8
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Leslie Clark
From the second we walked in the door, the first contact we had was a snotty hostess whose first words were "its an hour wait". Not hello, Happy 4th of July or anything welcoming. She didnt ask if we had a reservation, which we did. Then she lead us to our table and dropped us off. Management should have a discussion with her explaining that her job is to welcome your guests, not piss on them as they come in the door. It set a bad mood. The waiter was quick to the table and very appropriately friendly-but not cloying. But then our drinks were delayed because the guest one table over complained about her salad and the waiter dutifully tried to please her. First. We were still waiting for our bottled water. Menu looks very good, but with such a negative beginning, many people will never find that out-- theyll turn around and walk right out the door. We did get some food after a decent interval, but no silverware until we asked. There seems to be a fundamental lack of attention to the smooth running of the dining room. Another example-- the party at the table next to us departed and the table was cleared and reset, but several used cloth napkins remained on the floor under the table unnoticed. The food was as described in the menu. It had good flavors, generous portions and showed thoughtful design and preparation. The tastes showed good point-counterpoint in juxtaposing tart-sour pickled vegetables with the heat in the peanut sauce for the grilled chicken skewers. I think a tad bit of sweetness added to the peanut sauce improved the pairing. The sweet beets and candied walnuts played well with the peppery flavors in the arugula salad. Again, the walnuts could be a bit more candied to heighten the prickling of the tastebuds. Returning to the snotty hostess-- throughout our relatively late meal-- there were ample tables and seats at the bar available throughout our tenure in the restaurant. It actually got pretty empty. Hmmmm-- more training for the front room staff. The waiter turned out to be just about perfect.
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Bob Thorman
2016 Well, I finally made it back to San Jose and ate here again. They definitely fixed the chilling reception problem and the food was exactly as I remembered. Delicious! 2015 Other than the receptionist chilly greeting when I walked in, my experience here was fantastic. When I arrived the young lady that was posing as the receptionist stared at me for a moment and then said, "do you want a table?" Hello! Im not a salesman. Anyway, the waiter was a great server, very personable, very knowledgeable about their menu, and made a great suggestion for dinner. I had the flat-iron steak and it was amazing. Cooked just like I ordered and severed with some delicious fries and a fried egg. Yes, it was good. The field greens salad that I had before the meal was also wonderful. But what topped all that was the house-made carrot cake. Ive been a carrot cake fanatic for all my 50 years and this was in the top 3 Ive ever had. Just amazing. Served with on a cinnamon/caramel drizzled plate. Just amazing. I might go back just for that. Hopefully they will get their receptionist to not be such a zero when folks enter the restaurant. Im still giving this place five stars because its really about the food and the servers which was worth it.
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Amy Schroll
1/3/15 My boss and his wife were taking my husband and me to a Sharks game, so we treated them to dinner before the event. We ate at the Farmers Union by their recommendation. The place was packed - it was right before game time - but we were seated right away at a comfortable booth for four. I had the fish & chips and my husband had a Union burger with bacon added. My boss and his wife also had an order of fish & chips and a rotisserie chicken. All of the food was very good - I really enjoyed my dinner! The ladies bathroom was clean; the mens bathroom however (according to Casey) had a man bleeding all over the place - my husband walked in on this weird scene and someone else called for help. Pretty sure when people say "you shouldve seen the other guy", the other guy looks something like this guy did. The atmosphere was lively and fun, and service was great - Im sure they keep up with the pace of customers who are trying to get to the Sharks games. We paid the $88 tab and then enjoyed a wonderful game with the Sharks winning in overtime! Go Sharks!
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Jennifer Lu Gilbert
Lots of interesting and uncommon beer on tap. Great selection of wine and cocktails. The place has a very nice ambiance and the service was decent. The menu is not super big, but the few items that I tried were good. I recommend the Farmers Union salad. It has lots of different textures and will surely fill up your happy tummy. The ribs appetizer was flavorful, but unfortunately the meat was not as tender as Id had hoped. I also tried the hot brownie a la mode and that was very delicious. My friend got the burger and topped it with an egg. It looked delicious! Minus 1 star because several of the beers our party wanted to order were not available.
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Josh Hampton
57 beers on tap. With that kind of selection of fresh on draught selections The Farmers Union has a beer for everyone. I tasted through their sour beer collection and was extremely pleased. Food is also delicious here. For dinner I had their smoked pork shoulder with collard greens and baked beans, everything was delicious. The chef knows how to play with contrasting flavors to make them not just mesh together but also stand out. The BBQ sauce on the pork shoulder is an excellent example of this. Try it out, seriously.
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Victoria Fassano
Finally a place that does not have the same old same old on the menu. We shared apps and had cocktails. Standouts were the mushroom cigars with the porcini aioli, a fungi lovers dream come true... The duck confit rolls with orange dipping sauce, a fun and less fussy take on duck a lorange and the ale and cheddar fondue - melted cheese and beer, how can it be bad? Not that over the moon on the mac n cheese but that is probably because I have already found two amazing one recently elsewhere. Definitely worth a look see.
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Ryan Paulsen
We went there before the Andrea Bocelli concert!!! First time there and will be back! Enjoyed several small plates including the salmon roll, pork poutine, and calamari! My favorite was the salmon... The calamari was good... The poutine is not what we expected! Good, but not likely to order again!!! The waitstaff was amazing and truly enjoyed the atmosphere and VIBE of this place! The people seated next to us (who were also going to the concert) had the meatballs and that is my next order!!! Truly a great dinner!!!
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Daniel Gooda
We had a reservation for 815pm on a Friday night. We got there and were seated right away. I liked the atmosphere and decor but the place was way too loud. None of us at the table could hear each other. We didnt get to order for about 30 minutes and overall our whole dining experience lasted almost 2 hours. I got the fish and chips which was horrible and almost tasteless. The fries were soggy even. Others had the mashed potatoes and chicken which they also disliked. Will not return.
