This was my second time visiting Zola +Barzola and I must say I really enjoyed it. We came here for a little date night and had delicious cocktails, apps, and entree. The service was great! Our server was friendly and she gave us recommendations based on what we typically enjoy for both cocktails and food. For our meal we had the bretzels, chickpea panisse, salade verte, Mary's chicken paillard, and for dessert the chocolate mousse. Our absolute favorites were the chickpea panisse and chicken paillard- Both were excellent flavors and reminded me of comfort food on a fall evening. The bretzels were not warm and I would pass on these next time. The chocolate mousse- wow just wow. Please save room for this chocolate mousse! My cocktail was " around the world" and it was also amazing.

Ok so if you're going to come here remind yourself that it's Palo Alto and it's pricey. Now that your mind is in the right space, sit and enjoy the delicious cocktails and the desserts. Just experiencing these two made us definitely want to return for a full meal. Make a reservation ahead of time for dinner seating. We were able to get a table for drinks easily later at night after the dinner rush.

Nice indoor and outdoor space tight in downtown palo alto. They seated us quickly even though we were 20m early. We enjoyed a glass of wine while we waited for friends. The bar staff and waiter were super friendly. We order a bunch of stuff to share and everything was delicious. The steak had sauce which we didnt expect and surprisingly liked it. The watermelon and tomato salad was refreshing. Fries were fun. The duck confit was fall off the bone good. Little neck clams were my favorite with sauce and freshness of the clam itself..and some bacon shallots and all. Very flavorful. Wine selection was decent. Will return!

Had an absolutely wonderful time celebrating my friend's birthday here the other day. We came by at 9 and the 7 of us were seated very quickly. The food was excellent and the service was even better. The staff were super friendly, congratulatory, and accommodating. We couldn't have asked for a more perfect experience. The restaurant & bar itself was also very beautiful! The restaurant and bar were kind of separated into two rooms.

Zola/Bar Zola are absolutely fantastic and one of my favorite spots in Palo Alto. Every meal I've had here has been excellent, service exceptional and be it wine or cocktails...I've never had a bad libation. We stopped in this trip for dessert and night cap. The espresso martini was delish and I can't recommend the chocolate mousse enough. I almost licked the bowl . Looking forward to coming back soon for a full meal

We sat in the heated outdoor area with a canopy, it's nice in spring/summer when there's a light breeze. The service was attentive without being overbearing. There was a slight 15 min wait for our reservation on a weekend, but I didn't mind. There's a nice bar you can sit at while you wait (first come first served.) Chenin blanc -- i really enjoyed this wine, it's a golden white wine with a fruity bouquet and it went well with the salmon. Dozen oysters -- these were mignonette oysters, so all on the smaller side but sweet and went well with the Tabasco, horseradish and lemon it was served with. Steak frites -- there are 3 steak frites to choose from, i liked this particularly because of the sauce poivre (peppercorn). it was perfectly medium and the shoestring fries were lightly salty with the perfect texture. Tarte tatin -- forgot to get a picture but it was done so well with juicy apples and a puff pastry that went well with the ice cream. it's sort of like a french apple pie with ice cream. Since we were here for a birthday, it was nice the restaurant offered a complimentary dessert of choice. We'll be back!

We LOVED our meal here! Everything was delicious, especially the mushroom crepe - the first bite was "wow"-inducing. We sat at the bar, and the bartender Alex was very cool and made some of the best looking cocktails I've seen. Definitely pricey though. I enjoyed the music and vibes. We came for a late dinner, but I could see how the space might seem dark during daytime hours. It felt like a scene in there, which I didn't really know existed in Palo Alto. We will be back!

I'm a Zola superfan I've been back like 4 times since I found it a couple months ago. The food is delicious, I recommend the gnocchi, cheese board, pretzels, honestly all of the appetizers I've had have been top notch. It is also a cocktail bar so there are plenty of great drink options. Service here is amazing the servers are so great at explaining everything and they all look like they're having fun at work which is nice. Okay don't get me started on the ambiance! The interior design is ridiculously beautiful it's very elegant and cozy. Perfect for a date night!!!! Lastly it can be pricey so get the InKind app and you will get a discount if you pay through there

As others have said, darker ambiance inside. I came with my family (group of 6). Could be good for a date night but the couple seated behind us were fairly close to us. You can definitely hear their conversation. Service was good. Baguette (3.5/5) - Butter has Maldon salt on it and was easily spreadable. We ordered two orders of the baguette. The first order was not warm and the bread was fairly hard. The second order was actually warm and much easier to eat. Wouldn't necessarily order it again - it should be something provided as bread service instead of having to order. Littleneck clams (4/5) - chorizo gives a nice salty taste to the clams, along with the small bits of leeks and garlic. Small and easy to eat but packs good flavor. Smoked salmon rillettes (4/5) - dark rye bread was fairly soft and holds the salmon well. Salmon itself is fresh tasting with dill and chive sprinkled on the salmon. With a party of 6, could have used more bread. Boles de picolat (4.5/5) - on the softer side. Tangy tomato sauce and nicely salted. The white beans give a good texture to the overall meatball. Pommes frites (4/5) - standard fries. Nicely salted and good portion size. The dijonnaise sauce was not my favorite as it was a bit too sharp - I prefer something more creamy like a aoili. Beef cheek (5/5) - rich sauce. Tasty, not overly salty, you can break the beef up with a fork - no knife needed. Onions and potatoes are a nice complement. Onions are slightly sweet while the potatoes have a slight crisp to them. They also give you a spoon so that you can scoop the meat and sauce - my plate was empty by the time I finished. Gnocchi (3.5/5) - bread crumbs give a nice crunch. Gnocchi itself is tasty, but I expected more since I am comparing it to other Italian restaurants. Dish is on the smaller side. I would recommend sharing this instead of having it as a single entree (unless you are not that hungry). All in all, a nice local restaurant. There are better French restaurants in the Bay Area. I wouldn't mind coming back to try the escargot, cocktails, and get the beef cheek again.