The spirit of California is, figuratively speaking, fused into the fabric of Poppy & Claro. Dining room chairs and table legs on the outdoor patio blaze with the rusted orange color of our splendid state flower, the poppy. “Claro,” I learned, is another name for the wood of black walnut trees.
The restaurant’s design scheme incorporates milled woodwork throughout the space—but most noticeably in the form of a massive conference table made in the shape of California. Delegates seated at opposite ends of the state will have a hard time hearing each other’s arguments. There’s also a wall collage of a bear, our state animal, made by the artist Jay Kelly.
The restaurant recalls urban and suburban interiors from the late 1960s and early 1970s. That bygone era of avocado green refrigerators, Pinto station wagons and earth tones everywhere. Designed by Cass Calder Smith, Poppy & Claro is the first restaurant buildout from the real estate firm Jay Paul Company. By the mid 1970s, those ubiquitous earth tones felt weighted and oppressive. Cass Calder Smith manages a 21c hat trick with them. A high wall of windows makes the orange pop and blend in, organically, with the varied tones of wood. The color of poppies lingered in my mind days after a lunchtime visit.
The official address of the restaurant is an office building at 50 W. San Fernando St. But the front entrance is really down an alleyway off of West San Fernando and directly behind the San José Museum of Art. Poppy & Claro’s “parklet” faces onto the Circle of Palms Plaza, where the view is currently being marred by a temporary construction fence for the ice rink. Once inside, the address makes sense. The restaurant is situated on the corner of the building with a more clandestine side entrance that leads into the lobby.
As our host seated us, he described Poppy & Claro as a “third place” before pointing out three kinds of customers seated throughout the space. A couple of people had their laptops open at the bar. A trio of bearded tech men were asserting their auras around the table of a spacious booth. And then regular, non-working folks, singly and in small groups, were there to casually eat and enjoy lunch.
Chef Christopher Littman’s menu, created in conjunction with The Good Eating Company’s Amy Lee, evokes California’s bounty of farm-to-table produce and ingredients. While I was there, Littleman was acting as a dedicated pizzaïolo. He was carefully watching pizzas cook, then removing them at precisely the right time from the oven. We tried the “truffle shuffle” ($20) made with roasted mushrooms, caramelized onions, fresh herbs and, notably, a truffle garlic crema that wasn’t overpowering. The house-fermented pizza dough cooks up crispy and light.
Although the description of a fried green bean starter ($8) stated they were “cornmeal-crusted,” I was surprised and then delighted by the puffy hush puppy coating. Each green bean comes blanketed in a round, slightly sweetened golden crust. It was a novel use for green beans, but as with tempura batters, I imagined many other seasonally appropriate vegetables in their place. Asparagus, say, or zucchini!
Poppy & Claro’s sandwiches, made with Manresa breads, are listed under a “handhelds” section. I can’t argue with the quality of Manresa’s sourdough levain. But I ate the second half of the salmon club ($19) without the bread. The fish was so nicely seasoned it could have stood on its own as an entrée. And the green goddess dressing, tangy and spicy, would have also worked as the green bean dip instead of a garlic aioli. And, sure enough, the menu does feature a dijon dill seared salmon that comes with those very same fried green beans ($21). A definite next-time order.
The roasted beet and hummus bowl ($18) was the second salad-y type of plate I’ve recently ordered that misled me with its name. I was expecting plenty of beets and a significant amount of hummus. It should have been named “kale and shaved red cabbage” bowl. I found, in total, about two mini-beets cut into quarters. This off-kilter ratio seemed like a meager option for vegetarians.
As well as showing up in the décor, black walnut also made an appearance on the comprehensive “Rise & Grind” coffee and espresso menu. It shows up as a syrup. I asked for a soupçon of the stuff as an addition to my iced latte. That tiny dash of flavoring, mixing coffee, milk and walnuts together, has made me a convert. Bottle that syrup up and I’ll buy it posthaste.
Poppy & Claro, open Mon to Fri 7:30am–7:30pm, 50 W. San Fernando St., San Jose. poppyandclaro.com
