Eos & Nyx — Restaurant in San Jose

Coming from the team behind some of downtown San Jose's best cocktail bars Paper Planes, Still OG/Alter Ego and the game-oriented Mini Boss, it is reasonable to expect their cocktail selection to be first rate. What was more of a curiosity was to see how the food menu would pair and stand on its own. The executive chef of E&N, Nicko Moulinos, was raised in Corfu, Greece. The Mediterranean-inspired menu is a fusion of dishes incorporating his Greek heritage as well as his background in French cuisine at restaurants such as the prestigious Le Bernadin in NYC.

The space itself used to be Camera 12 Cinemas, so it is quite expansive. I recognized the Eos & Nyx font on the facade of the restaurant and thought it looked exactly the same as Born & Raised in San Diego. Turns out both spaces were designed by the same firm, Basile Studios! Everything inside looks very customized, from the light fixtures hanging above, and the curved staircase rails. There are also a few trees in the center of the dining area. The mezzanine upstairs has more seating for about 20-40 people and a second standalone bar. The windows upstairs overlook 2nd Street. I saw the VTA train pass down below.

The hostess gave us a nice corner table next to the bustling open kitchen. The cocktail that I ordered came out lightning quick. It was called Licensed to Dill, made with Aquavit vodka, apricot eau de vie, dill, greek yogurt and lime. Perfect amount of creaminess with lime, nice and chilled. My partner had the Garden of Eden, a mocktail that tasted similar to mine.

The first dish that came to our table was grilled octopus perched atop a sofrito sauce with almonds and a side of cipollini onions. It had a dense crust but was tender with a slight amount of chewiness inside.

The second dish that was served was the Lobster Tagliatelle. Small dime-sized lobster medallions were placed throughout namesake wide cut egg pasta in a decadent parmigiano and beurre blanc (French butter) sauce topped with a quenelle of Tsar caviar. From the first bite, it immediately hits you with a lot of flavor. A ton of buttery cream and subtle saltiness from the caviar.

The third and final dish were the Lamb Chops, a 10 ounce portion served with an onion soubise cream sauce and confit potato. They were skillfully grilled, seared and well-seasoned on the outside and medium rare inside, as requested. I found it to taste a touch sour but overall a good dish I would order again. My family used to love the mesquite grilled lamb chops a few blocks away at Nemea, the Greek restaurant which sadly closed during the pandemic. Chef Moulinos' lamb chops fill in nicely. Was a bit too stuffed to eat dessert this time around, but there were four nice options on the menu.

The service was very friendly and they welcomed feedback. If there was one issue for us, there are large white club-style PA speakers positioned at each corner of the dining area, with one right above us. The R&B and hip hop playlist was loud and heavy on bass. Personally, I think a more chill volume level (and style of music) would fit better with the upscale dinner and cocktail experience.

I returned with a large group of friends to try their brunch for my bday. After I spent 3 weeks leaving messages and emails to their only available forms of contact, I checked in with the hostess who had no idea I had requested a booth upstairs on the mezzanine. Eventually, they figured out that a big empty booth was reserved for us but that info hadn’t gotten down to the hostess. Service from then on was good.

Everyone enjoyed their entrees such as the Bo Ne and biscuits & gravy. I ordered the Planet B…runch, which was polenta with mushrooms and eggs on top. They serve Academic Coffee beans, which I got in a cappuccino that had a weak flavor and oddly large bubbles for microfoam. I also ordered a Strawberry Spumoni which was kind of flat and not as interesting as the dinner cocktails. All-in-all, a step up for San Jose’s fine dining scene but not quite on par with places like Protégé...

As a food adventurer who's flown across continents just for dinner, I've found something special in Eos & Nyx - the perfect antidote to stuffy fine dining while still delivering knock-your-socks-off culinary excellence.

Our party of seven was immediately embraced by genuinely warm staff who floated by our table throughout the night - each person as friendly and knowledgeable as the last. And as someone who breaks out in hives at stuffy fine dining, I was DELIGHTED to find a spot that serves up Michelin-worthy food without the pretension. Our table was quite literally dancing in our seats all evening to their killer 90s R&B playlist (whoever their music curator is deserves a raise, seriously).

For the non-drinkers among us (hello, it's me), their mocktail game is seriously impressive - thoughtfully crafted concoctions that make you forget you're missing anything. My notoriously picky husband, the drink-returner extraordinaire, not only finished his first cocktail but ordered a second on our server's recommendation - a true testament to their quality.

Now for the food - oh, the food! The bruschetta with honeycomb and crunchy almonds is the kind of dish that will randomly pop into your thoughts weeks later, making you consider dropping everything for another taste. Their beet dish cleverly uses every part of the vegetable, creating something vibrant that makes you question every other beet dish you've encountered.

The Brussels sprouts deserve their own review - forget those sad, soggy versions you're used to. These are perfectly crunchy and glazed with just the right amount of chili honey - they're what every Brussels sprout aspires to be but never quite manages to achieve.

Don't skip the tagliatelle with lobster - a bright, flavorful dish that avoids the heavy cream trap most lobster pastas fall into. And despite feeling utterly satisfied, we ordered the porterhouse for the table - cooked to such perfection that we somehow found room for every last bite.

If Ron, their Operating Partner, stops by your table, consider your evening blessed by the hospitality gods. His genuine hospitality adds another layer of warmth to an already stellar experience.

Eos & Nyx delivers everything downtown's dining scene has been missing - exceptional food and service in an atmosphere that feels both special and comfortable. For a memorable night out that balances fine dining with actual fun, this place should be at the top of your list. You can...

This is what San Jose has been missing!!! My wife and I came here for our first date night after just recently having a baby. From the get go, we were flabbergasted by, well, EVERYTHING. Started with a small detail. I got a confirmation text confirming my table and also with the location being downtown, gave me the best parking garages to park at. Small but important detail. I was lucky enough to get seated right in front of the kitchen, which was incredible due to the view of being able to really watch and smell that wood fired grill. The food was absolutely fantastic. Started us with a "Chefs Gift". A steak tartare cone. I wanted more of this, actually I wanted all of this. Wow. The octopus was so tender without a hint of chewiness and the sauce was bright and full of flavor. Wow. The Bruschetta should be studied and put into a food museum. The whipped ricotta was like eating a cloud. Double Wow. The pork chop was so juicy and perfectly cooked. Yep, another wow. The Daurade holds a special place in my heart. This dish reminded me of my Aunt. My aunt is Chinese and lives in Hong Kong. She makes this fresh steamed white fish with few ingredients that will blow your mind The freshness and flavor in this dish brings me right back to her kitchen. Wow, wow, wow. Onto the desserts. Just eat them all. That's what we did. But if you don't. Be sure to try the Ube crisp. Deserts get a wow as well. I saved the best dish for last. This dish is on my last meal menu. I could eat this dish everyday for the rest of my life. The Tagliatelle. With black truffles. I cannot explain how loud my tastebuds screamed with excitement after the first bite and all the way to the last bite. My only regret is I didn't get more. Drop everything and go get this dish. NOW. Wow. Wow. Wow. Wow. Wow. But hold up everyone, this wasn't even the star of the show. The star of the show is the service. It's hard to put into words just how they make you feel. Ron is almost like a superhero and his power is hospitality. F-ing Phenomenal Eos & Nyx Team. Wow. Cannot wait to come try the brunch! If you didn't count, that...