San Ramon just got an Alora of its own. Restaurateurs Anu and Vikram Bhambri (ROOH, Pippal, Fitoor) recently opened a second iteration of their Turkish-inspired Alora at City Center Bishop Ranch, complete with expansive patio, fire pits and live bands on weekends.
The approach for the new Alora Social, says chef Nicholas Peters, who had previously worked at Lita in Walnut Creek, “was to take a lot of the sharable dips and spreads and make it a social experience. The kumpir (is) a really fun, Turkish street-food baked potato with butter and halloumi, loaded with pickled veggies, olives, roasted peppers, white and red sauce. You see peoples’ eyes light up.”
You’ll find lots to love here, including Peters’ favorite, a classic Turkish kabob with marinated, house-cured halal brisket and lamb shoulder, and Alora’s take on muhamarra, a roasted pepper and walnut dip.
“It sounds simple,” Peters says, “but it’s a multi-day process of charring peppers, reducing down syrup, candying a walnut butter with spices and finishing with a house-fermented pita.”
Peters’ dips have proven so popular, they’ll be sold to-go at the new location. that Alora will be selling them in the retail section of their new location.
Details >> Open from 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday-Thursday and Sunday and until 10 p.m. Friday-Saturday at 6000 Bollinger Canyon Road in San Ramon; visitalora.com.Sweet Maple opens for brunch
Walnut Creek, meet Millionaire’s Bacon.
Hoyul Steven Choi’s Sweet Maple restaurant group has just opened its highly anticipated Walnut Creek brunch-forward location, the first in Contra Costa County.
The restaurateur is known for both Korean/Thai comfort food and brunches that feature the decadent sweet-and-spicy bacon — baked with brown sugar, cayenne, red and black pepper.
Expect to see the same beloved brunch dishes of its sister eateries, from Marnier French Toast and Bay Bottom (Crab) Omelets to a Juicy Lucy Burger with hot pepper bacon jam and Tornado Galbi, with egg and short rib.
There’s a long lineup of breakfast cocktails, including four mimosa flavors and a bacon-topped Bloody Mary, along with coffee drinks and tea selections.
Walnut Creek becomes the fifth Sweet Maple, joining locations in San Francisco, Cupertino, Palo Alto and Santa Monica.
Choi, who opened his first eatery in San Francisco in 2002 with wife Jiyeon, also operates Kitchen Story in San Francisco and has plans for another S.F. restaurant this year and one in Mountain View in 2026.
Details >> Sweet Maple is open daily from 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at 1523 Giammona Drive in downtown Walnut Creek; www.sweet maplesf.com.
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