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This fall, Mayfield Bakery & Café in Palo Alto quietly added a craft cocktail program to the restaurant’s lineup.

Thirsty diners can choose from three small subcategories on the menu: “Grove-to-Glass,” ($10 each) “Barreled-and-Bottled” ($12 each) and “Cool-Weather” ($12 each). See details below:


The concepts driving the program?

“Simplicity combined with the craft of West Coast-, fresh produce-driven mixology,” said Karey Walker, who runs public relations for Bacchus Management Group (which operates Mayfield).

She said adding the cocktail menu was “a result of hearing that there were liquor licenses available through a lottery system, and (it) also fulfilled our desire and long-term goal to offer masterfully crafted cocktails and spirits.”

Mayfield has had a bar since opening at Town & Country Village in 2009, but brought in Bacchus Management Group bar manager Brandon Clements ? who also runs the bar programs at sister restaurants Spruce, Café des Amis (in San Francisco) and The Village Pub (in Woodside) ? to help shape the menu.

Walker said the barrel-aged drinks, which are made at the restaurant, will stay the same for at least the first year but ? like everything else Mayfield does ? the other cocktails will be seasonal.

“?expect the ‘Grove to Glass’ section to change with the seasons and in coordination with availability of our local farmers as well as the use of the restaurant and bakery departments,” she said. “Spring will likely feature fruits like apricot and cherry, while summer will move into peaches and bramble fruits.”


Ten to $12 farm-to-table-style cocktails aren’t for everyone, but Mayfield is filling a key void in the city’s dining scene. Whereas the craft cocktail movement has swept many major cities, particularly so San Francisco, this is a niche pretty much left untouched in Palo Alto.

Has anyone tried the new drinks at Mayfield? How are they?

Where else do you go for a quality cocktail in Palo Alto (or the surrounding Peninsula area)?

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