Looking for Nice But Casual Place Near Valley Fair

Henry C. wrote:
: >
: >I'm looking for places near the Valley Fair Mall in San Jose where one : >can go dressed in relatively casual clothing but where the food is : >good (naturally!) and the atmosphere is reasonably nice.

This is my neck of the woods.  Here are my favorites:

1.  Mio Vecino - wonderful Italian - corner of Benton/Monroe
2.  Yuki Sushi - Japanese (obviously!) - corner of
   Winchester/Pruneridge(Hedding)
3.  China Stix - great Chinese food, nice place - Mervyn's Plaza at
   Scott/El Camino Real
4.  Tony and Alba's - mostly pizza - Winchester/Stevens Creek
5.  Papa Rick's - intimate Italian place - Saratoga/Pruneridge
6.  Kiraku - well priced Japanese, good food - Newhall/Washington(Bascom)
7.  Joao's Restaurant - Brazilian, definitely not fancy -
   Newhall/Washington(Bascom)

I eat at all these places so I'm speaking from experience...! Let me know what you think of them.

Henry H. Chen says...
>I'm looking for places near the Valley Fair Mall in San Jose where one
>can go dressed in relatively casual clothing but where the food is
>good (naturally!) and the atmosphere is reasonably nice.

I highly recommend Holder's Country Inn across Stevens Creek in the Town and Country center. I have been going there for 25 years. It's a friendly informal coffee shop and a couple of years ago, they hired a new chef. The food is now significantly above average for a coffee shop. They have a very nice shrimp and avocado salad. They have a large selection of omlets and pancakes for those who like traditional coffee shop food.