|
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
|
For 60 years, the Dutch Goose has been more than a restaurant. Tucked in the small commercial strip of Alameda de las Pulgas not far from Sand Hill Road, the longtime West Menlo Park gathering spot has served deviled eggs and drinks to generations of patrons, from Stanford students and venture capitalists to Little League teams and families.
The lore of this storied bar and restaurant is plentiful: from having the first-ever coin-operated video game to being a favorite hangout for Silicon Valley techies and local sports icons. In its 60 years, the Goose has hosted business meetings, reunions and even weddings.
“At the Dutch Goose, there are no strangers, only friends you haven’t met,” said Greg Stern, who has owned the Goose since October 2005 and helped it weather a challenging two decades. “It’s a melting pot.”
From an ADA lawsuit that forced the Goose to undergo $2 million in renovations, to the COVID-19 pandemic that closed indoor dining and led to a revamp of its outdoor seating, the Goose has survived and thrived as the world around it changed. Stern credits its loyal customer base for its ongoing success.
“The community has just been phenomenal: Patronizing us when we were shut down, they were doing everything they could to, like, buy retail or place to-go orders, just because they didn’t want to see this place go away. Every day we’re humbled here with all the support,” Stern said.
A Menlo-Atherton High School graduate who grew up in the area, Stern has used the Goose for philanthropy, mainly to support education and youth sports.
Stern said the Goose has backed the Alpine Little League, Menlo-Atherton Vikings, Redwood City Pop Warner Football and Peninsula College Fund, which provides scholarships to first generation and low-income college students.
“Seeing that you made a difference in some kids’ lives, it’s better than any monetary compensation you can get,” Stern said.
San Mateo County Supervisor Ray Mueller presented Stern and the Goose with a proclamation from the county on Friday, Feb 20. The final proclamation is expected to be ratified by the San Mateo County Board of Supervisors in March.
“This board conveys its best wishes for continued success and many more years of ‘good times and great food” at the Peninsula’s most beloved landmark,’ the proclamation reads.
Stern said the community has been a very active partner in the restaurant’s management.
“We’re really lucky that the community is very vocal, and so if I was ever going off-track, they would speak up and get us in the right direction,” Stern said. “At this place, it seems like the less change, the better. That’s pretty unique — because usually when you take over a restaurant you make all these changes, and people just didn’t want us to change here.”
While Silicon Valley is known for constant innovations, some things stay the same. The Dutch Goose’s deviled eggs recipe hasn’t changed since the original owner Pete Eccle named the restaurant.
Stern bought the restaurant in 2005 after the dot-com crash.
“In 2005 I was a stockbroker on Sand Hill Road. I was miserable, and had a burger here with my dad, and I said, ‘I’d love to have my own business like the Dutch Goose.’ And he said, ‘Why don’t you make an offer?’”
The owner at the time, Tom Moroney, had run the Goose for 27 years and stayed on to show Stern the ropes. But Stern did his homework: before committing to the Goose, he worked as a cook at Sunnyside Restaurant in Lake Tahoe.
“I loved it,” Stern said of his time as a cook. “I had always had a passion for restaurants, more for cooking than anything else. But you learn pretty quickly when you get into restaurants, if you want to be successful, you can’t just cook. You have to manage. When you cook, your back is to the restaurant and you don’t know what’s going on.”
While Stern mainly credited the community for the Goose’s continued success, he also called out Mueller and his landlord, the Beltramo family.
“Our landlord has been super supportive along the way, whether it was the COVID shutdown or the ADA lawsuit shut down, they jumped right in and helped us out and lowered rents, extended leases and helped with improvements,” Stern said.
Stern said Mueller helped the Goose reopen, get permits and navigate constant challenges.
As for what is next, Stern said regulars have been asking the Goose to start serving breakfast.
“People want to see breakfast — I have some reservations about that because of staffing issues and those kinds of things — so we’re exploring that. We just improved our front deck and put flooring out there just last week,” Stern said. “We’re playing around with the idea of having a $3 coffee instead of the $8 coffees we’re all used to right now. And then some pancakes and eggs for the kids.”
