No matter where you are on your company’s org chart, it’s nice to feel like you’re at the top every once in a while. To do that, you might dress a little sharper for a meeting you’re leading or try to sneak into the executive bathroom every once in a while, but you could also just go to Oren’s Hummus for lunch.
This Palo Alto-based mini-chain serves Israeli food that anyone would be happy to eat anytime, not just between your 11am meeting about email etiquette and your 2pm meeting about meeting etiquette. Hummus is the main draw here, and while their plain hummus is good on its own, the lamb version is what you need to get. It’s $17, but it’s really enough to share between you and your old coworker who works three buildings over and that you never get to see. If you want more, go for a few dips - we like the baba ganoush and the chunky eggplant. This place is open for breakfast and dinner as well and has a side room that only does takeout if you’re in a rush.
Aside from the food being great, Oren’s feels a few steps up from your typical workday lunch, partially because there’s table-service and also because there are chandeliers hanging in the dining room. But if that still doesn’t make you feel a little higher up on the company food chain, you can always go back to sneaking into the CEO’s bathroom.