How much has changed in 18 years? (article was written in 1996 by the look of it)
The best japanese sushi in bay area is Hoshi in santa clara, try the toro.
The best vietnamese homestyle in bay area is Tofoo Com Chay in downtown san jose, try the vegetarian bamboo soup noodle
The best cheap michelin french in bay area is at Chez TJ, in downtown MV.
The best burmese restaurant in bay area is Rangoon Cafe in palo alto.
The best chinese hot pot in bay area is wuji hot pot in milpitas
The best indonesian restaurant in bay area is bay leaf in sunnyvale. try nasi bungkus
The best korean bbq in bay area is gooyi gooyi in santa clara CA
The best independent coffeeshops in bay area are in MV (dana street, red rock)
The best steakhouse in bay area is alexander steakhouse in cupertino
There are better rated restaurants in most of the categories you mentioned elsewhere in the Bay. For example, I know of at least two Indian places that I personally consider better than Sakoon and have better ratings on Yelp. There are a half dozen that have better ratings on Yelp but which I have never been to. And that's just within five miles of Menlo Park, to say nothing of the city.
You are of course free to your own opinion, but I'd caution other readers that this is just one opinion among many, and is probably not as near the mean as one might hope given the authoritative tone of the assertions made.
For example, Joya in Palo Alto is a pretty amazing restaurant but only gets 3.5 stars. The Cheesecake Factory (which is a pretty crappy chain) gets a 5. This is not really good data.
Hoshi is still great though and one of my favorites, but definitely not the best sushi in the South Bay. Also - you can't judge a sushi place by its toro according to Jiro-san.
http://www.paloaltoonline.com/news/2014/01/17/palo-altos-din...
Renaissance would imply "re-birth" though, which I'm not sure good dining ever existed here. :-D
For example, Rangoon Ruby in Palo Alto is a pale imitation of Burma Superstar in San Francisco, a restaurant is openly models itself after.
Claiming that the best independent coffeeshop is in MV is really going out on a limb and ignoring the myriad of amazing coffee houses in SF - like Sightglass or Blue Bottle.
As someone who's lived in the city and in Sunnyvale and Palo Alto and Menlo Park, I pretty much agree with every that jwz has said and not much has changed.
It's true that there are some great places on the peninsula, but there's no critical mass. And often those places are in a strip mall and severely lacking in ambiance and atmosphere.
Tofoo Com Chay is superb and that kind of place (Dong Phuong Tofu is another good one) is found only in SJ. Although Oakland's Chinatown has a great Banh Mi place, Cam Huong.
And while there's many good places in the area that serve a good burrito or tao lunch, you need to ViVe Sol if you wan the best Mexican cuisine.
Stay away from the things you can get anywhere - the good stuff starts with their incredible mole, home-style casseroles, steaks covered in roasted peppers, etc.
Mmmm... spicy chocolate chicken...