Over a decade later, co-owners Mejicanos and Chef Adam Rosenblum are expanding to the Peninsula. The two both have connections to New Orleans \u2014 Rosenblum previously worked there, and Mejicanos\u2019 family lives there \u2014 and are drawn to food and beverage experiences that brought joy, wonder and a touch of nostalgia to their customers, according to Mejicanos.<\/p>\n
![\"Elmer](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/SJM-L-CAUSWELLS-0331-05.jpg\")
Elmer Mejicanos and Adam Rosenblum stand inside their forthcoming Menlo Park location of Causwells, set to open Thursday, April 2. (Photo courtesy of Hardy Wilson)\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen we\u2019re designing menus, we\u2019re always pushing to do things to the best of our ability. That\u2019s what we love to do,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n
On the food side, the Menlo Park restaurant will have the award-winning smashburger that Causwells has become known for, down to the same lacto-fermented pickles.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a burger,\u201d he says. \u201cIt\u2019s going to make you happy.\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/SJM-L-CAUSWELLS-0331-01.jpg\")
The burger at Causwells in Menlo Park will be the same as its San Francisco counterpart, featuring house recipe ground beef, American cheese, lacto-fermented pickles, onion, lettuce and on a sesame seed bun. It’s shown here served with an espresso martini and fries. (Photo courtesy of Hardy Wilson)\u00a0<\/p>\n
But the co-owners are also eager to push their menu to new culinary heights in Menlo Park, starting with a fried chicken dish Rosenblum has developed that will just be served at the Peninsula location, according to Mejicanos. Other items include small plates like steak tartare, baked oysters, housemade ricotta and octopus, and mains like handmade tagliatelle with braised lamb, prime rib, pork belly and roasted romanesco. The restaurant will also offer brunch daily, with items like duck cochinita tostadas, a breakfast jambalaya and Boudin sausage Benedict.<\/p>\n
Overall, about 60% of the menu will be new and not on offer in San Francisco, he says.<\/p>\n
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A martini bar cart is a highlight of the cocktail program at Causwells, set to open in Menlo Park on Thursday, April 2. (Photo courtesy of Hardy Wilson)\u00a0<\/p>\n
The Menlo Park location will also have an ambitious cocktail program. Core to the drink program is a martini cart, from which drinks will be served in glasses chilled with liquid nitrogen. There will be a Causwells martini, with gin, white peach and eucalyptus flavors; a filthy martini with olive oil-washed vodka and a combination of house-smoked olives; and a five-spice sazerac, blending jaggery, rye and an absinthe bubble finish.<\/p>\n
\u201cI wanted to showcase what America is through my own cocktail lens,\u201d Mejicanos says.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor me, America is a melting pot of cultures, ethnicities, flavors and cooking traditions,\u201d he adds. \u201cI decided not to lean on what an American bar was in the 1920s, but what an American bar should be in my opinion right now.\u201d<\/p>\n
There\u2019ll be a drink called ceviche, a twist on a Peruvian pisco sour featuring pisco, passionfruit, aji amarillo pepper and chili threads, plus the pi\u00f1a colada royale, made with acricole rum, pineapple, turmeric, salted almond and shaved coconut ice.<\/p>\n
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One of the cocktails on the menu at Causwells in Menlo Park will be the Pi\u00f1a Colada Royale, featuring agricole rum, pineapple, turmeric and salted almond, finished with shaved-to-order coconut ice. (Photo courtesy of Hardy Wilson)\u00a0<\/p>\n
Additionally, classics from the San Francisco menu include an espresso martini with roasted banana and coconut foam, and a deconstructed Pimm\u2019s cup, with gin, strawberry, cucumber and colored ice balls.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re aiming to be one of the best cocktail bars in Menlo Park, if not the Bay,\u201d Mejicanos says. \u201cThat\u2019s the amount of work we\u2019re putting into it.\u201d<\/p>\n