Zareen opens fourth Bay Area restaurant

Zareen Khan opened a fourth Bay Area location of her Pakistani-Indian restaurant chain, Zareen’s, in downtown Sunnyvale on June 1, according to local reports and the company’s website. The opening adds Sunnyvale to the group’s existing locations in Mountain View, Palo Alto and Redwood City. Zareen’s website lists Sunnyvale among its active restaurants, and local coverage described the new outpost as the company’s latest Peninsula expansion. The opening comes as Khan has drawn national industry attention. The James Beard Foundation named Zareen Khan a 2026 semifinalist for Best Chef: California in January, part of this year’s restaurant and chef awards cycle. The foundation said nominees were due to be announced on March 31 and winners are scheduled to be honored on June 15 at the Lyric Opera of Chicago. (eastbaytimes.com) ### Where is the new restaurant, and what does it add to Zareen’s footprint? Sunnyvale is now the fourth Bay Area city with a Zareen’s location, joining Mountain View, Palo Alto and Redwood City. The company website shows Sunnyvale as a current ordering location alongside the three earlier restaurants, indicating the new store has entered regular service. Local coverage published June 1 said the new restaurant opened in downtown Sunnyvale after months of anticipation. (jamesbeard.org) A separate local report identified the site as being on Murphy Avenue, a central downtown dining corridor. ### How long has Zareen’s been building this Bay Area chain? Zareen’s first location opened in Mountain View in 2014, according to the restaurant’s website. (zareensrestaurant.com) The company says Khan and her husband, Umair Khan, built the business after starting with catering and cooking classes in the Bay Area. Redwood City became the company’s third Bay Area location in 2020, according to local coverage and the restaurant’s locations page. (eastbaytimes.com) The website lists the Redwood City restaurant on Broadway, matching the expansion history cited in the June 1 report. ### What is Zareen Khan known for beyond this opening? The James Beard Foundation included Khan on its 2026 semifinalist list for Best Chef: California, placing her among this year’s recognized chefs before the final nominees and winners are selected. (zareensrestaurant.com) That recognition was cited in the June 1 report on the Sunnyvale opening. Zareen’s has also promoted a cookbook, “Zareen’s Pakistani Kitchen: Recipes from a Well-Fed Childhood,” on its website. (eastbaytimes.com) The June 1 report said Khan released the book last year with her husband, Umair Khan. ### What kind of restaurant business has Khan built? Zareen’s describes itself as a Pakistani-Indian restaurant group serving halal food in the Bay Area. The company says its customer base includes office catering clients such as Stanford, Google, Microsoft, TikTok and Nvidia, while its restaurant business has grown on the Peninsula with dine-in and takeout service. (jamesbeard.org) KQED described Zareen’s in 2024 as a Peninsula institution known for homestyle Pakistani and Indian dishes. (zareensrestaurant.com) The restaurant’s own website says the business began with family recipes and expanded from a small kitchen into a multi-location Bay Area brand. ### What happens next for Khan and the Beard Awards? June 15 is the next date on Khan’s calendar tied to the national awards race. (zareensrestaurant.com) The James Beard Foundation said its Restaurant and Chef Awards ceremony will take place that day in Chicago, where this year’s winners will be announced. (jamesbeard.org) (kqed.org)