Chef Zareen opens fourth Bay Area restaurant

Zareen Khan has opened a fourth Bay Area location of her Pakistani-Indian restaurant Zareen’s, adding a new outpost in downtown Sunnyvale after months of anticipation. The new restaurant opened on June 1 at 135 South Murphy Avenue, according to local coverage of the launch. Khan was also listed by the James Beard Foundation as a 2026 semifinalist for Best Chef: California. The opening expands a restaurant group that began with its first Mountain View location in 2014. ### Where is the new restaurant, and what number is it for the company? Sunnyvale is the site of the new restaurant, which local reports described as Zareen’s fourth Bay Area location. The address is 135 South Murphy Avenue in downtown Sunnyvale, extending the company’s presence on the Peninsula. Zareen’s website lists locations in Mountain View, Palo Alto, Redwood City and Sunnyvale. (eastbaytimes.com) The company says Zareen and Umair Khan opened the first restaurant in Mountain View in 2014. ### Who is Zareen Khan? Zareen Khan is the founder behind Zareen’s and describes her family roots as Karachi, Bombay and Punjab on the company’s website. The site says she started Curry Village Foods in 2010 after 12 years in corporate America, then expanded from cooking classes and catering into restaurants. (eastbaytimes.com) The company’s website also says the restaurants serve Pakistani-Indian food and have built a following among tech workers, students and families on the Peninsula. (zareensrestaurant.com) ### What is the James Beard connection? The James Beard Foundation named Khan a 2026 semifinalist in the Best Chef: California category when it announced semifinalists on January 21. That recognition placed her in this year’s awards cycle before the Sunnyvale opening. (zareensrestaurant.com) The foundation later announced its restaurant and chef nominees on March 31 and said winners will be revealed on June 15, 2026, at the Lyric Opera of Chicago. (zareensrestaurant.com) Khan was identified in local coverage as a semifinalist, not a finalist. ### How does this fit into Zareen’s expansion? Mountain View was the company’s first restaurant in 2014, according to Zareen’s website, and the current footprint now spans four Bay Area cities. (jamesbeard.org) The Sunnyvale opening adds another downtown location in a corridor that has been drawing new restaurant tenants. Local preview coverage published earlier this year had already described Sunnyvale as the company’s fourth restaurant and said the new site would bring a menu similar to the other locations. (jamesbeard.org) ### What comes next? June 15 is the next major date tied to Khan’s national profile. The James Beard Foundation said the 2026 Restaurant and Chef Awards ceremony will take place that day in Chicago, where this year’s winners will be announced. (zareensrestaurant.com) (jamesbeard.org) (almanacnews.com)