Coi

A two star Michelin with a lot of soul and character and a focus on seafood.
Originally led by Chef Daniel Patterson, a change of guards led to Chef Matthew Kirkley taking over in 2015.
The difference? Less of a focus on local and more of a focus on the world’s best (yes, your salt will come from a river in Australia). If you’re morally ok with this, then Coi is an experience worth having.
Focus is on finesse, perfection and simplicity. Flavors aren’t over-​produced as much as they are engineered.
Coi just seems to get that a perfect meal must satisfy all senses. Well done.

I came here to celebrate a new job… My favorite Resturant in the world (and I eat out quite often). I remember when I last came, when Daniel Patterson was at the helm, every bite was AMAZING! Executions, textures, combinations I had never had before… and ones that tasted amazing together. Some places that I have been too, try hard to be experimental, but fail on taste. So I was I excited to come back. Unfortunately, with the new chef at the helm, it was good, but not amazing, not warranting the hefty price tag. Service was immaculate! And I so wanted to like this. I just wish it was amazing, but it was not. And one dish, had a claw on the plate. It was dramatic but of putting.
I’m glad I came back, but I probably won’t come back soon, unless Daniel makes a special guest appearance to resurrect the old menu.

As a poor graduate student, I spent three hours and too much money treating my partner and I out for dinner here. Regrets? Absolutely none.
Coi does an insanely incredible job of creating the most unique, startlingly beautiful dishes. Pair that with their list of vintage wines, the grandest ambience and the nicest staff — I’m not surprised one bit that this is a two-​Michelin starred restaurant. Now I’m going to obnoxiously list out each item we had the pleasure of trying from the tasting menu, it’s only right since I’ve already spent hours and hours wondering about how these amazing dishes came to be.
+Geoduck clam: This was actually the dish I was least impressed with, but that’s because I’m really not a fan of clams. The impressively thin, tiny buckwheat crêpe was so cute though! Definitely got me excited for what was coming up next…
+Asparagus with soo much caviar and yuzu: mmmm, this was so flavorful! I love caviar, and the yuzu sauce provided the perfect citrusy punch to dip with the asparagus.
+++Ocean trout: this is when you know you’re in for a treat, and that you’re life is about to get better. I had never heard about citrus confit, and plain kumquats will never taste as fabulous anymore.
++Turbot: I’ve never had turbot before, so I was really excited to try this fish! Apparantly, turbot doesn’t naturally have scales but the chef «added» scales using grated vegetables to decorate the fish. It made for such a beautiful dish, and delicious, crunchy texture with the soft fish — loved this dish!
+++ At this time, we were given beautifully constructed butter that was shaped like ribbon with bread (a surprise treat outside from the tasting menu!) We proceeded to drop everything and just eat this charming, delicious whipped butter. For my Indian readers, this is the first time I had butter in America that reminded me of India’s Amul, yummm.
+++Cornish hen: I was sadly super stuffed by this time, so I couldn’t enjoy this dish as much as I knew I would have at any other moment. Beautifully constructed hors d’œuvre-like dish. So good, insanely difficult to describe — guess you will need to just try it yourself so stay hungry for this one (;
+++ And right when I was done eating for the next few days, we started the sweet portion of the tasting menu. I guess there’s always room for dessert — three different kinds of desserts, in fact. Those little matcha chocolate bars, almond cookies (that the server was kind enough to give us seconds of), the pistachio and rhubarb layered mini cakes — I was in heaven. By the way we ate, it would not have seemed as though we had just had 6 other courses #yolo
Coi, you’ve revolutionized my seafood palette!

The only mistake I made in San Francisco.
The service is great.
The food looks pretty.
The food doesn’t taste pretty. Even more so after you get the check.

I was just not blown away. Did the whole tasting menu. Everything was plated beautifully and services was great. Not sure why I didn’t like the food, maybe because my taste buds is different from some of the 5 stars reviews. Didn’t have the wow factor. Lacking in flavor. I feel bad writing this review but I just didn’t like the food that much. I would like to give this another chance because this review is long over due, before the new chef which was earlier this year.

Came here for mothers day. Food was some of the most beautifully presented I’ve ever seen. Every dish was very good and creative.
Menu is just a set menu so if you prefer options then this wouldn’t be for you.
They also have some good wine pairing options.
The service was good but I think you’d expect more from a restaurant of this caliber and price point.

I’m a little confused about some of the negative reviews. I rarely eat in SF — only when I travel for business — but I’m accustomed to some of the best NYC and Paris have to offer and that’s quite a high standard. Reading phrases like «tasted bland» or «I didn’t want lamb, so they gave me chicken — I expected beef» are just surreal. This is literally the best restaurant I’ve been to in almost a decade.
First, if you go to a restaurant that emphasizes an ultra-​modern tasting menu, you should know how they operate. Their menus are rarely the same for long because they use what’s «best» that day, week, or season. They spend literally man-​hours of time preparing each meal, and each one is a work of art as much as it’s an actual food. Even the plate under the food is carefully chosen — for one dish that was a bit hard to scoop onto a spoon, it was served in a dish with a short (so you can get your spoon over it) but narrow-​diameter lip (so it’s close to the food you need to scoop up) and a wide, flat rim rather than a deep bowl. I’d be surprised if there were more than a few dozen restaurants in the world that pay attention to details that minute.
And if you don’t want something on the menu, you take what they have in the fridge. You don’t complain about their not choosing beef.
Our meal was filled with dishes that all had clever twists. We didn’t care for one or two of them, but even those were perfectly prepared and plated. Here are two examples of tiny details that are just so critical in a top-​shelf presentation:
1. An early dish in the set was asparagus topped with Oscietra caviar with a Yuzu Anglaise. I wish I had taken a picture, but you can Google it if you want. Asparagus is usually a mix of textures — a thick chewy stalk, a slender, more tender end, and then a very bushy, broccoli-​like tip. This dish was served with three centers precisely cut to be tender but also the same width, so the texture was even in every bite. But BEYOND that, the tip was cut off, then a thin slice was cut out of the center of it and placed back ON each stalk, which matched the texture of the tip to the rest of the stalk. This is a very clever twist — basically, disassembling and re-​making the asparagus into something still TOTALLY recognizable, but definitely a cut above throwing a few steamed stalks down next to a steak.
2. When dessert was served, there was a chocolate element. The top of each chocolate piece was tiled and smooth — beautiful to look at. But there was a candied fruit topping as well — on the BOTTOM of each piece. This made for a beautiful presentation while at the same time putting the additional element against your tongue as you bit into each piece — where it belongs.
I was a little confused during the meal about who was serving each role. We asked for wine advice (which is a little unfair — I know exactly what I want — I just like the experience) and somebody who I thought would have been the sommelier worked his way through a few comments about my choice. But another gentleman who I had pegged as the head waiter spent plenty of time with us throughout the meal chatting about other wines, and actually seemed a lot more knowledgeable. This is a pretty opinionated topic.
In case you’re curious I chose a Chassagne Montrachet, of which they actually had two selections (Ramonet and Niellon — I went with Niellon). Coi’s menu is very heavy on fish and shellfish, and this wine paired very well with everything except the appetizer and dessert. You could do a lot worse than a French White Burgundy in a seafood meal, and at $ 157/​bottle this was actually reasonably priced for an in-​restaurant purchase (I’ve paid $ 85 online for the same bottle and year). I do believe their port prices are a little high considering the selection — I expect to pay double for an in-​restaurant purchase… but not quadruple…
I expected to pay through the nose for the experience and am not complaining about the prices. But I would definitely echo another reviewer — they add a 20% service charge automatically, and it is VERY subtle on the receipt. Unlike the other reviewer I DID miss this until we were literally walking out, which means I tipped like 45%. That’s a hell of a tip. I wrote it off because it was a hell of a meal from a hell of a team — honestly, it was worth EVERY penny. But just pay close attention to yours.
I would definitely come here again — we spent 4 wonderful hours here and had just a DELIGHTFUL time.
Oh, one more thing — we were DECIDEDLY under-​dressed for our visit. We were wearing pretty ratty tourist clothes, T-​shirts, that kind of thing. Our visit was a spur-​of-​the-​moment thing and we were actually staying in Los Gatos. There was no way we were trekking back and forth to change. I know SF is the kind of place folks like Zuck wander around in hoodies — but just want to say the wait staff didn’t even blink — we didn’t feel unwelcome or awkward at all.

4÷15÷16
So long Daniel Patterson, hello Matthew Kirkley! The new Exec Chef at Coi is outdoing his mentor in a major way. It’s crazy to see all the mixed reviews from previous dining experiences here and a big reason I’ve never eaten at Coi before. However as of late, this place is at the top of it’s game, well deserving of 2 Michelin stars and in my opinion, bordering on 3. Are you ready for this review?! Good, because it was top 3 fine dining meals of my life.
Upon arrival the staff greeted us with a smile and I handed my three bottles of wine to the sommelier. Those included:
— 1982 Baron Philippe de Rothschild Château d’Armailhac, Pauillac, France
— 2010 Radio-​Coteau Vineyards Alberigi Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley, USA
— 2012 Brewer-​Clifton Gnesa Vineyard Chardonnay, Santa Barbara County, USA
Armed with silly wines, we were escorted to the private dining table in the back of the restaurant. The staff promptly informed us of «what they do» at Coi and what to expect for the evening. Pure elation.
Here were our courses (spring menu):
1. Geoduck Clam, Lardo, Bibb Lettuce, Buckwheat — texture, spot on.
2. Asparagus, Oscetra Caviar, Yuzu Anglaise — technically speaking, the most beautiful dish I’ve ever eaten.
3. Ocean Trout, Citrus Confit, Chartreuse, Fines Herbs — the herbal notes from the Chartreuse paired perfectly with the fish and citrus. Crazy.
4. Turbot, Root Vegetables, Beurre Cancalaise — look at my picture. Turbot (pronounced Turbo) isn’t a particularly scaley fish. Those «scales» in the picture are tweezered root vegtables made to look so. Insane!
5. Cod, English Pea, Cockles, Mint — the English peas are so flavorful right now and worked so well with the seafood.
6. Abalone, Bone Marrow, Artichoke, Black Truffle — i can’t describe this any better than the description itself.
7. Grapefruit, Pastis, Black Pepper — a great palate cleanser.
8. Coconut Cannoli, Rhubarb, Hibiscus — the Italians should take a few notes ;)
9. Almond Cake, Preserved Lemon, Amaretto Caramel — perfection. Not too sweet, just balanced almond amazingness.
The service was impeccable, attention to detail unlike anything I’ve experienced before. No one hovered or stayed too long, they were funny when needed to be and timed everything to perfection. Well done.
After a perfectly executed meal, still the highlight of my night was the company. My friends. Loved Ones. Meals like this put big picture stuff into perspective… I’m a very lucky person and I try not to take that for granted.
Nothing short of a brilliant evening. Thank you Coi for your exceptional service.

Coi is one of my favourite, if not my favourite restaurant in the world. Every Time I come to San Francisco I have to come here. The service, the food, the ambiance everything make that place a must go in the restaurant scene in SF.
Highly recommend a visit!

We had the tasting menu there tonight. Overall it was very mediocre, no dish wowed me at all and I don’t feel like coming back again.
The ambiance was very good.
The service appeared to be good but there were two things to mention. If you order a beer, they’ll pull half into your glass and tell you they put the rest in fridge for you at back. And later they totally forgot about that and just take your glass away after you finish that half bottle. Second They charge a 20% tip automatically and if you don’t read the menu and receipt carefully you may end up paying double tip.
The food was very very good looking but the taste was very plain. There was nothing bad but also nothing so amazing. We started with seafood appetizer then seafood mains but ended with a very strange pigeon main with a pigeon head, heart and one feet on the plate. I’m Chinese and I still found it a bit disgusting. The pigeon meat was really greasy too. We ended with three desserts which were nothing special.
Photos attached.

I never got around to trying this place before Daniel Patterson’s departure, but I had the opportunity to check out Chef Kirkley’s new opening menu recently.
The daily tasting menu is seafood-​focused and comprises 12 courses ($ 225/​person). Each dish was certainly tasty but some were more memorable than others; highlights included the ocean trout and the turbot. Presentation was creative and top-​notch — the turbot featured «scales» made of round slices of vegetables, for example.
There are wine pairings available, in addition to a non-​alcoholic tea pairing, which I thought was unique. They also offer quarter-​bottles of wines using the Coravin system; I certainly liked the pinot noir ($ 98) that I tried but ultimately wasn’t sure if it was worth the premium over the regular (and much more reasonably-​priced) options.
Service was professional and polished, as you would expect — a tad on the colder side though. The minimalist/​modern décor made for a pleasantly relaxed yet upscale experience.
Whereas tasting menus at many other restaurants avoid the fine dining cliché of tiny portions, the courses at Coi are relatively small and while I didn’t leave hungry, I felt the meal should have been more substantial. For that reason, I found myself attempting to justify our dinner by looking at it more as a gastronomic experience rather than an actual meal. To that end, it was definitely a delightful dining experience and I wouldn’t mind coming back in the future.

We rushed to come to Coi last fall when we learned that Daniel Patterson was going to be leaving and passing the reigns to L20’s chef. While I loved L20 when it was in business in Chicago (First time I had Uni Spaghetti 5 years ago) and am eager to dine here again, we were much anticipating Patterson’s last hurrah and made plans to.
We purchased tickets online for a late October reservation. After they tap on the 20% gratuity, the total bill up front, even before setting foot in the restaurant, came to $ 574.20 for two.
We ended up getting a few drinks/​wine glasses while there, spending roughly another $ 100 in addition.
Coi was great– it resembled certain elements of Alinea– there were lots of «sensory experiences» with every dish– whether it meant scent, texture, plating, etc. as it was presented to you.
My fav dishes were the California Bowl Buffed brown rice cracker, the Caviar egg yolk, Chilled Earl Girl Tomato-​Pepper Soup, and the Coconut Mochi.
The ambiance was cool with lots of brown hues– but it wasn’t intimidating or dark– it actually felt very warm and inviting.
Service was top notch. I’m excited to come back again in the future and see what the new chef plans to do.

I am huge fan of Chef Kirkley from L20 in Chicago, where I had one of the best meals ever. Granted Chef has only been running this menu and restaurant for two weeks, but there are some major flaws that left me wanting more.
On the positive side, amazing dishwhare, plating and design was beautiful and there were some absolutely stunning bites, like the green chartreuse ball.
On to the not so positive, first of all being familiar with Chef Kirkley’s background I was disappointed to not see any crab on the menu, or a hint of foie gras. At L20, at least 5 dishes had foie, and the crab dishes were his best. I understand adopting to local ingredients, but don’t abandon your go to items. Not having foie is fatal and almost not forgettable.
The restaurant itself is a bit to stuffy for my liking. Our server was pleasant and a bit playful but way too formal.
The management is annoying as can be as I got 3 reservations to confirm and they kept berating me about not showing and charging my card. It just comes across as insulting and ignorant.
The portion sizes were ridiculously small. I walked away from the meal starving. There is only one substantive dish, the turbot. The meal missed at least two bigger meat dishes.
The pace of the meal, still needs kinks worked out. Small courses and an almost 3.5 hour meal are not good combinations for filling up your customer.
Dessert was a touch too light. I wish there was a bolder flavor to finish.
The plating, and a couple awesome bites would lure me back in the future once Chef has things dialed in. For now, its a wait and see to me, can he get back to the level of l20?

I came to try the new menu from chef Kirkley and it was an incredible experience. As someone who loves seafood, I was delighted with all of the courses. They were jewel like dishes executed with precision and feeling. The food was at once restrained and lively. The dessert courses from chef Muncy brought the menu to its perfect completion. The desserts were remarkable in their understated elegance.
The service was excellent and well paced. We got a great rose recommendation from the sommelier. I’m looking forward to coming back in the Spring to see what incredible things the chefs do next. Thank you!

Nothing really blew my mind!
The presentation was cool but the food was meh!

We dined here for one of chef Daniel Patterson’s dinner,
they served the best of Coi under his lead, it truly was an amazing experience
Ranking from 1 being the most favorite
California bowl-​puffed brown rice cracker, sprouts, avocado
(2-​reminded me of limey shrimp chips)
Pink grapefruit– ginger, black pepper, cognac, tarragon
(4– in general im not a big grapefruit fan)
California sturgeon caviar– egg yolk, crème fraîche, chive
(1-​yummy, egg yolk was to die for)
Shigoku oyster– cracked wheat-pig’s feet tabbouleh, rau ram
(3-​fresh)
—-
Fall Rose– beet, turnip, apple, walnut, mint
5-​beautiful presentation
Inverted fromage blanc tart– fennel, wheatgrass
7– something tasted very plastic/​chemical like
Dungeness crab and beef tendon soup– asian pear, finger lime, cilantro
3– warm, with bright hints
Popcorn Grits
6-​popcorn on popcorn
Salsify-​black trumpet, lichen, wood sorrel
1– really enjoyed this dish, reminded me of the truffle burrata at beretta
Monterey bay abalone– nettle-​dandelion salsa verde, spicy breadcrumbs, wild fennel flowers
2– delicious
Earth and sea– fresh seaweeds, yuba, mushroom dashi
6– interesting textures of the seaweeds and pops of salt water
Poached and grilled lamb– chard leaves and stems, garum, rosemary
4-​tender and moist, chard has enough to break the fatty-​ness of it
—-
Coconut mochi bun– kiwi, shiso
(2-​yummy mochi with a crunch)
Frozen lime marshmallow –coal toasted meringue
(3-​so cool, sweet — you needed all of the elements in one bite otherwise too sweet or too tart)
Bittersweet chocolate tart– mandarin, tamarind, smoked yogurt
(1-​thought the chocolate and tamarind would be to conflicting for me but it worked surprisingly well)
Citron curd– aloe, lemon balm
(4-​least enjoyable like lemon jelly candy)
Overall an amazing experience that I’m glad we had before Chef Daniel Patterson left.

When we found out Daniel Patterson was leaving the kitchen at the end of the year, we wanted to try Coi before the end of December. Therefore, we booked on New Year Eve. Tickets were $ 360 each, wine pairing is not included which additional $ 135+ 20% service charge+Tax.
I liked the size of each dish because they are small enough that I could enjoy the entire meal without feeling too full at the end of 18 different plates, the wine pairing was very good that we got 9 glasses of wine. Poached and grilled lamb was the signature also my favorite for the night. It was served with chard leaves and stems, garum, rosemary. Overall, 85% of dishes were pretty good and I did enjoy them. However, I personally think this place is TOTALLY overpriced because when I was in L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon, I thought Robuchon was pricey but it was worth ittotally because the foods there were SO GOOD.
I won’t go back to Coi again. 1^st of all, it is too overpriced; 2^nd, the food is ok good only, of course except the lamb. 3^rd, some wine didn’t pair well with the food. Great, I miss Robuchon now.

I had a lovely birthday dinner at Coi. The chef’s menu was delicious. I particularly liked the size of each dish — they are small enough that you can enjoy the entire meal without feeling too full at the end of 11 different plates. My favorites were the caviar on an egg yolk that was completely cooked but looked raw, the abalone dish, and a sweet tamarind tart that we got for dessert. Service was impeccable over the four hour dinner.
We tried both the tea and wine pairing, and both are very interesting in different ways. I recommend trying both.

2.5 STARS
When I found out Daniel Patterson was leaving the kitchen at the end of the year, I wanted to try Coi before the end of December. The roommate went ahead and bought us tickets for dinner on Tuesday, December 1^st at 6:15pm. Tickets were $ 220 each +tax and 20% service charge = $ 574.20.
*CALIFORNIA BOWL: puffed brown rice cracker, sprouts, avocado
*SNO-​CONE: niabell ice, wild bay salt
*CALIFORNIA STURGEON CAVIAR: egg yolk, crème fraîche, chive
*OYSTERS UNDER GLASS: radish, yuzu, rau ram
*INVERTED BEET/​GOAT CHEESE TART: rye, dill
*PUMPKIN-​APPLE BROTH: turnip, charred onion, monterey cypress
*MONTEREY BAY ABALONE: nettle-​dandelion salsa verde, spicy breadcrumbs, wild fennel flowers
*CELTUCE: just-​dug potatoes, comté, burnt hay, tarragon
*POACHED AND GRILLED LAMB: chard leaves and stems, garum, rosemary
*COCONUT MOCHI BUN: kiwi, shiso
*GRAPEFRUIT: ginger, black pepper, anise herbs
*COFFEE BABA: hazelnut, persimmon, yogurt
*SOFT NOUGAT COVERED IN DARK CHOCOLATE
My favorite dishes were the caviar, abalone and lamb. The egg yolk was creamy with a custard like consistency. Went well with the salty caviar. The abalone was a fun play on textures with the crunchy breadcrumbs and chewy abalone. I did find this dish a bit salty though. The lamb was cooked perfectly. I did wish it had more of a char and the fat was cooked a little more.
I know Coi focuses on local, fresh ingredients, but for the price of the tasting, I wanted more. More food, more flavor, more luxurious ingredients. It would have been nice if there were a couple more protein courses and maybe an ingredient like truffle to make the meal feel more substantial.
Also, the roommate doesn’t eat lamb, so they gave him a choice of chicken or cauliflower in place of that course. He ended up getting two tiny pieces of chicken. I know lamb isn’t widely loved by everyone, so I’m surprised they didn’t offer a beef dish in place of the lamb.
I strongly disliked the celtuce course. I love green vegetables. But the stem of ancient lettuce? I have no idea what that’s supposed to taste like, but I found it too green and too soft. The roommate was surprised as I almost always finish my vegetables. He also couldn’t eat that course or the pumpkin soup. He would have walked away hungry had he not had a huge late lunch before our meal.
Wine pairing ($ 135):
*2012 Schramsberg, ‘Blanc de Blancs’, Napa Valley, California
*2014 Ameztoi, Txakolina, Spain
*2014 Radio-​Coteau, ‘Platt Vineyard’ Reisling, Sonoma Coast, California
*2013 Meyer-​Fonne, ‘Kaefferkopf’ Pinot Gris, Grand Cru, Alsace, France
*2014 Vocal Vineyards, ‘Alfaro Vineyard’ Gruner Veltliner, Santa Cruz Mountains, California
*2013 Tyler, ‘Zotovich Vineyard’ Chardonnay, Sta. Rita Hills, Santa Barbara County, California
*2012 Château Samion, Lalabde-​De-​Pomerol, Bordeaux, France
*2013 Schafer-​Frohlich, ‘Felseneck’ Spalese Gold Kapsule, Nahe, Germany
*2008 Royal Tokaji Company, ‘Aszu 5 Puttonyos’ Red Label, Mad, Hungary
They also offer a Cellar selections pairing ($ 250) and a Tea pairing ($ 75), but I just got the standard wine pairing. I’m definitely more of a red wine girl. Even though they only gave me one red, I actually enjoyed the pairing. Everything paired perfectly with the flavors of each course. Our pairing also had a standard +20% service charge on our bill.
Service was excellent as can be expected. Very attentive without being overly hovering. They also gave us an extra dessert for celebrating a special occasion: Stuffed brioche with white chocolate sauce.
I can appreciate what Coi is trying to do with their dishes, but everything comes down to taste for me. At this price point, I just expected more. At $ 220 per person, no one should leave hungry. I’ve dragged the roommate to many a coursed meals and by far, I think this has been the most disappointing. Rounding up to 3 for the wine pairing and service.

One of the best wine flights out there offering either a California pairing or a European pairing. Having been lucky enough to have tried both I was personally partial to the elegance of the european wines but both are spectacular.

I know that the couple sitting across from me really enjoyed their meal. but I’m not sure what they were eating because I did not have the same reaction. All of the food tastes bland with the exception of a few really good ones.
The good parts of the meal would easily be the poached egg and the poached pear dessert. Everything before and after was only all right. The poached egg is of course is their staple. It was absolutely amazing that the egg had the texture of a custard and the flavors were smokey. The pairing with the crème fraîche was classic.
Some of the other dishes I had no idea what I was supposed to taste. I love beets and goat cheese, but I had never tasted them in such a way. I could see that the crispy piece on the top was supposed to balance everything, but there was just so much mush underneath. The goat cheese and beet mixture had this mushy, almost slimy texture.
Most of the courses were okay to eat. The only other one that I really couldn’t even finish was the celtuse. Maybe this ancient Chinese vegetable was meant to stay in the ancient ages. And the apple-​pumkin broth lacked so much depth.
Overall, I was disappointed. The meal started off without us being checked-​in properly and just kinda tumbled along until the end.
Service was pretty good. Less rehearsed than I would have imaged, but suitable and knowledgable.
I’m not coming back but I’m glad I got to check this place out and enjoy that egg.

The only option was the tasting menu. There were about 11 courses with a few amuse bouches. All were delightful. The last three courses were the sweets. One included grapefruit that all diners did not like. We had four diners including myself. I had a glass of wine while my companions each had the wine pairings. One choose the European cellar reserve, the other American cellar reserve and finally, my husband chose the standard wine pairing. Our total bill was about $ 2,200.
We were privileged to dine here before chef Patterson’s departure. It was quite an experience with a handsome price tag. I rated Coi four stars since we were not informed of the various prices of the wine pairings.

Made a reservation here for my boyfriend’s birthday. Was looking for somewhere with beautiful, unique food in a romantic atmosphere. Coi was absolutely wonderful and outdid themselves in every sense.
Service was extremely attentive and the 11 courses kept us on our toes. Before we left we also got a short tour of the kitchen!

Coi is located in the middle of the Chinatown, North Beach and Financial District area. It’s run by Daniel Patterson and the restaurant is a very dimly lit. Daniel Patterson is a uniquely self taught chef where other chefs have been through intensive training at other highly regarded kitchens in the world. The kitchen is one of the smallest I’ve seen with Coi’s accolades. Coi’s accolades are as follows:
1) 2 Michelin stars in 2014
2) 2 Michelin stars in 2015
3) #75 on the San Pellegrino 2014 World’s Best Restaurants
4) #49 on the San Pellegrino 2015 World’s Best Restaurants
Anyway, the service is what would be expected at a Michelin 2 star restaurant. There isn’t much of a difference between the service at a 2 star versus a 3 star Michelin restaurant. The food. Coi offers one tasting menu and I wanted to check out Chef Patterson’s cooking before Patterson leaves Coi and Matthew Kirkley of L20 takes over Coi. Coi was really impressive. Favorites were Poached Egg w/​Caviar, Beets and Abalone w/​Salsa Verde.
Overall, I would highly recommend Coi and to dine here before Chef Patterson leaves the restaurant. I’m definitely coming back to see what Matthew Kirkley can do for Coi next year. Lastly, Coi is prounced as «Choa»… I don’t know. I just called it «Koi» like the fish.
US 2015 Michelin 3 Stars Count: 12 Down. 0 More.
2015 Michelin Rated Restaurant Count: 26
San Pellegrino 2014 World’s 100 Best Restaurants Count: 15
San Pellegrino 2015 World’s 100 Best Restaurants Count: 16

My family and I celebrated a recent birthday at Coi and had a wonderful meal. I’ll post a photo of the tasting menu with cellar wine pairings for readers to reference.
As I write this in late October 2015, Daniel Patterson is winding down his tenure at Coi. He will be turning the operation over to Matthew Kirkely at the end of the year. I wanted to visit Coi one last time before Patterson moves on and we had an amazing experience. The chef was personally serving birthday cakes to patrons on this Saturday evening. It was a nice personal touch.
The cellar wine pairings were unique and delicious, I enjoyed the chat with the somm about the pairings and the background information on the wine and winemakers. Cellar Pairings are a $ 250 addition to the tasting menu and I would choose the cellar pairings again in the future.
I’ll simply say that the cuisine at Coi is unique and delicious. If I could muster the appetite, I would do the tasting menu again. If pressed to make a decision on my favorite course, I would likely go with the Abalone. Although, I might choose the spot prawn which was simply prepared so that the sweet flavors of the shell fish are the focus.
Visitors should know that the neighborhood on Broadway is a bit eclectic as it seems that adult entertainment establishments continue to grow in number. My advice is to park near Jackson Square if possible and walk a few blocks to Coi.
I’ll let the new chef settle in over the winter and try Coi in the spring to see how it has evolved!

Came here a couple years ago on a whim. My friends had reservations that she couldn’t cancel so I happily took over her reservation (WITHOUT LOOKING AT THE RESTAURANT PROFILE OR MENU).
To my chagrin, the food was definitely not to my taste. I wish I had looked over the menu profile before agreeing to go. Although everything seems super fancy and does have the wow factor when it comes out, each and every course left something to be desired — that satisfactory «mmm», interesting, delicious, extraordinary «I’d love another one of those.» Instead, after I finished each course, I kept thinking, «wow I can’t wait to get to the really good stuff, the entrees, something more complex, something more umame, a hearty bite, SOMETHING!» Alas, by the end of ALL the courses I was still waiting for more. I was yearning for some proteins, for the exquisite meats, and didn’t want any more pea soup or turnips or any simple organic veggies processed into cool things that don’t fill me up and fleetingly taste «interesting.
At the time, I thought it wasn’t terrible but I have since visited many other restaurants of similar or greater caliber and I can easily say that this was very disappointing. I firmly believe that every meal needs to have a balance, and Coi lacked this terribly.
Two stars because ambience and service was above par, and dishes sounded very cool and innovative on paper.

Not my favorite place.
The ambiance: is way too formal. I don’t like when everyone is so rigid! The restaurant was empty when we got here (at 7 pm) and surprisingly it was full when we left at 9 pm.
The food: Is good. But when doing a tasting menu, I would expect awesome food. I also was feeling hungry for a while until we got the 6^th or 7^th step of the menu, maybe because they were taking too long in between each step, maybe because the steps were too tiny, maybe it was just me that was feeling like the cookie monster hungry!
What I didn’t like: the waiters were not explaining the food. They were all in a hurry to finish the short and uninteresting description they were giving us. I like to know what I’m eating and maybe how they archived it, mostly when the food doesn’t look like something familiar.
I liked that the chef himself brought out the last step of the dessert.

I had a very amazing time here last night for dinner to help celebrate a friend’s birthday. From start to finish to the food to the service was amazing! For those who don’t drink, they offer a tea pairing. There were 5 teas offered and it is alittle extra, of course. From the moment we sat down, each dish served was complex as well as artistic. I didn’t dislike any of the dishes, they were all so flavorful and was full by the end. I don’t want to name the dishes becuase I believe you should come and check it out!
The service here was so friendly and personable and not stuffy or dry for a high end restaurant like this. The experience of the food on top of the service will have me coming back again for another season. We had the summer menu, so glad they will change their menu based on season. Definitely worth the money.

Gas — $ 30
Toll — $ 6
Parking — $ 15
13-​course meal at our first Michelin star restaurant — $ 521
Taking the ultimate foodie bae to the bay and seeing her grin from ear to ear as she devours one unfamiliar yet highly-​sophisticated dish after the other — Priceless
…and no, I don’t have Mastercard… I use Discover…
CALIFORNIA BOWL | puffed brown rice cracker, sprouts, avocado
SNO-​CONE | blood orange, pink peppercorn, black lime
CALIFORNIA STURGEON CAVIAR | egg yolk, crème fraîche, chive
GEODUCK | cucumber, radish, salad burnett
CHILLED ENGLISH PEA SOUP | our buttermilk, meyer lemon, nasturtium
ARTICHOKE, STUFFED AND BAKED | fava, allium, lardo
MOREL-​ENCRUSTED TROUT | asparagus, brown butter, sorrel juice
EARTH AND SEA | steamed tofu mousseline, yuba, mushroom dashi
AGED DUCK GRILLED OVER CHARCOAL | spring greens, spicy vinaigrette of duck broth and fermented flavors
BLACK SESAME MOCHI | strawberry, kumquat shiso
FROZEN WHIPPED RHUBARB | olive oil, spring herbs
COCONUT CAKE | dark chocolate, pandan
HAND-​PULLED TAFFIES | miso and lemon-​hibiscus
My favorite part of the course: the trout. Visually stunning, it was pink and delicate, moist and mouth-​watering, light, fine and buttery, mildly sweet and nutty in flavor that literally melted on my tongue ~
One star indicates excellent cooking in its category, and Michelin recommends that you should try the food there if the restaurant is on your path. Two stars denote superb cuisine, skillfully crafted dishes of outstanding quality, worth a detour. Three stars represent exceptional dishes precisely executed with superlative ingredients, cuisine «worth a journey.»
Every aspect of Coi was perfection and most definitely worth our visit. Ambiance, service, food, and everything else in between — deserving of that Michelin rating.

Get comfortable, because this is a veryyy long review… *I actually had to cut it down because apparently Unilocal has a 5000 character limit that I wasn’t aware of. Nooo!
My sweet boyfriend took me to Coi for my birthday dinner. Luckily we arrived at 7:00 on the dot, after enduring traffic for 2 ½ hours, and the staff calmly greeted us as we practically ran inside the door. From the outside, you probably wouldn’t be able to tell that Coi is a Michelin star restaurant. The atmosphere inside was very quiet, proper, and upscale, with servers wearing 3-​piece suits, who walked back and forth and stood on each side of the room looking around and checking on everyone. There was also one guy who constantly refilled our waters. I felt like royalty!
Our server Andrew arrived & greeted me happy birthday. He was personable and made us feel comfortable despite the formal environment. He asked us if we had any allergies or anything, so my boyfriend reminded him we wouldn’t be drinking alcohol, so Andrew recited a list of non-​alcoholic beverages that we could try. We ended up deciding on sparkling rose lemonade — wow it was delicious!
The menu included 8 courses, but Andrew informed us that there would be a few surprises here and there from the chef. In total, we had 13 items! They were all very small portions, but that was perfect because it allowed us to have enough room to finish each item and try numerous things.
We started off with puffed brown rice crackers served with avocado purée. It was a perfect start to the delicious courses to come. Then, our server brought out a bowl of blood orange ice mixed with pink peppercorn & black lime — meant to be a palate cleanser. It was such an odd thing to be having a «palate cleanser.» that’s when you know you’re fancy!
I should note that after each course, they were very quick to take away any dirty plates and bring brand new utensils each time.
Next up was my favorite dish of the night: California sturgeon caviar! It included caviar on top of a 2-​hour poached egg yolk, crème fraîche, and chopped chives. I’ve never had caviar before, but it was DELICIOUS. The saltiness of the caviar was perfectly paired with a creamy egg yolk and the crème fraîche. My mouth is salivating as I think back about this dish.
Okay back on track. Next dish was the geoduck topped with radish slices and salad burnett… in simple terms, beautiful tiny little flowers. The geoduck tasted just like fresh clams. The flowers threw me off, as I don’t even like the smell of flowers, let alone eating them. They did pair well with the fresh flavor of the clams. Next was chilled pea soup topped with larger nasturtium flower petals. I loved the presentation of this one, but it was my least favorite taste of the night. I blame that on my dislike of peas and flowers though — nothing to do with the actual creation of the dish. I felt like a terrible person if I didn’t finish but luckily my boyfriend enjoyed that one.
Next, we had a stuffed and baked artichoke topped with a thin lardon layer and fava beans. They brought it out then poured olive oil right in front of you, another beautiful presentation touch. It was a nice small bite right before the next larger dish: morel– encrusted trout, served over sliced asparagus and a brown butter/​sorrel juice sauce. Now let me tell you, I’m not a huge mushroom or fish fan, but WOW this course was amazing! The trout melted in your mouth, almost reminiscent of a sashimi taste.
Then, we had steamed tofu mousseline, yuba, mushroom dashi. It smelled & tasted like miso soup. There was a creamy aspect which really added a lot of flavor. After, we had aged grilled duck with spring greens and a fermented duck broth vinaigrette. This was also a very hearty dish with a bigger serving.
Another surprise from the kitchen to start off the dessert course: black sesame mochi with strawberry and rhubarb. It was so beautifully presented too. a common theme of the night if you haven’t noticed. Luckily we had more dessert coming our way: frozen whipped rhubarb. It was served with cilantro — such an odd combination but it really worked. Who knew? Our next desserts were coconut pandan cake, served inside a dark chocolate ball that you break with your spoon, and apple filled brioche with a hazelnut crème, a birthday dessert from the kitchen. That was probably my favorite dessert! Then they brought out the check with two hand-​pulled taffies in miso and lemon-​hibiscus.
Overall the menu had a very fresh theme and it was very nature-​like. Everything was cohesive, full of flavors you wouldn’t expect to work, but it did! Although I didn’t know half of the things on that menu (I used google a lot while I wrote this review, don’t judge me), I’ve learned that when you come to these upscale restaurants, you have to have an open mind & open palate, or else you won’t enjoy your experience. I will never forget my 1^st Michelin star experience at Coi!

Not quite worth the $ 400 per person price…
Came here for dinner with my fiancé and a friend and we left hungry and grabbed a slice of pizza an hour later.
Here’s my review:
Service –5 star. An experience that you would expect from a 2 michlin star restaurant.
Food — we had the 12 course food pairing, a few of the dishes tasted almost the same, which was disappointing, and the dishes were too light since we left unsatisfied. We had the wine pairing, which was awesome and their pours were very generous.
Ambiance — trendy and refined, nice
Overall, their food was uneventful, a poor shot for Coi. Wish I could give them better stars due to the hype, but sadly I’ve had much better.

***While I do not love Coi as much as Saison, Atelier Crenn, Manresa, or Benu, Coi’s food can be both delicious and impressive; in a city full of innovative restaurants, Coi’s utilizes seasonal, local produce to create several simple but very pure and enlightening courses that are hard to top***
I did not love my first experience at Coi. There were several great plates of food, but Coi just did not measure up to other highly regarded restaurants in the area like the unique gem Saison. Coi underwent a re-​design a year or so ago and the restaurant looks great. The room is much more contemporary now and the dining room’s unique location within the building provides an intimate and exclusive feeling experience.
Coi is still doing a single tasting menu only approach though I enjoyed the presentations more on this visit and the food felt more vibrant. The food was still on the dainty side, but there was just too much delicious and one-​of-​a-​kind food here to ignore this restaurant’s greatness.
My favorite plate of the night was the soup course, which was a reinvention of the fall classic butternut squash soup. Instead of just having a thick and sweet soup, their soup combined a creamy, rich and sweet butternut squash custard that was topped with a warm and comforting butternut squash and apple consommé, crisp and tart apples, and crunchy pumpkin seeds.
I also really liked their Santa Barbara uni course, which was very refreshing. Sweet and creamy uni was paired with a risotto-​like mix of kohlrabi, crisp radishes and bright yuzu.
A traditional caviar flavor combination was made more special by the smoking of egg yolk in olive oil; the smoked flavor was prominent alongside the salty and briny caviar, the light crème fraîche, and the chives.
The beet was good too with a meaty but soft center contrasted against a crispy and petrified-​like skin. I liked the garnish of mustard greens though the miso sauce did not stand out much.
Non-​protein dishes really shined. I loved the silky potato and pine needle purée topped with perfectly grilled matsutake mushrooms. The ability of the kitchen to achieve so much textural and flavor depth in the mushroom was impressive as you can feel and taste each mushroom and biting into the mushroom allowed the squishy rubberiness of it to shine; it also allowed its flavor to develop and change.
Some of the more substantial courses were still light. Seasonal and warm dungeness crab was wrapped in celtuce and then paired with bitter greens and a fragrant tarragon purée. There is definitely a lot of simplicity here as Coi tries to achieve a purity in the ingredients’ flavors as opposed to showcasing assertive seasoning or sauces that take over the plate.
I did feel the New York Strip could have used a more assertive approach though. It was the most substantial course and it was a little boring to eat as the flavors were not as great as the other courses that preceded it. The seaweed encrusted beef was nicely cooked; it was tender and moist. I really liked the fragrant parsley purée as well as the brown butter and bone marrow roasted cauliflower, but I wish the steak had a stronger beef flavor.
Desserts had bright spots like a caramelized cake, a perfectly poached pear and a crunchy and nutty pistachio tuile, but I wish there was one dessert that matched the great things the kitchen was able to achieve with the savory courses.
Service was excellent. The food came out at an even pace while the staff was professional and polite but still personable and welcoming.
Prices are high and portions are small, but Coi serves several impressive, elegant and unique courses that you will not find at many restaurants in the U.S.
I was significantly more impressed with this trip to Coi than my first visit a few years ago. It could be the season (this trip was during the fall while my last trip was in spring or summer), but I actually think the team and kitchen has evolved more as the food has become more vibrant. The restaurant’s point of view too – its goal to achieve and celebrate the purity, flavor and texture of each ingredient – came across much more on this visit and really illustrated how unique this restaurant is in an area filled with many innovative fine dining restaurants.
Metered street parking is available.