A BIG SHIFT FOR ONE OF THE CITY’S TOP RESTAURANTS.
It took Matthew Kirkley less than two years at the helm of Daniel Patterson’s Coi (373 Broadway) to earn the San Francisco fine dining destination its coveted third Michelin star, joining a select pantheon of American restaurants to hold that honor.
He has since stepped down as executive chef to focus on training for Bocuse d’Or, the prestigious “culinary Olympics” held in Lyon, France. (Kirkley will represent the United States in the 2019 competition.)
The next chef to take over Coi will be Erik Anderson, who made his name at the Catbird Seat in Nashville and is an alumnus of both Noma and the French Laundry. When he opened the Catbird Seat, the restaurant gained national recognition in Bon Appetit and GQ.
Coi has a long-standing tradition as a hotbed for culinary talent. Think Brett Cooper (Aster), Katy Millard (Coquine) and Carlos Salgado (Taco María). Patterson sees Anderson as fitting the Coi mold, if there is such a thing.
To help facilitate the process, Patterson will step back into the kitchen for the remainder of the year. A new Coi menu by Patterson and Anderson will debut in January.
“I’m looking forward to collaborating with Erik in the weeks ahead as we work with the team at Coi to plan for a We work for tips! Please send news, notes and rumors from the restaurant world to jphillips@sfchronicle.com
new menu and direction for 2018,” Patterson said. “It’s a moment for us to celebrate the restaurant’s past while preparing for its future.”
Curry’s Smoke signals: Ayesha Curry’s International Smoke opened for dinner on Nov. 13 in the former RN74 space on the ground floor of the Millennium Tower (301 Mission St.).
“I was in the restaurant sometimes even when they didn’t want or need me there,” said Curry of the preopening period. “Sometimes I’ll just stand in the kitchen and observe it all. You have to remember, I’m still learning all of this.”
The 28-year-old star spent its first dinner service in a chef’s jacket, glad-handing guests as her globally-inspired fare arrived at tables.
Looking ahead though, the restaurant’s day-to-day kitchen operations are the responsibility of Jeremy McMillan, formerly the executive chef of Michael Mina’s Bourbon Steak in Arizona.
The International Smoke menu has Jamaican-style duck wings, Punjabi fish fry and St. Louis-style pork ribs, among many other smokeinfused or char-grilled dishes.
International Smoke is open for dinner service from 5:30 until 10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday, and until 10:30 p.m. on Friday and Saturday. Lunch service will be added at a later date. Reservations are recommended — but be warned that dinner reservations are already booked through the end of the year.
Getting the holiday spirit: Once the longtime home to Washington Square Bar & Grill — and lately known more as restaurant turnstile — North Beach’s 1707 Powell Street space will soon become a Christmas-themed pop-up bar called Deck the Halls.
Slated to run from Nov. 24 through the New Year, the holiday bar is joint venture between Nick Floulis (Chubby Noodle), Ken Luciano (Forgery) and Shaher Misif (Cantina).
Once the pop-bar closes, Floulis will use the space to open a restaurant called Lillie Coit’s.
For the unfamiliar, the restaurant is named after Lillie Coit, the patron saint of all pioneer firemen of the city. An opening date hasn’t been set. Floulis said it’s too early to release details but we do know Elmer Mejicanos, bar manager at Capo’s, is involved.
Literally cornering the market: According to Cathy Goldsmith, Berkeley’s beloved Cheese Board Collective will take over the Berkeley Produce Center space at 1500 Shattuck Avenue.
“It’s an exciting time for us right now,” Goldsmith said. “It’s going to be a while before we start using it because there are a lot of architectural things that need to happen first.”
For context, the Cheese Board is located at 1504 Shattuck Ave. Two doors down is Cheese Board Pizza at 1512 Shattuck Ave. And the Berkeley Produce Center is at the corner of Shattuck and Vine (1500 Shattuck Ave.). A hair salon at 1506 Shattuck Ave. would be the only non-Cheese Board related business on that strip.
It’s worth noting this isn’t the first time the shop has expanded into a nearby local business. In 1990, the group took over a fish market that went out of business next door. Then in 2007, it took over a space previously occupied by University Plumbing and Hardware. The latest step is a way for the pizza shop to expand its kitchen, Goldsmith said.
As for whether they’ll keep produce, Goldsmith said she wasn’t sure. Discussions still need to be had within the collective about future plans.
“It’s a beautiful space with amazing windows,” Goldsmith says of Berkeley Produce Center. “But right now, we’re just in the conceptual phase of what we can do.”