Pete Tittl: New beef recipe overtaking Joe's chicken
| Thursday, Mar 12 2009 02:54 PM
Last Updated Wednesday, Mar 25 2009 06:16 PM
COCONUT JOE'S
4158 California Ave., 327-1378
Hours:10 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. every day.
Prices: Chicken, tri-tip and combo plates $5.99 to $7.99, burgers $5.99 to $6.99, burritos $4.99 to $6.99, seafood $6.49 to $8.99, sandwiches $6.49 to $7.99, salads $2.49 to $5.99, bowls and soups $4.99 to $6.99, family packs $17.99 to $28.99. Child’s menu available.
Payment: MasterCard, Visa, American Express, Discover and personal checks accepted. Does not accept The Californian’sPress Pass.
Dress: Casual
Amenities: Wheelchair accessible; beer and wine coolers served; some vegetarian options.
Web site:
coconutjoes.com
Food: 3 stars
Atmosphere:31⁄2 stars
Service: 3 stars
Value: 4 stars
Next week: Buck Owens’ Crystal Palace
If, like me, you thought the food, particularly the tri-tip, was slipping in recent months at Coconut Joe's Beach Grill, you may need to revisit.
As a longtime customer and fan, I thought something was amiss at the restaurant owned by Joe Coughlin. The beef seemed to have a lot less spunk and flavor than it used to. I've always appreciated the way the owners are never satisfied, always tinkering with the formula, trying to keep the restaurant moving in the right direction.
But for a time I wondered if the changes were all for the better. I appreciate the halibut, sandwiches and burgers cooked over mesquite charcoal, but it seemed to me the food used to have a bit more sass, a bit more garlic.
What I didn't know was that changes were afoot in the kitchen, and, after some lackluster visits in recent months, I went back just last week.
Things were different. The tri-tip is now even better than the old version. Coughlin changed the tri-tip spice recipe, as well as the slicing techniques and even the grade of beef, which is now certified Angus.
The chicken still lacks some of the punch and sweetness I remember from the past, but the beef is on its way to becoming a bigger draw than the chicken, ironic since the restaurant was once almost completely reliant on chicken.
On a January visit, we tried the fish tacos ($7.99). The two tacos were made with fresh fried crispy shells, and I appreciated that the fish was grilled and not fried. It's a cleaner taste, and was a great addition to the menu a few years ago. My companion and I discussed a slightly musty flavor in the fish she detected. I said it was a seasoning, not a less-than-fresh fish.
We went back another night and had better luck with a Paradise burger with cheese ($6.49), a mesquite chicken salad ($5.99) and the tri-tip chili ($4.99). The chili was the most impressive of all, with beans, tomatoes and plenty of pieces of tri-tip mixed in. And at 5 bucks, that's a great deal. The burger was ordinary and lacked the smoky flavor of the chicken. The chicken salad had a nice mix of greens and a clean oil and vinegar dressing that worked perfectly with the other ingredients. Again, the price is about the level of fast food, but the quality is better.
There are a few new cakes on the dessert menu: a chocolate with chocolate cream cheese frosting and a banana cake with cream cheese frosting (both $2.99). The chocolate seems a variation on the famous version at Jake's Original Tex-Mex Café, and it doesn't quite measure up. I think the cake here is better than Jake's, but the frosting needs tweaking. The banana was much better, though vanilla cream cheese frosting can make almost any cake wonderful.
