written by Lauren Kramer
Don’t come to Coho Restaurant looking for burgers, fries or a quick meal. There’s nothing fast, processed or ordinary about this twenty-four-seat, intimate dining room, which offers fine dining dinner service on white tablecloths, with soft lighting and jazz playing quietly in the background. Come for a take-your-time meal to celebrate a special occasion, as Coho is all about sophistication, multiple small courses and a unique culinary approach you won’t find elsewhere.
Located in a charmingly repurposed house in San Juan Island’s Friday Harbor, Coho’s menu changes seasonally, but chef Elita Pauley gives every item a unique spin. The house bread, for example, was offered with spruce tip-apple jelly the night we dined. Our salad was composed of grilled chicory with pickled shallots and toasted hazelnuts, while a small plate of shio koji-cured leek nori flower was presented in a sushi roll imitation. Those bite-size leeks, poached in housemade dashi and served with a sesame miso radish slaw, exemplify a level of detailed attention invested in every dish at Coho. It’s this dedication to the extraordinary that sets this restaurant apart from any other on the island.
We dined on Thai lemongrass soup, which was a sweetly delicious belly-warmer, and tried the rack of lamb and braised beef cheek ragu. Everything that emerged from the kitchen was artfully composed, well thought-out and richly flavorful.
To experience the full breadth of chef Pauley’s talents, opt for the four-course prix fixe menu at $90 per person. With just three-to-four offerings under each category, the menu is small. But from the amuse-bouche to the dessert finale, you’ll leave this restaurant richly satisfied and deeply impressed.
120 NICHOLS ST.
FRIDAY HARBOR
