Cochineal

A must visit for a dinner in Marfa. Quality food and great service. If you're not down for the chef tasting menu you can make a reservation for their a la carte menu which I highly recommend! Parking - it's Marfa, was able to find street parking very close no problem. Service - I made a 5pm reservation for the bar / a la carte menu and was the first/only one in for a while. Bartender and staff were all friendly. Ambiance - I sat inside at the bar and the overall interior had a charming feel. They also have a large outdoor patio. Food - I'm glad I read the reviews and got the bread to start. The bread was incredible but the star of the show was the whipped herb butter / garlic olive oil - SO good. I got the mushroom risotto for my main and it was delicious. I unfortunately did not save room for dessert but all options looked amazing. Would recommend to anyone stopping through town for a quality meal.

I've been here before so my expectations were very high. Again, Cochineal met the challenge. This is my favorite restaurant in Marfa.I could have eaten the bread all night long; the butter and oil accompaniments were very flavorful.The vegetable fritters balanced well with the aoli mustard sauce.The trout was the over-the-top surprise: truly memorable.The apple panna cotta was a fun finish to a perfect dining experience.I love this restaurant and I look forward to a visit again soon.

What a fantastic experience! Wifey n' I in town for a quick anniversary getaway, and with just arrivin' from the long drive (our messy timetable) we stumbled in without a reservation and hoped for the best. Granted, it was an oddball "not peak" time, so the crowd was thankfully thin and they got us in.I'm not really up on the fancy restaurant guidelines and terms etc., but we put ourselves in the server's hands for suggestions, etc., and it was fun, delicious and so unique. It was my first time trying some foods that were familar as food terms, but we've just never put ourselves in a spot to try them, such as caviar, boar, and gazpachio soup, and some others. We LOVED it all!We got a "Prix Fixe", which was a number of courses (check out the pic I took of that part of the menu). Not sure how relevant it will be to people reading this review in the sense it surely rotates greatly depending on what they have going on day-by-day. It's all very "chef-ie", and fluctuates depending, I think.And our server (I think her name's Melissa) was so sweet, attentive, and humored our green-ness, she's great.I got a few pics, I wish I got some of everything and did the items justice, but I hope they communicate well.As for how much it sets you back $$$, I would describe this as not inexpensive, but considering "where" this restaurant is set geographically, the unbelievable artistry, expertise, assortment, flavors, freshness, presentation, atmosphere, finishing touches, staff, comfort,... it was VERY worth it. Not someplace we could come regularly, but wow, one of the best places we've ever eaten and experienced ever.If you have the opportunity to ever visit here, wow, WOW, go for it! (just do bettet than us and make those reservations if you can).

Food was ok though not as good as I anticipated. Indoor atmosphere was nice but the table spacing (or lack of) really ruins the dining experience. When we arrived at 6 pm, they sat us next to the other two occupied tables (a few other two-tops were available and same wait staff for all so not sure why they don't stagger tables) and all of the tables are thisclose together making it hard to not hear everyone's conversations clearly, which I wouldn't expect in a restaurant that seems to market itself as closer to upscale dining than cafeteria seating.The mushroom risotto was good but overly salted as was the trout. We didn't order appetizers since as soon as we sat down we were ready to eat & leave due to the close proximity (my partner could hear the person next to him chewing which didn't make for a pleasant experience for him).The charcuterie and bread our neighbors were eating looked good, so if I ever returned, I'd order that and sit outside on their patio table.

This was one of the best fine dining experiences me and my family ever had! We were originally going to do the Al a carte menu, but they were able to accommodate us and allow at least one of us to do the chefs menu on late notice. The FOOD was amazing. Every dish was tasteful and you could tell everything was fresh. Truly a farm to table experience. The waiters and waitress were amazing & kind. We can't wait to come back to try the next seasonal menu!

Fun tasting menu, pretty pricey for what it was. Interesting assortment we wouldn't have ordered a la cart. Glad we tried. The escargot was great.

There's so much to say. My husband and I booked the chef's table, meaning we had a direct view of the kitchen. It wasn't necessarily the most glamorous place to sit, but it was so cool to see all of the insanely hard work the kitchen staff was doing and to meet the chefs. Every course was unique and delicious, beautifully presented, and perfectly timed. I still dream of the first course and the dessert even a few months later. I highly recommend coming here for a special occasion or just because you're there.

My partner and I planned our entire Big Bend National Park-Marfa trip around the tasting menu at Cochineal, eager to experience the cuisine of a James Beard award-winning restaurant. Unfortunately, our experience was highly disappointing, and the price was not worth the poor service we received.We spent the day at Big Bend and began calling the restaurant as soon as it opened at 5 PM to see if we could push back our reservation, for which we had already paid a deposit. No one answered the phone. Fifteen minutes before our reservation, we received a call from the restaurant informing us that they were not busy and we could push back our time. We arrived on time and waited over 18 minutes before being greeted by our server, Caroline, to get our drinks.When I asked Caroline to go over the tasting menu, her response was odd, confused, and uncomfortable. We asked if we could order additional items off the à la carte menu, but she said no because everything was timed, and we had reserved the tasting menu. This didn't make sense, as they took so long to greet us and get our drinks. We wanted the tasting menu but also additional food since we practice fasting, and this was our only meal of the day. I've never heard of a fine dining establishment denying customers the opportunity to spend more money, especially when they were not busy.When we asked for coffee, Caroline said they had espresso but gave a rude response when we asked for an Americano. My partner was so turned off by her attitude that he wanted to leave, regardless of the deposit we had paid. We received better service for half the price at Margaret's the night before. When asked for a tequila menu, Caroline brought over just three tequilas, even though we saw more at the bar. I had to get up and show her what I wanted, which was a very odd interaction.The food was good, but the overall experience with our server was terrible. We were so excited to try this restaurant, but from the beginning, it was a mess. I'm extremely disappointed in the management team for not providing their server with better training. When experiencing a tasting menu at this high of a cost, the server is part of the overall experience and should be there to provide whatever we need within reason, like drinks and answers to what's on the menu. Save your money and go elsewhere in Marfa.

Very nice staff. Bill the bartender was super attentive. Everyone here seem to love their job. Nice atmosphere good food. A bit overpriced

I've been to a few James Beard awarded restaurants and this is by far the best experience I've ever had. The ambience is exactly what you're looking for when you stay in Marfa. The service is engaging, the menu is approachable and the food is perfectly balanced. Can't say enough good things about this place