Le Coq

Unreal. Unique ingredients combined through a French preparation, beautiful and delicious! We had a large party and they were very accommodating. The service was great, our server Chris guided us through the menu and recommended some great items. We also loved the vibe, it is upscale but still felt comfortable. We will be back!

The positive is that the staff is very observant and trained to give a 5 star service. The negative is the Underwhelming esthetics and average food.A bizarre appetizer menu emphasis on bread with choice of butter....while the baguette is warm and the butter is good.....the $18 combined price for bread and butter is off-putting.

The good - food was interesting, flavors were nice. Staff is friendly and kind.The bad - SO expensive. I just can't imagine coming back here with these prices. Completely outrageous. This isn't LA. People deserve to have a nice meal without spending $300+.Also, not having a sign on the building is silly..

I was excited to learn about this French restaurant as I enjoy the other restaurants in the Marlarky portfolio. Decided to go celebrate my husband's birthday. We had an early reservation but there were several diners in the restaurant already. The onion tart was warm, sweet and salty. It wasn't my favorite. The food was good but I wouldn't say exceptional. I ordered the Denver steak and found it undercooked to my specifications (med Rare came out rare in the middle) and chewy. The anchovy sauce was however, exceptional. They should bottle that stuff. My husband ordered the duck and enjoyed it very much. The service was good and I love the ambiance of the restaurant. It really picked up by the end of our dinner. I don't think I would go back anytime soon. Too many good restaurants to return to and to try out,

Had the pleasure of dining here with a group, so was able to try a variety of dishes. Some were huge hits, would love to come again just for those dishes... but some were misses, hence the bump-down to 4-stars. This restaurant is more high-end (after all, it's in La Jolla), so expect a high price point.Some crowd favorites: onion tart, lamb loin, and oh my goodness... the best dessert I've ever had, the pistachio Paris-Brest! I'm not a sweets person, but a most delectable dessert!

The Rooster is supposedly the last full-service restaurant that local celebrity Chef Malarkey and his business partner will be opening. It's ironic that one of his earlier eateries in downtown La Jolla is the same venue that has been converted to Le Coq. As noted by others, there was minimal signage on the outside of the building. You could see the faded words 'Herringbone' on the north side of the structure, but nothing else indicated this was now the home of Le Coq. A half dozen odd-looking concrete seats in the shape of an open hand adorned the front sidewalk. Where were the rooster statues?My initial impression of the interior was that it felt understated and mundane compared to its predecessor. I found the lack of flair to the interior and exterior decor to be disappointing. For a last hurrah, I expected more pizzazz to note the presence of this new high-end French steakhouse. We were seated at a two-top table in the middle of the dining room after checking in with the hostess. The ambiance felt dark and cavernous instead of what I hoped would be a cozy, intimate setting.On to the food... the two page menu was designed by Executive Chef Monsod. A six-dollar baguette with a choice of five different butters was at the top of the left page. Cold and hot hors d'oeuvres made up the rest of this part of the menu. Entrées, steaks, and sides were listed on the right page. My francophile dining partner and I decided to split a baguette with Pamplie butter which was a rich, artisanal version flown in from France. The bread was warm and pillowy soft. You could tell it was freshly baked. It turned out to be my favorite part of the meal.We also split one of the hot appetizers in the Onion Tart. A round savory pastry contained short rib, caramelized onion, and gruyère cheese as the filling. The crust was a bit dry and overcooked. My friend's entrée choice was the Roast Chicken which featured half of a cooked bird resting on a glacé with a lemon to squeeze on top. The preparation looked fairly plain for a price of nearly $50. The meat was tender though.I selected the Duck Breast for my main course which was served as two pieces of meat with tamarind purée drizzed on top, Some kumquat slices were added along with a piece of chicory. This last component was roasted endive leaves that were soaked with the puree to mask any bitterness. I would have preferred a different vegetable to pair with the duck, perhaps a squash or other root vegetable. For $65, a third slice of meat should not be out of the question.The service from the waitstaff was solid. One staffer went around the tables to ensure our water glasses were filled. Some of the prices were inflated though compared to similar caliber French restaurants in town. The premium may have been for the reputation of the chefs. Overall, I couldn't quite elevate my rating of Le Coq to a four star level as there were areas of our dining experience that fell short.

Previously on this site was another Malarkey/Puffer, Herringbone- one of my favorites restaurants visually. Natural, cozy, eclectic. Le Coq is a total 180 - open, too open. Open to the bar, only one smaller plant dead center of the large space to break up the "vastness". In Herringbone, I continually looked around at the great front door, beautiful tile in the bar area, nautical themed objects all over. There is nothing to look at in Le Coq- in hindsight, I don't remember any art on the walls. We just watched people and tried to guess their dynamics- I'm sure they were thrilled to be watched... the noise level was high, and midway thru the meal they really cranked up the music, which was discordantly jarring in what they had designed to be an elegant, hip venue.The food. It was solid, but given the price point, none of it had us go "wow" which we were expecting. I ordered the onion tart with short rib- I love all types of onion tarts, my favorite being a pissaladière- this was really just a short rib tart, all very rich meat with a hint of carmelized onion in the sauce. Crust was on the harder side, rather than flakey, which I suppose was necessary for the saucier rich meat.The half chicken (2 of us ordered) was just a plain roasted chicken with au jus on the bottom and a small slice of lemon (not worth mentioning in the menu description) $46. We also had the duck breast ($65)- two healthy sized slices, perfectly cooked but so "farmed" it really didn't have that good duck flavor. I feel it was Sous vide-d, which IMHO takes away the personality of duck flavor, and is better 100% roasted. The Summer squash sounded interesting- we LOVE anchovies but just using the oil, it just tasted like bad fishy fish and we sent back - something we never do, it was that bad. They said the kitchen agreed, it didn't taste good, but never once said, "can we bring you something else" "here's a free dessert" or anything beyond "I'm sorry".Our server, Sokol, was a lovely, ebullient, enthusiastic gentleman. Very attentive. The support staff tried hard and are still a little green, but the restaurant is still brand new and they will get better.We likely will not return, sadly. Price point and quality don't jive. We know Chef Tara from Animae can create amazing flavors that DO wow. It was nothing like our experience the first week Herb & Wood opened where it was already a seemingly well-oiled machine and all food and service was mind-blowing and became our family go-to for all occasions.

Le Coq is the latest restaurant in La Jolla offering French cuisine with a blend of Asian ingredients created by the James Beard award for best chef finalist chef Tara Monsod, who happens to be head chef at Animae in San Diego's harbor Bay Area. This restaurant is located on Hershel and occupies the space formerly held by Herringbone.Valet parking available, No dining outdoor, strictly indoor seating for now, which should change, considering we are in SoCal with the best weather for dining Al fresco. The restaurant interior is decorated nicely; the ample ceiling height adds modernity to the classic flair.Everything ordered met our palate expectations; the dry aged ribeye was prepared perfectly. We liked the asian fusion influences, the varied exotic sauces for the steak and the caviar butter to enhance a classic french baguette. The desserts: both the Mille-Feuille and the Paris Brest are musts. Hoping the menu evolves seasonally, as I would like to see more options for pescatarians and vegetarians :)As a guest of my famous dining partner, the service we received by the staff was very attentive and accommodating and hope that great service is the case with for every diner, famous or not.As a hugh fan of Spago in Beverly Hills, I am partial to exquisite French cuisine with Asian fusion and am excited to return to try the other selections from the menu. Again, Al Fresco dining is my preferred seating, so if this restaurant can offer outdoor dining seating in the near future, my dining friends and I will be dining here more frequently. Lastly, Le Coq is french for the rooster. This fearless bird symbolizes a new beginning, as it ushers in the dawn with its unmistakable crow, reminding us of the cyclical nature of life and the promise of a fresh start every day. Beyond its association with the sunrise, the rooster represents fidelity and punctuality, given its consistent and timely calls. The rooster's radiant plumage/feathers and upright stance, the rooster is a symbol of Pride, Beauty, and Authenticity, encouraging us to embrace our unique qualities.But truth be told, 'Le Coq' was most likely referring to the talented head chef Monsod, whose cuisine creations would rival male competitors, and after meeting Monsod you would understand and concur.This new restaurant is far from perfection, butLe Coq's unique qualities, elevated modern take on French cuisine makes it a welcomed addition to the neighborhood of La Jolla...Recommend.

Came here with a party of 4 on their third night in operation during soft opening. The old Herringbone sign is still visible on the side of the building, which brings back memories. The inside decor brings a dark, classy vibe that definitely sets an intimate setting. We were sat at one of the velvet booths against the wall. To begin we ordered the baguette with the golden trio of butters: seaweed, chicken skin and caviar. The chicken skin was my favorite with the caviar as a close second. The seaweed one was quite salty so you couldn't eat too much at once. The baguette was piping hot and so delicious. We asked for a second one to make sure we got every bit of all the butter. To be honest, we could have just sat there and ate bread and butter for the whole meal, it was so addicting. For my cocktail I ordered the Summer in Provence. It was zesty and refreshing. Definitely fit the summer season vibe. For appetizers we ordered the chicken liver mousse and brandade financier. I'm always for a good pate and the mousse was delicious. The brandade financier was light and tasty. The blueberry capers went very well with the white fish. We ordered the steak frites and Pomme puree to share for our entree. The steak itself was good, the sauce was great. But other than it being just a pretty good steak, nothing else really stood out. I did enjoy the fries a lot though, cut to the perfect size so they're nice and crispy. The mashed potatoes were very silky and went great with the steak. For dessert we got the pistachio Paris-Bret. It was good though there were some parts in there that were a bit too salty. We shared amongst us 4 so we're not too sure which part ended up being the salty parts. Overall I had a pretty positive experience dining here for my first time. Of course being a soft opening, things are not all set in stone so you can't expect everything to be perfect. Our waitress was silly, fun and patient. Service overall was great. I would like to come back to try a different entree though. I hope the restaurant the best for their grand opening!

We absolutely loved this place and highly recommend securing a booth for your visit. The service was outstanding from start to finish. The hostess greeted us warmly, and our servers, Sydney and Joy, were both amazing. Even Colton, the water server, was extremely friendly and helpful. The owner, Brian, came over to introduce himself, adding a personal and welcoming touch to our evening.The food was phenomenal. The carrots were insanely good--yes, carrots! The tuna tartare was fresh and flavorful, and the bread with butter was delightful. We savored every bite, especially the burnt cheesecake, which was incredibly delicious.We were so impressed that we're already planning to return next week. This restaurant is a gem, and we can't wait for our next visit