Commis

First two star michelin experience! Surprised to find out that this spot has been around for fifteen years and it's tucked in Oakland. We had the ten course prix fixe menu1: carmelized onion financier; cute amuse boucheTaro ball; comforting and so cuteOyster; super fresh2: shima aji; so salty, not my favorite3: daikon radish and shrimp cake with lemon, chives and caviar; somehow tasted like a baked potato to me. One of our favs for the night4: slow poached egg yolk, smoked dates, alliums and malt; chef's signature dish. Overall favorite. Came with this perfect crusty hot bread and very unique butter. Somehow this tasted like sweet mustard to me. Very unique and addictive. 5: steamed petrale sole; second to worst course. Bland, disappointing6: sea scallop; stunning. Fresh. Wonderful7: heirloom chicken, sauce of salted red chilis and soured vegetables; easily worst course of the night. Nasty. Hated the way the chicken was cooked. Highlight of this course was the tiny chicken wing on the side. Tasted super msg and crispy. Bomb chicken wing8: scallion rice; added the wagyu supplement. Did not eat any of this because I was too full9: almond tofu, kumquats and ginger syrup; so comforting, not too sweet and the perfect treat10: jasmine tea ice cream and pomelo; delicious ice cream. Disliked that this was enrobed in crushed ice11: yuzu caramel; didn't tryCoffee honeycomb cake; dislikedThai tea and buckwheat sable; gorgeous, perfect, deliciousOverall so much food! Amazing service and a very dark intimate setting. Staff to customer ratio felt 1:1 and they were very attentive. Would come again.

Commis definition: A commis chef is a junior-level chef who assists more experienced chefs in a kitchen. They are also known as junior chefs. This has been a restaurant that I've long wanted to try, living in the East Bay 4 years with several of those years under covid restrictions. With oral surgery coming up I decided to have one blowout meal before my diet would be tamped down to soft food and soups for 8 weeks. I was a bit worried because I read that the chef was doing a fire disaster event down in S Cal. Was I going to spend this much money and get the junior team? I messaged via IG my concern but did not receive a response. I kept the reservation because I had used a small open table discount. We were early and sat at the bar to order drinks. It was a busy night and the seating bar tables were full. The bar itself was relatively empty. The drink creator was kind and friendly, totally professionally focused. The two drinks were lovely, one lemon drop (essentially) and the O' Farrolan as a savory complement. The sommelier came over and discussed the wine I had brought, it was a Ridge Monte Bello 2015 which they opened to breath. They have a 2000 on the wine list, glad my vintage was different. Corkage is $75. Their wine list is extensive with some good solid bottles at reasonable prices to go with the expensive stuff. I've included photos of most of the dishes plus the evening's menu. All were fantastic, not a miss in the bunch. I won't describe each but our favorites included the duck and the egg yolk dish. Plus the ending desserts. Oh, and the Wagyu supplement. Ambiance was moderately noisy but you didn't hear the outside at all or nearby conversations. Service was impeccable from beginning to end. The server spoke Spanish and seemed like a really nice guy, as was the sommelier. Now, the final question. Was it worth it? Out the door, even with small discount, dinner with drinks, corkage, two prix fixe meals, two supplements hit $800+. Loved the meal and service, not sure if the price justifies it. Will come back for the shorter and cheaper bar menu to decide that point. Your mileage may vary. Highly recommended!!

The only 2-Michelin starred place I've ever been to! Great food, drinks, and service. Every dish was creative, fresh, well-thought out, and flowed well with the other ones. Presentation is beautiful and the decor is tasteful and minimalist. Cheaper than some 1-Michelin star places, I'll definitely be back. My friend who wanted to go here (who I went with) comes fairly often, he loves them so much.

Commis is one of the longest standing 2 MS restaurants in the Bay Area, specifically East Bay. They first got a star in 2009 shortly after opening and then their second star in 2016. My BF surprised me for my birthday here and we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. FOOD: We had about 10+ courses with a mix of meat, but more so seafood. I did not take photos of all the dishes, as I now make videos of my fine dining experiences, but you'll have to dine yourself for the full experience :) We enjoyed the variety of different dishes and textures of each dish, the intricacy and creativity they put into each dish (including the cocktail drinks!). Some of my favs include the blue tuna with cold noodles, the caviar pudding, the stone pot rice dish and the egg yolk in soup (I don't remember the exact name) and THE BEST MISO BLACK COD I've ever had, and I've had A LOT of miso black cod. SERVICE: Impeccable service. Nothing more to say. AMBIANCE: They offer bar service and dinner in their dining room. The interior is very nicely decorated and intimate. Overall, would recommend trying for a special occasion !

Our dinner was amazing! The service was very attentive, everyone had a role in serving everyone. The space is pretty small but spacious. One side is the bar area and the other side is the dining bc area with an open kitchen. Getting reservations wasn't too bad either considering it being a Michelin rated place. Where do I even start with the food?? It was a 10 course prefix menu and you can also opt in for a wine pairing. This time around we decided to just order cocktails. The food was so delicious. It was predominately seafood and a couple meat dishes (duck, pork dumpling) My favorite was the shrimp cake with caviar. The shrimp cake was enclosed in a light crispy shell and had hints of lemon flavor. Soo many great flavors in all the dishes. And the textures all complimented each other well. Would definitely come back again and again!

The best thing about Commis is the service and experience, in my opinion! We came here last weekend to celebrate our anniversary and Christian, Boris, and Darren took incredible care of us all throughout the night! They really made our night with just a sense of calm and positivity.We battled the 1.5 hours to get to Oakland from the Peninsula on a Friday night and we were half an hour late to our reservation ...though NOT recommended to make that commute, we were greeted at the door and still seated for the reservation and they didn't make us feel rushed or even the slightest bit guilty. Food was really good as you would expect and we were definitely full from the meal. Commis has their carbs on serious lock. The amuse touches financier, the bread, the rice, and the almond mousse were all SOOO good! The ambiance was modern, quiet, but not uptight and rigid. It was really a great way to celebrate and we would love to be back!

This review is for the prix fixe menu at the Commis bar. The meal was balanced and interesting, starting from the tom yum popcorn snack and peppercorn oyster and ending with an amazing roasted banana parfait.The Yelp favorites (slow poached egg yolk with dates, alliums, and malt with the levain bread and butter) did not disappoint and were the highlight of the meal. The swordfish and curry with squash were a close second, providing something savory and substantial (I love fall flavors!).Their seasonal cocktail menu was creative (I had a cute herbaceous one called "walk in the woods"), and the service was impeccable. I felt that the bar menu was still a good enough deal that I wasn't left wanting for the complete tasting menu - I walked out full and happy, and any more food might have been too much.

My husband made reservations to dine in at the counter on a weekday as this restaurant has been on both of our list of to try places for the longest time. Parking: no designated parking lot. Only street parking available. Ambiance: modern, elegant and full of atmosphere. There is counter seating (serves its 4 course menu), and table seating (serves the full tasting menu). The counter seating faces its full bar. This is the spot to impress your date and to celebrate an anniversary or a special birthday. The restroom is unisex but cleaned. Service: above average. I observed the level of service provided to the full tasting menu customers compared to the limited menu counter customers and there is a difference between the two. We will definitely come back for the full tasting menu experience. However, the timing between dishes was excellent, plates were cleared immediately after we finished and new utensils were provided prior to the delivery of the next course. Food: 4/5. All the dishes were delicious except for the pork belly which was a total disappointment. The standout dishes of the night were the dry-farmed tomatoes with trout furikake, fish sauce vinaigrette & soymilk and the slow poached egg yolk with smoked dates, alliums & malt with commis levain bread & roasted chicken skin butter. The pork belly was not cooked long enough so it was very very chewy and too much fat. I had to spit out 75% of it and I hate wasting food. I was a bit surprised that the quality of that dish passed QC to be served to customers. Hopefully, it was a one off experience or I would likely avoid if the menu includes pork belly in the future. Drink: 2/5. Black sesame lemonade. I can taste the lemon but couldn't taste the black sesame at all. I would pass on this next time.Overall, the bar menu was solid with the exception of the pork belly dish. I look forward to coming back for the full tasting menu.

Commis definitely ranks in my top 10 favorite restaurants in the Bay Area! Upon entering, my group were promptly acknowledged and the front staff were swift to greet me happy birthday. I thought that was such an amicable gesture and really set the tone for the rest of the night. I adore the minimalistic layout because it really let each dish that was presented shine.Highlights:Ode to Farallons - the unique flavors matched the abstract design of this beautifully made cocktail. The pattern is quite poetic to the flavor because you can taste a mellow oceanic flavor which is lightened up by the subtle aromatics of the white truffle. Masterpiece indeed.Oyster parfait with kaluga caviar- I am still dreaming about how decadent each bite was. The oyster parfait was rich and velvety and the kaluga caviar saltiness just elevated the dish even more. Wagyu Manhattan- I typically do not like manhattans but the richness of the wagyu really masked the liquor well. Slow poached egg yolk- was expecting the yolk to be runny but it was the perfect consistency throughout the entire yolk. I was mesmerized and quite intrigued on how they were able to perfect the yolk. The sweetness of the dates was a lovely touch but I wasn't too fond of the malt but I get they were trying to layer the texture of this dish.Plum milk punch- I am glad it did not end up like a plum smoothie cocktail because this was very refreshing and way too easy to go down the hatch.Now for particular drink that I was not too fond of:Osmanthus Jones - Hilarious name and reminded us of the cartoon osmosis jones but the flavors did not fit my palate. Overall, outstanding service, funny waitstaff and a wonderful spot to celebrate. Will definitely be back.

The bar menu is excellent if you want a shorter meal that won't leave you in a food coma and is still 2-Michelin star quality. Every dish was creative and delicious. Highly recommend for a date night!