Copra, San Francisco

Reviewer: Foodnut.com Copra 1700 Fillmore San Francisco, CA 94115 415-873-0795 Copra Website

Why did we dine here? – Copra is run by Srijith “Sri” Gopinathan and Ayesha Thapar (who also own Ettan in Palo Alto) so we had to give it a try. The chef last had two Michelin stars at Campton Place. It is located across from Japantown in the location that used to be Dosa.

Beautiful interior

The food is focused on Cuisine from the chef’s home state of Kerala in Southwestern India.

Copra pays homage to the coastal cuisines of India’s southern states: Kerala where Gopinathan was born and Tamil Nadu where he grew up, and will also look across the Palk Strait to the island nation of Sri Lanka, a short distance from his hometown of Kanyakumari, mainland India’s southernmost city. Copra shares its name with the dried flesh of a coconut, an essential ingredient across the southern coast of India, as well as in nearby Sri Lanka

Resy reservations were hard to come by. Set a notification and you may be lucky.

Insider Tip – Line up before it opens to score a seat at the bar

Cuisine – Indian
Location – San Francisco Japantown
Opened – 2023

Service – Copra had very good service with a waitress who helped us navigate the menu, took care of all our needs and more. Pacing was slow while waiting for the large plates.
Verdict – Copra is an exciting new restaurant with over the top decor, great food, and solid service. Unsurprisingly as we’ve been to their other restaurant, Ettan and see the same DNA. 6% Healthy SF Mandate.

Is this restaurant worth a 5 minute drive? Yes 30 minute? Yes. 1 Hour? Maybe.

Copra Signature Dishes – Chutney, Fried Chicken, vegetable of day

Copra’s Menu has a wide variety of small and large plates. Vegan, Gluten free items clearly marked. Lots of vegetarian options!

Website Copra Menu

Copra Food Picks:

From The Ground Up Cocktail ($18) Tamarind, Pear, Coconut, Curry Leaf, Winter Spices, Orange, Rye had hidden strength and a nice balance of exotic flavors. 9/10

Clarified Lassi Punch ($18) Pineapple, Cayenne, Mango, Green Cardamom, White Pepper, Rum, Scotch is also highly recommended. Nice mixture of special spices. 9/10

Shinko Pear Sundal Salad ($14) Black chickpea, raw mango, Persian cucumber, red onion & nasturtium is the most western of the dishes. It is fine but not exotic. 8.5/10

Chutney Palette For The Table ($17) Selection of traditional southern Indian chutneys & achaar with poppadom and quinoa crisps is a fun way to start the meal with 4 different chutney’s, 2 fairly spicy. Nice selection of crisps. $2 to refill your crisps. 9/10
Wild gooseberry chutney, Burnt chili – tamarind chutney, Coconut green sambal, Ghost chili chutney

Thattukada Fried Chicken ($16) with Fennel seeds, red chilies, black pepper, shallots, and masala crumbs. (A street food classic from the streets of Trivandrum) is fairly spicy and a crispy Indian take on the classic. 8.5/10

Vod – Vegetable Of The Day ($32) Three homestyle vegetarian recipes inspired by Moms/MIL across south India served with appropriate accompaniment. Check with your server for more details on those moms & featured dishes.
Urulai podi varuval, mung bean pappu, butternut squash – sprouted channa kootu made for a great dish for vegetarians with 3 different vegetable dishes to try. 8.5/10

Braised Lamb Shank ($39) Chettinad masala, kal dosa, mango-green beans poriyal, and pickles was tender and middle of the road spicy. Nice robust sauce. 9/10

“Gods Own ” Coconut Variation Dessert ($15) Coconut water crystals, mango, candied basmati puff & sabja seeds is a fun dessert unlike any we’ve tried. Mixture of flavors and textures. 9.5/10

Do you agree with our review? Have you found other similar restaurants that are better?

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