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Restaurant: Coda

By Ron Brownlow
STAFF REPORTER
Friday, Mar 23, 2007, Page 15

Coda is an upmarket version of Bongos. PHOTO: RON BROWNLOW, TAIPEI TIMES

Bongos' owner Andrew Lunman has opened Coda, a slightly more up-market eatery just around the corner from his first sit-down restaurant (reviewed in the Taipei Times 2006/06/09). In recent months Bongos — which serves North American dishes like hamburgers, sandwiches, quesadillas, and fish and chips — has been so popular that customers often need reservations to get a seat. Coda, which opened a few weeks ago, already seems to be enjoying a similar degree of success.

On the menu are several Bongos favorites, including burgers and poutine, a Canadian dish consisting of french fries topped with cheese and gravy. But the focus is on Italian-American food like pizza, pasta and ravioli. Coda also features an extensive beer and wine menu and is vegetarian-friendly.

Lunman said he was going for a "comfortable casual" theme, and wanted Coda to be "the kind of place where you could come wearing whatever you're wearing." He decorated the place himself, with wood-framed windows and salmon and cream-colored walls. Interior lights provide sufficient illumination for reading but are not too bright; pop music is played at a volume that enlivens the atmosphere without distracting from conversation.

All meals are within the NT$160 to NT$320 price range because, Lunman said, "we want our food to be accessible to everyone." Beers range from San Miguel (NT$100) to Erdingers and Belgian brews (NT$180). Wines are a reasonable NT$500 to NT$1,000 for a bottle of 2001 Chilean reserve merlot.

On a recent weeknight visit at 9pm, only two tables were empty, the rest occupied by college students and a few foreigners. A friend had recommended that I try the cheese ravioli (NT$300), a recipe Lunman invented with four cheeses and a light pumpkin sauce. Instead, I ordered the carne pizza, which came with a choice of soup, salad or french fries, a drink, and homemade sourdough bread. The large, thin-crust personal pizza was loaded with more toppings than an Alley Cats' pizza and at NT$300, including sides and a drink, is better value.

At a time when many new restaurants are struggling to attract customers, Coda is filling seats without advertising. But Lunman hasn't always had it so easy. He failed in his first venture, a food court stall next to the RT Mart in Jhonghe. From that experience Lunman learned who his clients were — college students, foreigners and educated professionals who spent time abroad. Which is why he opened Bongos, and now Coda, in Gongguan, a neighborhood populated by students, expats and professors.

A new set of difficulties attended the opening of Bongos: problems obtaining a license and complaints by neighbors about noise and smells from the kitchen. Lunman sorted these out but took no chances with Coda, installing three different smoke filtration systems and effective sound proofing.

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