Oak & Coal in Costa Mesa

Excellent food and really friendly service. The garlic noodles were super delicious. Highly recommended

I’ve been here pre-Covid but came back for the first time last week. They’ve now expanded to the place next door which is where we sat. We started with the shishito peppers and cabbage salad. Occasionally a shishito would be spicy otherwise cooked to a nice blister. The cabbage salad was light but a good way to begin our meal. The garlic noodles were delicious as well as the skewer of organic chicken with scallions. Dip the chicken in the yuzo kusho to bring out the full experience. Just my opinion but I wouldn’t order the Wagyu donburi ever again, pretty mediocre bowl of mush. Unfortunately we had to send the seared hamachi back (I rarely ever in my life send food back) but it was too briney or oceany tasting. It was the last order and the waitress told the table next to us they had sold out so not sure what happened but luckily they were nice enough to take it off our bill. The snake river Wagyu beef skewers will have you drooling they’re so freaking good. These also come with the yuzo koshu which make for a great flavor combo profile. Ended things off with the ube banana pudding that came out in a jar. I shared it with 2 other people and by then was stuffed.

We ordered take out today. 6 different dishes1.Steamed Chicken lemongrass dumplings 9/10The noodle around was so delicious. I loved the texture and flavor. The lemongrass chicken was well seasoned and also really good.2. Bao Buns 10/10These came with a twist. I somehow thought of Bao, round, steamed dumpling. But these were more like little Tacos, except the shell was a Bao Bun.Flavor was amazing. The little sprouts added a little tinge of spice, the ginger was pickled and sweet and a little sour. The pork belly tasted smokey and juicy. Overall perfect!3. Kurobuta Pork Belly Skewers 12/10Omg!!! This! Coming from germany I am used to grilling pork belly. We call it either belly-rag - Baulappen or a grill-torch - Grillfackel (name explains itself, since they love to light on fire due to the high fat consent.The smoky flavor and seasoning was on point. I loved that they werent dried out. Just pure deliciousness .4. Plain Garlic Noodles 8/10The noodles were ok, overall really greasy and sloppy. The flavor was good, but I wouldnt order them again, others loved them.5. Blistered Brussle Sprouts 8/10Generally really good, crispy and a mild spiciness. What we noticed was that a lot of the dishes included lemon flavor. I liked it but others commented that it was generally too much6. Chicken Karaage 6/10We somehow expected something totally different. The thighs were jucy, but not as crispy as we thought they would be. The batter reminded me of calamari and my brain tricked me and said - thats calamari! It somehow weirded me out and I didnt want to finish the chicken. But this is my own opinion someone elses brain might not play mind games.The ordering happened over the homepage and was super easy. We didnt even wait 30minutes.The food was hot and fresh. This was definitely not our last time. Thank you for making dinner for us ❤️

The idea feels so simple: grill food. The depth of flavor of the food at Oak and Coal is beyond simple. Everything we had was so bold and savory. The drinks were fantastic, and the staff was exceptionally friendly and generous. I absolutely loved everything that I had: garlic, eel, scallops, spicy chicken wings, corn. You cant go wrong.Also: the menu is broken up into rounds. They planned this!

The mai tai was delicious but the food was all a bit weird.Unagi & crispy rice was very average, the rice was not crispy enough.Garlic noodles was a bit over cooked, the noodles felt soggy.The chicken Karaage was really spicy and sour.

Delicious but tiny portions. Its a variety of Japanese style kebab meats, seafood, and veggies. Each skewer comes with 4 pieces. Each piece is bite sized. So that means each skewer is 4 bites. Pieces range from $4-$7 per skewer. Thats right, $1-$2 per bite of food. Theres no corkage fee as long as you buy it from next door (and they check), so buy your own bottle of wine. Otherwise youll be paying $10 per glass of wine. The dumplings are amazing. The sweet sausages are great. Warning the jumbo shrimp comes shell on. The hot Soba noodle soup is great.

The service was friendly, which was a plus. However, I wasnt too impressed with the cocktails; I tried three different ones, but none of them stood out as great. On the food side, the chicken kaarage was cooked perfectly, and the accompanying sauce was a good match. However, the tsukune meatballs were quite bland, and their sauce didnt do much to elevate the flavor. The Kurobuta sausage tasted like little smokies, and while the sauce was good, I thought this dish was just ok. On a positive note, the bao buns were delicious and easily the highlight of the meal.

Great atmosphere, good food. Had sausage, beef, chicken on skewers, perfect for sharing. Also followed the neon sign to the bar in the back and got some cocktails there too. Highly recommend.

Lots of friends recommended this place but my first visit. Nick helped us try all the best items. We loved it and are coming back. Dont miss this gem.

The food and ambience were good, but I guess I expected a little more for the money. The style is called yakitori. Its basically tiny skewers of meat and vegetables (separately), served with a flavorful dipping sauce. Think Brazilian steakhouse on a micro level.You really have to order at least 4-5 skewers per person just to be in the beginning stages of being satiated. So, the price adds up.Some dishes that stood out: kimchi dumplings, beef tenderloin skewer, asparagus/pork belly skewer, and the sausage skewer.