GOLA

General Notes

GOLA is a new Tunisian restaurant that just recently opened in the Mission. I saw it for the first time walking by and I was immediately intrigued. I went here with a group of friends and was not disappointed. The food is excellent! Probably what stood out tome most is how they use various forms of acidity to brighten up their dishes. I'm really hoping they bring back the lamb riblets at some point because that looks incredible. Definitely would love to return at some point to try their other offerings. Very reasonably priced as well for the experience that you get, which feels pretty upscale.

EDIT: I visited again a year later and was a bit disappointed -- definitely didn't have as good of an experience as the first time. Their menu had shrunk (a lot of their flagship dishes like lamb riblets were no longer present) and the food just wasn't as good as the first time around. It was probably indicative that there was barely anyone there on a Thursday evening. I feel like the restaurant focused more on presentation (i.e. serving the food in weird containers) than the quality of the food itself.

Dishes Tasted

• ★★★☆ Chocolate Mousse -- chocolate mousse (almost like a ganache texture), chocolate cream, coffee liquor, various toppings. The ganache-like mousse was a little too thick, but the overall flavor combination was incredible; the coffee liquor in particular paired beautifully.
• ★☆☆☆ orange blossom water creme brulee -- it's not actually bruleed, it's literally just cream infused with flavor. Meh
• ★★☆☆ Tunisian baklava -- hazelnut and almond with orange blossom water and honey syrup. It doesn't really have that crisp texture I'd want from baklava
• ★★☆☆ La Marsa -- baby scallops and shrimp in a turmeric, lemon zest, and capers cream sauce. Just ok by itself, but the sauce makes for a great pairing with some fresh bread.
• ☆☆☆☆ Kromb -- boiled then grilled wedge of cabbage tossed in smoky harissa served on puree of canellini beans w/ coriander & Tunisian spice finished with Extra V Olive Oil. The puree was simply goop and kind of disgusting. The cabbage was ok, it was decently grilled.
• ★★☆☆ Branzino Tagine -- Again, just doesn't really work that well with fish.
• ★★☆☆ Chicken Tagine -- potato, shallots, peppers, olive, preserved lemon & turmeric sauce. A touch dry / overcooked, chicken doesn't work all that well for this.
• ★★★☆ Spicy Cauliflower -- tossed in a harissa sauce; they didn't have eggplant so they gave us cauliflower instead, it was delightful.
• ★★★☆ Homemade Bread -- Delightful bread, amazing texture
• ★★★☆ Couscous -- Well cooked and buttery
• ★★★☆ Lamb Tagine -- potato, shallots, artichoke, peppers, preserved lemon & turmeric sauce. Lamb was flavorful and fork tender; the sauce was delightful. A perfect complement for soaking up some homemade bread.
• ☆☆☆☆ Summer Salad -- cucumber, cherry tomatoes, green apples, green pepper, fresh mint, preserved lemon olive oil and lemon vin. Chopped way too small, doesn't really have much flavor at all, and the addition of apples just throws the whole thing off.
• ★★★★ Roasted Eggplant -- tossed in a harissa sauce; cooked beautifully and the flavor is excellent
• ★★★★ Grilled Branzino -- parsley sauce, serrano chili, garlic, olive oil served with kefteji. The branzino is AMAZING -- well seasoned, cooked to perfection, and again I love the sauce. The kefteji is nice too!
• ★★★☆ Brika au Thon -- fried filo dough stuffed with seasoned mashed potato, red onion, fresh parsley, parmesan cheese, Tuna conserva and soft egg yolk. This was delicious; excellent flavor.
• ★★☆☆ Grilled Octopus -- red onions, parsley, olives, capers, lemon zest, olive oil. The octopus itself was solid but didn't really have the wow factor; honestly my favorite part of this dish was the sauce.