CIA at Copia (The Culinary Institute of America at Copia)

My husband and i enjoyed the 4 course dinner. My fave was the lions mane mushroom steak and his was the rock fish with manila clams. We both enjoyed the focaccia bread and the tempura vegetable misto (especially the squash, fennel, lemon and marigold) and the strawberry tiramisu. Will return l.

Retrospectively posting this review as we went to the CIA at Copia last time during their pizza specials. We went for the Neapolitan pizza night and it was absolutely wonderful. This was one of the better pizza experiences I've had here. The dough was flavorful, the toppings were on point, and it was overall nicely presented. I'm an old school pizza type of person, so my favorite was the margarita out of the three. There is just something in the simplicity that brings out the quality of the ingredients for me. Love the experience and would definitely come back for more!

My team and I visited the Grove at Copia following our day's meetings, totaling a party of 11. The reservation process was straightforward, requiring a credit card. Our server, Colin Maher, started off a little rough when we requested for a few members to order from a separate menu instead of opting for the family-style dining. Fortunately, he and the kitchen staff agreed, allowing some of us to order individually. The wine list was decent with reasonable pricing, both by the glass and bottle. Despite this, the food was rather unremarkable. We ordered an assortment of dishes including Mixed Grain Sourdough Focaccia, Crispy-Baked Oyster Mushrooms, Warmed Gaeta and Castelvetrano Olives, Pickled Garden Vegetables, Belfiore Burrata, Insalata Mitsticanza, Rockfish and Manila Clams, Flannery Beef Zabuton, turnip and crab soup, pasta primavera, among others. Disappointingly, the salad was overdressed, resulting in a soggy texture. The soup, olives, Burrata, and Focaccia were agreed upon as the tastiest items we had - the rest were average at best. We rounded off our meal with desserts, dessert wines, and coffee. Interestingly, our server Colin ended the evening on a better note, exhibiting both graciousness and kindness. Despite the enchanting restaurant setting and ambiance, I'm not inclined to return to the CIA or recommend it to colleagues visiting Napa. Whilst we missed out on visiting the gardens due to our evening reservation, they appeared to be quite beautiful from what we could see.

Came for the CIA alumni guest chef series.The food was freshly prepared and delicately seasoned.There was a bit of a kerfuffle with my dietary restriction but the manager handled it very well.

What a happy surprise touring this place. The setting is inviting with high ceilings and lots of light. They have a wall that is hall of fame of wine with plaques for famous people in the winemaking world, and a culinary museum which was unexpectedly interesting and fun, and nice gift shop with unusual and high quality offerings for anyone who cooks or as a gift for friends or family who like to cook. They also have a very cool wine tasting set up which is automated (you pay with a credit card choose a nice glass and then select the type of wine you’d like to try and the amount you’d like and a dispenser pours it for you). Nice seating area nearby. Didn’t have dinner there so can’t speak to that (but it’s got to be good). Anyway, fun stop before or after Oxbow next door.

We were very excited for our dinner with family and friends and made a reservation for 11. We considered the prix fixe menu but decided to do the 4 course meal so that everyone could choose their own. While it was easy to make a reservation and update the time, we had a very difficult time getting in touch with the restaurant despite calling during open hours and leaving multiple voicemails. Normally this wouldn’t be worthy of noting except that the front of house staff made a point to say that they had trouble getting in touch with me but had only called once and left no voicemail and didn’t pick up the phone for the other 5 times we called during operating hours. Given the size of our party we were able to try every dish on the set menu. Some were stellar including the cucumber salad and the bone marrow pasta dish. Portion sizes were very generous, but we ended up not finishing most dishes as they weren’t balanced. Some dishes lacked salt, while others were extremely salty. Some of the flavors were very sharp or overwhelmed the rest of the dish. For example the pesto on the gnocchi was very acidic and had a very young and flavorful olive oil that took over the dish. One of our party’s bone marrow pasta had a large clump of pepper in it that caused her to leave the restaurant to cough outside. However, my same dish was delicious, highlighting the inconsistency in plates. The steak, which was an extra $60, was overcooked. We ordered medium rare and while beautifully presented, only the 2 middle slices had a hint of pink whereas all other pieces were cooked through. For the desserts, the strawberry tiramisu was overly sweet with the jam/puree and was less lady fingers and more of a layered cake. The meringue in the peach dessert had a very hard shell that required significant force to crack. The peaches were wonderful but again the sauces were overly sweet. We were very excited for this meal and looked forward to an amazing experience. While we understand it’s a learning facility, it didn’t seem like dishes were tasted before being served and no one asked how our meal was. There was plenty of staff but no one checked in on the quality of the food. It ended up being a very leisurely meal, which they mentioned as we were doing the 4 course meal and had ordered the steak. However, over 3 hours was a bit lengthy with an extended pause before dessert. Given the price of the meal and wonderful reputation of the school and restaurant, we walked away disappointed at the overall experience and quality despite some shining moments.

Spent some time here learning the intricacies of farm to table, wine country cuisine. The location is perfect in the heart of Napa. Had a dinner here, with wine pairing so many courses I lost count. I did not leave hungry,that is for sure. Kind of pricey, but you get what you pay for. Plenty to explore after class!

CIA at Coupa is an absolutely beautiful facility! First class in architectural layout, unique artwork, the museum, the student kitchen and even fresh grown herbs. Myself and my family had dinner at Coupa and this is where my disappointment lies. The food was not at all bad; however, all things considered, the food should have been much, much better. Two of three steaks were room temperature on arrival. The bruschetta was served not with basil pesto but with spinach pesto. (Admittedly, the menu may may have stated Spinach Pesto, but not what we expected.)Both were disappointing considering the ambiance and reputation I would expect from CIA. I will try again as the menu did look quite good. I hope I can provide a better rating next time.

My husband and i enjoyed the 4 course dinner. My fave was the lions mane mushroom steak and his was the rock fish with manila clams. We both enjoyed the focaccia bread and the tempura vegetable misto (especially the squash, fennel, lemon and marigold) and the strawberry tiramisu. Will return l.

Retrospectively posting this review as we went to the CIA at Copia last time during their pizza specials. We went for the Neapolitan pizza night and it was absolutely wonderful. This was one of the better pizza experiences I've had here. The dough was flavorful, the toppings were on point, and it was overall nicely presented. I'm an old school pizza type of person, so my favorite was the margarita out of the three. There is just something in the simplicity that brings out the quality of the ingredients for me. Love the experience and would definitely come back for more!

My team and I visited the Grove at Copia following our day's meetings, totaling a party of 11. The reservation process was straightforward, requiring a credit card. Our server, Colin Maher, started off a little rough when we requested for a few members to order from a separate menu instead of opting for the family-style dining. Fortunately, he and the kitchen staff agreed, allowing some of us to order individually. The wine list was decent with reasonable pricing, both by the glass and bottle. Despite this, the food was rather unremarkable. We ordered an assortment of dishes including Mixed Grain Sourdough Focaccia, Crispy-Baked Oyster Mushrooms, Warmed Gaeta and Castelvetrano Olives, Pickled Garden Vegetables, Belfiore Burrata, Insalata Mitsticanza, Rockfish and Manila Clams, Flannery Beef Zabuton, turnip and crab soup, pasta primavera, among others. Disappointingly, the salad was overdressed, resulting in a soggy texture. The soup, olives, Burrata, and Focaccia were agreed upon as the tastiest items we had - the rest were average at best. We rounded off our meal with desserts, dessert wines, and coffee. Interestingly, our server Colin ended the evening on a better note, exhibiting both graciousness and kindness. Despite the enchanting restaurant setting and ambiance, I'm not inclined to return to the CIA or recommend it to colleagues visiting Napa. Whilst we missed out on visiting the gardens due to our evening reservation, they appeared to be quite beautiful from what we could see.

Came for the CIA alumni guest chef series.The food was freshly prepared and delicately seasoned.There was a bit of a kerfuffle with my dietary restriction but the manager handled it very well.

What a happy surprise touring this place. The setting is inviting with high ceilings and lots of light. They have a wall that is hall of fame of wine with plaques for famous people in the winemaking world, and a culinary museum which was unexpectedly interesting and fun, and nice gift shop with unusual and high quality offerings for anyone who cooks or as a gift for friends or family who like to cook. They also have a very cool wine tasting set up which is automated (you pay with a credit card choose a nice glass and then select the type of wine you’d like to try and the amount you’d like and a dispenser pours it for you). Nice seating area nearby. Didn’t have dinner there so can’t speak to that (but it’s got to be good). Anyway, fun stop before or after Oxbow next door.

We were very excited for our dinner with family and friends and made a reservation for 11. We considered the prix fixe menu but decided to do the 4 course meal so that everyone could choose their own. While it was easy to make a reservation and update the time, we had a very difficult time getting in touch with the restaurant despite calling during open hours and leaving multiple voicemails. Normally this wouldn’t be worthy of noting except that the front of house staff made a point to say that they had trouble getting in touch with me but had only called once and left no voicemail and didn’t pick up the phone for the other 5 times we called during operating hours. Given the size of our party we were able to try every dish on the set menu. Some were stellar including the cucumber salad and the bone marrow pasta dish. Portion sizes were very generous, but we ended up not finishing most dishes as they weren’t balanced. Some dishes lacked salt, while others were extremely salty. Some of the flavors were very sharp or overwhelmed the rest of the dish. For example the pesto on the gnocchi was very acidic and had a very young and flavorful olive oil that took over the dish. One of our party’s bone marrow pasta had a large clump of pepper in it that caused her to leave the restaurant to cough outside. However, my same dish was delicious, highlighting the inconsistency in plates. The steak, which was an extra $60, was overcooked. We ordered medium rare and while beautifully presented, only the 2 middle slices had a hint of pink whereas all other pieces were cooked through. For the desserts, the strawberry tiramisu was overly sweet with the jam/puree and was less lady fingers and more of a layered cake. The meringue in the peach dessert had a very hard shell that required significant force to crack. The peaches were wonderful but again the sauces were overly sweet. We were very excited for this meal and looked forward to an amazing experience. While we understand it’s a learning facility, it didn’t seem like dishes were tasted before being served and no one asked how our meal was. There was plenty of staff but no one checked in on the quality of the food. It ended up being a very leisurely meal, which they mentioned as we were doing the 4 course meal and had ordered the steak. However, over 3 hours was a bit lengthy with an extended pause before dessert. Given the price of the meal and wonderful reputation of the school and restaurant, we walked away disappointed at the overall experience and quality despite some shining moments.

Spent some time here learning the intricacies of farm to table, wine country cuisine. The location is perfect in the heart of Napa. Had a dinner here, with wine pairing so many courses I lost count. I did not leave hungry,that is for sure. Kind of pricey, but you get what you pay for. Plenty to explore after class!

CIA at Coupa is an absolutely beautiful facility! First class in architectural layout, unique artwork, the museum, the student kitchen and even fresh grown herbs. Myself and my family had dinner at Coupa and this is where my disappointment lies. The food was not at all bad; however, all things considered, the food should have been much, much better. Two of three steaks were room temperature on arrival. The bruschetta was served not with basil pesto but with spinach pesto. (Admittedly, the menu may may have stated Spinach Pesto, but not what we expected.)Both were disappointing considering the ambiance and reputation I would expect from CIA. I will try again as the menu did look quite good. I hope I can provide a better rating next time.