COB

A unique and personal dining experience in Portorož COB is more than just a fine dining restaurant – it’s a full journey, guided not only by the chef but by the entire team. The waiters add a personal touch, sharing stories and insights that make the experience feel warm and memorable. We visited as a family with kids, and were genuinely impressed by how naturally they were included in the evening – something you rarely see at this level. The menu is organized by country, where -of course - you need a culinary passport, which made the meal feel like an adventure. Highlights for us were the signature olive dish and the artichoke corn taco – both creative and full of flavor. And the seawater cocktail? Unexpected and refreshingly good! Highly recommend COB if you’re looking for something truly special in Portorož.

Must visit! Very experience driven dining, unique dishes with exciting presentation. Awesome non-alcoholic pairings. It makes you question how other restaurants acquired their 1 star from Michelin. Because with COB it's very obvious.

Wonderful gastronomical journey through Slovenia. Very nice service. The dishes are presented with some interactive add ons. For example, you need to fish for scampi or go on a little truffle hunt. This adds a lot of fun to the whole evening. Especially the main dishes of the COB experience 2.0 menu are a highlight.

We visited COB in early January. The staff is friendly and knowledgeable. We enjoyed the Istrian dishes the chef prepared for us.

Largely overpriced. You constantly get to be disturbed by staff that try to entertain you with stories how their chef travelled the world with his family and motorcycle. And you get a fake passport - that reminds me of a kids party, not fine dining. The greatest food abomination is a dish called "USA" or "NY". You get a ridiculously over-seasoned small piece of pork fat. Every sane American would spit out that dish and never return. That also goes for other nations. Unacceptable. The only thing that puzzles me is how they got the Michelin star. The whole experience was painstakingly long and unpleasant.

COB, Portorož » My visit: July 2024 » Total score: 4.5/5 – good to very good » Comment: Overall, I enjoyed the food: I would point out an outstanding intermediate course with scallop and parsnip, the excellent main course with beef and ricotta and the no less excellent dessert. However, there were some aspects that I didn't like so much: - I would describe an intermediate course with gnocchi as nondescript/ meaningless. - No bread was served with the menu - I missed it several times. - I found it a little disappointing that the restaurant only served one course with seafood (scallops) and only one dish with meat (beef). Considering the fact that you eat with a view of the sea, I particularly missed a fish dish. I thought the presentation of the food was very good and would particularly like to highlight the excellent use of many "special effects" - one or two of which were even a first for me. Moreover, I would describe the tableside procedures as no less excellent - probably the best I have experienced. (For example, the team prepared two dishes at the table, using elaborate cooking methods and equipment I had never seen before.) 1|112|64 ===== My ratings for this gourmet restaurant in detail: ●● Service – 4.9/5 – outstanding: ● Hospitality, friendliness, obligingness, etc.: 4.9/5 ● Atmosphere, temper, facilitation, etc.: 4.8/5 ●● Food – 4.6/5 – still very good: ● Flavors (range, depth, composition, harmony/balance, etc.): 4.7/5 ● Level (thoroughness, craftsmanship, originality, exclusivity, variety of impressions, consistency/diversity, etc.): 4.7/5 ● Choices: 3.0/5 ●● Beverages, mainly the wines – 4.8/5 – very good: ● Taste (depth/range, length, complexity, balance, accessibility, elegance, intensity/subtlety, etc.): 4.7/5 ● Level (variety/novelty of impressions, consistency/diversity, exclusivity, etc.): 4.8/5 ● Did the beverages (mainly the wines) match the dishes?: 4.9/5 ● Choices: 4.2/5 ●● Presentation of the food – 4.8/5 – very good: ● Textures and (differences in) temperatures: 4.4/5 ● Colors and decorations: 4.5/5 ● Timing and sequencing as well as sizes of portions: 4.8/5 ● Special effects (positionings, DIY-effects, sculptural or thematic elements, surprises, color and motion effects, fake effects, olfactory effects, fog or smoke effects, etc.): 5.0/5 ● Procedures at and around the table (attunements and explanations, elements added/changed, service and staffing intensity, involvement of kitchen team, orchestrated dish presentations, preparations and dishes (partially) built up at the table, etc.): 5.0/5 ●● Presentation of beverages, mainly the wines – 4.7/5 – very good: ● Procedures at and around the table (explanations and attunements, etc.): 4.7/5 ● Quantities poured as well as timing in relation to the dishes: 4.8/5 ●● Premises and location – 4.5/5 – good to very good: ● Accessibility, surroundings and - as applicable - the view: 4.8/5 ● How did I like the room or - as applicable - outdoor area’s style, decor and atmosphere?: 4.2/5 ● Well-being (space, privacy, temperature, ventilation/odors, lighting, soundscape, sanitary facilities, etc.): 4.5/5 ●● Price – 3.6/5 – satisfactory: ● Price-performance ratio for food: 3.7/5 ● Price-performance ratio for wines and other beverages: 4.0/5 ● Price transparency and correspondence of the expected to the actual price (simple, complete and unambiguous price information on the restaurant's website and in the menu, etc.): 3.2/5

It was an amazing experience! Sure it was a bit pricy and definitely not the kind of restaurant that you could go to every night (unfortunately :( )- I would be lucky if I could, but I have never ever experienced anything like this! The "presentation" of the food was stunning and the whole experience was simply amazing. I kept smiling the whole evening because it really was so much fun to be at COB. Hopefully it will be on TripAdvisor as "highly recommended activity in Portoroz" soon ;) Oh and my husband and me both had the vegetarian menu "COB experience" with the wine.

COB alias Cooking Outside the Box is an real slovenian treasure with an amazing view above the cost of Portorož. The restaurant itself has an very modern, clean look, but not sterile, the wooden furniture gives it a cozy feeling. The ambiete is something I need to point out, because even it´s an michelin restaurant, it doesnt have this posh or serious atmosphere, which could make somebody feel uncomfortable or out of place. It´s very friendly, relaxed and the stuff is very professionell, but sill humanly and funny. They explained everything very well, but it wasnt a lecture and they gave me nice hints, what to do in Portorož etc. I really appreciated, when the owner and chef himself came to our table after the dinner for a quick small talk. So...but what about the food, right? 😹 Some courses, like the the first and last dish were outstandig, I never had something so creative and playful. We really enjoyed the pork, the fish and the rabbit paté. The other courses were totally fine and good, but they didnt hit the spot like the others. My least favorit course was the dessert I guess, but when I gave that as a feedback, they told me, that the other menu they have is really strong on desserts, so maybe it´s worth a try. In general, I think that it was an amazing expirience and it´s an must-try for the region and you definitely get more back, than you invest, because it´s not just the delicious food, great drinks for a reasonable price, the view, the high standard, but mainly it is the atmosphere created by the owner and his team and the thoughtful details I will not reveal, so you can be surprised!