Back to Maui: Coconut’s Fish Cafe closes in Cupertino

“Mahalo. … Hope to see you in Maui.”

That’s the message from Michael Phillips, the founder/CEO of Coconut’s Fish Cafe.

More than four years after bringing his celebrated fish taco from the islands to the Bay Area, Phillips said the franchise Cupertino restaurant has closed for good. A brunch restaurant will open in this Stevens Creek Boulevard space in February.

“We will not be doing any expansions for a while. We don’t think will be opening in California. It’s just too expensive to do business there,” he said.

Fans of the famous 17-ingredient taco will have to travel to the island or Arizona to get their fix. Besides two restaurants and a food truck on Maui, there is now a location on Kauai. The two Arizona locations are in Scottsdale.

Coconut’s popular fish taco was born in Kihei, Maui, when, as Phillips recounted, “I couldn’t get a good meal for under $60 or $70.”

So the man who expected to retire to Hawaii after selling his successful 49er pizza chain in the Sacramento region found himself back in the restaurant business. He came up with a concept that would feature healthy — and affordable — tacos, salads, chowder and poke from fresh fish, cut daily, with sauces made in-house. Fish and chips are cooked in canola oil; the tortillas are gluten-free; and it’s brown rice in the rice bowls. Diners may have their fish in a taco, atop a salad, on a bun, tossed with pasta or simply grilled.

Some of Coconut’s recipes were created by Phillips’ mother back when he was a kid in Millbrae. They include the seafood chowder (he added fish to the clams), the cocktail sauce (served with the calamari and shrimp) and the no-raw-egg Caesar salad dressing (which Phillips says is nearly fat-free).

Find details on Coconut’s Hawaii and Arizona locations at www.coconutsfishcafe.com.