SPQR SF Review

Had high expectations, but was underwhelmed. The food was good - but not as great as it was hyped up to be. Would have to say it was just OK. Portions were also small. With 4 people, we ordered 2 apps and 4 pasta mains and no drinks - total came out to $85/person. Have definitely had better pasta in the city for much less.

Food was good but compared to other similar caliber restaurants, this was definitely on the expensive side.

Went for my birthday dinner on a Monday evening. We were seated immediately (we had reservations), although I was surprised at how busy it was. The waitress gave handed us the menu, told us which dishes were not available, and didn't return for ten minutes. Fail No. 1. The menu is huge! And the offerings are not typical. I expected her to come back and explain a little about the restaurant, chef, dishes, anything... Finally she returned and I asked which and how many dishes she recommend we order. She said everything is good. Fail No. 2. As that may be, I expect guidance in a restaurant like this. Especially for the price. After ordering four dishes for the two of us, we asked which wine she would recommend to start. She asked what kind of wine we like. Fail No. 3. She finally brought us two whites to choose from. We started with the tuna and mackerel, both had a combination of interesting flavors. We were then served our second dishes, the rabbit and fettuccine. I really wanted a red wine to pair with these dishes. I waited and waited for her to return to offer me a glass. Nothing. Fail No. 4. Meanwhile my food getting cold. I finally made eye contact with another person who worked there. He was very knowledgeable about the wines and brought me a glass (it was delicious). We ended the meal with dessert and espresso. I can't remember if I was blown away by the food. I think it was good. I was so focused on begging for service but not ruining the entire dining experience. We paid about $100 per person. Expected much more from the service. Very frustrating.

This was a cute little place, but I have to say that despite the ambience being good, the same can't be said for the food. The appetizers were pretty good, particularly the sweet bread, but the entree I had (linguine with white wine sauce) was far too salty and certainly not good. I'm not sure if they intentionally did that so that I'd order more drinks, but I certainly wasn't impressed. I also had the gelato for dessert, which happened to be the saving grace of the evening's meal. It was a vanilla and caramel crunch gelato, which was just amazing with the biscotti. Dessert also came with a lime sorbet, but it was too sour to really enjoy.

Overall, while the service was good, I wasn't particularly fond of the food. Thumbs down!

Pasta entrees are quite good. Great selection of wines. Good for a nice date.

Went for my wife's birthday and had a wonderful time. Amazing food and great ambiance.

Amazing food without any sense of attitude. Just honest ingredients prepared deliciously. Bous: the night I went they were offering Mushroom Ice Cream on a chestnut clafoutis. I'd never had mushroom ice cream but it was amazing. The standout of our meal was the chicken liver pate appetizer served with warm, delicious buttery toasted bread. But everything was amazing

Amazing food. Friendly staff. Pricey, but worth the splurge. Really. Go. You won't be disappointed.

Personally think it's overrated, I would of liked to try it back when it was meat forward.

One if the best and most inventive Italian resaurants in SF. Consistent throughout all the years.

Went here after proposing and it was a perfect choice. Service was great and every piece of food was fantastic. Definitely coming back soon

Two Michelin Stars hang near the bar in this cosy restaurant. It gets busy quick and the space allowed for staff and customers dwindles as the evening progresses. The menu is arranged in an interesting way and the wine list is vast and complex when considering pairings.

Our lunch with them was not satisfactory at all. All four of us ordered pasta. Two of us were satisfied with their dishes though they were small and no one sang their praises. My wife's pasta with blue cheese was acceptable but I could have made the dish better and with more care at home certainly. My dish of some kind of squash flowers and Nasturtium flowers was simply inedible. It is singularly the most badly imagined and executed food I can recall ever having in a San Francisco restaurant. The waiter took it off the bill but I could find nothing else on their menu that looked interesting..

As a offer of apology for my dish the staff brought a zuchinni bread desert for the table. AS nice touch but the bread was much too sweet and covered with a cloying and almost tasteless sweet sauce. At least they tried to make up form their short comings.

The service was excellent. I waiter could not have been nicer. I do not understand if he was wearing a black shirt with polka dots or if they were stains. In any event it was a little distracting.

The room is small and dark and had nothing much on the walls to relieve the gloom.

Prices seemed high for the simplicity and small portion of the food and the menu choices were limited.

Michelin star winning for a reason. Wonderful ingredients and well-crafted recipes make this one to not miss.

Oustanding food and atention to detail $$$, it is luxury dinning!

Exquisite appetizer and dinner. If only I could say it in Italian to make it sound as good as it is! Wine was also delicious, the server was spot on on selecting.

Amazing spot with great food and atmosphere. Will definitely be returning.

Sublime flavours, perfectly seasoned, totally unpretentious. Highly recommend.

Weird funky food. Very high priced! Like forget getting a bowl of simple spaghetti with some sauce or anything normal and tasty. Everything is strange.

We were looking for a place to eat Italian in North Beach area and after looking at reviews we finally ended up here. From appetizer to desert, everything tasted great and my group were all very happy with the choice. The staff were friendly and I would return. Menu was huge but waiter was very helpful in suggesting something.

I visited San Francisco as a tourist a few weeks ago. Although the food was a little expensive, it was great. The desserts are very good and well presented. I had a hard time figuring out the menu though.

Very good service, food and atmosphere. Good value for the price. Sitting at the counter by the kitchen and watching the staff is very nice. My meal, wine pairing and dessert were all excellent

I wanted to like this place but the food is just mediocre. They try really hard to make the plate display pretty but the food is what really matters.

The food was delicate yet extremely well paired in its flavor. The cheese plate for desert was very well-rounded. The atmosphere is intimate enough that we ended up making friends with several nearby tables, and the staff were friendly and helpful. Great experience!

Great location for italian food. service is always awesome even when they have a full house. staff treated us so kindly.

Homemade pastas are super tasty! What makes my dining experience different was the fact we were late by 35 mins and they were able to work with us to accommodate our situation. Thank you, SPQR!

Giving it 3-stars based on my visit last week. It was a Tuesday evening. We didn t have a reservation but we took a table outside that was available. We didn t mind the little chill in the air. However, we did mind the very slow service and lack of attention from the staff. I understand that kitchen can get busy and sometime it takes longer. No big deal. But it was a battle to get anyone s attention to even get our water glasses filled or order a second drink while we waited. And even when it was done, it just took way too long. In the end, the tasty food wasn t good enough to make up for it. And two of the three mains weren t at the optimal temperature. Seemed they waited a little before they arrived at the table. It was a little embarrassing to take out of town colleagues there. In the past I gave it 5-stars. I ll consider changing it again after my next visit but I feel I m being generous at this point.

Outstanding service and food is extremely delicious. Worth the price.

Open for take away as Accarrino s. The arancini and bucatini were fantastic! If you love blue cheese then the bucatini is for you.

Amazing food and excellent service. The cocoa rigatoni was delicious

SPQR has some of the most unique Italian food in the city. Their dishes are fresh and exciting.

First time having dinner and I would certainly recommend and come back. We had a dish that was particularly a bit too salty and the server immediately rectified the situation by offering a replacement dish. Our server was fabulous, attentive and efficient.
Chicken liver mousse... yum!

Wow, what a disappointment. Have been curious to try this place for a while. Food creations were, 'creative', but flavors did not necessarily go well together. Overpriced and small portions, somewhat to be expected for a 'fancy' restaurant, but next time I'd rather spend my BF's money on a hole-in-the-wall joint with excellent food. Oh, and they pack you in like sardines, truly unnecessary given the exorbitant prices they charge, I'm sure they make enough money per table to not have to cram in that extra table.

The place is really nice and cozy for friends catch up. Worth the experience!

Very good- different from the pre covid meals we've had here - a lot heartier and a little less delicate but overall very good dinner.

Awesome unique food, service and atmosphere. I really recommend this place for a couple or small groups. You won't regret it.

EXCELLENT FOOD !! GREAT EVENING!
SUPER EXPERIENCE AT THE CHEFS BAR

Contemporary restaurant with seasonal and local ingredients. Make sure you have reservations; this place is ALWAYS busy. I had to make reservations two months ahead. To start, I ordered the pumpkin squash soup with sage cream and it was absolutely delicious. It was very creamy and flavorful. For my entree, I had the beet ravioli, as recommended by the waitress and it was great as well. I could tell the ingredients were very fresh. I would definitely come back to try the other dishes as they change their menu frequently.

Now serving coffee & donuts on Saturday and Sunday mornings that are fried to order and super delicious. 1 bag had~5 heart shaped donuts that are worth eating right away as they are so fresh & fluffy. The espresso with vanilla creme is also a special treat!

Poor service. A full thirty minutes before we were served. Unable to order appetizers without needing to decide on the whole meal. Appetizers arrived before wine was served. 52 dollar potato gnocchi a new height of absurdity. Skip it.

Really bad michelin restaurant, probably the worst I have ever been. Bad service, tight tables, had to wait for long time for our mains, pasta wasn't made enough to the point that I felt the flour between my teeth. We skipped desert didn't even want to look at the menu. No idea how they got even a star, someone should take it away from them.

Love this place. Beautiful, creative, delicious food and wine. Super-knowledable staff offer excellent pairing advice. Another very popular local restaurant so it can be challenging to walk in without a reservation, especially for a group.

Dined here on a Monday night for my brothers birthday. Everything was amazing and delicious. The staff were knowledgeable and exceedingly friendly. Price tag is high to eat here, but worth the money in my book.

We ordered:
Burrata Stromboli - seasonal special, great app

Carrot and lentil salad- truly some of the best carrots I ve ever had

Squid ink spaghetti- delicious with octopus that was so tender and flavorful

Bludnudlen- blood sausage ragu with pigs feet isn t something we knew we needed until this dish

Berkshire pork- we probably didn t even need this course, but it was incredible nonetheless.

Definitely a spot I would recommend for a dinner occasion.

We came for the desert, it did not disappoint. Cozy bar, good service.

The food was good but it's not as fantastic as some people may say. Definitely worth a visit.

Very surprised by the creativity of the Italian/American food fusion

Straight up: there is absolutely no point making a reservation here. They don't care and won't seat you if you have a reso.

Our experience at SPQR was just the worst experience we've had dining out in a very long time.

We made a reso at 9:30 pm. We were told that if we did not arrive promptly we'd be charged $50 per person (they took our credit card number when we made our reso).

We arrived at 9:30. We were not seated until 10:05-10:10. They staff thought this was perfectly fine. They apologized, but didn't seem concerned at all.

We sat and waited and they asked if we wanted to eat at the bar. We said we'd like to eat at our table.

Finally, we got our table. We ordered wine they recommended.

They brought the wine out, opened it and then wouldn't let us try it. They said it smelled bad.

They took it into the back. We sat and waited longer. They then came back and told us the wine was bad. Would we like to try again? We ordered our next bottle of wine which was delicious.

We didn't get our appetizer until 10:50, even though our reservation was at 9:30. Our entree came immediately after our appie, but, by this time it was 11:05.

We had caviar for our appie and then greasy pasta for our entree.

Would not recommend this place.

SPQR is one of my favorite Italian restaurants in the city. The food is always interesting and delicious with unique blends of favors. The ambiance is lovely and the service is great. It is a special occasion place for us as it's a little pricey, but what Michelin Star restaurant in the city isn't?

Italian fine dining, loved the food, excellent service

The food was delicious, particularly the pasta and chicken liver mousse. I found the secondi (guinea hen, I believe) to not live up to the price, but everything else was spot on.

The pasta tasting is a must try! It's about 5 courses and it started off with a squid ink pasta. I liked the portion, the strong flavors of rabbit ragu dish and a meaty lasagnita dish towards the end. The panna cotta at the end was just ok, but was a good light dessert to finish. I didn't really like the chocolate biscuits that went with it. Still, they did place a candle on it to celebrate my partner's birthday, which was a nice touch.

Good was great but the music didn't match to the ambience . Overall still good

One of the best Italian-inspired places in SF. Simple, beautifully crafted dishes, and super yummy. Amazing atmosphere in an upscale and nice environment. Love coming back again and again. SPQR never disappoints.

Love this place. Food here is amazing. Service here is super professional. We came all the way from Tel-Aviv several times, Never disappointed.

I'm a vegan, great pre cross-fitting food, I'd say praise the lord- but I'm an athiest

This is one of my favorite restaurants in the city. I don't generally order pasta, but I crave their pasta. It is handmade and the sauces are amazing. The appetizers are all amazing and the atmosphere is great. They have an open kitchen format which allows you to marvel at how they make each dish with love.

Michelin star restaurant that is well deserved of the recent status. It is conveniently located on Fillmore with a fixed tasting menu.

We walked by on a Friday night and asked if they had any available tables, for 2 at around 7:30-8pm, and they did! I guess we were lucky. Food was great. We shared the heirloom salad and a pasta that was kind of a ravioli stuffed with wagyu beef, served with a creamy Meyer Lemon sauce and covered with sliced dry meat. It was delicious. Definitely want to go back.

Dessert was easily my favorite part! I will be stopping by again just for that.

Friendly, helpful staff; tasty, inventive fare, reasonable prices for good quality.

The food was extraordinary here and the service was impeccable! My date and I sat at the Chef's Counter and were able to see the chefs prepare all of the food by memory as we enjoyed a bottle of wine from their extensive list. I can't rave enough about the deconstructed tiramisu...no wet, soggy cake involved!

Pretty pricy, but the food was great and I really felt the chef's creativity and whimsicalness through his dishes. I'm still dreaming about their uni custard topped with ahi, seared toro, and... ice plant! Never had ice plant in a dish before, but the chef goes there. He also put popcorn in another dish. Great house made pasta and amazing Italian wine list, too.

I really liked the service here. Our waitress were very friendly and patient with us as we took forever to order our food. They're known for their pastas, but my sea urchin fettuccine was just okay. Food portion was very small, good thing they make it up with really great desserts.

Great food but poor service. Had a reservation and it took them half an hour after we showed up to get us a table. We were instructed to wait next door at a different restaurant because they had no space for us to wait. They gave us a glass of champagne once seated (I don't drink champagne though, so this wasn't a very impressive gesture) to pacify us. Waitress talked too fast and we had to have her repeat herself several times to understand what she said. We asked for the sommalier but the waitress insisted she knew about the wine though could not provide much description of any bottles on the menu. Wine was delivered by the somm who clearly knew a lot more about the wine and pairing. I'd try it again, but only because of the food quality. Wine ended up being very good as well.

Creative and flavorful pastas. Attentive and warm service. Cramped yet quiet atmosphere. Great experience!

Excellent michelin star restaurant. Sat at the bar so no wait, excellent service.

Small, European feeling restaurant. Low lighting, fun space. Excellent meal, excellent wine, was over all an excellent evening.

Excellent service. Good food, though pricey. Not the best restaurant in town, but decent,

My most favorite restaurant in the entire world. Not one bad thing on the menu, the staff is simply amazing, and the menu is always updated to reflect the freshest ingredients and chef creations. I'd give this restaurant ten stars if I could.

Good Italian Good, fresh vegetables and meat. Very delicious and good recommendations from the servers. This is not cheap, but worth a visit.

A friend and I recently dined at SPQR to celebrate New Year s over good food and wine. Overall, it was a negative (and grossly overpriced) experience unbecoming of a fine dining establishment. A few highlights below:

-Restroom facilities were unclean with used towels and liquid scattered all over the floor at 5:45 pm
-Extremely slow and lackadaisical service, with up to 40 min delays between courses
-Protein main course consisted of a single, bland scallop
-Extremely small portions in general felt more like an d ouevre sampling than a proper meal

Amazing food, great desserts and paired wines. If you can... just go!

Very good pasta dishes and fresh, bright salads. The service was fantastic from the help with pairings, navigating the right space and ensuring our glasses were never empty. Ate at the chef s bar so we were constantly engaged with the cooking of the meals which was done with a very careful attention to detail.

Just remembered how bad the meal I had here was. I have nightmares of the dry, inedible buffalo meat that was served to us. Calling this an Italian restaurant is a joke. Almost forgot about the wet whole wheat rotini pasta that came out before the buffalo meat. There is no excuse for having items like this on the menu.

The best piece of advice to this restaurant is, "Keep it Simple Stupid."

Was so excited to eat here with my Italian boyfriend but we were both quite disappointed. The food was good, but not spectacular and the prices made the whole thing seem like a waste. We are both happy to pay a high price for a worthy meal and experience but this isn't one. The pastas were too creamy and heavy and the truffles you can add to some of the dishes for extra cost were bland and clearly not high quality. Don't really see how this place has a Michelin Star.