Incanto Restaurant & Wine Bar
(415) 641-4500
1550 Church St
San Francisco,
CA
94131
37.746
-122.4271
Neighborhoods: Noe Valley, Central
What People Are Saying About Incanto Restaurant & Wine Bar
The Editor
Contributor
Citysearch
The Scene
With its gleaming, marble-floored foyer and spotless stone archways, Incanto feels like a rustic European dining hall that's been given an L.A. makeover. The upscale clientele doesn't mind the noisy acoustics of the big open room, which is almost always full to brimming. Servers are friendly, but can be spread too thin.
The Food
The ever-changing menu offers Italian country dishes rendered elegantly. Refreshing interpretations of classics might include a delicate Caesar-like salad of little gem lettuce with white anchovy and hard-boiled egg, or a coarse pork ragu on paper-thin handkerchief pasta. But generally, the best dishes are the more unusual ones: Sardinian fregola--tiny, tender orbs of pasta with lovely squid in salty, savory squid ink sauce, or roast porchetta, an unabashed celebration of pork fat that's house-cured with fresh herbs and served with huckleberry potatoes. The occasional misstep--chewy mussels or over-seared lamb tripe--is forgivable.
User Reviews
ovnp
May 26, 2009
Incanto used to be a hang for me. Now they have smaller portions and it is heavily salted. The wait staff used to be spot on, now it feels like a to-go place. They used to honor the bring a bottle of wine and purchase a bottle of wine for a small group with no corkage fee. Their wine list is nice and extensive but, WAY overpriced. In addition to the corkage fee and lousy service; they add 5% on top of it all. Management was also ill-mannered. The place always being empty is a sign of its decline.
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Pablo58
August 11, 2008
I had been wanting to visit Incanto for quite some time. The chef has created a menu of great dishes using local and seasonal ingredients. Others complain that he serves filtered Hetch Hetchy water but I am glad he doesn't add to the recycled plastic and glass mess we already have. Each dish we had was fantastic from the Pig's trotter w' Foie Gras, Bacon & Roasted Plums to the Roasted Maitake Mushrooms we had for a side dish. Wine choices are all Italian and not familiar to most diners even if you think you know wine but corkage is reasonable and the wine picks at the end of the wine list are very good. I would recommend this place to everyone I know. I can't wait to go again because the menu changes on a regular basis so their is always new dishes to taste. By the way the best way to eat here is to share all the dishes with the tables.
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Steven2
February 24, 2008
I found Incanto to be OK but not great. Definitely over rated. I knew I was in for pretense when the menu stated that they served filtered Hetch Hetchy water. Any kitchen faucet in San Francisco and a Brita filter can produce filtered Hetch Hetchy water. False advertising. Pretense. San Francisco's tap water comes from Hetch Hetchy. I also found the food to be overly salty, especially the olive oil ice cream. The final insult was an added 5% kitchen service charge that was conveniently added to the check without telling the customer. I feel it is the responsibility of the restaurant to pay the kitchen help -- not the customer. The decor was pleasant. The service friendly and competent. It was overpriced and not worth it.
read full reviewThe Details on Incanto Restaurant & Wine Bar
Know Before You Go:
The enormous all-Italian wine list is truly impressive. The featured wine flights are also fun and a good bargain, and each wine has a little paper collar identifying it.
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Restaurant Special Features:
Romantic Dining, Group Dining, Dine At The Bar, Outdoor Dining, Notable Wine List, Private Rooms
