Tablespoon

Doesn't Recommend

jmbe

Joined 8 years ago

Terrible Service Sours Good Food. My family and I were very disappointed with Tablespoon. We didnt receive our appetizers until nearly 40 minutes after we ordered them, and it took 1 hour and 15 minutes to get our entrees. Although we registered our dissatisfaction with the waitress and manager more than once, no one did anything to make us feel better. They never offered to comp our appetizers or bring us dessert on the house. We looked forward to dessert, but when we received dessert menus 2 hours after arriving, we had to leave before the parking garage closed. When one member of our party complained to the manager on our way out, he responded with silence and a patronizing smirk. Although food was very good, especially macaroni and cheese, mushroom appetizer, and halibut, we left with a distinctly bad taste in our mouths as a result of being treated so disrespectfully by the staff.

Recommends

sdunlea

Joined 8 years ago

No more late-night dining. Tablespoon used to be one of the few good restaurants in San Francisco that opened late on weekdays. I arrived there tonight just after 11pm to take advantage of their BYOB first Monday of the month to find they had stopped serving at 10:30pm. A sign in the window says it's 10:30pm Monday to Thursday, but midnight Friday and Saturday. Am I the only one in this city awake after midnight?!

Recommends

lewisak

Joined 11 years ago

Beware of that 1st Monday of the month!. Second time here - wanted to take advantage of the generous corkage waiver (1st Monday every month!). Sadly, an extremely large, oblivious group "took advantage of the situation" (to quote our server), and brought a winery's worth between them, only to sit and loiter for hours, backing up the entire evening. We waited an hour past our 8:00 reservation, starving. Fortunately, the manager was polite enough to offer a complimentary appetizer at the bar while we waited, making up for the clueless patrons having overstayed their welcome. That aside: THE FOOD HERE IS FABULOUS. The Mac 'n Cheese is to die for, and everything else is exquisite. Highly recommended!

Recommends

samsf

Joined 8 years ago

Great Evening at Tablespoon. Just made another visit to Tablespoon last week. I have been going here since way back when they were Spoon. They consistently always do a great job here, food is always excellent, service is always fast and very personalized, feels very warm, and the room is one of my favorite in the city, very cozy sexy place. What else can I say, one of my favorites places in the city.

Doesn't Recommend

chickenhoffman

Joined 8 years ago

Lousy service. Good service means listening to what the customer wants. We had a reservation for 8:30 and didn't sit down until 9. Our request to share our appetizers was ignored (we wanted the salad split up and 2 small plates) and then our food took an hour to get to the table. As we watched the couple next to us chow on their food we realized they sat down 15 mins after us. When we were finally served at 10pm, the steak, ordered "medium" was still moo-ing it was so rare, and the pork tenderloin was dry. Did anyone care that we were there? We didn't think so. Tablespoon isn't worth the money and we will not return.

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apanos

Joined 9 years ago

Cool and sumptuous. Love this place. Great for a glass of wine and dinner at the bar with a date. Also, a great place for a weeknight dinner with friends. This restaurant brings some class to the neighborhood restaurant scene. The staff is responsive and loves the restaurant as much as I do. Count on them to describe the dishes well - and count on the food to be as good or better than they describe it. (Finally - truth in advertising). This is a GOTO place.

Doesn't Recommend

karynkanew

Joined 9 years ago

Don't count on a happy birthday here!. This ISN'T the French Laundry! If so, I would welcome an $80+ per head tab. We were there for a friend's birthday. He lives close and goes there a lot. He asked them to put together a group menu. They ordered way too much food, totally overdid it and charged us for each individual thing. We brought 3 bottles of wine. We ordered two bottles from their wine list (usually it is customary not to charge corkage if you buy bottles there). NOT here. We were charged $15 per bottle. We asked the manager- he RUDELY told us that he'd never heard of that policy and "he had worked in many restaurants". Give me a break -they do it at Michael Mina! They didn't even buy our friend's birthday dessert. I am amazed that with their list of investors, this place still needs to learn what customer service is.

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gleeful1

Joined 9 years ago

Good spot with good food. We had a reservation for 8:30 pm on a Friday night and didn't get seated until at least 30 minutes later. The host pulled a little bit of attitude, but then made up for it by bringing us a smoked trout pizza (which was divine) on the house as soon as we sat down. The service was very good. And the house mac and cheese is as good as everyone says. Would also recommend the cookie plate for dessert. Pleases different desires for a group tasting, and how do you beat cookies right out of the oven?

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decimalsf

Joined 9 years ago

A little like The French Laundry.... Really! I used to be a chef, worked in the biz, and the food that comes out is amazing. Especially the seared tuna, and the raviloi. We have been several times now and love it. The layers of complexity in the food is great - slow down, take your time and enjoy! This is as close to French Laundry cooking I have come to in a long time.

Recommends

howudoinsf

Joined 11 years ago

One Tablespoon per Day.... This little spot in Russian Hill is worth the trip! Started off with the mac and cheese, a delicious, gooey and satisfying appetizer. My main course was a smoked sturgeon pizza with pesto, onion puree (delicious!) and a braised rib canneloni. All the food was very fresh and creative. Service was impeccable and friendly, decor was understated but appealing. Staff is very knowledgable about their wines. Overall, a very satisfying trip to a well run restaurant!