La Traviata

Recommends

ValMolina

Joined 4 years ago

Ambiance, food, service, welcoming, A++. Tastiest food offerings we've enjoyed in a long time. Quality ingredients, great preparation. Walking into this local favorite....very very nice. Wooden plank ceilings, great photos on the walls, exquisite music playing, beckoning aromas....every sense was awakened.

Most memorable... the food, so tasty, filling. Surroundings , service,...

We liked it a lot. Will go back. With more friends!

Recommends

SienaKai

Joined 5 years ago

Take from me, it is well worth it!. I guess that I am not surprised by some of the reviews that I have read. With today's concentration on restaurants going over the top with decor and menu style and price, the very young 30'ish crowd would not appreciate all that La Traviata has meant to the San Francisco dining circuit. Nor do they appreciate the late-owner, Zef who took tremendous pride from the mid 70's to his passing to ensure his guests were cared for with sincerity. Nor do they remember Eduardo or Ruben who opened the restaurant with Zef. They, the younger diners are too concerned with whom they have to impress and lose sight of the food. I for one, as well as so many others who I personally know that have dined at La Traviata have enjoyed the authentic and great Italian cuisine. I have been there since the opening day and over the years remember sitting next to politicians, Placido Domingo, Carl Malden, and many more who found comfort in the quaint atmosphere of Traviata. So, if you are looking for the glitz and glamor of a fine dining restaurant you will not find it here. However, you will find a very interested (small) staff who learned from Zef's legacy. After all, it is an Italian restaurant and speaks volumes of the food, while the operatic environment brings a warmth that other restaurants fail to do. If you are coming from the Union Square area of SF, or driving into the Mission, parking may be difficult. It is well worth the cab fare, or BART to 24th. The gnocchi and tortellini is a must! AND most of all, it is very reasonably priced despite its lack of glitz and glamor. Give it a try, and just keep in mind you are simply going for consistently good food. Ask for the owner and introduce yourself . . . it is always a good move in a small restaurant that has stood the test of time that have crippled those high-priced over the top restaurants that lure the consumer.

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Sephene

Joined 5 years ago

Like entering another world. The only thing better than the food at La Traviata is the service. Well, no, actually, the food tops the service. Well, okay, both are outstanding, and it's worth the hour commute both directions to have a meal at La Traviata. The waiters and owner are charming, helpful with suggestions for ordering, attentive without intruding upon the dining experience. We never feel rushed, nor are we ever looking around, trying to get someone's attention, feeling neglected. The food is incredible. You must try the eggplant parmagiana--it's not breaded and greasy. The eggplant flavor is there, and the sauce and cheese combine with it to make it perfect. The salmon in pastry shell is fantastic, too. And don't leave without having the fig & goat cheese green salad. Normally I don't like goat cheese, but the stuff they use is mild and tasty. The ambiance at La Traviata is hushed, elegant, but not pretentious. What an outstanding dining experience. I've been coming here for 20 years, and it just keeps getting better.

Recommends

Lorraine Sanders

Joined 8 years ago

It's all arias, all the time at this Mission District staging spot for old-school Italian cuisine.. In Short
Diners here settle into classics like caprese salads, homemade gnocchi and entrees named after stars from Beverly Sills to Pavarotti. Softly playing opera music provides a continuous aural backdrop. The lighting is romantically low even when daylight reigns outside, and framed photographs of singers and actors, some who've visited the restaurant, run the length of the dining room walls. Atop every table, a vase holding a single red rose rests on a crisp white tablecloth.

Recommends

omnigirl

Joined 8 years ago

old school italian for old school eaters.. This is not your typical SF-fusion food. The chef uses real ingredients: butter and heavy cream, etc. The heart-healthy may find this disturbing, but those in search of an old school italian meal will be delighted. The staff takes great pride in their service and it shows in the flavor of the food. I've enjoyed myself every time I've eaten here and I find it adds a great dynamic to Mission fare. Check it out! (and no, this is not a fake review as an earlier poster intimated)

Doesn't Recommend

joe1234568

Joined 8 years ago

Lousy old-school Diner Italian. If you think Italian food is what you got at cheap restaurants with red checked tablecloths back in the 50s, this is your place.

The food is not only old-school diner style Italian, but it's not even prepared well.

I am baffled as to how this place can get any good reviews, unless they're fake.

You have been warned.

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trebopolis

Joined 7 years ago

Best Italian in San Francisco. This southern Italian restaurant is incredible! The food is amazing and the staff are chatty and fun. Our waiter, who might likely have also been the owner, told us that his uncle came to the USA over three decades ago. One day, he was walking to the store to buy a cake and ended up buying the restaurant space instead. Thirty-three years later, the family is still running a very successful little restaurant, making Italian food in the Mission District!

Don't let the fact that it's not packed to the gills fool you! They are rarely full, but this gives them enough time to pay special attention to you and your dinner. I always enjoy the delicious food and the friendly service. Tonight, one of the family's youngest members (at the age of almost-3-years) sang happy birthday to us... even though it wasn't anyone in our party's birthday. Now that's customer care!

Doesn't Recommend

timelesscomedy

Joined 8 years ago

DO NOT GO. I wrote a review a while back about this place being great - low key and good food. I tried to go last night and they were pretty well packed, but worse off the young waiter (who I have never seen) was rude when we asked to sit at the tables which were obviously open. This place was a top contender in my book but it's now gone the way of the has-beens....don't go!

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DJF

Joined 10 years ago

Nothing special. I was expecting a little more from this place after reading the reviews. With that, I was slightly disappointed. The food was pretty typical for Italian fare. There is nothing here not available throughout North Beach. They can accomodate large parties and the wait staff is good.

Recommends

ktbug

Joined 10 years ago

Great!. This restaurant I found on accident, and I will definitely go back. Very good hearty Italian food and an atmosphere that brought me back to Italy. I reccommend the gnocchi or Tortellini de Romano. The service was quick, friendly and polite. We had only about 40 minutes, and there were 8 of us- they served us without a problem. The price is very reasonable- especially for S.F.