(415) 956-9662

252 California St
San Francisco, CA 94111 37.7934 -122.3993

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Neighborhoods: Financial District, Northeast

AQUA-SF.COM

Hours:

Tuesday To Friday From 11:30 AM To 02:30 PM Monday To Saturday From 05:30 PM To 10:30 PM Sunday From 05:30 PM To 09:30 PM

Price:

$$$$

Last updated 6.23.11

Category:

Restaurants

Payment Methods:

American Express, Visa, Diners Club, Discover, MasterCard

Restaurant Special Features:

Special Occasion Dining, Fine Dining, People Watching, Business Dining, Online Reservations, Notable Wine List, Prix Fixe Menu

Cuisine:

Seafood

What People Are Saying About Aqua

Featured Review

Contributor

Contributor

The Scene – Luxury prevails in this deep, spacious dining room, punctuated with jumbo-sized floral arrangements and looming floor-to-ceiling mirrors. Exceptional servers and a well-informed sommelier guide the affluent patrons through the pricey bill of fare. – – The Food – With expert chef Laurent Manrique at the helm, the kitchen's execution approaches flawlessness, with culinary frills like ethereal foams gracing several dishes. But don't expect unadorned fish, since the chef treats his seafood like meat, partnering it with vibrant flavors and unexpected sauces. A…

Editor's Tips

Parking:
Valet is $8. Or, try parking at the Embarcadero Center.
Save Money:
Looking to impress a client? The two-course business lunch for $29 will do the trick without maxing out the company card.
2 Star Rating: Below Average

01/18/10

Skip it

by caw727 at Citysearch

The snooty atmosphere didn't help us overcome the exorbitant prices and small, sometimes unappealing servings. Service took far too long (took 15 minutes to get our drink order) and food was undercooked despite our ordering request. Our recommendation - skip Aqua.

  • Pros: Location
  • Cons: Large prices and small food
1 Star Rating: Poor

11/21/09

Disappointing

by bigpenn at Citysearch

I was visiting San Francisco for the first time with my girlfriend and asked a local friend to book a reservation. He recommended Aqua but had never been there himself. I heard that San Fran has a wonderful restaurant scene and wanted to visit one of the best. The food was terrible and tasteless. The bill was $600 with tip for 3 people and no one had a good entree. I don't mind paying that kind of money if the food is outstanding. I was thoroughly disappointed and would not recommend Aqua to anyone.

  • Pros: The Tuna Tar Tar
  • Cons: Everything else
1 Star Rating: Poor

03/29/09

Don't Waste your Time

by foodie68 at Citysearch

The food is simply overdone/oversalted and absolutely not worth the price. Save your money and go to any one of the better nearby restaurants. Michelin 2 star - you wouldn't know that was the case, so disappointing I feel compelled to write my first online review....

  • Cons: Overated, underwhelming
1 Star Rating: Poor

09/13/08

DONT GO TO AQUA IF YOUR HUNGRY

by pinkyyyyyyyyyyyyy at Citysearch

First of all there is a set menu of 3 tiny meals for $75. I ended up ordering the lobster for an additional $40 and when i got the lobster i laughed, It was the size of a hot dog with no bun. . Between the 4 people i was with, the food and 5 cocktails, the bill came out to $600!! And we ate pizza after. I would not recommend this place to my worst enemy. and to top it all off it was my boyfriends birthday, so i told my waiter thinking he was gonna to do something special. but instead he brings a slice of cake with some writing on it and not even a candle. I don't mind paying $600 for a meal but i would at least like to leave the restaurant feeling full and satisfied.

3 Star Rating: Average

08/12/08

Disappointing

by mecnyc at Citysearch

My partner and I ate here recently, and we left disappointed. The evening started off poorly, as 25 minutes after our reservation time, no one had checked back with us on our table, so I flagged someone down, and we were seated. Needless to say, this is the sort of thing that just shouldn't happen at a Michelin 2-star. All would have been forgiven if the food had been up to snuff, but it was very uneven. We had the chef's tasting menu, which featured heirloom tomatoes. A couple of the seven dishes were successful--the gazpacho and the crab with tomato and watermelon--but others were uninspired, while the cod was so oversalted that we would have sent it back if we thought it worthwhile, but we just didn't eat it. Twice during the meal--twice--we were served someone else's dishes. Again, not a big deal, but just below par for such a highly touted restaurant. Perhaps we visited Aqua on a bad night, but we won't know, as we will not go back.

  • Pros: inventive dishes
  • Cons: service and poor execution of menu

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