L'Osteria Del Forno
(415) 982-1124
519 Columbus Ave
San Francisco,
CA
94133
37.7996
-122.4092
Neighborhoods: Northeast, North Beach
What People Are Saying About L'Osteria Del Forno
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Citysearch
In Short
Tiny L'Osteria del Forno is a true diamond in the touristy rough of North Beach. As diners step inside the 28-seat room, they could be entering a cafe in Siena, complete with small tables, wine served in water glasses and a friendly, food-savvy staff. Everything on the menu is baked in the oven, from superb thin-crust pizzas lightly covered with fresh mozzarella to stellar focaccia sandwiches and daily roasts.
User Reviews
SusanRS
November 03, 2008
Afraid that their being listed in Zagat might have changed things, we went back to our favorite Italian food restaurant not knowing what we'd find. Everything is as it was when we left it - the food, the wine and the prices are all exactly like we remembered. Great food, especially great prices and brisk, but accommodating service. If you like Olive Garden, don't take up space in this restaurant, please! This is so much more than a chain restaurant could ever be. Obscure and delicious menu items make the dining experience unforgettable. We loved the Belgian endive wrapped in Speck, roasted. The roasted beef appetizer with porcini mushrooms was a perfect starter. But we're still talking about the superb milk roasted pork! Simply awesome.
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jbeyer
February 25, 2008
On satuday Feb 23 around 4:30pm my son and I decided to dine at L'Osteria since we've drove by the restruant a few times. As soon as we open the door the waitress gave us a look like, "What do you want!". When we walked in I noticed there was only one other table with 3 customers who already placed their order. It took 10mins for them to give a menu then another 20mins to take our order. As we were waiting I also noticed that when the other customers would ask for something the waitress would turn around and roll her eyes at them as if she was being bothered. Then we had to listen to the two waitress bad mouth the third waitress who had just ended her shift.."She's a fu---- bi--- and I'm sick of her sh--!" Since they weren't discrete about their conversation we had to listen to it all because the place was so small. When the food arrived the waitress just dumped our food on the table and walked away without asking us if we wanted anything else nor did either one of the waitresses check up on us at anytime the way other waitress do. The food was so horrible that after eating only half of our dish we decided to leave and dine at another resturant. We had to ask twice for the check and again, we had to wait...remember, there was only one other table. This place has the most UNCLASSY waitresses who never smiled and looked as if they were mad at the world. The food was terrible and lacked basic flavors. Their advertisement of an authentic Italian resturant is FALSE advertisment....very misleading!
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Anonymous
January 02, 2008
This place doesn't feel touristy like most of the 'authentic Italian' restaurants in North Beach. While I'm not an Italian or an Italy expert, I've traveled a bit through Italy and I wouldn't call the place authentic. The food was just ok for the price. The ambiance might be nice for a date as another reviewer suggested. What really bugged me was that they served over priced by the glass wine in cups! This burns me the most. When I pay $8.00 a glass I don't really expect to be blown away by the wine, but I do at least expect to be able to taste it. Call me snobby, but I don't think tiny little cups really should be used for wine consumption. This isn't 'authentic' either. Nowhere in Italy had the audacity to serve wine in crappy cup. And if they did, it certainly wasn't $8.00 a glass. I probably wouldn't go back because of the wine thing (and the tiny prison cell bathroom) but the food's not bad. It's not great either.
read full reviewThe Details on L'Osteria Del Forno
Parking:
Finding a spot on the street is next to impossible; try one of the lots on Broadway near Columbus.
Know Before You Go:
Make a stop at the ATM before going--no credit cards or debit cards accepted.
Save Time:
Reservations are not accepted here, so plan accordingly.
