09/07/09

Loved it!

by little_ang

I went here for a date. Very busy place so we made reservations. We had drinks at the bar beforehand (a bit spendy) but were seated at our table promptly in the Chianti room which had wonderful ambiance. Service was professional and efficient but not overly friendly. We had a great appetizer Garlic Balsamic Marinated Tomatoes-ate every bite. My entree of Gnocchetti in a Gorgonzola cream sauce was delicious to say the least. They had great soft foccocia dinner rolls which were kept heated over a candle and perfect for dipping. The portion sizes were just right. On the way out when they boxed up my meal they added extra bread which was a nice surprise. However, I only give this a 4/5 stars because the other entree ordered was only okay and not nearly as good as the Gnocchetti. In the end, I would definitely go back and recommend this place!

• Pros: Best Gnocchetti, good portions
• Cons: not all dishes as good as the Gnocchetti, spendy

04/27/09

Dirty Utensils, Dirty Curtains

by farmlark

Usually I don't check utensils, but when I saw a speck of stuff on the knife, I wiped it off and got a black, yes black, streak on the napkin. The fork had the same black stuff. There was a hair on the water pitcher. The curtains, charming and romantic to some, were filthy. There was no light in the bathroom. The food was okay, but not worth the $18.95 for the 40 garlic chicken. I do NOT recommend this place. One star is too much.

• Cons: Dirty utensils, dirty curtains, no light in bathroom

11/24/08

The Garlic Was the Least Stinking Part

by JaegerSF

My friends and I had one of the worst dining experiences I have had in the City at The Stinking Rose. First we waited over an hour for a table. Due to some miscommunication between the hosts we were passed up several times for a table that would seat our party of 5. After telling the hostess we were not happy they evicted the party they had just seated and probably ruined their dining experience for the night as well. Our waiter was extremely unattentive. After waiting 20 minutes for our waiter to show up and take our first and only drink order he pressured us into ordering our food at the same time. We also asked for bread several times and ended up asking a different server who very politly brought it to us. Now the food. I ordered a $20 porkchop that was overcooked and underseasoned. Not the worst I've ever had but for $20 that better be the best darn porkchop ever. After we finished our disappointing meal we had to ask for the check from a different person once again since our waiter was no where to be found. This place is an over priced tourist trap with some of the worst service and most mediocre food I have been to in San Francisco.

11/12/08

Stinking may be just the right word....

by jaxandjill

My boyfriend and I are locals to the city. We love food and like to try out different restaurants in the area. We had a hankering for a really good bowl of spaghetti and "The Sticking Rose" caught our attention. The name itself sounded just interesting as well as the exterior deco. It felt really inviting. And the garlic with everything just sounded so yummy! We were greeted by the host and led to a small table by the window. It was a nice spot for the both of us. We were given menus by the host. It took almost 15 minutes for the waiter to come to our table. As soon as the waiter reached our table he quickly took our orders and seemed impersonal to our needs as diners. Though we had everything on the table including a white pitcher of water he just seemed to shove everything on our table. The service could have been better. We ordered the garlic steak with shrimp and pesto spaghetti. The food was not what we expected. The steak was too fatty and it tasted awful. We didn't take another bite of it. For what we paid, it wasn't worth it. The pesto spaghetti was too oily. The only good thing about the entrees were the generous amount of garlic! Don't be fooled by the name and all the decoration. The food and service are the "stinking" parts.

• Pros: lots of garlic
• Cons: not worth my taste buds

04/22/08

Walked out after 5 minutes

by SimonD

Am not local and am in town or a few days. Was walking through the area which seems to have a good choice of restaurants, so I was hoping they would make an effort to be at least as good as each other. How wrong could I have been?

From the outside it looks OK. There were 2 couples in there eating already, so it couldn't have been that bad, could it?

I went in and was greeted OK, but she sat me at a table with no view of anything, just a wall - couldn't see the street or the chefs. I prefer to have something to look at while I'm eating, especially when eating alone.

Chose my food (40 clove chicken). Waited for the waitress. In the meantime a couple were seated, by the window. After a couple of minutes, waitress went up and chatted to them, completely blanking me. She took their order. She took another couple's bill. She completely blanked me on the way back to the till, hardly surprising given the greeter had stuck me in no-man's land. At this point I decided to quit while I was ahead and walked out. Some guy came over and asked me what was wrong, said I'd changed my mind.

No idea what the food was like, never will get to find out. Went to an Italian deli up the road, cheaper, better service, probably better food for all I know. From other reviews it seems I didn't miss anything. Given the massive choice in SF, this place doesn't deserve more than 1*.

Did I mention I don't like being ignored by waiters?

• Pros: It's a restaurant, they probably do food
• Cons: You may walk out before you get that far

04/05/08

Avoid this tourist trap at all cost

by sage725

This restaurant was over priced and did not have a very good selection. There was no children's menu so I had to pay over $12.00 to get my child a pizzete (more like a quesdilla) and a drink. The Pizzete was supposed to be a cheese pizza and was actually pita bread with no sauce and just cheese in the top middle. I had to return my dish because the noodles were soggy and tasted so horrible that no one at my table could stand it. Another family member left the restaurant hungry because the waiter forget to bring her meal. After seeing our food she decided she did not want it after all. We were very disappointed to find that the foccacia bread was actually a dinner roll. My family did not have a pleasant experience especially after receving the bill. On a lighter note the potato soup was very tasty and was probaly the only menu item worth mentioning. This was the first and last time that we will every visit this VERY stinking Rose.

• Pros: potato soup
• Cons: over priced and not very tasty

03/09/08

STINKS!!

by howdo2usf

This is the #1 WORST restaurant I have ever eaten at. Dirty tables, dirty silverware, dirty glasses, you get the picture. Almost walked out before ordering, food was second rate.

• Pros: DIRTY, DIRTY, DIRTY
• Cons: None

01/19/08

solid italian, sure a bit quirky but a great find

by monkies

terrific stable italian place. nothing to die about, but it was good and somewhere i'll go when i don't want fuss, good price, and consistent quality. this isn't the garlic maddening mess people or the namesake indicate. the food is normal italian with the normal amount of garlic. they have a few extreme garlic dishes to keep up with the name. but don't be scared into thinking you'll stink for days like people are saying...they probably got the garlic steak, ice cream and raw garlic and then wonder what happened. portions are big too, so it's good for groups.

it's a busy place, so it's not romantic or anything, and yes it's a touristy place. but for the place and good quality, you can't go wrong. i've been to all the italian places on columbus and i think it's the best there.

• Pros: solid italian fare, good prices, great flavors
• Cons: busy, kinda quirky atmosphere

01/12/08

Garlic can't even save this place

by frecklestree

We were seated promptly to be greeted by bad food and even worse service. The server was very conversational about how slow of a time of year it was only to follow it with some of the worst service we ever recieved. He was hesitant to answer our questions about the menu and then did'nt even check to see how our meal was going. we went today, 1-12-08 @ one in the afternoon. the place was dead. The three apps. we got were marginal at best. Making me glad to not order any main courses. The best thing about the place was the garlic,parsley,olive oil... and that was "free"!! Sadly it even was agonizing to get our check to pay and leave. This place is no DEAD FISH!!

11/26/07

Love the smell

by netter1

As you can imagine...the smell of The Stinking Rose can overtake you from a block away...and that says alot considering how many other human and mechanical smells there are on the streets of North Beach. This garlic haven is a cozy (read "cramped") restaurant where you can't help but breathe garlic into people's faces. We occasionally visit this location when in the city, but the closeness of the dining room usually turns me off and we end up somewhere else...usually somewhere on the Pier 39...or even in Berkeley. Yes, the food is good here...yes...you MUST love garlic...but no...not my favorite dining spot.