Reviews & Ratings for Nirvana

04/23/10

Get the Kamikaze Steak Noodles

by lguerriero , Citysearch Contributor at Citysearch

I’ve been going to Nirvana for years and am sorry to say this is actually the first review I’ve written about them (Sorry Nirvana). This place has a great Asian-infused atmosphere, amazing specialty cocktails and excellent food. I highly recommend the Kamikaze Steak Noodles and the Pink Cucumber Cocktail. They also have an excellent chicken curry dish (has a little bit of a kick to it). The food is reasonably priced, but the cocktails add up quickly, so watch your bar tab.

• Pros: Excellent food & heated patio
• Cons: Expensive cocktails

05/12/09

Lost my business...

by MikPDX at Citysearch

This establishment was my fav for many years but it has lost my well earned money. The tables were sticky from the years of rubbing off the varnish, our entree were served on worn plates that were chipped. The teapot was so old and dented it should be used as a planter for the garden out back.

Should we say anything? Well you can't! There's a lot of servers but which one? One dropped you at a table, another gave you water, another took your orders and someone else delivered the food? All were really busy but doing what. I asked one of them for 2 rice bowls. I got to scoops of rice on a plate? WTF?

That FREAKN LOUD RESTAURANT PHONE! The staff expects us to turn off our cell phone and yet their phone is at a deafening level! It rings and rings and rings. URGH! SO LOUD!

The restaurant has lost it's sight of good food and service. It needs to be cleaned from top to bottom. Invest in new china, new paint and new table tops. It just needs a new make over...

No one wants to eat on a sticky table and chipped plates! That was the last time for me... STAY AWAY!

• Pros: Strong Drinks to help you forget the bad food and service!
• Cons: Dirty and worn tables, plates, service was non-existant!

07/24/07

This should not be a sit down restaurant.

by maryanneschlitz at Citysearch

When I got there last weekend at around 7:30 it was so dead I couldn't believe it. Usually when I go there it is fairly busy. I was sat by a very rude and rushed gentleman at the front. I thought it was unusually rude considering it wasn't busy.

On to the meal. Our server was very nice and efficient. He took our drink orders. Our drinks took forever. My girlfriend had a mojito (wayyyy too sweet..gross) and I had the Purple Rain which did not taste like it used to. It is too tart now.

We ordered the sampler, which was so greasy (except the dried bread and tofu) I had to blot the eggrolls and somosas with my napkin because they were dripping.

We also split a pork noodle dish which was extremly fatty and disgusting. The sauce on the noodles was too heavy and hiding any flavor this dish could have even had since we didn't eat the lowest grade meat possible. We skipped on dessert.

Also when I went to use the facilities it was dirty, out of toilet paper and not flushed. Gross and dirty.

I would never write a bad review unless it was truly bad. How could one of my favorite restaurants turn into such a nightmare?

This restaurant should just be an order and sit type thing like Posh Bagel or Asqew.

01/24/07

Cheap (and I'm not talking about the price)

by fabgo at Citysearch

I went there with a friend a couple of weeks ago. The food was OK, nothing to write home about. Cocktails are expensive, at $9-$10, and watered down. OK, Nirvana, you can either charge a lot for your cocktails, or water them down. But not both. I ordered some chicken pasta w/aspargus. It arrived without the most expensive ingredient, Asparagus. I really got the impression that this place was trying to cut costs, to the point where they don't provide customers with what they paid for. I'll never go there again.

11/16/06

Good for first dates!

by dirrty_d at Citysearch

A guy I dated once took me here for a first date, and I was impressed! It is super-small, so it had a cozy, neighborhood feel to it. Service was good and the food was excellent! If I wasn't such a good girl, I would've let him get further than first base... ;)

• Pros: Loved everything
• Cons: ?

11/13/06

delicous!

by d33ds23 at Citysearch

the spinach noodles are delicious with their sauces. also a very nice atmosphere, very relaxing, defintely a date spot!

10/11/06

good food, good deal

by sushisnob7 at Citysearch

We go to a lot of fancy places that give you pretty plates with hardly anything on them. Not here. The portions are generous and the food is yummy- not super fancy, just tasty. They also have a fun drink list.

10/01/06

Asian fusion cuisine and cocktails splash

by calboy at Citysearch

Asian fusion cuisine and cocktails splash. Good service. Great back area. Nice ambience. Popular but not hard to get in.

09/21/06

Horrible Horrible Food

by finickyflower at Citysearch

THE WORST FOOD IN SAN FRANCISCO. The ambience is fun, the drinks are inventive, the waitstaff was good. The calamari salad was sad and uninspiring. The dumplings could have been frozen then popped in the microwave. The noodle dish was something from a bad boil in a bag variety. To call this a "fusion" of Burmese food is a sorry and innacurate description. Try Mandalay or Burmese Superstar for Burmese. We cannot understand how it has been so popular for food while in such a great food city.

• Pros: good atmosphere, interesting drinks
• Cons: the worst food in town

08/03/06

Impressive Food

by tonyjazz2 at Citysearch

I have tried maybe 8 different dishes at Nirvana Restaurant, and every one of them was very tasty. I'm quite impressed with their usage of sauces and flavors. Service was good, and the restaurant is well-managed.

Also, I did enjoy a meal at the bar with happy-hour beer prices, which made for a very cheap (but good) dinner.