Rose Pistola

01/29/08

Horrible Service - Very Unprofessional

by TopShef at Citysearch

I have eaten at the restaurant a few times now and have not been overly impressed with the food; however, my last experience was enough to keep me from ever setting foot in the restaurant again. I went to the restaurant with a friend of mine this last Sunday and the place was dead (only two tables taken when we walked in). I politely told the hostess that we were only going to be ordering desert and maybe a bottle of wine or coffee. She replied that we have to sit at the bar if that is all we are ordering. No problem I thought ? we walked over to the bar area and sat at a high top table just next to the bar (can actually see this in the picture they have on this site). The hostess rudely approached us and said we were not allowed to sit at the high top and that they have ?rules that need to followed?. I politely asked if all the tables were reserved and if they were planning on having a rush of people to which she responded ?rules are rules? Moral of the story is that I walked out and I do not plan on returning. If the restaurant was full I could understand (and even then feel it is wrong) but seeing how it was empty I feel as though it was a very bad play on their part and definitely not handled in the right manner. There are much better places to visit in this City.

04/30/07

Extremely disappointed

by randykaiser at Citysearch

My wife and I chose a late dinner to hopefully enjoy the live music while we dined. But the noise level in the building was so high, it was impossible to hear the band. Besides that, the service was poor, especially the bartender who continued a conversation for roughly five minutes while I waited to place my order. The food was average at best. Prices are way too high for such average food and service.

04/13/07

Disappointing

by italian_baker at Citysearch

I had been to Rose Pistola's a few times in the past & thought that it was very good. Last night I took my fifteen year old son to the restaurant expecting it to be the same as it was in the past. Let me tell you that it was not! 1st, I had a reservation when most people were just walking in and we were seated at one of the worst tables in the house. I am of Italian descent and specifically Ligurian which is the type of food that they profess to serve. I ordered the Farinata for an appetizer which is made from Garbanzo Bean flour. It has a mild and slightly nutty flavor, when done properly. It wasn't, it was burnt to the point of not being able to taste anything but the charcoal. For our entrees, my son ordered the Osso Buco & I ordered the whole grilled sole. Osso Buco is veal shank which comes with a rich, deep sauce. The meat was over done to the point of being stringy and tough. They put Arugula on top which had a vinagrette dressing that was so acid that it actually overpowered the sauce and changed it's character, (it should of been dresed lightly with olive oil). As an aside, this dish traditionally comes with polenta but they took the easy way out and served it with mashed potatoes. The grilled sole was done well but then they laided it in a bed of greens they were covered in a lemony broth that ruined the crispness of the sole, again overpowering the delicate fish. My son had a diet Pepsi with a refill(which they charged for) and I had one glass of wine. The bill was $92 which I expected to pay but charge for one refill of soda? The wait staff are all young and as far as I could see were all girls, which were all standing around the kitchen talking to each other rather than being attentive to the customers.

All in all, the whole experience was just horrible and I wouldn't recommend this place to anyone.

As an aside, this is my first review of a restaurant. I registered onto Citysearch because of how horrible this experience was and just had to vent.

05/10/06

Vacation... ruined by this "restaurant"

by bhensler at Citysearch

Forget the fact that they messed up our reservation... What was supposed to be our great last night out while visiting San Fran was ruined by the rude and unaccomodating hostess, waitress whose lack of attention made Wendy's look like superb service, and food that lacked flavor to the point that I didn't even eat it. If ever in San Fran, steer CLEAR of this poor excuse for a restaurant. The only redeeming quality was the jazz band which was fairly good. Two thumbs down Rose Pistola.

• Pros: we were able to leave
• Cons: food, service, food

04/15/06

Typical Northbeach-Bad Italian

by elizready at Citysearch

I could not believe how bad this place was. With such large crowds I'd expect some decent cuisine. Took forever to be seated. I ordered pizza. Paid almost $20 for basically a piece of cardboard with Contadina tomato sauce and a few toppings. I have been to Italy. Never did I see pizza this disgusting. A Ritz cracker with ketchup would have been just as good and just as filling. This was a total waste of my time. I'll never, ever go back.

• Cons: food, noisy, crowded

07/28/04

Worst SF Dining Experience

by tomclark at Citysearch

I took my 80-year-old mother and even with reservations we had to wait over an hour among a SCREAMING crowd. Never once did the Maitre d' or waitstaff offer her a chair. When we were finally seated, I immediately ordered an appetizer to try to "revive" her. Our snippy flippant NY waiter then brought her what Mama perfectly described: A piece of burnt toast with 3 limp asparagus. No sauce whatsoever, $15 bucks. Impossible to talk over the screams, we were also sickened by the smell of rotten fish cooking. We could not wait to leave this overrated place and will NEVER go back. Horrible.

• Pros: None
• Cons: , Rude Waitstaff, Overrated

01/31/04

Absolutely terrible

by antarius at Citysearch

Took 30 minutes to seat a party of 2 (after they said 5 minuteS), with tables open. After being seated 3 feet from the BAND the waitress had the nerve to ask us if we "told the hostest we were only there for coffee and dessert". 1 hour 45 minutes, $25.00 - and two TERRIBLY small and tasteless desserts later we left without a simple "have a good night".

• Pros: It's in Northbeach
• Cons: , Service, Price

12/12/03

Loser!

by bobfitz3 at Citysearch

Has-been, weak sauce scene...attitude from 1999...lame hostess...two hours at their empty bar and they tried to seat us at a crappy table in their empty restaurant...loser establishment for loser "99-ers"....btw, we live and work in North Beach...sad really.

• Pros: none
• Cons: hostess attitude, weak food, weak scene

07/22/03

Totally overpriced

by boydmj at Citysearch

Had heard great things about this place, and left completely disappointed. Portions were tremendously small for the price and the Wine list was way overpriced. Service was fine, but I expect more at that price-point. Wouldn't bother when you have so many alternatives in the area.

• Cons: expensive

07/06/03

Overrated

by bigtoe at Citysearch

I would never go back; food was mediocre, and that was the highlight of the place. Stay away.

• Pros: location, fresh ingredients
• Cons: lousy ambiance, average food, overpriced