AltoVino Reviews

I had dinner at this restaurant on a recent visit to San Fran. I saw this restaurant while riding a cable car and thought it looked good. I wasn't wrong. It has recently opened. The atmosphere was very inviting and the food was excellent.Dean the server was very attentive and helpful. It isn't on the tourist strip which is good as you get a mixture of locals. When I travel I have a rule that I don't go back to a restaurant twice so that way I get to sample more restaurants. Well this time I broke the rule because it was so good and went back twice....and the second time it was equally as good. So do yourself a favour next time you are in San Fran and experience this restaurant. Very reasonably priced quality food and wine.................

Decided to try this new neighborhood restaurant on Mason while on our last visit to SF. Food was so fresh and excellent along with the service. Only opened 3 months and already to be a neighborhood favorite. They have a great wine list as well.

Wonderful service in an energetic but cozy space. The food was delicious. The stand out was the pasta with bolognese, yum! All the pasta is made on site and you can tell…it is so fresh and tastes so good!

Great atmosphere, italian music at its best, elegant restaurant. Great taste, a pleasure for senses, true italian food with an excellent balance between price and quality A must - go

5 out 5 doesn’t do this venue justice. This is the best dining experience I’ve ever had, that includes the food, service and atmosphere. You will eat the food as slow as you can, because you don’t want it to end. Casey who served us both times definitely adds to the experience, with his knowledge of the food and wine but his personal touches that he serves you with ( I feel as though he really enjoys his job and definitely has pride in his job )yes we went there twice in 3 days.

Stayed in Nob Hill for 2 weeks and found this local restaurant on the first night. A very warm welcome from the staff there, excellent tasty food and knowledgeable about wine and food pairings. Felt absolutely comfortable dining alone there at the bar.

Alto Vino defines the perfect romantic Italian cafe. Claudio and his team combine a creative and beautifully crafted menu with amazingly attentive, but not intrusive service. The decor enhances the feeling of being in Italy. And its location on Mason Street next to the trolley line in Nob Hill reinforces the carefully designed romantic atmosphere. Don't miss it!

A very nice looking place, well set. Food was excellent. I had the house cured herring and cavatelli. The ragu was exceptionally flavored. I do not frequently choose Italian restaurants but very glad we did this time.

What a beautiful restaurant. We noticed it on a walk around the city and thought it looked nice - and when our restaurant that we’d booked months ago had to cancel due to a power outage, we were lucky that altoVino still had a table for us. We had amazing arancini balls as a little taster, and the tuna crudo as a small appetiser. This was fresh and beautiful. We then had the 10hr ragu with pappardelle - so tasty we could not fault. The best we’ve had, even when on holiday in Italy. If we ever go back to San Francisco we would have to go back and try the other beautiful foods on offer. Oh and great wine list

We were attending an event at Grace Cathedral and decided to try our a new spot. I am so glad we did because this restaurant was a wonderful way to start our evening out. The restaurant has seats in a formal setting as well as Bar and cafe seats. We were seated on the more formal side and the staff was attentive and engaging. The staff explained menu options for the vegetarian in our group. We ordered the crab salad which was flavorful and the Zucca which was also enjoyable. We all had pasta with the Cappelletti being the winner of the group with its many layers of flavor. We will keep this place on the list for a delicious Italian evening with gracious service.

We had a great dinner with friends as we were visiting from NYC area and this was close to our hotel. Food was great! Pasta dishes amazing and the dessert was great too. Service people were all very nice and we never felt rushed at all. Def recommend!

Food was out of this world. Service was outstanding. The manager made my 17 year old a delicious mocktail that wasn't on the menu. The wine was delighful. Might be the best Italian any of us have ever had. We were visiting from Toronto, and when we come back to San Fran it will definitely be our first dinner there!! Highly recommend!!! Thank you!!

Although a little up the hills, the walk is worth it. Charming restaurant with excellent Italian cuisine. the service was attentive but no obtrusive. Especially enjoyed the Squid Raviolini and the Chicken Pate. Wine list with great variety and reasonable prices, good values. It was surprising that they do not have grappa among their dessert beverages, but the Moscato Rosa was enjoyable.

The host was very attentive to us while we waiting for a table and offered us a complementary bubbly rose . We got a bottle of red italics wine, few appetizers and two pastas. The mushroom pate was delicious.Both pastas were tasty and a great portion size.

Our experience at Altovino was one to remember from start to finish. You are greeted warmly by their hosts , who gave us a delicious aperitif when they learnt it was our honeymoon. The food was delicious, the pasta so fresh and tasty and the attention to detail was sublime. My husband said the pappardelle Bolognese was one of the best he’s ever had and he comes from Italian descent! I would highly recommend this to anyone living in or visiting San Francisco who appreciates great Italian food and wine!

A really creative menu. Had fried olives stuffed with oxtail, a very special seafood pasta, and orange olive oil cake. One of my all time best meals in SF.

My wife and I went to Altovino restaurant last night for a date night. The food was delicious the Pappardelle dish was so good and home made must try. Great Italian wine list, little expensive but well worth it.

Kanika was so helpful with positive gestures, the food was awesome. Ambience was heart melting. My friends birthday was celebrated with complimentary items and Kanika service was so good and friendly

Nice little restaurant on the heights of Nob Hill. Absolutely taste the Bolognese ragù which has been cooked for 10 hours. As good as the original bologna recipe. So good that we wished we had a little more on the plate.

The restaurant has only been open for a short time, few minor bumps in the road, but already very good. Italian with a Tuscan tilt. Relatively small and intimate, very comfortably and attractively furnished. Excellent wine list - all still wines Italian, very wide variety in region and grape, with prices remarkably affordable and reasonable.Obvious that the owner got his start as a wine director. While contemplating the menu, try the ascolani- fried olives filled with braised oxtail and Parmigianno - unusual and delicious. The antipasto of squid with braised winter greens, tomato and fennel attracted almost everyone at the table, and was a real winner. Lemon tagliatelle with smoked salmon and greens, and the chestnut pappardelle with pork shoulder ragu were both excellent. Flatiron steak, on the other hand, was good but somewhat less unusual. Service warm and efficient.

This is a wonderful italian restaurant with great cooking of traditional dishes. The pasta we tried was wonderful as was the meat. Well worth the walk up the hill

Couldn’t decide what we wanted to eat and booked late as one of the few Italian places on Open Table we could get a reservation before 10 PM and glad we did. Small place but excellent food and very attentive service and very good food and wine list. Easily walkable from Union Square distance wise but beware those SF hills!

My wife and I just spent a wonderful day and evening in The City. We went to the Immersive Van Gogh (very much recommended) and stayed at The White Swan Inn – a little known gem of a Bed & Breakfast near Union Square. For dinner we went to Alto Vino. What can I say but it was Squisito! It is very conveniently located on the cable car line just down the hill from the Top of the Mark. It is relatively small and intimate. The menu is not large but everything was fresh and very tasty. We started with the Mozzarella e Prosciutto di San Daniele, which was served on a bed of radicchio and shaved asparagus. It was a wonderful combination that just melted in your mouth. We went with pastas for the main course, a very wise choice. They were both excellent. I had the ravioli in a savory sauce of pork, beef and veal – with my eyes closed I could swear it was my Grandmother’s sauce! My wife had the bucatini cooked in a shrimp and lobster broth and served with shrimp in a creamy white wine sauce – also amazing and cooked perfectly al dente. We only wish we had room for desert! The service was top notch. Thank you to Massimo and Mike who were very attentive and personable without being intrusive. We can’t wait for our next visit to AltoVino!

Nothing is taken for granted here. With out first step inside we were greeted with a genuine and professional mix of welcome, consideration and enthusiasm to allow for an evening of truly exceptional dining. Every mouthful of each of our meals was simply divine from Stuzzichini to Dolci. This is the reference of excellence to which all other restaurants must now be compared.

Some foodie friends who live in SFO suggested we try newcomer AltoVino. We loved it. Wonderful cosy neighbourhood restaurant. Soft lights. Charlie Parker music. If you've like nearby Seven Hills, you'll certainly enjoy AltoVino. Imaginative and varied menu that offers customers a wide choice of starters, pasta and mains. Portions are generous. We shared two starters between three of us and each had mains. Food quality was good, particularity the pasta/risotto dishes. Service from Anna was top notch. Highly recommended (and very conveniently located if you're staying in downtown SFO, ~5 mins by car and ~15mins walk from Union Square.

Isolated restaurant that has no appeal. You sit on a bench at the decomposition stage (see photo). It's all overrated. The wines are excessively expensive with a quality far from what one would expect. The kitchen is nothing extraordinary. For example, raw and vinegared peperonata anchovies are anything for $21. The service is slow and the chick portions, including chestnut tagliatelle. The bread served with oil (?) was not of the day. An addition of more than $220 with a Friuli Merlot, a starter and three courses. Our disappointment was proportional to the very abusive rating!

With a bar and casual dining area in front, complemented by a more traditional dining room to the side, this relatively small restaurant lives up to the reputation of its predecessor (Mason Pacific) in every way. The location is atmospheric (see those cable cars go by!) yet intimate, the food and wine are close to perfection, and (most importantly) the service is flawless...friendly, helpful and professional. The servings were particularly generous despite the extremely high quality and reasonably pricing. Very highly recommended.

The food served to us was innovative, but sparse. Three of us sampled different pasta dishes. I had butternut squash ravioli with pomegranate seeds and hazelnuts. Very good; but, it was more of an appetizer portion. The pate with which we began was delicious. Add two desserts and three glasses of wine and the bill came to almost $200 with tip.

We recently had an amazing experience at this Italian restaurant and ordered everything family style so we could try a little of everything. Bagna Caôda ($18.75) This was a standout appetizer with what felt like an Asian twist. It’s deeply savory and really wakes up your palate in the best way. 5/5 Ascolane ($12.50) These stuffed olives didn’t leave much of an impression on me. Probably my least favorite of the night. 2/5 Vitello Tonnato ($21.75) The acidity from the tomatoes really brightened up this dish, but I couldn’t clearly taste the veal or the Abocore tuna. The flavors blended together a bit too much, so I missed the individual elements. 3/5 Maccheroni alla Chitarra ($26.75) This was absolutely delicious. The house-made pasta is next level. I would have loved it even more if it was cooked just a minute longer. It leaned a bit too firm for my personal taste. 5/5 Caramelle ($28.75) I was surprised my husband ordered this vegetarian pasta, but I’m so glad he did. It turned out to be my favorite dish of the night. Rich, flavorful, and perfectly balanced. 5/5 Maiale ($29.50) This pork dish with pork jus was a big winner. One bite of the pork followed by a bite of the crostini was the perfect combo. We were all fighting over the last bit of sauce to sop up with the bread. 5/5 Buttermilk Panna Cotta ($14.50) Omg, this was hands down the most delicious panna cotta I’ve ever had. It was a bit more dense than usual, like there may have been some added gelatin, but in a really good and interesting way. The texture was unique and the flavor was spot on. 5/5 It’s a bit on the pricier side, so I’ll probably save this for special occasions, but we’re definitely coming back to try the rest of the menu.

Very delicious dinner tonight and excellent service. The olives were noteworthy and both pasta dishes were executed very well.

My knee was hurting as I walked up the short hill to the restaurant. After that, everything was great. Great wine list, tasty crostini, interesting and oh so good pastas. The lady behind the bar was charming and took great care of us as did the mattress d'. Small, cozy space. Will be back for sure!

We went here after a review by Michael Bauer in the San Francisco Chronicle. This is the space previously occupied by MasonPacific, a favorite of ours. We had the squid, which was delicious, as a shared appetizer. The squid were so tender I don''t think we have had them cooked any better. The beef, pork and other meat pappardelle was superb as well. The halibut was salty, the only drawback. Service was a bit slow for the halibut, unfortunately. The carafe of montefalco was great, too, though $38. I would go again, but concentrate on pasta.

Location - so cute and so SF with the cable car running along Mason St. So charming! Atmosphere indoors - lovely space perfect for sexy date night out or just hanging with friends. Food - YUM! 1. Olive starter was OMG, I'm salivating just thinking about it. So delicious! 2. Salad du jour and Fish main were also hits Can't wait to return!

AltoVino opened in March 2018 in the space formerly occupied by the demi-chic Mason and Pacific. The décor has not changed much and indeed, like its former occupant, provides and intimate dining experience. Well, sort of. Visually it does, but the noise level will dispel any notion of intimacy after a few minutes. It’s also sad to say that service is more engaging than the food. The Italian cuisine is well executed, ingredients are top-notch, and portion sizes are more than reasonable. Unfortunately, it all lacks pizzas. While I’m not looking for a flavor bump in each dish, it would be nice to have some substantive flavor. The dishes from the Deviled Eggs, to the Insalata, the Spaghettoni, and finally the Cannoli were all far too muted and lack of salt is definitely not the issue. It almost bordered on a one note meal. OK, I am the renegade here because this restaurant has gotten some rave reviews. But as far as I can tell, it’s all about new new new which tends to garner great glib in SF. I’m not buying it. The city is oozing with Italian restaurants at this price point (and below) that serve up far more enticing dishes. Should you decide to try it, the best two tops are along the far wall in the side room. There is also heated outside seating but with minimal protection from the wind and the winds can be rather chilly on the corner of Mason and Pacific. The by-the-glass wine list is excellent but the bottle list is priced a bit high. Service is charming and approachable. Even with all of the latter good qualities I would hesitate coming here simply because of the lackluster food. I’m usually not so blunt but AltoVino has more stars than it deserves.