A16 Restaurant Review, San Francisco
Posted by Food Nut
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Opened in 2004, A16 has since been present on many top Italian restaurant lists. It is a very popular restaurant in the Marina district, with prime time reservations needing to be booked a week or two in advance. Reviews on several sites included a fair amount of 1 or 2 star reviews from disappointed people. This restaurant is serious about wine and pairing.
Wine prices by the glass are reasonable but are tiny. A better bet is a carafe that can serve almost 3 glasses. C Luli Chardonnay was $23.
Decor, Vibe – This is a loud place with lots of ‘pretty people’ in their 30’s and 40’s. The decor is a little understated.
Menu pics
Wine Board
Menu
Cocktails, Beer
Wine by the glass
Dessert Menu
Picks:
Mozzarella burrata with olive oil, sea salt and crostini ($11) – Awesome dip for the toasted bread. The Mozzarella did not even taste cheesy. Great appetizer.
Tuna conserva and artichokes with grilled bread, basil and chiles ($11) – Put some tuna (Almost canned tuna style) on top of grilled bread and chow down. Also a very good appetizer.
Margherita pizza – tomato, mozzarella, grana padano, basil, olive oil ($14) – Fairly thin pizza without a soggy middle. Good but light balance of tomato sauce and cheese. Little burns on edges. Edge crust is good, not buttery. Good but we preferred the Salsiccia instead. You could polish off one of these easily. Leftovers the next day were still good.
Salsiccia pizza – fennel sausage, spring onions, mozzarella, grana padano, garlic, chiles ($15.50) – Zesty but tasty sausage. Nice thin crust that was not burned. Very balanced, not overly cheesy. A little better than Delfina Pizzaria’s version.
Ricotta gnocchi in brodo with leeks, mint, pancetta and black pepper ($9 or $16 Large) – Delicious with little meatballs.
Gramigna Pasta ($18 Large) – Unusual pasta that uses the black ink from an Octopus. We were shocked to find it was a very Good dish.
Beef Tri Tip ($24) – Several pre-sliced pieces of good Tri Tip with cherry tomatoes on top, wild arugula, and grana padano cheese. Good quality and most pieces are cooked medium rare.
Panna Cotta ($8) – Great dessert with pistachios on top. Very smooth and good accent from the fruit.
Real Coffee
OK:
Salumi La Quercia acorn edition tasting: coppa, lonza and lardo ($16) – The Duck part was tasty, as was prosciutto. Some of the others were pretty bland.
Roasted potatoes and cauliflower with marinated onions, capers, and chilies ($6) was a pretty standard vegetable dish. Nothing special.
Fuzzy Naples ($9) – A funky little drink with Lillet Blanc, orange juice, and peach juice. Try the extensive wine selection instead.
Pans:
None
We’ve been here several times and the food remains very good at A16. The service could have been better to match the fine food, server was just fair. It is still a very popular place that anyone interested in high quality Italian food should visit.
Be sure to check out the A16 Food and Wine Book
Overall Rating: 
(Very Good)
Come Back? 
| Food Rating: | (Excellent) |
| Service Rating: | (Above Average) |
| Atmosphere Rating: | (Good) |
| Value Rating: | (Good) |
Guide: 0 = poor, 1 = Fair/Average, 2 = Good, 2.5 = Very Good, 3 = Excellent , 4 = Extraordinary
| Alcohol: | Full Bar |
| Attire: | Dressy |
| Hours: | W-F 11:30am-2:30pm. Su-Th 5pm-10pm. F-Sa 5pm-11pm |
| Parking: | Street |
| Reservations: | Yes |
| Prices: | $11 - $24 |
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4 Responses to “A16 Restaurant Review, San Francisco”
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April 26th, 2009 at 10:45 pm
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March 6th, 2010 at 8:12 pm
My wife and I had dinner at A16 on Saturday, March 6, 2010. We circled for about one-half hour to find parking. Finally we found it about one-half mile away.
The place is very busy. The waiters do not have much time to spend with you. I asked if the chicken was juicy. The waiter said it was. The chicken arrived very dry. Even with a liberal amount of salt, I still could not add much flavor to the chicken. I mentioned this to the waiter. He did not offer a substitute. I paid the full price but reflected the poor chicken dish in the amount of tip I left. I would give the restaurant just OK marks. When you consider the parking situation, the rushed service, and the spotty meal, A16 does not deserve a very good rating.