Capannina Restaurant Review, San Francisco

Reviewer: Foodnut.com Capannina 1809 Union St. (near Octavia Street) San Francisco, CA 94123 415-409-8001 415-409-8004 (Fax) Capannina Website Book Reservation

Bargain of the century! Capannina is a small Italian restaurant is on Union Street that was featured on Check Please. The place looked attractive, so we decided to give it a try.
Sister restaurants include Cafe tiramisu, Belden Taverna, Brindisi Cucina, and Brio.

Summary – Capannina serves up solid Italian food with a killer early bird special.
Insider Tip – Eat early for their $25 3 course early bird specials available daily 5-6 PM.

Cuisine – Italian
Chef – Giuseppe Spinoso
the>Location – Marina district
Opened – 2007

Decor, Vibe – Capannina is a fairly small restaurant with a light green color scheme, and some modern art and mirrors, and banquettes lining the wall. We came for the early bird dinner, so the patrons tended to be more on the older side.

Menu

Menu has a wide variety of antipasti, pasta, and entrees. Not a lot of options for vegetarians.

Signature Dishes – Veal scaloppine, pappardelle with wild boar ragu, squid ink risotto with seared scallops

Website Menu

Full Capannina image set

Picks:

3 course prix fixed menu ($25)

Zuppa Del Giorno – Soup of The Day was veal broth with beef shank tortellini. Excellent rich, robust broth with several wonton like meaty tortellini bites.
Baby Greens with Goat Cheese, Walnuts & Parmesan was a typical salad that hit the spot although we asked for a Caesar salad.

Grilled Salmon over basil pesto risotto with red Bell pepper sauce was a huge portion of tender and flaky salmon. It was resting on a bed of an excellent green veggie risotto. Portion size on both items was on the high end.

Pappardelle with Mushrooms & Wild Boar Ragu is a homemade pasta that proved to be excellent. Diced up boar meat in a winey sauce, with some very wide noodles that were perfectly cooked.

Tiramisu (part of prix fixe) with some fruit on the side was very good and on the boozy side. Another healthy portion here also.

Warm Chocolate Cake with hazelnut gelato (part of prix fixe) could have been warmer and had a little more of a molten effect.

Mozzarella di Bufala con Prosciutto e Peperoni ($15) – Buffalo Mozzarella with Prosciutto, Roasted Red Peppers and Arugola Insalata had 4 large, smooth, creamy, and chewy mozzarella balls with 2 pieces of thinly sliced quality prosciutto.

Risotto Nero Con Capesante alla Venziana ($14) – Black Ink Risotto with Seared Scallops & Lobster Bisque is a signature dish and rightly so, with some dark black, strongly flavored risotto and a sliced seared scallop on top. This appetizer is large enough to be an entree.

Linguine alle Vongole e Porcini ($19) – Linguine with Fresh Clams and Porcini Mushroomsi in White Wine Sauce is not a freshly made pasta but proved to be also excellent. Al dente noodles served with a generous helping of fresh clams in a light white wine sauce with an added kick to it.

OK: (if you like this dish)
None

Pans: (We would not reorder these dishes)
None

Service – Capannina had fair but competent service, with the waiter coming back just a couple times and some grumpy assistants helping with other chores.

Value – At the early bird prix fixe price, this place is very hard to beat. Chapeau! comes to mind as another place with great food with an excellent early bird dinner.

Alternatives – Nearby restaurants include Cafe des amis and Netties crab shack. Italian favorites include Perbacco and Acquellero.

Verdict – Capannina serves up solid Italian cuisine with ample quantities at excellent prices, especially for in early dinner.
Mostly Italian wine list with typical markedup bottles from $26.

Restaurant Map: