Vicoletto
550 Green St
(between Bannam Pl & Columbus Ave)
San Francisco, CA 94133 (415) 433-5800
- Price Range: $$
- Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
- Attire: Casual
- Good for Groups: Yes
- Good for Kids: No
- Takes Reservations: Yes
- Delivers: No
- Take-out: Yes
- Waiter Service: Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
- Outdoor Seating: Yes
- Alcohol: Beer & Wine Only
31 Reviews for Vicoletto
One of Vicoletto's Favorite Reviews
I loved this place! The decor was modern. The waiter was super friendly. The wine list was short and fabulous. The pasta is fresh and delicious.
I will definitely go back.
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My 2nd favorite Italian Place in North beach, next to Trattoria Contadina. Fantastic food, great service, cool and modern atmosphere. Located in the heart of North Beach, it would be easy to walk past Vicoletto thinking it was a tourist destination... That would be a mistake. This is a great spot.
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Vicoletto is a restaurant that was missing in North Beach, with a menu' unique and different from all other Italian restaurants, we must try and understand what and 'fresh pasta and the various recipes that they only have, and try if you like not any more 'leave. I love this place and I think that in a short time become 'a place of the most' frequented of North beach.
I Love You .....
W.
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Taking cues from Tyra Banks, our server smiled with his eyes!
It was a slow Sunday evening, so very mellow. The ambiance is so much different than the other Italian restaurants in the area...not trying so HARD to be Italian with a beautiful modern decor, servers not draping the ladies with lecherous looks and "bella" this and "bella" that, a seasonal daily menu. Nice change of pace.
Nice wine service...suggestions, tastes until it was the "right" wine. My tagliatelle dish could have used a bit more salt, but once I seasoned, it was great.
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Can't get much better than this! The new owners kept the beautiful and modern Nua interior intact, the food was excellent and moderately priced (entrees $13-20), and the service could not have been better; attentive but not intrusive, very friendly. Highly recommend as a date place. We will be back for sure!
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Fantastico
I went to Vicoletto for dinner with my girlfriend and her family although we nearly missed it since it's not the most obvious place and is less brashly advertised than some of the other establishments on the same street. The number of Italians who had chosen to dine there says a lot for the authenticity and quality of Italian food on offer.
The waiters were very attentive - quick to top up your water glass and make sure there was plenty of bread and oils on the table. Make sure that you don't over-do it on the bread though because no matter how much you eat they will keep coming with more and it's easy to fill up! They also were happy to explain some of the less well known Italian dishes on the menu which is significant and caters well for vegetarians
The food is well presented and tastes phenomenal (the pasta is freshly made in-house and you can see flashes of light from the kitchen that put me in mind of that bit in Fantasia where Mickey makes psycho mini-brooms). The meat and vegetables tasted fresh and well cooked and all-in-all the meal was incredible.
Il finito.
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My friends and I enjoyed a leisurely dinner and some nice wine here. The wait staff was extremely friendly and even brought us a little free appetizer. The food was excellent (the grilled calamari appetizer I had left me wanting more!), and the ambiance was very nice as well.
In true Italian style, the dinner was not rushed and courses were served far apart. This worked well for our group because we had no where to be, but if you are in a hurry, definitely let them know.
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I love popping in and out of the many small Italian places in North beach and generally am quite pleased with the food. Not one other restaurant I've found though, even comes close to matching the quality and authenticity of Vicoletto's delicious dishes. Just last week, I brought my parents here when they were visiting San Fran and they still haven't stopped talking about it. That's saying a lot considering they both grew up in Brooklyn and my grandmother made Italian food that you'd have to taste twice to believe.
The menu at Vicoletto is generally simple and changes regularly to incorporate fresh ingredients and new dishes. You can expect to find dishes such as prosciutto with pear and fresh pecorino, fantastic homemade pastas, veal saltimboca and desserts that are too good to pass up- tiramisu, apple tarts, excellent biscotti and so forth. The menu might change everytime you're there, but the satisfaction of a fantastic Italian meal never does.
As if that weren't enough, they offer a unique and tasty wine menu (the Nero D'Aboia they carry is phenomenal) and the prices are quite reasonable, making the meal an excellent bargain for the quality.
Oh, and the wait staff is super-friendly and a lot of fun (and they actually speak Italian!). Great atmosphere for dates, groups of friends celebrating and nice family meals.
Can't wait to come back again soon!
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VICOLETTO,
This is a dream restaurant. It's like your mother's cooking, if your mother was Italian and actually knew how to cook.The owner are super friendly, talk,talk and talk about is grand mom recipe and the food is just to die for. I wish all restaurants were like this. It made me want to go to Italy and just eat eat eat.
We had the seafood scialatielli , home made pasta was simple with good ingredients, just enough of everything. For our main course we had lamb and sea bass. The lamb were just amazing. I'm not much of a cooked fish person but my friend said the sea bass was great. SOLID 5 STARS VICOLETTO
I absolutely love this place! It's not like the other North Beach Italian restaurants- it's upscale, charming and warm. The decor is classy and they always have fresh flowers and plants. The people make you feel right at home and the food is really good. What more could you ask for? Oh, a geat wine list! The wine bar/restaurant combination is great if you want to meet friends for drinks and move into dinner later. It's off the main drag, so you don't have all the riff raff from Broadway- just locals and local charm. Definitely a must!
I must admit I was skeptical......but in the end pleasantly suprised. Yes I was bitter that Nua was gone...only because I didn't have a chance to dine there. ...and yes that was my fault. I have to say I'm alright with this place. Vicoletto has some strong dishes. Had the scallops app...I would pass. The Carpaccio was was good but ..it is the pasta that would bring me back. I had a pasta dish with sea food and it was delicious. The service was helpful and attentive. We had a party of three and we ate fairly early. Am I in love? No. Am I intrigued? yes. I'll be back Vicoletto....can you sway this neighborhood girl? I think you might be able to do just that...wink
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I must have gone on the worst night possible to this place. Though, I do have to say it should be a no brainer that when you only have two cooks working, you don't take a party of 25 on a saturday night.
In any event...the party slowed everything down. We had to ask for bread, then had to wait an hour to get our appetizers, the carpaccio which was strikingly average, and another hour to wait for food, which was served lukewarm, separately (as in we had to wait 10 minutes for my girlfriend's entree to be served) and in dire need of salt. The couple next to us getting both their appetizers and main course before we even got our appetizers (we ordered within minutes of each other) was enough to enrage...however a glance around the place let you know that every patron was thinking the same thing about the slow service. Throw in the new girl behind the bar who couldn't operate a wine key and it made for a very frustrating night. I do have to say she at least was trying and even made light of the moment a few times which kept me from completely flipping out.
Service aside...the food was average. It certainly didn't live up to the snooty attitude displayed by the host, the 3 hour wait for it to get served nor the price tag that accompanied. Of course after 3 hours you could've served me orgasmic heaven in a bed of bliss and I wouldn't have been satisfied...ok well...maybe I would've...but this meal wasn't even close.
The design inside was well done and is what drew us in, very modern...however the next time i listen to my gut when I think the host is being a stuck up overly pretentious snot and go elsewhere.
it's a shame I left feeling this way, cause judging by the reviews, a lot of people like this place. I can't say I'll ever return though as the first time was certainly enough.
I had the scallops to start. There were so delicious and the seafood pasta for my main which was home made and really spectacular. Also, the service was just so wonderful. Our waiter just moved here from Italy two months ago and was the sweetest. I can't wait to go back! All four members of our group loved our food!
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I went here with a medium size group. While we waited for some of our party to arrive, the servers served us white wine and two different appetizers without asking us (I'm not sure if they charged us for it!).
Everyone was really nice and they served us lots of bread....the reason why was because it took FOREVER for them to take our order then FOREVER for us to actually get the food.
I had the scallops for appetizer...they tell you 5 and you get super excited. The 5 scallops are the smallest scallops I have ever seen. If it were possible for someone to split up 2 scallops and make them into mini ones, then I think that's probably what this place did.
I also had the Gnocchi, people around me that I tried had the ravioli, pollo, and steak. It was all just alright. I've had much better more flavorable food. There are a lot of places everywhere in North Beach that have much tastier food with quicker service.
I probably won't go back.
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Vicoletto is a brand spanking new restaurant in the heart of North Beach. And when I say brand new, I mean it...the tables, banquettes, wall fixtures - everything was sparkling and smelled like fine mahogany.
But really, the main reason I eat out is the food. The two pasta dishes I tried, my gnocchi and my friend's orecchiette, were both homemade and fantastic. The pork dish was deemed just ok. Prices seemed fair - fresh pastas in the $12-$15 range and main courses in the low $20's. Plus they have a nice selection of wines by the glass under $8.
Service was friendly but pretty aloof. We felt sorry for our waiter, he seemed to have the whole restaurant to himself while the manager was outside trying to drum up some business. I do need to mention that our busboy was on top of things and our water glasses never sat empty.
Overall, Vicoletto was a solid four star experience. Reasonable prices, tasty food and I'm sure our bumps in service will improve once they've had some time to settle in.
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It was Sunday night and i had a serious pasta craving. So after being told Sodini's would be a 30min wait, my visiting-Aussie friend and I decided to give the new restaurant on the block a go.
We were met with friendly service and seated quickly by the window. The chicken ravioli with creamy tomato sauce met my pasta craving desires. It was cooked al dente, delicious, and the portion size was just right. My friend thoroughly enjoyed her salmon too. The salad we shared was yummo and hit the green leaf spot. We drank a great red sangiovese recommended by the waiter.
Added bonus was the complimentary arroncini balls, which were very tasty, yet fell apart when picked up to dip in the mayo.
I will definately be back.
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With Nua gone, I was wondering what may become of this place. Know that it was going to be an Italian restaurant - thought to self was "another one" in the North Beach area, good luck.
Walked by a few times - just didn't find it in us to venture in to give this place a try. Places that are too new always have kinks that need to be ironed out or so it seems.
Anyway, we were thinking of having crab cioppino at Sotto Mare next door but I wanted to try somewhere new. Decided to take a look at their menu posted outside - when the waitress opened the door to greet us and after seeing some interesting pasta dishes on the menu, we decided to go in.
There was only one other table of 2 at the corner near the window and it was after 7pm - we were concern.
The waiter was very friendly and helpful. First with the wine - he was more than willing to pour generous portion of samples for us to try until we found the right one. We did after sampling 4. Hubby settled on the Nero D Avola and I on the Primitivo. $8 each.
Shortly after, he brought over a plate of appetizer - it's like a thin layer of frittata on a bed of greens (I think he called it pizza?) compliment of the chef. It looked good and tasted good - that was a nice treat. Tried the bread and the olive oil - the olive oil was very good.
We decided to have the Capesante Grigliate - grilled scallop as appetizer. I wish I had the camera because the presentation was lovely. There were 5 scallops (slightly smaller than sea scallops) on a half scallop shell with 3 asparagus spears and a slice of prosciutto with reduced balsamic vinaigrette dressing on the side. The scallops were perfectly cooked - very good. $9 - steal.
For entree - I had the Scialatielli di Mare ($15.99) - homemade short pasta infused with goat cheese and pepper with seafood in a spicy cherry tomato sauce. WOW - the pasta was very good - short with the width of fettucini but thicker so it was dense and chewy and I was in heaven. I can imagine this pasta with any sauce and still be divine. Hubby had the Tagliatelle - also homemade - with shrimp and Italian squash in cherry tomato sauce. It was good. $12.50.
We were pretty good as we cleaned our plates but we were tempted with dessert. If their entree was this good - what would their dessert be like? There was the selection of tiramisu, apple tart, chocolate lava cake, vanilla creme brulee, pannacotta with fruit forest or some seasonal sherbet. We decided with the pannacotta $7.00 - YUM! It was creamy, smooth and just a hint of sweetness - go perfectly with the tart and sweet raspberry sauce along with berries (raspberry, boyenberry, blueberry and strawberry) and some other caramel sauce on the side. It was GOOD and I was beyond full when we were done. Oh, they also gave us a plate of mini biscotti - it was very good - hubby can't help himself and had 3 with his decaf espresso ($2.50), which he said was very good.
There was only one other table of 2 before we left - very slow. We hope their business will pickup because we want them to stick around for a long long time!
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It was good. The food tasted very good and the service was prompt. We were the first people there at 8PM and got horderves on the house (nice).
At first the waiters were a little too attentive (we were the only people there at the time) and a wee bit hey-hey-wink-wink at the females in our party, but only a little and they backed off when other people showed up. I wouldn't hold it against them, but I did want to mention it.
Decor was crisp.
Not cheap, but not crazy either. We had a nice time.
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This place was awful. I got taken in by all the good reviews.
Appetizer - seared scallops - basically raw and way oversalted. lucky I didn't get food poisoning. I only ate one to be polite.
Gnocchi - blech I've had better. my friend's tagliatelle was better.
The tables were pretty though and the decor was nice.
There are many better Italian restaurants in North Beach though.
I won't be back.
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This place is great. The fresh pasta is really really good and the waiters were really attentive and helpful. Having tried a number of restaurants around North Beach this one really stood out for me...we will definitely be returning!
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i was rooting for vicoletto. i really was. however, this was just a sad, sad italian dinner for me :(
1. my carpaccio was not raw. that's kinda the point right?
2. the burrata just tasted like mozzarella...
3. my pasta was uninspired (cappelacci "little hat" stuffed with goat cheese, leeks, potatoes in an artichoke cream sauce) - the potato in the filling really killed the flavor, the whole dish was just blandly ok.
4. the pesto pasta was "meh" - and left a huge ocean of olive oil at the bottom of the bowl.
The panna cotta was tasty at least, and i will say the service is very friendly and they really do care if you're satisfied. i think my server almost cried when i didn't finish my pasta. I'm just very disappointed - I want Nua back :(
If you think that you've tried lots of Italian restaurants in North beach, and that another one it's not gonna make a big difference, you're wrong!!! Francesco(the owner) just brought you an authentic place and cuisine from one of the best culinary region of Italy, Calabria! The food is genuine and tasty, they have a very unique menu. The staff is super friendly. It's good for just a person, it's good for a date and for hook up some girls at the bar!
I Highly recommend this place. GO VICOLETTO!
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I thought I was going to be disappointed since this was no longer Nua but I was pleasantly surprised. I can't remember the name of the dish (i never do) but it had this long fat al dente noodles with red sauce, mushrooms and beef, it was amazing.
Great service!!!
Same design as Nua.
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Finding really good Italian in North Beach is a lot harder than I would have thought. Vicoletto is very pretty, with a nice modern design inside and outdoor seating as well. The staff is really friendly! Both the orecchiette and the sea bass were very tasty, and we had a really nice bottle of California cabernet. I might say both dishes were a little heavy though... a lot of oil on the fish and a ton of cheese on the pasta. I'd go back, particularly to try the gnocchi which looked tasty.
Excellent. Neopolitan chef and southern Italian staff (mostly), very warm and welcoming. Very good service.
We had the pork tenderloin (perfect), chicken (ditto), salmon (ditto), and housemade pasta with shellfish (not to my taste, but the person who ordered it loved it. Good bread, good quality olive oil, and lovely desserts. The maitre de brought our table a bowl of spectacular mashed potatoes to try, and the staff really went out of their way to make us feel valued.
One question for reviewer Meredith: why didn't you send your scallops back if they were undercooked? I'm certain the staff would have made it right.
I will definitely go back as well.
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We wandered in here a few weeks ago after a matinee of Beach Blanket Babylon. My small group sat at the bar and enjoyed appetizers (try the fresh mozzarella and eggplant) and a few wine by the glass pours. We were impressed when we learned they are only open a week, which may have explained the many complimentary tastes from the chef . . . they are putting their best foot forward!
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I stumbled into Vicoletto (little alley) last night. It is very sleek looking and I was told nothing was changed from when it was Nua. All the paste are house made down in the basement. I had the taglietelle which was very dense and kinda chewy in a mushroom ragu similar to a puttanesca. It was very tasty, but too heavy for me. The service was a little spotty, but I think they are still working the kinks out. Everyone was very pleasant, I got to practive speaking italian and I will go back. Pasta, a glass of wine and tax: $22.00
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Just went to a private progressive dinner party for 36 people there last night, and everything was PERFECT!!! We had a sumptuous four course dinner - 5 antipasti, 3 home-made pasta, 2 main courses, and a dessert - served family style. All the dishes were delicious and beautifully presented - my personal favorite was the Orechiette, it's the best I've ever had anywhere! The staff was wonderful: friendly, prompt and attentive. We changed seats after each course, which meant lots of extra work for the staff - completely new table setting after each course, yet somehow they managed to always keep our wine and water glasses full! We all left the restaurant stuffed and happy! Thank you Vicoletto for a perfect evening! We'll be back!!!!
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it was really awesome. liked it at lot. very nice and friendly waiter and atmosphere. definitely i and my bf will go back again. you've got to try if you like a simple and comfortable restaurant but good food. you wont regret for sure!!!!
Great food at a reasonable price--hope it lasts. The goat cheese appetizer is easily enough for two and great--all the pastas are homemade and excellent. Strange that it is so difficult to find a good Italian restaurant in North Beach that everyone can afford.
My sis was in town and wanted to go to a good Italian place in North Beach. I settled on Vicoletto since I hadn't tried it before and it was available on OpenTable. Vicoletto is a little place nestled next to Columbus Cafe (a raucous dive bar), but once we were inside the restaurant we didn't hear anything from the shitshow going on next door. I immediately fell in love with the simple, elegant decor, which contrasts with a lot of the kitschy Italian places on Columbus Street.
The menu that day did not offer a single vegetarian entree, but the staff was very accommodating and allowed my sis to do some swapping in order to get gnocchi with a vegetarian sauce. Our appetizer of crispy eggplant topped with fresh mozzarella was AMAZING. The cheese was so fresh and served in a huge hunk of deliciousness. For my entree I ordered squid ink pasta filled with salmon and ricotta. It wasn't as mind blowing as the appetizer but still tasty. I always appreciate when a menu includes things that I would not be able to make at home, rather than the standard lasagnas, bruschettas, and pasta primaveras. Despite the fact that my stomach was bursting I ordered the panna cotta with forest fruit for dessert. Sooooo velvety and the berry sauce was the perfect addition. When I got the bill I was pleasantly surprised. I've done much worse damage at the other North Beach Italian places. Next time we do the Little Italy thing I'd love to go back.
As a final note, I have to mention how refreshing it was to go to an Italian place in North Beach where the waiters don't drool all over us females. I don't want someone all up in my grill while I'm trying to eat. The waiters at Vicoletto were super nice and attentive but without the cheesy flirtatious innuendos.
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