Hayes Street Grill had been our standby for many years of evenings at Davies or the Opera House. The ambiance is comfortable, quiet; the service is prompt and well-informed; the seafood choices are always first-rate. But this time both my wife and I were disappointed in the quality of the tastes, which were satisfactory but not memorable. Has the kitchen relaxed into a comfortable routine? I missed the extra bit of flavor that I remember from Hayes Street. Otherwise, salad and dessert were excellent, as was the wine choice. It will still be our place to go, but with less enthusiasm than before.

A great eve with great food with great company!
Visually good and tasted even better.
(a little heavy on the amount of salad dressing- but delicious).

Wonderful bar tender!

The Hayes Street Grill is the perfect before theatre restaurant. The professional wait staff always are able to blend perfectly a relaxing meal with the timely food delivery to get you to the show on time. And the chef perfectly cooks the meal to perfection. I love to share a meal here!

My salmon was perfect. My friend was disappointed with her halibut. But despite that - we love Hayes Street Grille - we just wish it wasn't so popular with the pre-theater crowd because it is truly hard to get in for dinner most nights of the week

Always reliable , always delicious, a true San Francisco institution!

We were 1/2 hour late, but they accommodated us without a problem.

Great food! They serve the arts crowds very well. Go when there is not a big arts crowd.

We got there at and had an 8pm concert. The restaurant was packed but our waiter made every effort to get us fed in time.

Quiet oasis in a very busy area with SF ballet and symphony on a Friday night. Terrific server, very conscientious about getting us out in time for our evening event. Excellent satisfying meal.

Always love dining at Hayes St Grill. Quality of the food and service keep us coming back.

Hayes Street Grill is a wonderful San Francisco classic.

From the maitre d's greeting to the dessert, we had a great experience for dinner before the ballet!
Cod, oysters, etc: all excellent! Pan friend oysters were perfect, not over done.
Our waiter was especially swift and efficient. Thank you!

I just love the food, the ambience, and the kindness/helpfulness/respectfulness of the staff. This is a restaurant with no attitude, and I appreciate that SO MUCH. I also love the fish dishes, not just because they are tasty, well-prepared, and expand my culinary horizons, but also because my doctors tell me to eat more fish but I'm such a lousy fish-cooker that I rarely eat fish at home. So I love eating fish at Hayes Street Grill. I also patronize the opera, symphony, and classical events at the Herbst Theatre, and Hayes Street Grill is so handy for pre- or post-performance AND the staff are very hip to ensuring that patrons have a good dining experience and get to their performances on time. What can I say? I'm in love with restaurant.

Fantastic!

Good dependable food before a concert. I had halibut and my my had sole. Both excellent. Well prepared. Great service.

Hayes Street Grill is an old standby that never disappoints. Interesting and delicious salads, perfectly grilled fish with a choice of sauce/salsa, good wine, and excellent service. And it's a great place to actually have a conversation with your meal.

We have enjoyed dining at the Hayes Street Grill for many years. It is ideally located for the performing arts area both for before and after performance dining. The fish is great, the service is attentive and the drinks are honest. We go back over and over again.

Wonderful wait staff and overall excellent experience. Tried and true!

Absolutely the best spot for before or after the Symphony. Super fresh fish dishes with amazing choice of sauces. Fantastic salads and appetizers as well.

Best grilled fish in town, great service and I love the location.

Excellent as usual. The service is always excellent without being too fussy.

They have the pre-symphony drill down pat. Efficient and friendly service and consistently great seafood. We thoroughly enjoyed our experience, which is why we keep coming back.

Consistently very good. Excellent swordfish. Cooked to perfection. I love french fries, and these are perfect. Fast, friendly and efficient service. Nice relaxing dinner,and out in time for the ballet.

Fabulous fish and fries. Warm goat cheese salad was super. Save room for dessert.

Just a perfect place- before Ballet, Symphony, or Opera they time it so you are out in a timely manner- for a relaxing dinner.

Tried something new.... turned out great. It was a special. Cod over mussels in a fantastic broth. Really terrific
Hayes is always one of the best restaurants and everything is fresh well prepared and delicious. Never had a bad meal staff is excellent.

Great for pre or post performance, but also anytime. And notable for the same ownership since opening in the late 70’s. One of the original woman owned foody restaurants that still thrive and survive. In San Francisco. Consistently clean, sustainable food. No flash, just the real thing.

We loved our meal at Hayes Street Grill! We hadn't been there in years, but the food was as terrific as we remembered it to be.

Been going to this restaurant for many years. It is as good, if not better than ever. You can always count on delicious food and wine.

The restaurant was very busy on a Saturday night. The arugula and asparagus salad, the sea bass, and the flat iron steak were cooked as requested and were delicious. The service was a little slow but as expected on a busy Saturday night. Our table for two was arranged so I could touch elbows with a person eating at the next table.

Really wonderful experience celebrating their 39th Anniversary and St. Patrick's Day in one night!

Outstanding quality fish and produce prepared expertly. The server was attentive but oddly unfamiliar with Fish - he didn’t get that Su called Chilean sea bass is a dangerous high mercury fish and unrelated to the sea bass on the menu that was local pacific. Otherwise the experience was healthy and delightful - reminiscent of the ever superb anchor oyster bar but better produce. I’d say the cleanest luxury eating in civic center though little gem a better value and bit warmer and hipper

Same as its always been - for 39 years. Always reliable high quality sustainable seafood. Excellent, attentive service.

Always a welcome environment, professional, delicious and time honored, neighborhood icon, a classic gem.

Food not quite as good as years ago when we were regulars but still good. The grilling of the fish leaves less charcoal taste which I see as a loss. Prices are high especially for wine. One shared appetizer two fish main courses, one shared dessert, 2 glasses of wine was $200.

Hadn't been here in 20 years. And nothing has changed. Interior getting a little run down. Good seafood. Absurdly limited wine by the glass selection.

Birthday

I always like Hayes Street Grill. As usual, the food was great but the service was somewhat off. This won’t keep me from returning.

We go to Hayes Street when we are headed to City Arts and Lectures. They are very good at making sure you have s nice meal and get to theatre on time.

My husband and I visited Hayes Street Grill after viewing the glowing recommendations online. I must say we were sorely disappointed. The wait staff was curt and seemed poorly trained; to wit, our server poured the remains of my empty drink glass, full of melted ice and soda, into the new glass I was drinking from. Later we witnessed the same waiter serve another couple ketchup that he had taken from a previously-vacated, dirty table. The food itself was only average; the fish was poorly cooked and, in places, totally raw. The fries were overdone and nothing special. Moreover, the entire dining room was filled with an unpleasant burning smell as though their grill hadn't been cleaned in years. Hayes Street Grill may have been a go-to place in the past but it seems now only a ghost of its former self.

Has a tired feel and look to it. Didn’t feel any energy. Value isn’t there.

We've dined here many times before attending the symphony or the ballet, and it is always a good meal, the scallops were perfectly cooked, the smoked fish appetizer was very tasty, though four pieces versus three might be nicer when sharing this dish, well made classic cocktails and good service round out the experience, will go back.