Bellanico Restaurant and Wine Bar

39th Anniversary

OMG, the bruschetta is so. darn. good. We expected a palatable (it's Bellanico after all) but predictable take on this standard that you've seen everywhere, but were blown away by how TASTY their version is. Bread that holds up but won't break your teeth. So many colorful, flavorful tomatoes. And the olive oil and herb topping. We are not usually lick the plate people, but my husband grabbed extra focaccia from the table to sop up the last of that sauce. We always have a good meal here, and this was no exception, but we might be back just for more bruschetta.

Service was extremely slow!

We only get here every 2-3 years but are consistently impressed by it's neighborhoodly feel coupled with excellent food (and wine)

I have frequented this restaurant many times and was excited to return to celebrate a friends birthday. Upon check-in, no host/hostess was at the door to greet us. The time was 8PM on a Friday eve. Surprisingly the restaurant was not packed, One would assume someone will be at the door to greet customers. We sat waiting for someone to acknowledge us for about 5min, till my friend decided to ask the Barman if he can check us in. He called someone who I assume was the hostess, perhaps the manager, and she was nice and seated us right away.
Service was great and waitress was knowledgeable and nice. The food, however was not as good as I remember. I ordered the duck and it was VERY salty to the point where I stopped eating it.
Lastly, while making the reservation, I commented that my friend is celebrating a birthday. I was hoping that on the dessert we ordered they will put a candle but no mention of her birthday or a candle at dessert time. Very disappointing. All in all I was not as happy as I was in previous visits.

I'm a regular here, but I think they need to give some attention to the kitchen noise and poor choice of mood music. Also, I never have been a fan of "Hi, my name is X and I will be your waiter." The good news: always easy to get in for brunch in a city of hours-long brunch waits. The bad news: There's a bit of a reason for that - owners, pay attention and remedy the small things that make it less inviting.

Went for brunch, service was slow and could have been more attentive for the caliber of food served, or so I thought. Gnocchi pasta was over cooked and somehow also cold, great menu items but lacking in execution.

I love this place! We always have a good time and the food is delicious. I came with my heart set on the risotto I had a month ago, which has literally haunted my dreams. Summer squashes, white wine, a blob of marscarpone, and sliced almonds. But, the season changed and so did the risotto. Now it had figs, gorgonzola, red wine and sliced almonds. SOOOO GOOOOD! Everything else was yummy too. Can't wait for the next time.

I heard about it on Check, please and the reviews were so great, perhaps I was expecting too much. It was fine-ok, but not great. The wine flights were a pretty good value although they didn't explain how they were chosen. If I had business really close by, I might return to eat there, but I definitely wouldn't make a specific trip to eat there.

We have been to Bellanico many times as it is one of favorite restaurants and is not far from our home. I usually rely on the wine recommendations of our server and they are always spot on. We shared the Opah with eggplant, which was wonderful as was the risotto. Service is always great in a cozy, warm setting at a reasonable cost. Would highly recommend Bellanico.

Creative combinations, flawless preparation, friendly and attentive service, and fresh, seasonal ingredients.

This is a great restaurant we’ve been to many times. This night though most of the dishes seemed over salted and I am rating down for that

I would only recommend Bellanico for the excellent wine list and very attentive friendly service. The food is very sub par. My fish (Opah) didn’t taste fresh, and my husband’s pasta was very dry. The pate was the one exception and was totally scrumptious. I can definitely recommend the Salumi plate. Perhaps there are entrées that are better than what we had but I have been to this restaurant four times now and didn’t like most of the food I’ve tried but I gave it several chances. The only reason we visited this time was because we had a gift certificate.

Knowledgeable pleasant waitress. Delightful patrons at the next table. Food was excellent as was the recommended wine.

Just need to state, as I write this, we were here on an OFF night for Bellanico! We love this restaurant, and usually it is great. And we also loved our server...she tried to do her best with things that were out of her control.

Our appetizers were delicious! The squash blossoms and the cauliflower fritters are always a hit! We then got several other appetizers delivered, and we kept having to say that they weren't for us. (Maybe someone was in training? These weren't delivered by our server.)

And the biggest disappointment were in the main courses. We had the pork chops, which are usually perfect, but we had ordered ours medium, and they came dry. Our friend ordered the chicken breast, and it wasn't warm. He did ask for it to be warmed up, but it wasn't the juicy piece of chicken he was expecting.

That said, we know restaurants can have an OFF night for some reason, and we will be back. This place is usually a true gem!

I have been to this restaurant many times, and each time it is as good as before. The choices, preparation, and quality of the food is amazing. Servers are very knowledgable about wine pairings and eager to help but never intrusive. Don't ever take the Beet/Ricotta ravioli off the menu!

Very good brunch

Great tasting menu with wine pairings

I have returned to this excellent restaurant for many special occasions. There were four of us and each one of us had a mouth watering creation. My soft shell crab had an excellent flavor, was ample in portion size and was accented with corn and some other tasty veggies. My husbands steak was generous as was our friends pork and the taste was superb. The waiter was attentive and helpful and the only downside is being a popular place it was a bit high on the volume. But why should others be deprived of great eats for my sense of quiet? I highly recommend this restaurant for a special event; it is not cheap but not overpriced for the quality!

My favorite neighborhood restaurant, I can always count on great food and familiar faces,

We like to sit at the bar here in order to see all the goings-on, and were treated once again to great food theater and some subtle problem-solving (maybe the kind of thing only a fellow business owner appreciates!). Kimberly was working her fourth night here; still learning, but making up for that with terrific attention. This place is becoming our happy habit.

As always, delicious, with attentive staff.

Superb happy hour (ombra) snacks and even better pasta. The duck is not to be missed. And the desert sampler is a dream. Be sure to reserve your table.

Am disappointed with Open Table as it does not give dining credit for my visit at Bellanico. Did not so advise me prior to the visit. Likewise, I did not get any credit for a hugely expensive meal at Plaj last evening. What's going on with Open Table?

The food is special and so unique; always delicious! Small plates but quite enough food, without ever being heavy. Fantastic wine list, knowledgeably selected by staff. Excellent service!!

I've eaten here several times for dinner, but this Saturday went with some friends for brunch. OUTSTANDING! I had eggs florentine and my table mates had other offerings each pleasing to us all (awe taste shared.) We finished brunch with a desert sampler which was yummy. Highly recommend!

Great food, interesting wines, casual but always a treat. Service was great.

Really delicious! I had the cauliflower fritters , the grilled sardines and the gnocchi. I will definitely go back!

too too too too much salt in the food. Otherwise beautifully prepared. Uncomfortable seating: cramped and noisy

Love the relaxing vibe and excellent cuisine

I think that the menu should be easier to read yet the food is always great!

Love Bellanico!!! It is our go-to spot for first class food and service in our neighborhood!

While the food was really very good, the weak points are the service, which is just barely adequate and not very friendly; the atmosphere is claustrophobic due to the small space and the tables being just inches apart, it was quite warm and lacking airflow as well. The duck was excellent, as was the salad and gnocci, fried olives and cauliflower.

I’ve been to Bellanico on several occasions. This time it was just okay. The food was fine but the service was moderate. Didn’t seem worth the price. I might try it one more time but there are so many other options.

We had not been to Bellanico for several years and were pleased to find a very varied menu with good vegetarian choices. The service by our server was pleasant and excellent. We were there on a busy evening and some of the food took a while to come out but it was worth the wait.
We plan to return to the restaurant in the future with friends and family.

Our favorite local spot. Menu is well balanced with just the right amount of offerings and the food is consistently fresh and delicious. Highly recommend the tasting menu which has never disappointed. Wine selection changes often and is about quality not quantity. Wait staff is helpful and will offer descriptions and tasting if you are unsure about which wine to order. We often celebrate birthdays at Bellanico and they always offer something special (dessert, glass of Prosecco etc.).

We love this place! Arrived at 5:30 and were seated in a front window – lovely. Service was prompt and professional. For the first half-hour there were only a few diners, but at 6 p.m. people started arriving until the place was full. But service did not suffer in the least. We shared two cichetti (traditional Venetian small bites) of cauliflower fritters and trout cannoli (both delicious) and an antipasto of grilled sardines with shaved fennel (not as successful). My partner had an excellent grilled hanger steak and my main lumache (normally snails but in this case snail-shaped pasta) with a sugo of milk-braised pork. Both were outstanding. We finished with a favorite from Italy, cantucci and vin santo. She had a flight of three rosés while I enjoyed a glass of Roerno Arneis and one of Montepulciano. Everything was outstanding from start to finish.

I've been dining at Bellanico since they opened. It's my favorite restaurant and as my channel 7 newscaster says "Everything is good". You gotta try the burratta and the goat cheese cheesecake. A unique version of the original.

We had an event in Oakland at 11 am so needed a place for lunch. Elizabeth was great in accommodating our group of eleven. Patrick was a fantastic waiter, he made great recommendations and the food was on the table timely and all dishes were very tasty. We will definitely go back.

We miss the former chef. The cooking was uneven on this visit. Duck confit was way over salted. Pastrami panino has been better. But the cauliflower fritters, burrata & veggie panino were great.