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Mezzanine Private Dining Space - Foreign Cinema, San Francisco, CA

Foreign Cinema

4.8 (8958)
$31 to $50
Californian
2534 Mission St., San Francisco, CA 94110

Make a reservation

2 people
8:30 PM
Booked 115 times today
Experiences are available.

About this restaurant

  • Good for special occasions
  • Neighborhood gem
  • Lively
Foreign Cinema is a one-of-a-kind, nationally acclaimed restaurant blending independent films with California-Mediterranean cuisine. Enjoy a stylish indoor dining room with a full bar and fireplace, or relax in our heated and covered outdoor courtyard where 35mm film screenings begin at dusk.

For those seeking a more intimate experience, our private dining options include the mezzanine, amate terrace, and gallery, thoughtfully curated by Modernism West. Our vibrant DJ/live music bar, Laszlo, serves craft cocktails, zero-proof options, a full dinner menu, and lively tunes to end your night.

We are currently accepting reservations for both the heated and covered outdoor patio and indoor dining up to 60 days in advance. Standard seating refers to indoor dining. For groups of 9 or more, please reach out to our private dining department at janine@foreigncinema.com for booking details.

Dining areas

Additional information

  • Dining style
    Casual Elegant
  • Price
    $31 to $50
  • Cuisines
    Californian, Mediterranean
  • Hours of operation
    Brunch Sat, Sun 10:30 am–2:30 pm Dinner Mon–Thu 5:00 pm–9:30 pm Fri, Sat 5:00 pm–10:00 pm Sun 5:00 pm–9:00 pm
  • Phone number
    (415) 648-7600 ext. 0
  • Website
    http://www.foreigncinema.com/
  • Payment options
    AMEX, Discover, Mastercard, Visa
  • Dress code
    Casual Dress
  • Executive chef
    Gayle Pirie & John Clark
  • Private party facilities
    We provide distinctive private dining spaces for up to 350 guests, from intimately sized cocktail events, to large, formal seated events. Our chefs personalize each menu, matching, seasonal and market availability with guests’ special preferences.Inquire via email, janine@foreigncinema.com
  • Private party contact
    Janine Jacobson: (415) 648-7600 ext. 124
  • Location
    2534 Mission St., San Francisco, CA 94110
  • Neighborhood
    Mission District
  • Cross street
    Between 21st and 22nd Streets
  • Parking details
    We recommend parking at the Bartlett Garage located on 21st St between Valencia and Mission.
  • Public transit
    MUNI: 14 Mission bus; BART: 16th & 24th/Mission station; Mission-Bartlett Garage: 3255 21st Street San Francisco, CA 94110
  • Entertainment
    We show a film starting at dusk only in the outdoor patio dining room. This is to provide a lovely ambiance, dialogue is not audible. While we take into consideration all requests for courtyard seating none are guaranteed.
  • Additional
    Bar/Lounge, Beer, Cocktails, Corkage Fee, Dog Friendly, Entertainment, Full Bar, Gluten-free Options, Happy Hour, Indoor Fireplace, Non-Smoking, Outdoor Firepit, Patio/Outdoor Dining, Private Room, Takeout, Vegan, Weekend Brunch, Wheelchair Access, Wine

Featured in

Experiences

  • Guest Chef Series: Jeremiah Tower

    Sep 25, 2025 only
    Our Guest Chef Series is a collaboration with remarkable chefs who have made their mark in San Francisco Bay Area culinary history. Let's bring back the alchemy of Stars, the legendary San Francisco dining institution led by Chef Jeremiah Tower, where he defined California cuisine. Join us to experience and taste the memorable flavors of these distinguished culinary leaders. These are non-ticketed events with an à la carte menu.
    Guest Chef Series: Jeremiah Tower Photo

Private dining

Menu

Foreign Cinema's menu was last updated on 2/1/2022.

View menu on restaurant's website

What 8,958 people are saying

Foreign Cinema reviews from people who’ve dined at this restaurant. Based on recent rating.

Overall ratings and reviews

Reviews can only be made by diners who have eaten at this restaurant

4.8
4.8 based on recent ratings
  • 4.7Food
  • 4.7Service
  • 4.9Ambience
  • 4.4Value

Noise • Moderate

Loved For

  • San Francisco Bay Area

    Most Booked

  • San Francisco

    Californian

  • San Francisco

    Most Booked

Review summary

AI-generated from verified diner reviews
Foreign Cinema offers an enchanting dining experience in the heart of the Mission District. Known for its "amazing ambiance" with vintage films playing in the courtyard, it consistently delivers "delicious food" and "superb service." A beloved spot for brunch and dinner, it's perfect for special occasions, with a "gorgeous menu" and diverse seasonal offerings.

8,958 Reviews

  1. Christy

    Des Moines2 reviews

    5.0

    Dined 4 days ago

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    Always a great meal and fantastic service! Aimee was wonderful and personable as usual. Just love this restaurant!

    Is this helpful?

  2. John VIP

    San Francisco Bay Area23 reviews

    5.0

    Dined 4 days ago

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    Just divine. We love coming to Foreign Cinema. The staff are amazing and the food is perfect. Menu items rotate weekly so there’s no getting bored if you visit often.

    Is this helpful?

  3. Makayla

    Los Angeles1 review

    5.0

    Dined 4 days ago

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    Amazing food, such kind staff, and the ambiance was amazing

    Is this helpful?

  4. OpenTable Diner

    San Francisco Bay Area1 review

    5.0

    Dined 4 days ago

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    Beautiful art, top food… I LOVE Foreign Cinema. My fave restaurant ❤️

    Is this helpful?

  5. azad

    San Francisco Bay Area12 reviews

    5.0

    Dined 4 days ago

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    A perennial favorite. Glad they are still around.

    Is this helpful?

  6. David VIP

    San Francisco Bay Area67 reviews

    5.0

    Dined 4 days ago

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    Our bartender made the experience really great. Super friendly and knowledgeable.

    Is this helpful?

  7. Georgia

    San Francisco Bay Area1 review

    5.0

    Dined 5 days ago

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    Nestled in the Mission District, it’s a wonderful surprise to find this gem once you walk through the movie theater style swinging doors. The ambiance is everything; we sat at a table for two in the courtyard by one of the entrances into restaurant. The string lights warm the courtyard with heaters for the perfect temperature despite the outside chill. Old style drive in movie window speakers line the walls and you’re welcome to remove them and place them in your table for a better audio experience if you want to fully immerse yourself in the film - or simply leave them in place to let your conversation carry the moment. We enjoyed the menu not only for the options but also as it listed the evening film. Our starters and small plates were a pleasant sunrise such as the slight spice and black bean addition to the Calamari, the smoked salmon with pickled onions were the perfect savory pairing with our warmed cheese dish. My oysters were delicious, one slightly salty and sweet and the other has a refreshing cucumber finish. My Wagyu was absolutely delicious for main course, and the fried artichokes were a wonderful pairing. The salted Carmel dessert we ordered was so incredibly delectable - by far one of the best sweet treats I’ve ever had. The drinks were a bit strong to our liking, however our bottle of wine paired well with our courses. Our waitress was absolutely wonderful and truly made our experience. She was incredibly kind. Thank you for the wonderful experience Foreign Cinema!

    Is this helpful?

  8. Elisabeth

    San Francisco Bay Area3 reviews

    4.0

    Dined 6 days ago

    1. Overall 4
    2. Food 3
    3. Service 3
    4. Ambience 4
    Always a great time. Food was delicious, server was attentive

    Is this helpful?

  9. Kristina

    Vancouver2 reviews

    4.0

    Dined on May 19, 2025

    1. Overall 4
    2. Food 4
    3. Service 2
    4. Ambience 5
    The food was good but so small. Disappointed at the entree sizes for the price. The service on the other hand was not great. The waitress was not very friendly and just an order taker. She did not discuss any features or engage in any conversation. Overall a nice experience if you want something different but be prepared for very high prices and be hungry after.

    Is this helpful?

  10. Geniya

    Unspecified1 review

    5.0

    Dined on May 18, 2025

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    Great place! Wonderful food and service. Thank you

    Is this helpful?

FAQs

Foreign Cinema offers takeout which you can order by calling the restaurant at (415) 648-7600 ext. 0.

Foreign Cinema is rated 4.8 stars by 8958 OpenTable diners.

Yes, you can generally book this restaurant by choosing the date, time and party size on OpenTable.

  1. Home
  2. United States
  3. San Francisco Bay Area
  4. San Francisco
  5. Mission District

Make a reservation

2 people
8:30 PM
Booked 115 times today
Experiences are available.
Google Map for Foreign Cinema

2534 Mission St., San Francisco, CA 94110

Dining areas

Additional information

  • Cross street
    Between 21st and 22nd Streets
  • Neighborhood
    Mission District
  • Hours of operation
    Brunch Sat, Sun 10:30 am–2:30 pm Dinner Mon–Thu 5:00 pm–9:30 pm Fri, Sat 5:00 pm–10:00 pm Sun 5:00 pm–9:00 pm
  • Price
    $31 to $50
  • Cuisines
    Californian, Mediterranean
  • Dining style
    Casual Elegant
  • Dress code
    Casual Dress
  • Parking details
    We recommend parking at the Bartlett Garage located on 21st St between Valencia and Mission.
  • Public transit
    MUNI: 14 Mission bus; BART: 16th & 24th/Mission station; Mission-Bartlett Garage: 3255 21st Street San Francisco, CA 94110
  • Payment options
    AMEX, Discover, Mastercard, Visa
  • Executive chef
    Gayle Pirie & John Clark
  • Entertainment
    We show a film starting at dusk only in the outdoor patio dining room. This is to provide a lovely ambiance, dialogue is not audible. While we take into consideration all requests for courtyard seating none are guaranteed.
  • Additional
    Bar/Lounge, Beer, Cocktails, Corkage Fee, Dog Friendly, Entertainment, Full Bar, Gluten-free Options, Happy Hour, Indoor Fireplace, Non-Smoking, Outdoor Firepit, Patio/Outdoor Dining, Private Room, Takeout, Vegan, Weekend Brunch, Wheelchair Access, Wine
  • Website
    http://www.foreigncinema.com/
  • Phone number
    (415) 648-7600 ext. 0
  • Private party facilities
    We provide distinctive private dining spaces for up to 350 guests, from intimately sized cocktail events, to large, formal seated events. Our chefs personalize each menu, matching, seasonal and market availability with guests’ special preferences.Inquire via email, janine@foreigncinema.com
  • Private party contact
    Janine Jacobson: (415) 648-7600 ext. 124

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