Foreign Cinema

Food was overall good. Service was not great. Waiter had a major attitude problem. Price decent for value, but a bit overpriced.

We dined in the projection room above the lower level. The food was absolutely delicious. I get the feeling there are no bad dishes on the menu. I especially recommend the scallops which were prepared perfectly. Our waiter was good, but we felt he took a long time to check on us throughout the service and at one point we had to flag down another member of the staff to get our dinner order in. To that person's credit, he was on point. He took all our orders without hesitation and repeated it back to us without taking a single note. Always cool to see that happen. Ambiance, cleanliness, food, and overall service was wonderful and although the prices are high I would recommend this place to friends and family looking for a unique and delicious experience in SF. We did have a vegan in our group and finding appropriate dishes for them was not really possible. If I have one constructive feedback, it would be for the restaurant to have at least one well crafted and balanced vegan meal on the menu that is clearly labeled as such.

foreign cinema has been my favorite restaurant in SF since it opened over 20 years ago. Everything is perfect. an amazing ambiance whether in the Fellini esque patio with movies or inside the dining room with the fireplace and gorgeous flower arrangement. i always take visitors here so that they can experience the best SF has to offer. Love everyone there
ds

Always welcoming, a lovely atmosphere and warm, perfect service. The sommelier recommended a great Corsican wine for our varied entrees. We shared four appetizers, including one salad, all of which were on the small side, as well as four different entrees. All dishes were perfectly prepared.
We also love coming for the weekend brunch.

Fantastic Birthday experience for my foodie 11-yo son... Manager and Chef's all came out to welcome my son and John (chef/owner) signed a cookbook for him. He was on Cloud 9 afterwards... Fabulous experience!
Thanks again for making it a memorable birthday dinner!

Loved the gallery room in the back. An intimate space with elegance galore, preceding a lovely meal in store. Loved the vegetarian option with unusual spices leaving a sensual Mediterranean taste lingering on my tongue. Cannot wait to come back and explore more.

Our waitress was very nice, food was pretty good. Of the three main entrees I would recommend the pork chop if still available. The tartare and whipped cod were also tasty. Ambience was a bit interesting - space, food, music didn't really match. Wouldn't not recommend, but not sure that I would return.

Absolutely one of the best brunch experiences in the Bay Area! We started with the apple butter pop tart and baked goat cheese. The goat cheese w radicchio and tart cherries- incredible! I will definitely order that again. My friend had the omelette and enjoyed every bit. I had the burger and fries. I asked for my burger to be cooked medium. It was cooked to perfection. The service is always impeccable. Everyone from the host, bussers, and servers provide A+ service. I would definitely recommend you make a reservation and try out brunch at Foreign Cinema. Make sure to try out their cocktails! Esta noche is my favorite.

Foreign Cinema never fails to impress me. The quality of the food is always consistent. I have thoroughly enjoyed every meal I have had at FC. Our server was a gentleman and fun! Even sitting outside for brunch in the winter was comfortable given the number of heat lamps.

our waitress was nonexistent

Foreign Cinema was an excellent choice to spend an anniversary at. OpenTable made the reservation seamless, allowed me to specify the occasion and any additional requests (which I made, to sit at a table with a view of the movie). Not only were we accommodated, they also surprised us with a small shaved ice dessert decorated with a candle and Happy Anniversary sign. Overall great experience.

Not worth the price. Food was disappointing compared to last time I went (a year ago)

Great place for a birthday or special occasion! Food and service were great

I love this restaurant and haven’t been back in a while. My advice, don’t go on a Monday night. Service was not friendly, food took too long (we arrived at 7:30 and main course didn’t arrive till 9:00). When I asked the waitress for an update she said, ‘it’s coming!’ Salad was too small for $14 00

Great Mimosas! My friend had a crab omelet with Green Goddess dressing and said it was one of the best things she has ever eaten in her life. I had the Croque Monsier ( Ham and Cheese) really delicious, even the bread was great, the French fries were ok. But all in all LOVED our meal, our server was fantastic!

Amazing ambience for a celebration or a date

This was our first mid-day dining at FC; we started at 2pm on Saturday. The scene was mellow, many diners but all low-key conversations. This ambience was only enhanced by the attentive service, flavorful cocktails and creative and satisfying food. Many dishes were shared and there were no disappointments. We look forward to our next FC experience.

I enjoyed the ambiance. There are many outdoor heaters to keep you warm. The service was good and they were attentive. But the food portions for brunch were quite small. Taste wasn’t something to write home about. We all agreed and left feeling hungry. Drinks were good though.

Perfect as always!

Great food and great service. A very enjoyable night all around. Can’t wait to go back. Would highly recommend this restaurant to everyone.

Wonderful experience. Food was excellent.
Service was on point. Really enjoyed the atmosphere.

This was the most disappointing experience I have had at Foreign Cinema.

The flavors and pricing still ring true and are excellent. However, the portions have reduced significantly so that everything seemed overpriced given the size of each meal.


I was looking forward to a nice warm, flavorful meal, and all that I was left with was a nice environment and an unsatisfied appetite. I am never recommending this place again. I think the cost-saving measures are damaging your experience.

We had a couple from HELL sitting next to us. returned thier food 2X and complained the entire time the chicken was undercooked. They reached over to our table & told us not to order the chicken (we had already placed our order) we politely ignored them . The staff removed the order from bill & then we heard them say they would not be tipping!!! Im a mission local , have been going here years, same staff, same hostess - the food is always on point !!
No complainants, here except they ruined our dining experience ....

Came for brunch with friends. Waited about 20 min for our reservation. Taken to inside table where it was so loud we had to yell at each other. Told we couldnt sit outside because there was a reservation on the table. (No idea why we bothered with a reservation) We were there 1 hour and 15 min before we saw any food, which was so salty and over seasoned for two of us in the group. Wouldn’t bother going there for brunch again.

Fantastic sampled many brunch menu items, all to perfection! Will be back for dinner!

Amazing how this restaurant has stayed so relevant, so great for so long. Drinks and food are always innovative and first rate. Doug, the new head of operations introduced himself to us (even stepped in to cover for our waitress). Seems like the restaurant continues in great hands.

Great experience, food was amazing, ambience was unmatched! Thoroughly enjoyed ourselves and highly recommend ! Service was on point especially because of our servers. Great time! Thank you. Will be back again with great company. :)

Anniversary

It was a place I wanted to enjoy, but the experience fell short. When you’re paying 40-50 each at least, you’d expect the service to be pretty good. Our food order came out wrong - no biggie since mistakes happen. The manager apologized for the miscommunication on their part and then the waiter said they brought out the wrong food to us. We waited more than 35 minutes for our food, but they made no extra effort towards service recovery. Just a “my bad.”

Super bummed we stayed as long as we did here. Bar service was nice, thus the stars. All-in-all, I won’t be recommending this place to others. I’d splurge somewhere else.

Sat for 30 minutes and didn’t see a server! We got up and left! Terrible service

Had a great night! Food, service and ambiance was perfect. The customized “happy birthday” menu was a really special touch! I would definitely recommend!

We came to foreign cinema for the NYE 20's night and looked forward to the live band and everything else that was described. Upon arriving, we were sat upstairs in a room where you couldn't hear the live band or see the movies playing. I was disappointed that they had such nicely decorated areas with the vibe described but they obviously oversold the night and the unlucky people that were put in the room upstairs didn't get the experience but still had to pay the eye watering full price. I did complain and we were moved for our deserts and although a good compromise it did leave us feeling like we hadn't enjoyed our night as much as we would have if we had been sat downstairs all night.

New Year’s Eve

LOVE THIS PLACE!

Dinner was good, just felt for the price of the meal, things could have been better.

Terrible value for what you get on new years eve. Seated outside, where it was cold, quiet, and boring.

Anniversary

Great place and the food was really good. The patio seating area was warm with all the heat lamps.

I loved this place and I would have eaten breakfast there every single day of our trip. It was PACKED but we received our food quickly. It was awesome.

Foreign Cinema is a great restaurant. We very much njoyed the whole eperience. Including waiting for our reservation in the bar with a cocktail and some oyesters. Casablanca in the big screen, and great food and service. We will be back soon.