Scala's Bistro

We have been to Scala's several times. The fact that we had a reservation meant little regarding being seated on time. We still waited. When I reminded the hostess, who is a very endearing woman with a great presence and personality for handling the hungry customers, that we were waiting in the bar upstairs, she sat us immediately. The booths are small and the atmosphere is really loud. The servers are fast and the food is good. The sommelier is a rare individual who has great aplomb in performing his duties. All of the appetizers, main courses, and wines were delicious and moderately expensive $470 incl gratuity for four persons. The restaurant did provide a nice dessert with candle for my wife's birthday. However, the restaurant has constant activity and the noise can be exacerbating for a conversation. Scala's is a restaurant where you go to enjoy good food but not necessarily dine and converse unless you like to speak loudly.

Awesome wine list, amazing menu, really cute space, and cute holiday decorations. Very friendly staff. We had a wonderful dinner after the Nutcracker! It is pricey and pretty noisy, but that didn't bother us!

Food uninspiring. The waiter did the minimum. Once we were he ignored us, fussing with his phone
One of us had to go get him to clear away our dishes.

Food was great, service fabulous.

We had a delightful server this visit. He was very engaging making our experience a good one. It is very noisy, even on a week day afternoon.

Very good food, it was a very busy lunch. We got a window seat with lots of entertainment on the outside.

8 of us arrived at 6:00 after a long wait finally they brought bread and drinks, the main course took another hours to come. We were very dissapointed of the service.

Hostess was a disaster! Couldn’t figure out that we had a reservation for 4 people. Waited quite awhile for our table. Then she sat us at a “large” 2 person table. When our actual waiter arrived, he fixed the situation. Glasses were dirty. Bloody Mary was the most watered down icy drink. But the food was very good and our waiter was wonderful.

I was disappointed in the menu. The food was ok but the service was really poor. The noise level was awful, couldn't understand from the accent and the overall service was not good. Wouldn't waste my time to go back. And.. I have been there before and the food was really good, as was the service.

The was a mix up in our billing that was resolved before we left. Some of the meals were to peppery for members of our party1

Normally a great place to eat - there were a fair amount of inebriated SantaCon participates wwho were loud and a bit obnoxious.

Birthday lunch

Decent service eventhough they were understaffed and quite busy when we were there. Food is good, not great, and I think they could stand to change their menu with greater frequency, but it is reliable and a fair choice when looking for a sit down place for lunch near Union Square.

While the food was good, the bistro is woefully understaffed. Our server was so harried - as was all the other employees - that he left before taking our full order. Trying to get someone’s attention was nigh impossible.

Our server, Mary, was delightful. The food was delicious served hot. Our only complaint was the noise level. We were seated in the bar area, with a large, boisterous group.

Please give our special thanks to Mary and chef!

Simply horrible.

Tasha the waiter was terrific!

Always delicious, our number one spot every time we come to San Francisco

Been coming back to Scala's for years, usually during the Holidays to enjoy the downtown bustle. Has always been an enjoyable experience. Couple things hit my on this latest visit for dinner with friends. The room was very loud to the point of making conversation an effort. Festive atmosphere seemed somehow lacking. Maybe from lack of Holiday decorations. Decor feels like it needs refreshing. First round of drinks arrived after a painfully long wait. Thankfully they were generous and properly prepared. I 'd rate the food as adequate to good depending on what you order and as such a bit overpriced.

First time going to this restaurant. The food was average. We had two of the pasta dishes, a Caesar salad, squash salad, calamari and the roasted chicken. Our waiter was terrible, poor customer service. After bringing our food he never came back to check on us or to make sure the meal was to our satisfaction. The only reason I am giving this restaurant 2 stars it's because the busboy was outstanding. $18 for a Caesar salad that is just mediocre is just isn't worth it. The place is super loud. Very disappointed with this place.

One of my favorites. They changed the lighting which is now more sterile and has a whole lot less ambiance. The service, while decent, was uncaring and not what we were used to. Hostess was awesome. Still a huge favorite and recommend but not the same as it was before.

I was hoping this would be a great dinner our last night in San Francisco. However, it turned out to be one of the worst. The Caesar salad dressing was very acidic, and not what you normally would get for Caesar dressing (I have had many and this didn't even come close). We ordered a margarita pizza which was under done and tasteless. The sauce had no taste to speak of and the mozzarella was a very cheap grade. The reason I can be so critical with the pizza is I own 4 pizzerias in CA and this was by far the worst.

Stay asway, the hype is just that, hype!

Excellent food!

Scala's has been my favorite restaurant on Union Square for many years, the food has never disappointed me or my friends. The service is great. I will be back soon.

Very slow service. Menu very limited. The overall quality of the dining experience at Scala’s has definitely gone downhill. We won’t be back and I will no longer recommend this restaurant.

We had a great time celebrating my daughter’s 17th birthday at Scala’s. The hosts were very accommodating, the meal was spectacular, and the desert was thoughtfully delivered with a lighted birth candle. Great experience!

As a wheelchair user, I always forget the Scala's likes to stack up chairs along the entryway. I'm sure folks who have a long wait really appreciate this, but it makes me feel unwelcome to have to move chairs to enter the space. I ordered a burger and fries, protein style (no bun with lettuce meant to pick it up). They got lettuce on top, but not down below. And one cloth napkin doesn't really cut it for picking up a poorly wrapped burger. My waiter was great and the burger was well cooked even if the presentation was not up to par. I stay at the Sir Francis Drake every year and I usually eat at Scala's at least once. Maybe next year I'll remember about the chairs.

The food was very good and the service was great dispute it being a very busy night. It’s a little crowded and noisy but over all a good restaurant to visit in Union Square.

A lovely restaurant with very friendly staff. It is very popular so necessary to book. We both had pasta which was delicious. The member of staff who served us was very friendly but also very helpful. We would love to come back next time we are in the USA!

Friday night dinner there after tree lighting at Union Square. Great service...very attentive/friendly hostess (seemed like the manager or owner). Food was delicious. A bit pricey, but it's San Francisco and quality was worth it!

Good food, seated right on time, server very nice but a little slow, although it was black friday so the poor fellow was probably a bit shagged. Great salmon, raviolis and best fritto misto around.

Have been coming here for many years, it used to be much better food. And the prices have gotten very high, $34 for the salmon entrée that was just OK, prepared in advance. I think they are getting by on tourist business which is not too demanding, especially at the holiday seasons, as a San Francisco resident is disappointing to me

I thought the stuffing could have been more flavorful, and I was disappointed that there was no cranberry sauce. Also, I thought it was priced on the high side for what we got. The turkey was a bit dry.

Always good. Staff are extremely personable. This review must be at least 80 characters in length I am told. Accordingly, it will be the last such OpenTable review I write.

Excellent food and service! Nice atmosphere and setting.

Took forever to be waited on by server. Hubby actually went to the hostess and asked if we had one. Chicken was good, but congealed mass of way overcooked braised greens was not, and usually I can’t find a vegetable I don’t love. Pizza crust was hard as a rock; hubby could only eat out of the middle. Way overpriced in my estimation, lovely ambience, though.

Thank you for making our evening so special!!

The food was amazing and the staff was friendly and welcoming. The noise level was a bit high but that’s because there was a table of people that had no regards to other people around them. Definitely recommend eating here!

Great dinner with my team after Dreamforce. Food, wine and service was excellent.

A very lovely lunch, delicious, reasonable portions, and great service. Charming!