AltoVino — Restaurant in San Francisco

Jaw-dropping experience! The food is a MUST try for anyone looking for an elevated Italian dinner.

Some tips for your trip to AltoVino: Order the Bistecca alla Fiorentina. Worth every penny Ask about good wine pairings for your food, they really know their stuff Bring an empty stomach (or two)

Detailed review:

In mid-August, I had reached out to AltoVino to plan a special honeymoon dinner for my (now) wife and me. Calli Martinez, the owner-wine director, responded and helped immensely throughout the process. She helped me choose the courses, the wines, and even the smaller details to help make this dinner experience one that we'll talk about for years to come!

Once our (surprise) honeymoon dinner rolled around, the experience was absolutely PHENOMENAL. The hostess and waiter were on the top of their game, always checking in to ensure that everything is up to our expectations -- and, well, everything honestly exceeded them.

We started off light, eventually building up to the grand finale of the dinner, the Bistecca alla Fiorentina. More on that later.

Starting off our dinner were the wines, picked for their ability to complement the grand finale of the meal. My wine was dry and vibrant, while my wife's was fruity and refreshing. Great choices for our meal!

Our first course was the crostini. Strawberries, smoked ricotta, pistachios, cracked peppercorns, mint, and saba. Light and refreshing, these crostini packed a punch with flavor, setting up for the momentum for our courses to come.

The waiter then came out with some fresh bread with oil for dipping. Though these were great as well, they were overshadowed by our anticipation for the upcoming courses.

Next up was spaghettoni. San marzano tomato sugo, roasted guanciale, calabrian chili, caramelized onions, pecorino romano, and evoo toasted breadcrumbs. Admittedly, I'm not well versed enough in Italian cuisine to know the details that went into this dish, but it was delicious nonetheless. My favorite detail was the toasted breadcrumbs. It added a memorable texture to an already flavor-packed dish. The dish added to our excitement, and we were salivating over the prospect of the third course at this point.

Now comes the third course. The 1 kilo dry aged porterhouse steak. Absolutely astonishing. Please order this when you go here, it's unlike any other steak you'll ever have. The smokiness of the steak paired with the fall-off-the-bone tenderness of the meat is something my mouth salivates just thinking about. Normally, I'm not someone who can eat a steak with nothing else, but this was one of the few exceptions, especially when paired with the recommended wines.

The steak was delivered with some roasted bone marrow and additional greens for us. The bone marrow was best described by our waiter, who described it as "meat butter". There's really no better description I can give there. It's delicious on the bread.

Lastly, we order the pistacchio gelato. Our stomachs told us that, even though they couldn't handle any more food, they could make an exception just this one time. Such a great way to top off one of the best cuts of meat I've ever had. There were whole pistacchios in the ice cream, as well as some chocolate bits with a crunchier texture.

I can go on and on about AltoVino, but I will stop there. Kudos to everyone who made this dining experience possible. Friendly staff, amazing atmosphere, and delicious food. What else could...

I’m up at 4 am, no clue why and I’m hungry. I scroll through photos of my recent trip to Italy and get hungrier. Then I randomly recall this amazing ragu I had at AltoVino. Such is the rabbit hole of my brain today.

I first stumbled upon this place a few years back when my gf and I were randomly walking down this street after exploring Chinatown. Looked good, half empty, so we sat down outside for what was an amazing meal. I recall thinking “holy s*, what is this place and why is it here and why is it so good and why is it…. So good?” Since then we’ve been a few times more, and each time was equally amazing.

For me what I find particularly fascinating about this place is its own unique balance across its often refreshed menu. It’s an intelligently restrained yet creative balance of tradition and new “California” flair. One dish may stick rather close to a traditional Amatriciana while another consists of an intriguing mixture of ingredients that just simply makes sense once tasted. There’s something for everyone and everything is excellent.

It speaks to the experience and refined palate of the owners. All paired with a fantastic wine menu, your meals will be memorable here each time.

I’ve recommended this place to anyone that has asked me, “what are some top places to eat in SF?” And I swear on baby Jesus that AltoVino has come out of my mouth within the first 3 places I mention, each time. And to this day, well I suppose to this late morning - I still don’t know why this place isn’t booked out every single evening. It’s bizarre.

So ignore reviews that say “we weren’t satisfied because we were still hungry afterwards.” Which, is one of the dumbest reasons for mediocre reviews because, what, a restaurant is supposed to figure out or cater to your appetite? Ignore reviews that say “oh this place wasn’t authentic.” Hmm what sort of authentic were you looking for? What is authentic at the end of day?

Because if authentic is a menu honoring its ingredients, staying true to the local spirit while paying generous and fantastic homage to the cuisine’s roots, then this is one such place.

Ok...

Oh my! Where do I start?! We discovered altoVino when my college friends were visiting me in SF. Not only the food was delicious, the atmosphere was so cozy and welcoming that we stayed there for hours chatting and enjoying ourselves.

Food: 5/5 The evening started strong with Spuma di Funghi appetizer. It was creamy and rich perfectly harmonizing the flavor of truffle with the freshness of herbs. It was served with warm oil toasted bread which was the perfect crunch next to the smooth creamy texture of the mousse. From the pasta dishes we tried out Cappellacci which was filled with seasonal flavors of squash. The addition of pomegranates and hazelnuts really brought in some edge with a texture. But the wow of the evening was the creamy mushroom sauce tagliatelle with shaved truffle on top. I think this dish might have been an addition for the SF restaurant week. Lastly, for dessert we tried out Panna Cotta and Zabaione with poached pears. Needless to mention that both tasted fantastic.

Presentation: 5/5 All the dishes were plated neatly, effortlessly and tastefully. We did feel like we were in a high-end restaurant.

Service: 5/5 Service was amazing! Our waiter has been very attentive towards us but not in an overwhelming way. He explained many of the dishes beforehand and all his recommendations were on spot. He brought us extra bread which we really appreciated. At last, when we paid the bill and were captivated with the conversation of old friends, he didn’t pressure us to leave. He even encouraged our stay with constantly refilling our glasses of water.

Atmosphere: 5/5 A cozy corner in SF. We loved everything about the atmosphere. It was not too chic, which made it feel more relaxed and approachable. The hall was not loud and it was perfect for reconnecting with old friends.

Value: 5/5 I would say the restaurant is on the pricier side, but the quality deserves the...