Piacere

Came here Saturday night with my husband and daughter. After we sat down, we waited about 30 minutes for someone to ask for our drink order. I asked the guy who brought us bread to please send someone so we could order drinks, and it still took 30 minutes for someone to appear. DO NOT MAKE ME WAIT FOR MY GLASS OF WINE. The food arrived an hour after we ordered it. I had a beet salad, which was nice, and my husband and daughter shared oysters, which they said were good, but the rest of our food was mediocre at best. I hesitate to mention that the waitress was not only surly, but perspiring heavily, which I found rather distasteful. This is a «never again» restaurant for me.

I have been to Piacere many times over the years and the food has never been great but i’ve returned for the al fresco dining and the convenience. Piacere is never the destination but has been the plan b or c because Town gets busy and sometimes there is no time for an hour wait.
The last time I was at Piacere which was May of 2016 my mom and I shared a salad and a pizza. The lettuce was wilted, the croutons were stale and the chicken was rubbery. Unfortunately, that was the better half of the meal and had it been the only disappointment we would have just been on our way and never said a peep. The pizza, however had the finger tip of a RUBBER GLOVE in it. Gross! I almost swallowed it. I had also been giving my 15 month old the pizza and she could have choked. After bringing this to the attention of the owner he removed the pizza from the bill and sent us on our way. After thinking about this, my mom (who I had eaten there with) called and spoke with the owner and asked him to reverse the entire charge. We felt it was absurd we should pay anything for this type of experience. He agreed to reverse the charge over the phone with my mom and now a month later the credit card company has informed my mom that the owner is refusing to reverse the charge. Wow! Customer service means nothing to this guy. We have been San Carlos residents for 20 years and have been coming in since Piacere opened. This man knows my mom when she comes in. Our bill was less than $ 50!!! It was not the money but the principal. Don’t give this guy your money. You are better off waiting at Town or really any other restaurant.

2.5 Stars
Had always heard mixed reviews about this place, but a Groupon offer got me in the door. Sadly, the experience was not even worth the super Groupon Deal ($ 60 for $ 25). Came on a Tuesday evening and the place seemed to be do a nice little business. Our waiter was polite and attentive. We opted for a seat inside with nice white table clothes, but props to the nice outside seating as well. The menu was large and covered all the usual greats. We started with calamari & oysters on the half shell. The oysters were excellent! Hard to get wrong really, but was pleased that they were large and fresh.
The food came out quickly and I went for the beet salad with grilled chicken, while the man went for the burger. His burger was undercooked and pink so we sent it back to be get more medium. After it came back, we both dug into our meals and noticed both our entrees were overpowered by the taste of smoke my chicken and his burger tasted the exact same! The smoke was so overpowering I could smell it off the plate. It was inedible. We mentioned this to the very polite waiter and he explained that all their food, including pizza is cooked with special woodchips. He was very gracious however, and took our plates, and comped us 2 free desserts & coffees. The coffee was amazing, the deserts were a nice touch, and took away the bad taste in our mouths. I appreciated the polite and thoughtful service, but would never return. Even on our way out we noticed a man telling his wife his steak smelled and tasted funny. Maybe it was a bad batch of wood chips, but even with a Groupon Deal, this place was not worth it.

It’s not that I won’t go back to Piacere, I will, but I will pass on any special event brunches. I took ky husband here for the Father’s day brunch and found the food to be OK. The special brunch was 38 pp and the scones/​muffins they serve as appetizers didnt taste better than any mini scone, muffin from a coffee shop. My salmon omelette was good but my husband’s maple bacon french toast sounded awesome but tasted dry. It’s very rare for me not to ask for seconds on french toast. The kids french toast is an amazing value — $ 6 for french toast and drink is so cheap! Anyway between our meals, 4 mimosas, kids meal, tax etc. We spent anout $ 160 for brunch. That’s a lot for food that I barely remember eating.
3 stars for brunch food– see above
Do not recommend tasting menus or going to any special day brunches here.
5 stars for Service. Yes they served cold coffee at first but were apologetic and made a fresh pot. A mistake like that isn’t a big deal to me. Our waiter was extremely attentive, quick with waters and more coffee, had a great sense of humor and sweet to my kids. He was slim with brown hair and looked 21. I wish I could remember his name so I could give him a shout out. He said his favorite movie was finding nemo. Yes YOU deserve a zillion stars awesome waiter and I hope your boss reads this.
5 stars for ambiance –We sat outside and watched the farmers market set up which was just the right amount if suburban chaos adorable. There was a band inside I think? That was a nice touch. Enjoyed the background music.
So avg of 4 stars. Go for the service, ambiance wgen you just want to relax and people watch and don’t want the noise of Town.

The beet salad is TO DIE for. I have had a few items from Piacere’s menu and not one has been disappointing so far. The waitstaff are all very professional and friendly. The owner approached us to ask how our meal was going, which I thought was nice.
I also heard they are in the process of getting a new chef, so I say if you have had an unfavorable food experience there previously, go back and give it another try!

This review is for Father’s Day Brunch. The service was excellent but I felt like we were ROBBED!
The menu was posted online but not the price so when we made a reservation for 10am brunch, we didn’t know that it was going to be $ 38/​person ($ 28 for kids). The choices were ribeye, grilled salmon, smoked salmon omelette (small portion) and potatoes, strawberry & nutella crêpe, and french toast (2 small pieces without any sides). Granted they had a shared plate of fruit and small portioned pastries as a starter, the brunch dishes were very small unless you want to have grilled salmon or ribeye. Dessert was a shared plate of an assortment of brownies and tartines.
Coffee and juice was not included. For $ 38, I would think that you would get a glass of mimosa/​bloody mary and/​or coffee with it but nope! You got to pay for that.
I understand charging $ 38 for Father’s Day dinner but for brunch? Common…
That really ruined our father’s day morning and my husband said he would never eat there again ever. The food and service had always been good but we felt like that took crazy advantage of Father’s Day. I mean… go ahead and make profit on such a holiday but don’t make it ridiculous! What does it say about the ethics of the management here?
NEVER COMING BACK HERE AGAIN.

Having a horrible Fathers’ Day experience right now at Piacere. First of all they put together a set menu for «brunch» and never told me when they confirmed my reservation. Then they essentially doubled their prices to take advantage of the holiday crowd. To top this off they ignored our table for at least 12 minutes after arriving at 9:30 am even after I asked if o could order off the regular menu. Bad showing for this restaurant in «The City of Good Living»!

Great Place, Great Food go on a Friday night for the live bands. Very relaxed with an upscale trendy feel, so you can come dressed up or in jeans. We love the patio or the bar

I went to celebrate my bday and it was wonderful!!! Amazing food and music! My favorite so far around the Bay Area, just amazing wines and drinks

I have always felt Piacere was the best in San Carlos. Went with a group of friends last nite, spent a couple thousand dollars on food and good wine. Service was excellent. Mussels were the best ever … But the steaks were chewey and cooked poorly, and the bread pudding was a disgusting pile of unidentifiable glup. Dinner was generally classified as mediocre by others, and after sending my steak back and getting a replacement that was even worse, I guess Piacere has outlived it’s age of excellence.
Sorry guys, we wont be back. Your cousins at Central Park would be ashamed of the poor quality you offered last night.

Made a reservation to Piacere for Mother’s Day. I had scoured the internet looking for a restaurant that had a menu that everyone in my party would like. First, there was no indication on their website or through Open Table that there would be a special price fixe menu. I think if you’re going to do that, you need to let your guests know. We may have been fine with it, but it was definitely on the pricey side.
Then when we showed up, the table we had been assigned was outside. I was never notified when I made my reservation or even when I received the «Reminder, you have a reservation upcoming» that if I didn’t want to be seated outside, I would need to let them know. That would be a simply courtesy and then I could express my wishes to the restaurant. It was not a particularly nice or warm day so we did not want to sit outside.
We did get seated about 10 – 15 minutes later. The service was incredibly slow. The restaurant noise was way over the top. It felt like they just tried to pack in as many tables as they possibly could. It seemed like the wait staff was definitely covering more ground than they should.
We had to wait for EVERYTHING. And not a reasonable amount of time. And not even an extended time for what I’d expect for a special occasion. Price fixe menus are meant to keep things moving, and it definitely did not help.
And then there was an issue with my order, or actually service regarding my order: When we ordered I asked if the omelette could be made with egg whites. The waitress said she would check with the kitchen. And she never returned to our table to let me know what the kitchen said, so I assumed that meant they could make it with egg whites. Well, when our food arrived and my family was served the waitress decided at that point to let me know that no, they could not make my food with egg whites (who can’t make egg whites? You have eggs, you can make egg whites. Charge me more, fine. But to say you can’t make them??). She asked if it was ok regular and I said no. So here I was with no food as everyone else in my party had theirs simply because she assumed I’d want it as is and never returned to answer my question. I ordered the salmon, which did come quickly, but was so incredibly oily.
Overall, our experience was poor. I had never been here before. But because of this experience, I may not go back either.

Came here to try it out since we usually go across the street. Sat down at 5pm and did not get served until 745pm. Customers who sat around us also complained about receiving the food 2 – 3 hours late. I saw two groups dining just get up and walk away. Over heard staff arguing in the back. Ugh this evening was a nightmare as a customer. Ordered salmon and it was not cooked at all and ice cold to the touch.
This was suppose to be a beautiful Mother’s Day dinner. Should of went to our go to restaurant across the street.
Hopefully this restaurant will get it together. Don’t know what went on in the back but hopefully the owners fix this ASAP!

After calling twice to confirm our reservation my daughter was tild by restaurant no record of reservation. We were finally seated and after waiting two hours with no food (We had to beg for some bread) we left.

I had reservation at 7:15 and was seated 30 mins later then was told that I had to wait 1 hour to get my food.
The food there was awful. The salmon was plain with no taste and did not match what the menu stated. Also the Branzino Bass had no taste and it was dry. Mash potato taste so bad. I can get better food at any walk in restaurant. For the price of the meal was not worth it. I spent almost 300.00 to get bad service and nasty food.
The appetizer which was the mussel was the best. Think twice if you decide to eat at that spot. Very disappointed on Mother’s Day.

Came for brunch on Sunday and was pleasantly surprised! The food was amazing! I had the skirt steak and eggs which came with a delicious chimichurri sauce, and my wife had Eggs Benedict. The eggs were poached in such a way that they came out incredibly delicate.
The place was relatively empty, and from the outside it looked like it was closed. Piacere doesn’t come up on Unilocal when you type in «brunch». Not sure what needs to happen to correct that. Town (across the street) was packed. Piacere is just as good, and since it isn’t as crowded, you will probably get better and more attentive service.

I came here with a close friend of mine on a wonderful Sunday morning for brunch.
I don’t understand why this restaurant has received mediocre reviews– I love this place so much! It’s definitely not as pricy as the dinner menu during Sunday brunch hours, and the food is well-​portioned and delicious.
I started out with two cups of soups– one for my friend, and one for me. It was heartily made, and tasted very rich and fresh.
I also ordered a salad with goat cheese. Again. the dish was very well prepared, and I shared it with my friend.
Finally, we shared a large brunch platter. My, it was a huge dish! We split the hotcakes, had enough eggs to go around for four people, and ate a deliciously seared sausage. We felt very full after sharing the soup, salad, and platter.
Don’t forget– Piacere is featured on GROUPON!!! You can save a lot of money if you buy a Piacere visit off of Groupon– at least nine or ten dollars off your meal.
This place is wonderful. I will be coming back soon! :)

Thank you, Piacere hostess /​server for seating us and then promptly forgetting about us.
No attention, no offer of drinks, nothing. In fact, you went over to a table near us and had a conversation with the diner, but then just continued on your way to the kitchen.
After 10 minutes, we walked out.
This sizzling consumer economy on the Peninsula is rewarding bad service in the restaurant industry. I almost wish for a recession to cull the weak.

I’ve been here 3 – 4 times. I don’t really know why I bother to come back. In theory this place should be fantastic… every restaurant in San Carlos is pretty decent — why does this place always miss the mark?
I had a beet salad with chicken. The chicken was previously frozen. Badly frozen. It was rubbery and crunchy all at the same time. I am very reluctant to send things back but my colleague was not. She sent it back for me. I got steak instead. I ordered medium rare (it came well-​done). Nonetheless it was much much better than the chicken.
The remainder of the salad was delicious but again — it’s a salad. Can any place really get 5 stars based on a salad?
The waitress was very kind and did her best to recoop by offering us a free coffee. Which we accepted (it was good coffee too!)
Overall, I keep getting disappointed by Piacere’s but honestly, the ambiance and location sell itself. I may or may not be back.

Kind of have to agree with everyone else. This place is sadly just not as nice as it looks on the outside. First time we came, we were turned away so I never bothered coming back here until recently when a friend had heard great things about Piacere so we came at his behest– though we both firmly believe otherwise and will not be coming back again.
Firstly, we arrived on a Tuesday night, not the busiest of dinner hours either– a little after 7:00pm and there were only two full tables besides us, with one table already taking their check and getting out. Keep this in mind as we had to wait over an hour for our two dishes.
The waitress was extremely nice and did apologize once or twice, but taking that long for an appetizer (french fries and calamari) and even longer with entrees is a bit embarrassing for Piacere to be honest. And yes, I did time it as we had arrived at 7:06 pm and did not get food until after 8:00 pm. Just to make sure as the time went on, we had more beer than food within that first hour sadly, could have just moved to a bar down the street to get better draft selection and quicker bar bites.
We had the calamari to start, french fries with truffle oil that the waitress kindly got special-​ordered for us (I do not think this was the hold-​up as truffle can be sprinkled or the truffle oil dripped on… unless they went hunting with truffle-​sniffing pigs, which would be forgiven for their superlative search for fresh truffle ingredients) and also the risotto and linguine with clams.
The french fries were incredible and well-​oiled which means: unhealthy goodness. The truffle was actually from real truffle, not oil, which was appreciated. The calamari was tasty as well– not old, but yielded a good texture and the sauce was well-​paired (think tart).
The risotto that my friend had was great, he really liked it and said it was light but without compromise to flavor or depth and kept him content.
The complain I have is with my linguine with clams. The chef had failed to properly soak the clams in fresh water or to clean them out and what resulted was a mouthful of sand, crunchy and disgusting to my taste and probably destroying portions of my teeth by damaging the enamel unwittingly. This is a no-​no in my book and quite horrendous. The flavor was good though and the linguine was done properly if that is of any saving grace to the dish itself having sand and grit with every bite.
Other than that dish, I would say the experience was fair, but with the added fact that our food took that ridiculously long on a deadbeat night with just one other party there when we ordered– that is why I have to give this place 2-​stars and will be staying away in the future. Sad, as their live music and neat ambiance does attract me to their venue otherwise.

Glad to see this piece of crap restaurant is averaging only 3 stars on Unilocal.With all of the competition on restaurant row, its only a matter of time that they pick up and leave.
I was forced to try and wait for this place recently when I came with others, despite my pleas to go elsewhere. Luckily, they didnt have our reservations, so we went down the street to another restaurant with less attitude.

excelent choice! Good vibe. Good ambient. Good service. Good food and drinks.

Went to a Christmas party here. After visiting this place, I would NEVER host an event here, nor would I recommend. The food offered was cold and nothing impressive, the bartenders (the women) really snooty and dare I say catty, and just the general vibe unwelcoming. Well, the only nice staff were the ones cleaning up and replenishing said tasteless food. The mini burgers, pizza, etc were all cold and tasteless. And I wouldn’t dare trust the seafood reading some of the reviews below…
BTW Piacere/​Tony the owner, you might want to spend a few bucks on an audio engineer to help with the insanely painful and loud levels of music when the live band of the evening that is playing is literally ripping into people’s eardrums. You literally can’t even have any kind of conversation. Last time I checked awfully loud doesn’t mean «more fun».
There are way too many places to frequent than this one. Seriously, this place is just not worth the trip.

The service was great. The food was mediocre. We ordered the fried calamari and it was fine. The Caesar salad was also OK. But the real kicker was the prosciutto pizza, the cheese was bad, I mean it smelled funny.
After eating the pizza, I had a mild stomach ache… and believe me, I have a cast iron stomach.
Hopefully, they don’t use old cheese anymore.

I enjoyed my dinner here last night. The place was almost empty but all the dishes that we ordered were superb. I don’t mind paying $ 35 for 5 pieces of huge scallops. They were the best and most tender scallops in all of the Bay Area restaurants that I’ve been too.

There are a number of terrific restaurants on Laurel Street. I hadn’t tried this one so took a friend for her birthday lunch. I called for reservations since most places are busy at lunchtime. No need here. We were greeted warmly and seated immediately. It was then I noticed the modern music which was not conducive to either conversation or digestion. They did change the selection to holiday music when I requested they turn it down. The atmosphere would probably appeal to a younger client base. We saw no one under 50 among the few customers.
My guest ordered the chicken and slaw sandwich which she enjoyed despite mentioning that it was too «bready.» I order the Margharita pizza that challenges description. It was basically tasteless. I could taste the tomato and basal but had ordered a pizza, not a salad. The sauce (Marinara) and the Mozzarella were bland. I requested some Marinara on the side and discovered the problem when it was delivered. This was the most tasteless Marinara I’ve every had.
The service was good and our server was charming but based on this experience and their obvious appeal to a younger clientele, I doubt I’ll be back.

Came here with a big group, and they were happy to accommodate us. The service was good, and the burger was well seasoned. The brioche bun was huge. We had to cut some of it off since they also give a delicious bread and balsamic before the meal.
The only negative thing was that some of the staff go outside to smoke, and we could smell it.
They had a live band that played excellent Rick covers from AC/​DC to Led Zeppelin. They also pass tambourines around, allowing for some fun audience participation.

Live band on Friday and Saturday evenings. We keep returning because of the ambiance and my husband’s love for their pan roast mussels. I must say each mussel is tender, silky and huge. It’s roasted perfectly. Also, the price for this dish is amazing! We’ve been here several times.
Tonight was the first time I ordered the Cesar salad with grilled chicken. Chicken was delicious; tender and juicy! Great flavor. But the Cesar salad was disappointing. The dressing was more like a buttermilk dressing with garlic added. Croutons were not seasoned and Romain lettuce had brown edges in some areas. Overall, very tasteless.
Needless to say, this was a very different experience than what we had before. Maybe it was just an off night?! We will try again another day!

Food ranges from good to very good dependent on the dish. Very pricy for the neighborhood.
Service was pleasant but very inattentive for a higher end restaurant. We waited too long to get water refilled, drinks served, bread delivered. 45 minutes after ordering, our meal was brought out. They apologized for delay at 30 minutes («we had some big groups») but didn’t offer a drink or dessert to compensate. They have much to learn about customer service!
We won’t be going back. There are better options in the neighborhood !

I’m going to start off by saying I REALLY wanted to like this place. I have given Piacere a chance at lease 10 times. The only reason I have been here as many times as I have is because my boyfriend and I bought groupons since it was a good deal and it was walking distance from our house for a nice little date night. Every single time I walk away wishing I had gone somewhere else, so I’m done hoping for this place to turn around. The food is not bad, but that’s the only thing that is keeping this place alive (Well, that and the fact that its across the street from TOWN and that place gets so packed that Piacere just gets the overflow when TOWN isn’t an option). The bar staff has never, not one time, been personable and the drinks are over priced. I would go as far as saying the bartenders are actually quite rude/​snobby. I had a friend ask a bartender if one of their mixed drinks on the menu was good as it had an odd combination of ingredients and the bartenders response was a weird face and «well, I guess if you like fireball, but I don’t». Every time I have been here the staff acts like its some kind of privilege to eat here.
The food is overpriced for what it is. A bowl of pasta here ranged between about $ 26 and $ 32. FOR PASTA. I can walk across the street to TOWN and get steak, with sides for that much — and they have a much friendlier, personable and fun staff.
Then there is the inconsistency. They have no corkage fee on Sunday evenings. Or do they? We have done this multiple times, sometimes we have to remind them, sometimes they automatically honor it. We have done this with a groupon and without a groupon. Last night we came here (11−15−15), brought a bottle of wine with us, and used a groupon. They charged us a corkage fee. When I asked if they no longer have a «No corkage fee» on sundays her response was «You can only have one special, not both» — meaning we could either use the groupon OR have the corkage fee waived, but not both. On at least 3 other occasions, this was never a problem, and when I told her that, she just shrugged her shoulders and simply said «sorry» before walking away. Its really not even about the $ 20 corkage fee — its just the fact that the answer is NEVER the same. We were told before by a waitress that Sunday AND Monday was no corkage fee… then when we showed up on a Monday with a bottle of wine, we were charged and told, «oh, well that server was incorrect».
The live music nights are SO LOUD you literally cant have a conversation because you cant hear anything anyone is saying. Its ridiculous.
There have been a few times I have called to ask a question and there is a hostess that works there who has no clue what’s going on most of the time. My question of «Do you have a corkage fee tonight» was answered after being placed on hold with «No, i’m sorry, tonight there is no corkage fee». Why are you sorry? You clearly have no idea what a corkage fee is. Or another question «How busy are you guys right now, I’m wondering if I should make a reservation for in about an hour?» to which she replied, «Let me check, what’s the last name on your reservation?» WHAT?
TOWN quite literally may be the only reason this place is still in business — when TOWN is too busy, people just walk across the street to Piacere. I’d pick TOWN any day over this place, and id rather wait an hour for a table there…
I don’t see this place lasting that much longer.

Love the kids meals. So healthy, tasty and fresh. My kids love the homemade pasta and meatballs, and the salmon and penne pesto. With a scoop on homemade vanilla bean ice cream. So good! So healthy! The staff are lovely.

We received the food for lunch at work.
The names were all inaccurate. For example orecchiette pasta (
) were actually penne. We also ave some paste label as «Spaghetti & Meatballs» made of penne.
Pasta was overcooked, and it is white with some sprinkle of sauce. Most likely the sauce did not stick on the penne and they probably stirred the pasta with the sauce afterward and not on the fire.
To be fair it may have been because it was gluten-​free pasta.
But the sauce was also «meh».
Grilled lemon chicken breasts were actually tasting pretty good (though the olive oil they used was subpar). Since I like it, that is because it get 2 and not 1 star!
I just noticed this is classified as «American (New)» on Unilocal so that may explain why the pasta tasted like fake italian food.

Live music, heated outdoor seating, and a menu w/​tons of options drew my family here for dinner on a Saturday evening. Overall, we enjoyed our experience at Piacere and would consider stopping by again if we’re in the area.
Ambiance:
Beautiful interior and several seating areas (indoor & outdoor) to choose from. On an evening with nice weather, outdoor seating was especially nice & the heat lamps above kicked in once it got chilly enough. We came on a Saturday night to find a cover band playing everything from classic rock to Johnny Cash to AC/​DC… a surprising treat for a restaurant that could have easily stuck with some predictably low key music.
Service:
We were seated right away without any wait whatsoever. The hostess provided us with menus as well as an iPad that acted as a wine menu for the evening. Our waiter was very welcoming and consistently came back to check on our table. Dishes were served in a timely manner and water was refilled regularly.
Food:
* Calamari — Fried, Garlic Aioli & Sun Dried Tomato Aioli. This appetizer was fine, though I think the aoli’s outshined the calamari.
* Wood-​fired prawns — Castelvetrano Olives, Slivered Garlic, Bell Peppers, Shaved
Lemon, Sea Salt, Olive Oil. This dish arrived in a rustic preparation, served in a small pan with all the ingredients mixed together. The prawns definitely fell flat for me. While they were cooked nicely, they didn’t seem to absorb any of the flavor of the other elements in the dish, so ultimately they felt a bit bland.
* Heirloom tomato salad — Kale, pesto, burrata. Hands down, the tomatoes were the star of this dish. They were sliced in meaty portions, glowing red/​purple, and quite juicy. The burrata paired really nicely. However the kale felt like an odd choice of green to add to the mix & the pesto sauce was hardly noticeable.
* Beef sliders w/​fries. One of the best things we had all evening. The beef was cooked perfectly and the the portion size felt right.

So the last time I was at Piacere I had what seemed like a mediocre experience and I closed my review with a comment that I probably won’t be back. Well, that was 5 years ago, so I apparently wasn’t kidding.
We decided to try it again and see what has changed.
To start, this is a really beautiful restaurant. It’s decorated really well, and it is separated into several different rooms with different vibes. Their acoustics can be a little odd, though. We sat at a small table for two along the wall and were able to hear every word of the conversation of the table next to us in the middle, and I swear it seemed like a gentleman at another table was wearing a microphone because not only could I hear his content, I wanted to turn down his volume.
Drinks:
We had a pair of their drinks and they were both very good. They have a cucumber cocktail that was super refreshing, and the daily special apple mule was super flavorful.
Food:
Asparagus pizza — this made for a nice appetizer, although the pizza itself was a little bland. I’d go for a saltier topping next time.
Nudi — outstanding truffle cream sauce, but the gnocchi were quite chewy. They reminded me of boba. It wasn’t unpleasant, but that’s not the pillowy texture you want from gnocchi.
Rack of lamb — really good. Salty crust, good cook on the meat, and interesting, well-​prepared accompaniments.
So overall, this was a pretty good experience, and I think we’ll be back again without such an obscene break.

We love this place and come many weeks during the San Carlos farmers market. I’ve had many great meals here. But I’m told there’s a new chef and tonight our calamari came accompanied by … ketchup.
Fail.

Pretty average. Not sure I will be rushing to go back.
Came here on a Wed night with a Groupon. My wife ordered the Royal Organic Quinoa & Roasted Zucchini and I ordered the Mary’s Organic Frenched Chicken Breast (sans mushrooms since I am not a lover of the fungus). My wife’s oder was pretty bland and the quinoa/​veggie ratio was off – not enough veggies. My chicken was good. Nice wine and waitstaff.

On Saturday, 7÷5÷14, I took my Mom out to brunch at Piacere. I discovered this restaurant back in 2011 when my Mom, my best friend and I ate at the restaurant across the way called the Town. Three years later I finally found time to give Piacere a try. I should have known it wasn’t going to be a good experience since we were the only people eating at the restaurant for brunch and it literally seemed like a ghost town inside of the restaurant.
Atmosphere/​Décor:
Piacere has outdoor dining with plenty of seating. The overall design of the restaurant looks pretty nice. There is plenty of seating inside of the restaurant and private or group dining is available. The carpet seemed run down and outdated. The dining chairs needed some TLC as well. My Mom noticed some grease stains along with finger prints on one chair. When I went to use the restroom, I walked by the open kitchen and saw scraps of different foods on the floor near the wood burning oven. The kitchen looked dirty and poorly maintained. I even saw a pasta dish that was open, exposed, left out and unattended.
Food:
My Mom and I both ordered the Short Rib Hash which consisted of braised beef short rib, two fried eggs over medium, country potatoes, onions and cream fraiche. This dish sounds very good when you think about it but it’s a different story when you actually eat it. The beef short rib tasted old! It had that old beef flavor. The short rib was definitely precooked a few days before. They give you a generous amount of short rib which is a good thing but not really because it tasted old as dirt. The eggs and potatoes were pretty decent. My Mom barely ate any of her Short Rib Hash due to the nasty old tasting short rib.
Service:
Our waiter wasn’t great or the worst. Honestly, we really didn’t even see him that much. One of the food runners brought out our food. Our waiter didn’t even come by and ask us how the food was. He probably knew the short rib tasted like shit and new our answer was going to be, «The short rib tastes like old shit!» Our waiter miraculously appeared when he dropped off the check. My Mom said I should have brought up the shitty tasting short rib but I didn’t. Oh well.
Overall:
Don’t even waste your time at Piacere. If a restaurant can’t serve good food during brunch, they most likely won’t have good food for their dinner service! This was my first time back to San Carlos since 2011. My Mom and I were really looking forward to eating at Piacere but it was a huge let down. We came all the way from Union City. The next time I come back to San Carlos it definitely won’t be for Piacere, it’ll be for the Sandwich Spot!!!