Cafe Claude Marina

12.13.14 | bookmarked 10.10.14
Secret, quiet restaurant on Greenwich off Fillmore, just steps from the Triangle. Completely different atmosphere (and a welcomed breath of fresh air) in the hood.
It was SantaCon 2014. Not really going to recount how many drunk santas I had to walk past to get to dinner.
Having been to the downtown location, I had high expectations. It was met. Décor was on point. Service was attentive. Very much enjoyed the experience.
We had the charcuterie plate, mussels, and trout. All combined with a bottle of the cote de rhone. And finished with the warm chocolate cake. I recommend the entire meal.
Total damage for two: $ 135

This is a nice, cozy, neighborhood french bistro. The food was basic but well done. Friendly staff and good atmosphere. Definitely low key, nice date night but not very private. Just as in France, tables are close together in the tiny restaurant, but that is part of the charm.
Food again was nicely prepared, but don’t come here if you are in the mood for gourmet or an inventive menu. Next time I’ll try their downtown location on Friday night because they have live Jazz. The location in the Marina was quiet, quaint and cozy.

Located just off Fillmore Street in the Marina, Café Claude is a tucked away «secret» spot that almost makes you feel like you aren’t in San Francisco anymore. The restaurant design is beautiful with rich woodwork, simple accents and a beautiful bar in the center. A perfect place to grab a drink with friends or a date, Café Claude features a menu filled with french dishes that will keep you coming back for more.
What to Eat:
1. FRENCH ONION SOUP
Café Claude has the best french onion soup in San Francisco. The best.
2. BOEUF BOURGUIGNON
This dish is only available on Saturdays and they usually run out, so make sure to get there early.
3. TARTINE DE TOMATE
This combination of fresh heirloom tomatoes, burrata, olive oil and spices is the perfect start to the meal. It’s great for sharing…
EXTRA CREDIT: THEY HAVE REALLY COOL KNIVES
TIP: FOR A GREAT DINNER EXPERIENCE, GRAB A SEAT AT THE BAR. THE BARTENDERS ARE GREAT AND WILL WILL HELP YOU CHOOSE THE BEST DISHES, WINES AND MORE.

Food okay. Seemed very over priced. Won’t repeat.

The food was delish.
Bartender had no engagement except to take order. Red wines by the glass are meh. Had hoped for a decent Burgundy or Bordeaux. Will try again in hopes for better service. And bring my own vin.

Café Clsude was a delightful surprise !! Having been to Paris repeatedly, we always look for authentic French cuisine. The space is lovely, rather romantic, but anyone can enjoy it for any kind of occasion. We knew we had a winner, when the appetizers arrived. The escargot were uniquely prepared but still, in a French tradition. Corn fritters were delicious too. Beef Bourgogne was one of the best we ever had. We also had steak and Frits, very good quality of meat, lovely sauce. We ended our meal with a cheese plate. Well balanced flavors, fine quality.
Café Claude is a neighborhood gem, hands down!

We ordered the escargot and steak tartare, both of which were excellent.
AS entrees, we had the flank steak with pommes frites, mine was very good, medium, the other medium/​rare was definilitley medium as well.
Staff very friendly, tried some interesting choices of red wine by the glass

Great food, nice location for a ‘girls day out’ service was fine… we had a wonderful brunch — came in over the Memorial Weekend sat right inside on a four-​top nice outdoor seating.
Everything we ordered looked and tasted scrumptious. Had the bottomless Champagne pretty tasty they use Sofia Coppola!
Respectfully Reviewed

Came here for a Unilocal event and got to sample a lot of their menu. The tuna nicoise salad is great, fish fries are amazing, and the strawberry cheesecake is a standout as well. Great date night ambiance!

After returning to Café Claude for a Unilocal event, I would definitely return for the burger whether or not it is served on a baguette! They’ve obviously been working on their brunch items since the initial launch of the brunch menu (the weekend we first went there) and the burger is now so succulent, perfectly cooked, and dressed with delicious roasted peppers. I tried the ham and cheese and enjoyed it along with the French toast bites, again. So glad we returned for the event and I’m looking forward to a brunch on the patio with our dog on a sunny weekend in SF.

Oh la la! The ambiance at Café Claude is perfect for a romantic date night… cozy and charming. I don’t spend a lot of time in the Marina but this is a spot I’d frequent again. I even prefer this location over the original one downtown.
Don’t miss the Lillet cocktails and truffled frites. They pair so well together… just like you and your beau ;) Oh, and the strawberry cheesecake was to die for! I am tempted to come back and try the French onion soup and moules frites next time.

Just had a great meal with wife and friends. Enjoyed the food, and the service. Had time at the bar to have a few drinks, found the bartender to be attentive, courteous and knowledgable in regard to the wine list provided.
I would highly recommend the Café Claude for a pleasant night out. I will return.

«Meh» is exactly right. The décor is attractive, but everything else is disappointing. The staff don’t know the wines, the wines by the glass are unremarkable, the food isn’t what our waiter described.
I find it hard to believe these people think they can charge as much money as they do and provide this low level of service. Maybe if the food was so fantastic you could ignore the service, but even the food wasn’t all that great. Our mac and cheese was cold in the middle. Come on, you can’t get mac and cheese right? Moules frites — way too salty.
The steak frites, on the other hand, was a well prepared dish and so I’ll give them one more star for that.

Very disappointed in wines by the glass. Mac n cheese undercooked and Brussels sprouts had strange fermented aftertaste. My husband got sick in the middle of the night and my tummy hurt.
Beautiful ambiance and sweet bartender but I wouldn’t go back.

Will be coming back here! The ambiance is excellent and décor makes me wish I was as cool. Waitress was very attentive and overall it was a great experience.
Came on a Saturday night and it was our first time. Apéritif (cider based) was way better than expected as was the wine (savi blanc). Ordered the ribs and seared tuna… and they were both very good. It’s no 5star restaurant but it’s worth trying and for folks like me who appreciate the details. I will be adding this to my list of go-​to restaurants.

As a rabid Francophile, I was very excited to try Café Claude, recently opened in the Marina. Sadly, I found it rather hit and miss.
Décor = Amazing. The place is wonderfully styled and very inviting. I could sit in there all day.
Staff = Lovely. Also, kind of freakishly attractive. I mean, I know this is Marina, but I’ve never seen people this pretty in San Francisco, like ever.
Food = Sadly underwhelming. I ordered the burger, which I wouldn’t normally do at a French bistro (if you’ve spent time in Paris, you know the French are still in the process of embracing the burger), but it sounded so good. Brioche bun! Tomato shallot jam! I asked for it to be cooked medium well, knowing that the French prefer to keep things rare and assuming it would probably come out more like medium. Well, it came out pretty much raw. I decided to soldier on with it and embrace the experience, but the gamey, raw meat flavor just overwhelmed everything else and became unpleasant rather quickly. I should have sent it back, but at that point I’d taken enough bites that it felt weird to do so. So, my bad experience is partially my fault. But still. I didn’t enjoy my meal and felt a little queasy afterward.
Next time = I will stick with French classics. The menu is full of them, and I should have ordered one to begin with.

Great new location in Marina with easier access than financial district. It will be a hit here as well I’m sure. I visit SF often and am always looking for the great new place, this one hits the mark. The local I dined with who lives in the area said she will definitely be back again. We mused that SF is such a foodie town with such great restaurants.
Staff was professional, welcoming and well trained. Everyone was interested in ensuring a great evening; everyone said thanks come again on the way out. And they really saved my bacon — I left my credit card accidentally and they went the extra mile to get it back to me. now that’s service!
Menu works well to share. Charcuterie and cheese plate together are the perfect starter with a rich and robust red. Moules & frites plump and well flavored with beer, onion, fennel and nice addition of apple. Great bacon mac and cheese. For dessert sad to see the Tarte Aux Pommes is gone, but bread pudding was impressive.
Will definitely be back again!

Décor and atmosphere are fine (a little on the loud side even for a café but we were sitting right under a speaker). However it was a disappointing meal with poor service:
1) Mussels were shriveled and few for an entrée.
2) Bread was stale and chewy.
3) The waiter brought me the wrong order, tried to cover his mistake, and insisted that I tried it first before returning it. I didn’t want to have to wait so ate it anyway. It was a confit of duck and underwhelming.
4) Fries were overcooked and way too salty.
5) When I asked if they had malt vinegar or mayonnaise to go with the fries, the waiter left to check and never returned to let me know if yes or no it was available.
As much as I liked Café Claude, I’ll never go back to this location and will think twice before returning to the original location.

I was particularly interested in checking this place out as it is a restaurant from my homeland and 4 blocks from my house, I had heard some not so flattering things about the place but I NEVER go on hearsay OR reviews…
Brandade de Morue:
— — — — — — — — —
Authentic, traditional and very very close to how my dad makes it, i.e. Delish!-
I just wish it was a bit bigger. [I could eat 5x that — no problem]
The meal started off very well…
Soup à l’Oignon:
— — — — — — — -
Just on the right side of salty, any more and it wouldn’t have worked. There was the right amount of bread, onions and not only did it have the right cheese but in the right quantity [even though is there ever enough cheese? ;) — yum ].
Confit de Canard:
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Interesting combination of épice du Nord de L’Afrique with the Duck. The vegetables complimented it well — just wish the sauce was separated and more copious it got lost in there…
Tartes aux Pommes: One word: SKIP ;(
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Mousse au Chocolat:
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Quite GOOD — they know which chocolate to use!
The Brittle was superfluous and hurt the dish vs helped it but was very good as Brittle goes.
Wine:
— — -
The Croze-​Hermitage complimented the Duck well and had a very pleasant nose.
The Gros-​Manseng was wonderful to the palate, it’s nose hides its true potential.
Wine List:
— — — —
While I found 2 very nice wines by the glass for the evening I can’t help but find the Wine List bizarre, awkward and lacking. I hope over time to see major improvements here — I realize that having worked in a Wine Store makes me a bit wanting.
Service:
— — — -
Attentive to very attentive. Wish all SF restaurants had their staff. If there was 6 stars for service, you would have earned it.
Ambiance /​Décor:
— — — — — — — —
Aside from the very boisterous girls at the corner of the bar the ambiance was nice. The music pleasant, not too loud. The Décor while not being my particular style works well for this place.
What hurts them: having a low ceiling and not using noise dampening ceiling tiles.
Value:
— — –
That is so subjective and to be honest I wasn’t paying, I was invited by my friends — but for 3 people — 2 appetizers, 1 entrees, 2 desserts and 2 glasses of wine [we were sharing and one of us wasn’t very hungry] we averaged under $ 30 a person and it was very good so we all left with smiles on our faces and no one thinking it was too expensive…
Conclusion:
— — — — —
For a restaurant that has been opened a short time, this is very promising and the food was overall very good and a very nice first experience. I look forward to coming back soon to an even better one!

10÷3÷13 Dinner
3.5* I’m excited that café Claude opens a second location on Greenwich in the Cow Hollow. Unlike the original on Claude Lane, this restaurant truly breathes a French air. Velvet damask wallpaper, mirrors, and chandeliers — so pretty and elegant here. Tables are typically San Francisco — tiny, crammed together, and tight. So small that they have to take our bread plates to serve the mains. Due to the low ceiling the restaurant got very loud even though it wasn’t a full house.
Menu is pretty much the same as the Claude Lane location except, appallingly, no coq au vin. The only beef entrée other than the New York Steak is a short ribs on Sunday, the plat du jour. Otherwise the menu features assorted charcuterie, pates, and carte du diner (daily special plate).
The crowd here is older, more mature. Think old ladies with pearl necklace. Parking is on the street no valet. It took us 20 minutes to find a space two blocks from the restaurant. Half the house had escogots and onion soups but we passed on both. Onion soups looked very thick.
*Pomme Frites ($ 7): very crispy and piping hot, served with aioli du maison. We got this because it doesn’t come with Le Burger, and I’m not planning to get the Faux Filet, which is a New York steak.
*Le Burger ($ 14): perfect done, medium-​rare, on a very fluffy brioche bun. The tomato-​shallot jam is a bit too «odorous» for my taste but the BF enjoyed his burger.
*Thon Nicoise ($ 23): this is like the plat, cooked version of the Salad Nicoise, with three slices of pan seared albacore tuna, romaine, cherry tomatoes and fingerling tomato. The three pieces of tuna were all seared to different extent. One piece is overcooked. The plat is too soupy for my liking.
*Mousse au Chocolat ($ 8): this is pure decadence. The bittersweet chocolate mousse melts in the mouth. Café Claude knows their desserts.
Two glasses of Voignier whites for the meal — I prefer French wines for French food. Service was very attentive and our waitress was friendly. Overall I think the flavor at Claude Lane in downtown is better, but I am more tolerable for new restaurant.

Five stars for food and ambience. Came here for a late-​night dinner on a Sunday night.
First of all, I am a sucker for velvet damask wallpaper, so I already love this place. The entire restaurant gave off a warm and comfortable vibe.
As for the food, The steak frites were TO DIE FOR. They are also really understanding about substitutions which was nice. I substituted the fries for potatoes (which were also perfectly cooked, not too dry and super flavorful). The tuna was also cooked well, but I think I’m pretty impartial to steak. The green beans were fairly mediocre, but maybe that was just as compared to the rest of the meal. They have a nice variety of desserts, and we settled on the crème brûlée.
Overall, I would say this is a great date spot. A little on the pricier side, but definitely well worth your money for a special occasion.

Viva la France!
I had the pleasure of getting a sneak taste of the new Café Claude in Cow Hollow. This place is going to be a huge hit with the Marina crowd.
First off, the place looks amazing! They did one helluva job with the design/​décor. I remember when this place used to be Abigail’s bakery. It’s incredible how they completely revamped the interior. It’s so warm and romantic, intimate, and unpretentious. The owners also run Gitane and Claudine — so they have the recipe down when it comes to designing sexy restaurants.
My dining companion and I wound up sharing a few things. We really dug their gnocchi dish. It was nice that they didn’t drown the dish in any kind of heavy sauce. They just let the well seasoned potato dumplings and vegetables speak for themselves. It was an excellent starter.
We also ordered the steak tartare, which was good — but not great. It was def flavorful, but I thought they could’ve done a better job with the presentation. Why not showcase the different spices, capers, shallots, quail egg, etc. that go in to making this tasty mound of meat so tasty? After all, people eat with their eyes. But like I said, the dish was tasty — I’m just a steak tartare snob.
I really enjoyed my steak frites. The meat was cooked to perfection (medium rare). The fries were crispy. And how can you not love a big heaping gob of creamy garlic butter? Cholesterol be damned. This dish is a winner.
My friend ordered the salmon. I liked it, but she has a thing against red peppers (and there were a ton of them in the dish). So although she wasn’t a huge fan, I would def order it again.
We skipped on dessert, but the selections looked decadent.
All in all, it was a lovely dining experience. I have no doubt that Café Claude Part Deux will be a huge hit. This is going to be the Marina’s top new date spot.