Rocco’s Café

Had a quick breakfast here on a Sunday and it was pretty good. No complaints about the food. Overheard the manager being a bit harsh with staff in front of customers, but maybe it was an off day.

Came here for breakfast twice last week. Neither ones was their service fast nor friendly, even though both times they were nearly empty during prime breakfast hours. The breakfast was eh (omelettes and bread based things) and maybe it’s just me but I sorely missed being able to order a muffin or some other vaguely breakfasty item that I figured a restaurant with their vibe/​atmosphere would have.

Tried Rocco’s for breakfast this morning after seeing Unilocal reviews and because it was in walking distance from our hotel. We wanted a solid breakfast that didn’t leave us hungry and with sticker shock as some other SF restaurants have. This was the perfect location. The food was really good and worth the reasonable price. I had eggs benedict and the husband had an omelet with a biscuit. The coffee was good and always full without having to ask for refills. Service was very friendly and prompt. We have our new go to place when we are in town.

First time eating here. Wonderful food, excellent service. Go on Wednesdays for their thing crust pizza. Very fresh ingredients
But get there early, they do get quite busy.

I really, really like Rocco’s. It is hard to believe that such a down-​to-​earth place exists in SF. The décor is extremely homey and the staff is so friendly. It is such a treat to come here. I have been for breakfast numerous times and for dinner once and each meal has been great. I love their healthier items and never feel like I have to give up taste here to eat something nutritious. Who would have thought that a place on Diners, Drive Ins and Dives would ever have food that tastes as good as it nourishes you!
For breakfast, I really enjoy their Vegetable Egg White omelet with Grilled Tomatoes and toast for $ 13.95. I like that it is really healthy but tasty since they use roasted vegetables in the omelet and the grilled tomatoes are seasoned. It is very enjoyable and I love eating healthy without feeling deprived for it. I have also sampled Rocco’s Favorite Frittata (Sausage, cheese, tomato, basil, onions) and their Blueberry Pancakes and both were really great. Their coffee is also much better than expected and the wait staff is really great about never letting your cup get too low!
While I have only been once for dinner, I really enjoyed it and cannot wait to go back. Be sure to take advantage of their Unilocal check-​in deal to get a free glass of house wine, beer or soft drink! I ordered their Marinated Grilled Chicken Salad ($ 15) which was FANTASTIC. The flavors worked really well together and it was light without being skimpy. With my glass of white wine, I was a REALLY happy camper. My boyfriend got their French Dip Sandwich ($ 15) which was really tasty and came with a generous side of fries. He was also really happy with his choice. We split their bread pudding for dessert which was definitely the low point of the night but whatever, bread pudding is hard to do well and it really isn’t a place that specializes in dessert. I think we would skip it next time and just get Its-​Its from the deli next door ;)
I cannot wait to come back, especially for dinner, to try their more Italian-​style entrees. The pastas and meats people around us ordered all looked great and smelled fantastic. Again, this is not a pretentious place but it also doesn’t feel like a dive. This is a great place to come when you just want to relax, let your hair down and enjoy a hearty meal.

This place is delicious (breakfast), staff attentive and friendly, owner was adorable showing off photo of his daughter (now a waitress there) on the wall as a baby in a spaghetti bowl, and they make avocados flowers!

We had breakfast. Everything was pretty good, but my frittata was not a frittata. A frittata is supposed to have the ingredients inside, and is supposed to be slow cooked to make it fluffy usually the top is browned.
What I got was more of an open-​face omelette. It was a fried egg with some sausage, tomatoes, and cheese thrown on top. I was hungry so I ate it. It wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t a frittata.

This place is amazing. We sat down and locals continually were coming in to eat. The owner was there and sat us. Breakfast was amazing. Highly recommend this place and would be regulars if we lived here.

Very good meal there. I went with three of my long time friends. A couple of them had been here before and recommended it, so all four of us came. There’s no off street parking and on street parking is kind of at a premium in the South of Market Area. So, I took the bus down.
Foodwise, all four of us had breakfast. My three friends had eggs with pancakes and meat. It looked quite good and all seemed to be cooked to the specified doneness (meaning eggs done as requested and, in one case, the bacon was crispy). One of my friends had blueberry pancakes and boy, did they look good.
I had the french toast with a banana. It was also quite good. The bread was soft, but didn’t fall apart and the banana was fresh. The syrup wasn’t too sweet, so I liked that as well.
Service was prompt and courteous. The prices seem to be on a par with breakfasts.
So, all in all, a good, hearty meal and a place that I would definitely recommend.

Decided to try this place out based on DDD. When we first entered on Gorgeous Sunday evening around 6, I was surprised that there was only 1 other table dining. Our waitress was very friendly. The décor is a collection old photos and various other memorabilia. The place is very clean. I ordered the special shiitake mushroom raviolis with a shiitake sauce and a chicken breast on top. The chicken was grilled with some spice and place on top. The raviolis were delicious but I thought was chicken was just ok and It would have been fine without it. Overall it was a good experience and I’d probably come back if I were in the area.

Met the owner this morning… what a great guy. I decided we were coming back for dinner. This has to the best breakfast spot in the city. I’m sure dinner will not disappoint. Wife had poached eggs, avocado slices and grilled tomatoes. I had the Racco’s Frittata… so good!!!

I ordered a Pasta Primavera and it was okay. But the Gnocchi though. Oh my… that was so good. I forgot the name of the dessert I got but that was amazing too. But like everything in San Francisco, it’s definitely on the pricy side.

One more time… hanging with the crew at Rocco’s! Owner /​Chef Don Dial is going to be whipping up his family Penne Pesto Pasta recipe for the table and his world famous «Best in SF» Chicken Marsala!
Will be washing it down with Blackberry Pie ala mode!
Yum yum!
Happy 420 day with some Old Dawgs from San Rafael High!

This is the place to go If you’re looking for a homestyle Italian restaurant.
They offer a stellar breakfast, lunch and dinner menu. Out of the oven french bread at the table with rich olive oil for dipping and heavy wine pours. I’ve been a customer for about 8 years or so and its consistently good. Reasonably price and an abundance of food.
Rocco’s is truly a neighborhood gem. I’m very very very grateful this place is our neighborhood spot.

Meh. We went for a weekend breakfast and it wasn’t overly busy and the menu was a bit more limited than we would have liked. Pretty dive-​y with great articles, pictures, and knick knacks on the wall. I am not sure what this restaurant is known for but breakfast isn’t it!
I had the vegetable fritatta and it had carrots in it which was interesting but not bad. Overall I wasn’t too impressed with the food. I probably wouldn’t come back.

We love Rocco’s! Open even on ester! Happy ester!
Great food, historical peace… Great service!

Was in the area looking for a good breakfast spot and hadn’t been impressed the last couple mornings. Finally got to Rocco’s and was pleasantly surprised. I sat at the bar– as I was eating the cooks were steadily preparing the meals and cooking with intent. The head cook was getting lunch prepared for the next round of visitors. Has the old school diner feel but definitely serious about the food around these parts though. Enjoy.

I was roaming through San Francisco and found this great breakfast diner. They were pretty busy but get seated fairly quickly. The whole staff was very friendly and caring which I really appreciated. The food is SUPER good and fresh! I will be back if I am ever back in the area.

I wasn’t sure about having pasta in the US. But this café proved me wrong. The pasta was awesome and so was the service. I also liked the interior of the café, it’s full with american history/​celebrities.

Excellent! Had chicken piccata, melts in your mouth, for lunch this afternoon. Great atmosphere, reasonable prices. Definitely a favorite of mine. Thanks. Including a pik.

Love this place for weekend brunch! Unlimited coffee refills don’t hurt either. Grapefruit mimosas are clutch.

OMG!!!1 EXCELLENT!
We sat at the bar and it was like being at a live cooking show. The Chef was having so much fun, everyone in the Kitchen was smiling happy and up beat just entertaining. The whole staff seemed to be enjoying what they did, servers were really attentive.
we had dinner & Food was amazing, one of the best restaurants I have ever been to. My husband had the Meatball spaghetti the meatballs were as big as baseballs. LOL :)
I had the fish with vegetables wonderfully grilled.
Looking forward to going back and trying more dishes.

THIS PLACE IS AWESOME.
I’ve had food from here since I was a little girl, so I think it’s about time I wrote a review for it. My family, friends and I are huge fans of the Chicken Marsala. It’s definitely the thing you have to try if this is your first time here. The Sautéed Petrale Sole Piccata, Pasta in Pesto, and Sauteed Linguine are also my favorites. The bread and garlic-​oil dipping sauce they serve with your meal is so simple, yet so good!
The atmosphere is wonderful too, but it might not be for every occasion (like dates – especially with the very garlicky-​oil dipping sauce you get with your bread). It’s usually pretty loud, and crowded, but I think that’s kind of what gives it its charm. It’s fun and relaxing and you enjoy really good food. I’m glad they changed their exhaust vent too because back in the day you would leave the restaurant smelling like food. Parking is a nightmare, but lucky me, I work in walking distance :)

The owner was unbelievably rude to us. I’ve never had a worse experience at a restaurant.
My girlfriend and I came in at 4:30 for a late lunch and were seated at a table that was cold. The place was empty, but when we moved to a new table, the owner yelled at us and told us «you can’t just sit wherever you want».
We told him that we didn’t want to be treated that way and walked out. As we left he told us «I knew I didn’t like you from the moment you guys walked in.»

Tried breakfast at Rocco’s Café 1÷3÷16. OMG… they just make food magical!
I had the Rocco’s French toast (which tasted a lot like pumpkin pie spice on a sourdough sliced bread) — DELICIOUS. My Boyfriend had the Crab Cake Eggs Benedict special, and said it was the best Benedict he’s ever eaten. So, now, not only is it one of our very favorite dinner spots, but now will be one of our favorite breakfast spots too! Please, if you haven’t gone to Rocco’s for a meal, go as soon as possible!

Alright, but not memorable.
This place is decent, but when we were there we were so hot we thought we were all going to pass out. The food also ended up taking way too long, but the friendly staff gave us champagne to tide us over, which was very kind and appreciated.

Found this place by luck. Really wanted to eat breakfast at 2pm and lucked out with them serving it until 3pm. Awesome service and the food was fantastic! I would totally go back!

I have been living in SoMa for over six years. and have been to Rocco’s a dozen of times. I want to love this place as my neighborhood spot, but unfortunately everything has deteriorated over time.
The service is always extremely slow, leaving the patrons requesting basics things like water refills. Last time we brought guests there we waited 15 minutes before someone came to take our food order. The food is just mediocre.
After our last experience I don’t think I will be back. I rather go a little further to Just for You and get superior service and food.

Whoaaaaaaaaah. This place is SO GOOD.
I went here recently on a Sunday to grab some brunch/​lunch. It was a cold, blustery day; and walking in from outside, a wash of warm air and delicious smells immediately signaled that my group and I had found the perfect refuge from the elements. We were sat between an adorable family of four and a gruff man eating alone reading a newspaper— the mix of clientele speaks to the broad appeal of the food, and combined with the cluttered walls and classic diner layout, this place instantly has much more authentic, nostalgic appeal than you sometimes see in modern San Francisco. The perfect mix of family-​friendly and no-​nonsense.
The menu is fairly large, with a good hearty selection of all your favorite comfort foods. Pasta, sandwiches, soups, salads; breakfast staples like pancakes, omelets— the entire menu boasts simple, familiar, and delicious options, which makes it hard to choose! It’s all of the foods I am always craving but can be so hard to find in a sea of restaurants competing to give you something ‘new’.
Most of my friends ordered breakfast food, but I just had to have linguine with clams and marinara, which for some reason sounded like just the ticket on a cold afternoon. The food arrived, and it looked amazing. No sad, anemic looking plates here — everything looked hearty, fresh, and plentiful. And, true to form, the food was all of those things! As well as being absolutely delicious. Without pulling anything trendy or frivolous, each dish was prepared with care and quality ingredients. The result was excellent, simple food done so very right. Even though it might not be the fanciest or trendiest place in town, I can say that my straight-​forward linguine with clams was one of the best things I have had at a restaurant in a long time. I could find no fault with it whatsoever, except that I wish I had ordered several more plates full.
The diner-​like atmosphere admittedly made me think that we were in for some brusque service, but all of the servers were extremely warm. They were prompt and generous with refills, and they could be heard conducting pleasant conversation with other restaurant patrons throughout our visit.
Overall, Rocco’s was solid in pretty much every way imaginable. I loved everything about it, and no doubt will be back soon!

My girlfriend and I were craving blueberry pancakes this morning and most places we looked up were either really expensive or didn’t even put the blueberries IN the pancakes… what? Eventually found this place and since it was within walking distance of our hotel, we were sold (good pics of blueberry pancakes helped).
We ordered blueberry pancakes, three cheese frittata, apple juice, and coffee for a total of about $ 30.
Very polite and attentive staff with prompt service, healthy (generous, depending on what you order) portions, not overpriced for the quality, and the coffee was better than usual machine drip. All in all my gf and I were very satisfied with our breakfast. Definitely had to tip the waitress. Would recommend to friends.

I didn’t have high expectations coming here from the south bay. For some reason, every time my husband and I come up to the city, we eat expensive, bleh food. Luckily, this time was not one of those.
Inside is pretty packed with décor, but it adds a nice charm. I couldn’t stop looking around at something new every few seconds. A hoarder’s diner perhaps? It’s a smaller restaurant and on a Sunday around 1 pm it was packed. The tables are really close; I felt as if I might knock over other diner’s food as I got up. Whew!
Our waitress was super nice and easy going. Every little extra thing we ordered or asked for, she seemed to respond with a, «Sure. No problem.» Throughout, she was attentive, quick, and overall, provided great service. The other staff members seemed of equal ability.
The food we shared:
Side Blue Cheese Salad — REALLY cheesy, but fresh.
Rib Eye — SOOOOOOOOO juicy with a tasty sauce (best item).
Side Gnocchi — Soft, gooey, fresh, and with a great pesto sauce.
Meatball Sandwich — Tough bread, but the meatballs were zesty.
Fries — Standard fare, so good.
The portions were pretty big, so we brought home plenty to share for dinner the next night as well. It was just as good the second time around.
*It was a bit hard to hear our friends over brunch, so I think groups can be a bit more difficult.

From Diners, Drive Inns and Dives a couple of years ago, Roccos was actually good! My chicken parm with pasta and salad was a perfect size portion, not small, and was very flavorful. The garlic infused olive oil served with the bread was excellent. A local Cabernet was full of fruit. It’s very rare to find a restaurant that was on DDD that is actually good but Roccos is good and is actually owned by a real Italian guy, so don’t be afraid to come here. A thoroughly enjoyable experience with thoroughly experienced servers and waitresses.

Those of you on Paleo or Atkins diets may want to skip my pancake-​adoring review or just skip to the bacon part. Those of who who seek the processed carbs, read on!
In my quest for blueberry pancakes — with the blueberries INSIDE the pancakes, as is the One True Way — I found Rocco’s today via Unilocal.They even take reservations, so I made one for myself at 11:30 AM. I checked out their menu online first and saw this worrisome text on the *printable* menu:
Pancakes and French Toast Served
7 AM — 11:30 AM Monday — Friday
Serving Breakfast All Day Saturday and Sunday
I called to pre-​order my blueberry pancakes to get in under the dread 11:30 wire, and the woman answering promised that no, pancakes were served until 3 PM. So worry not, fellow pancake-​seekers! It is true. The online *printable* menu is outdated and so are the prices on it – so this could use an update. But the breakfast menu listed online here is up-​to-​date –
– though this doesn’t have everything listed that the printable version does (drinks, etc.)
Once inside the comforting, dive-​like interior, I noted all the cool metal signs covering the walls, and old-​fashioned touches, like a copper counter and hooks to hang your purse on (always appreciated!). No 2-​hour wait. In fact, no wait at all. But this was not a bad sign, just that they don’t have the fortune/​misfortune to be brunch-​famous in this city, which idolizes its brunch star spots and rewards them with a lengthy line twining down sidewalks. Screw that. I like (ok, love) breakfast but I have not yet found a place that deserves a 2-​hour wait, and I’ve tried many of the brunch-​famous on non-​weekend mornings. This is not fine dining but it’s honest, good food at a fair price.
Before I got the large menu open, two servers asked me if I’d like anything to drink. They are on the ball here! I politely requested a moment to look over the menu and they smiled and retreated.
I went with a Grapefruit Mimosa ($ 6.95), Café Latte ($ 3.75), Big Blueberry Pancakes ($ 10.50) and side of Bacon ($ 3.95).
Mimosa was a good deal, but will not knock you on your butt — no heavy champagne ratio here. Personally, I appreciate that. I don’t want to have to retreat afterward to a dimly-​lit room to stop the world from spinning (Mission Beach Café, Huge Mimosa, I’m giving you a wide berth from now on.)
Latte was tasty, strong, hot and with a nice froth, served in an Irish coffee glass.
Blueberry Pancakes were big all right, two of ‘em, about 9″ across, topped with a softening pat of butter, and served with syrup on the side. The blueberries were big, fresh and plump and there was plenty of them in the pancakes. The pancakes themselves were thick but not too thick. They could have been a bit more crispy but that’s a minor complaint! TWO THUMBS UP on the pancake action!
Bacon was thick, crisp and delicious (3 slices per order). It was made even better by pouring maple syrup on it, a la Millionaire’s Bacon sweet mixed with savory.
Service was great and I was happy to tip generously in recognition. Two servers alternated checking up on me, asking me if I needed anything else, offering water with or without ice, and taking away plates after asking for an okay. No premature plate nabbing here! Sincere and friendly, these are people who work hard and know what service is. I was a waitress for 8 years between school sessions, and I know it’s a tough job — they rock it here.
The two cooks, while not cooking, cleaned the grill, scrubbed the gas stovetop burners, and kept busy scrubbing and polishing other surfaces. I can see why they have a 94 Health Inspection cleanliness score.
Before I left, I visited the bathroom, and it was pristine and nicely decorated. I felt a bit sacrilegious with Marilyn Monroe watching over the toilet but she’s in a wall crowd including Pat Benatar, who I think would be cool with it.
Verdict: PANCAKE SUCCESS. I will be back to sample the Italian specialties and enjoy more solid service. Thanks, Rocco’s!
Extra notes: Kids, up to age 12, eat free off the Kid’s Menu on Tuesday nights, 4 – 10 PM. Homemade pizza on Wednesday nights. Rocco’s also caters.

Food = delicious. Beautiful presentation.
Salad = greens with legumes (red kidney beans & chick peas), a wedge of tomato and choice of dressing (I went with ranch dressing). Delicious.
Minestrone soup = piping hot tomato based broth with plenty of vegetables, pasta and full of flavor. He added some red flakes for a kick. He loved this soup. Very good minestrone.
Chicken Marsala with pesto pasta (or fries or vegetables) and it comes with soup or salad. It’s definitely worth trying and then some. It was a very large plate of perfectly breaded chicken with delicious creamy red sauce. Full of flavor, tomatoes, and fragrant. (If you love bread, try the sauce for dipping.) Pesto pasta was okay. (It was on the salty side for me.) $ 23.
Pasta Primavera in Marinara. Colorful crunchy vegetables, penne pasta & piping hot homemade marinara sauce. He loved this dish. $ 15. (We also added the chicken-​delicious grilled chicken breast. $ 3.)
Mixed berry custard cake = to die for. But you need to love both sweet and tart. Today’s berries: raspberries, blackberries, blueberries, and red currants. Literally, a custard cake. Loved it! (I asked for whipped cream on the side because I’m a glutton, but it also helped with the tartness.)
Cappuccino = good. Strong, too.
Service = friendly and attentive!
Prices = moderate.
We’ll be back for breakfast!

OK I have to get this out of the way… THIS PLACE HAS THE BEST GNOCCHI I’VE EVER HAD! !!! I could live off it. So fantastic!
My service was good. My main waitress was a hit & miss but their busser was extremely prompt.. like can’t have more than a drink of water without him coming to fill my glass prompt. I really like the history proudly displayed. Great atmosphere!
My daughter’s granola, perfect size & delicious. My boyfriend’s burger perfectly cooked medium rare. My fritatta had a nice spice of the sausage. I honestly can’t say anything negative about this place. Hands down some of the best food I’ve had in the city. And it won’t break the bank.

BELOW AVERAGE.
Came here for a quick bite before an event. We had a little more than an hour to kill, which I considered more than enough time, but Rocco’s had other plans.
We arrived about 5:20pm and needed to leave by 6:25pm. We were seated promptly and drink order was taken. Then we waited about 20 minutes to have our order taken. We reminded whoever walked by to have our waitress come by and take our order, but she was too busy with the other 2 tables in the restaurant. The place was NOT EVEN BUSY!
Finally we put in our orders, I got the snapper special and my co-​worker got the clam linguine. My snapper was AITE, obviously was frozen and the sauce was watery with no flavor. I tried my co-​workers clam linguine and it contained 0 flavor. There were plenty of clams however, but they tasted fishy and obviously were straight from the can.
Our bill came to $ 64 which included 2 drinks, but for subpar food and service — I was almost shocked at the price. The service was so freakin slow and even though we allowed plenty of time before our event, we still ended up late because of how slow our waitress was.
Unfortunately I wont be back.