The Big 4

Just finished eating dinner here. This place is very cool, cool people, good food, good pours, good time. I recommend this spot for anyone. I will definitely be back the next time I’m town.

We were expecting to love this place, we really were. I hate to punish them for not being the restaurants on this level which I am used to but unfortunately for them, I have eaten at a lot of really good restaurants. Many have been tried and true restaurants from the old world. I always want to love these institutions who have been here so long. Perhaps with how long they have been around it always does them a disservice since people like me go in expecting to be blown away.
We started out with chicken liver mousse and crab cakes. What arrived was the mousse and stuffed calamari. This is where I comment about the service because the server practically threw the plates at us and was gone… for a long while not even checking on us for quite some time to even tell him that what he brought us seemed not right. He finally came over and just commented that was not right and took the calamari coming back some time later with the crab cakes. Honestly the calamari I think was better but we barely tried it and he took it away which felt kinda silly — most places would apologize for bringing the wrong item but taking it away… I then got to wait nearly 15 minutes to get a ginger ale. Most of the servers just seemed to not be around and the restaurant did not seem that busy.
My husband got their filet minon which was pretty decent. I ordered a salad with shrimp and scallops. The scallops were sliced ridiculously thin. I really do not want to balk at the pricing of something but when you are charging me $ 28 for a salad, you better not think it is ok to give me five SLICES of scallops and five shrimps… I mean, seriously?

Dim-​lit, old school feeling. Service was great and food was good.
Fancy cocktails — would definitely come back to the bar! Limited wine list but there were some good options.
Ordered the French onion soup, which I thought was a little too sweet for my taste. It could have used some more pepper, too. Mashed potatoes with steak was delicious, even though my «medium rare» steak was medium/​well done.
I’m not a fan of sitting in booths, but the cozy corner ones can make a date more romantic.

Well the bartender Ty decided he didn’t like my politics so he felt it was his place to tell me to be quiet and not polity. So I decided not to tip him.

I stumbled upon The Big 4 during a night of excessive drinking and what a perfect stumble it was. Fortunately I popped in 5 minutes before the kitchen closed. Order the deviled eggs and a burger. The three deviled eggs were gone before the waitress left the table. The burger… oh that burger; it was delectable. Maybe it was the inebriation or maybe I was just plain hungry. All I can tell you is I left thinking I’ll never have a burger that good again. This is a great spot, a perfect hideout on Nob Hill.
Update…went back for brunch on my last visit to San Francisco and was very pleased.

So when I travel I really like to try a new place every night, but the Big 4 was so tasty and such a great experience, that I returned to eat dinner a second time during my stay at the Scarlet Huntington.
Live piano, gorgeous interior, professional and experienced staff.
My first meal I sat at the bar, tried the Oricchiette, which was spectacular. It’s always fun sitting at a bar like this. Lots of men on business puffing up their chests and gold digger women vying for their attention. Very fun for eavesdropping on bougie conversations (some great eyeroll moments).
The second meal I ordered a memorable grapefruit daiquiri (called the Hemingway) which I will attempt to recreate at home, with some of their small plates. Tasty food all around. Sat in the lounge and talked with a friendly local Nob Hill couple, which seems to be the clientele excepting business travelers staying in the area’s hotels.
Anyway, I wish I had this restaurant in Seattle; it’s a great place to bring a client, a date or an old friend. Intimate, classy, and from what I can tell, very consistently delicious. For the ambiance in this neighborhood I thought the prices were fair. Each time I paid about $ 60 for an entrée, a cocktail and dessert.
I do wish that the menu had just a few more choices! The bar menu was not particularly inspiring so both times I ordered from the dinner menu, which was still just a single page. Perhaps a vegetarian pot pie, an advertised dinner salad (I’m sure they would make one, but not on the menu) and a sorbet for dessert… However this limited menu probably had something to do with the fact that the food came out very quickly and beautifully plated. Would recommend!

Beautiful bar, and great piano player, but the drinks have always been horrible. Wet go there a lot because it’s close to my sister’s place and we do like the scenery. Unfortunately I have to rate low due to the quality and service can be a tad slow.
Basically I have to order three different drinks before I find one that the bar tender can make okay. Last night I ordered an old fashioned with a good rye whiskey, there was so much ice in it that it was clear and tasted like Smokey water. So I switched to a vodka martini, little dirty. Tasted like it was half vermouth. So I ordered a tanqueray and tonic, and finally it was right! Last time I was there before, the tanqueray and tonic was wrong, they had used club soda, returned it telling then it was wrong and it still came back with club soda… guess you can’t win them all. U still like the place, but sad the drinks are so bad.

My wife and I had a stellar experience here. Environment and decorations are incredible. Great atmosphere and lighting, especially for a date night. Waitress was very personable and friendly. My wife was having a tough time finding a wine she liked, so the waitress customized her drink by adding champagne, which turned out to be great. She very much made us feel welcome, went above and beyond my expectations.
Food was very good, vegetables had a sauce on them which made them delicious. Bread was good, but butter was rock hard. Tons of wine choices.
Only complaint is that when we walked in for the first time, we couldn’t find anybody to seat us. We had to walk around for a few minutes to find somebody, but after that, we were very happy with everything, Would definitely come back here again.

On top of nob hill
Find old school san francisco;
Bar nuts; piano.

Awesome food, awesome staff and awesome drinks. So yea just one word — awesome. It was my dates birthday and I requested for a romantic spot and got my wish because we got a seat next to the piano player. We had a blast.

This is one of my favorite places in The City. Named for the four railroad tycoons (Huntington, Crocker, Stanford, & Hopkins) who played a major role in the history of San Francisco. It is a LOVELY restaurant. Must make reservations. Pricey, but you get what you pay for. Ambiance. Atmosphere. Drinks. Wine list. Food. Desert. It has it all with top notch service. I love it. It is a dark setting… dark mahogany bar area, muted lightning, white tablecloths… a great place for a romantic dinner or intimate gathering. This particular night we were celebrating my sons birthday. Cocktails were top notch. Nathan was our server and he was really friendly. It was super busy only to find out there was a concert down the street. The food was amazing as usual. We weren’t in any rush, so it was nice to just unwind and have a great time.

I came here spur of the moment last night and this place is awesome! Great food and service. My cousin ordered a drink and they forgot to bring it to him. They brought one over on the house! I got the rib eye and it was amazing! I cant wait to come back.

being an SF resident for 25 years I figured I should finally give this a whirl.
PROS
Décor: Classic, especially the bar/​cocktail seating.
Bar Service: Jamie, bartender = perfect cocktails, funny, attentive and personable an absolute delight.
CONS
Table Service: lacking, unprofessional
Food: a big fat MEH. a joke, give me a break!
a $ 20 burger, the meat was ok but I’m 99.9% sure the buns were from Safeway or Costco… store bought is one thing but this was embarrassing. This is San Francisco it’s NOT hard to source good bread products!
If you want a killer burger go to Prospect with Wagyu beef and house made brioche buns at $ 6 less. Even on the cheap I’d rather go to Burger Meister or In-​n-​Out.
I’ll go back for cocktails, nothing more.
Sorry Big 4, I so wanted to love

Named after four famous Pacific railroad tycoons of the 19^th century — Charles Crocker, Collis Huntington, Mark Hopkins, and Leland Stanford — the Big 4 Restaurant at The Scarlet Huntington celebrates the bygone era of California’s unique history with its classic American cuisine, an impressive décor of historical photographs and artifacts, and an elegant ambiance featuring live piano entertainment.
Start the meal with a warm bowl of Cauliflower Soup ($ 15) or the classic Brown Derby Cobb Salad ($ 18). The soup, topped with chopped chives and truffle oil, has the perfectly creamy texture that will warm your body and soul. The cobb salad has rows of rich roquefort cheese, creamy avocado, chopped tomato, roasted chicken, savory bacon, and sliced boiled eggs tossed in French dressing.
For entrée, the Oven-​Roasted Chicken Breast ($ 21) is accompanied by braised swiss chard and roasted herb potatoes. The chicken is extremely juicy and moist on the inside with crispy skin on the outside. Another highlight is the Angus Burger ($ 19) with crispy, thin-​cut French fries. The juicy angus beef patty is topped with lettuce, tomatoes, and onions with the option of adding cheese (Swiss or Cheddar), avocado, or bacon for $ 2 additional.
To appease your sweet tooth, try the Mascarpone Panna Cotta ($ 12). The sweetened, gelatinous cream is complemented by blueberry compote and a piece of shortbread cookie for a sweet finish to a satisfying meal at the Big 4 Restaurant.

Very average when they could be extraordinary! As hotel guests, the Scarlet Huntington, we assumed we could make reservations at the restaurant. Or at least speak with someone about a reservation! After trying multiple times calling and leaving a message at The Big Four, no one called us back in our room. Went to the restaurant at 8pm and decided to sit at the bar even though several tables were open in the restaurant. Approached the very cool maitre de to ask about a table and his reply was just shy of perceived importance. We did sit at the bar and witnessed a very busy hub with some serious flaws representing poor management and training. Filthy bar top, lack of empathy from fellow wait persons and or the maitre de to an overloaded bar tender, asking for a second set of utensils from a waiter, they said the bar tender would get it. Well, he was out of utensils and frantically filling bar orders. So we shared. Soup was very good and the chicken was very tasty albeit too salty.
The icing was while at the bar, we saw the wait staff marrying bottles of wine together. Ok. I get it but please have some finesse and do this in the back out of sight! The best one though was seeing one of our glasses reused for a new order! It was crazy! We set our glasses aside to make room for our plates and the glasses were confused with clean ones. Really a shame this icon is so poorly managed. Beautiful setting and old San Francisco ambiance. But as I said at the beginning … Average with an opportunity to be extraordinary.

Douche doorman and pretentious impertinent bar service make this quaint San Francisco landmark sadly insufferable.

Looking for Americana? Welp, this is your stop. I had the pleasure of stopping by this frigid holiday season and warmed myself up with the chicken pot pie and sherry pairing. Might I say this will warm you right up. Don’t miss it.
With an esthetic set in the 1930s, you’re immediately transported to a time where Remington statues were all the rage and large self portraits reigned supreme. That being said, it was only fitting to drink Gibson martinis with extra pickled onions :)
My only compliant is the lack of selection behind the bar. With a space so damn legit, they need to get the higher end spirit producers onto their shelves. Long gone are the days of drinking beefeater gin even if your establishment screams of the time period when it was respected.

You dirty, dirt

You dirty, dirty Martini!!! Thank God for Texas: Tito’s — Austin, Tx.
The only reason I gave 4 out of 5 stars, was that I like bigger glasses!!!

I wish my family was named The Big 4… except were more like the big embarrassment
Came by here before going to the Fairmont for a late lunch.
The restaurant is very old school San Francisco. Its almost taking a time warp back to the 1800’s when the Big four were actually here. Dim lighting, dark wood, historic paintings and artwork.
Man friend and I shared the salmon special and chicken pot pie. Both were awesome dishes, pretty flavorable. Foie Gras was spot on too.
Good drinks and wine selection as well. Service was great with Ali going beyond for us.
Location is great since its walking distance to Grace Cathedral and the Fairmont.
I’m not a huge fan of Nob Hill, but this place has people of all kinds here enjoying themselves.

Came here last night to enjoy a nice dinner while visiting SF. Must say the food was out of this world. 5 stars for the food. However, I think they have a bit of a judgmental atmosphere. Just because me and my friend weren’t in suits or older, it seemed we didn’t get the service that even the table next to us received. We both ordered a filet mignon with mashed potatoes which was amazing. However, when the food came out, there was only 1 filet mignon and then 1 rib eye. they fixed the order for us and gave us 2 free glasses of wine and a free salad. Once the ordered was messed up it seemed our services was much better then. However, they should work on not having any prior judgments of the table seated. We tipped very well and hope he got the point that age or color doesn’t define status.

Named after the four business tycoons and philanthropists (Stanford, Huntington, Crocker, and Hopkins) who built the Central Pacific portion of the First Transcontinental Railroad, the Big Four restaurant is a San Francisco institution that is always welcoming, warm, and classic.
Whether you are at the bar or at a table in the restaurant, the ambience is that of a cozy club. Dimmed lights, dark green leather, dark wood, polished brass, and white table cloths. The waiters – well, most of them – are true pros. An old-​time piano player sets the background mood. You feel very comfortable, and like you’ve been there many times before. The restaurant area is quiet and great for intimate conversation. The bar is more lively, and friendly. You always feel a part of the party.
I usually opt to eat at the bar, off of either the bar or restaurant menu. (The bar menu’s cutoff is later than the restaurant’s.) When Ty is behind the bar, it feels extra welcoming. There is no one quite like Ty, and I recommend going when he is there (usually Wednesday thru Saturday nights). He mixes up all of the traditional cocktails, as well as some newer concoctions. (The bar is very well stocked with almost any fine brand you might want.) Ty is also very wise, and full of great stories. He will introduce you to others sitting nearby, but he will also respect your privacy. Many reviewers find this too be more of an «old timers» place. While that may seem true of the restaurant, I find that the bar gets quite a good mix of young and old, raucous and soft-​spoken, and casual and formal
While I will always be happy with the great burger, the cold, poached prawns, and the classic club sandwich, the restaurant is known for its traditional chicken pot pie, pork chop, liver mousse, deviled eggs, oysters, onion soup, and bread pudding. When the new hotel owners tried recently to «freshen up» the menu offerings, there was unhappiness among the regulars, and the menu is pretty much back to the classics for which it has become known. (The restaurant is also open for breakfast and lunch, but at those hours it seems uneven, and to lack the finesse in preparation and service that are typical at dinner.)
A bit pricey, but worth it in every way…

What an interesting place. My mom and I decided to check this place out and have a drink before heading off to dinner in Little Italy.
It’s very dark and intimate, with music playing quietly in the background. The customers here are on the older side; we saw a lot of seniors dressed up all formally. Some were eating Thanksgiving dinner by themselves. aww.
The bar is very small– there’s only like 7 seats at most. I just got a Chardonnay and my mom and I just stayed to enjoy the quaint environment. Another mom and daughter came to the bar and the bartender gave them nuts to munch on after getting their drinks. He didn’t offer us any, which made me think a very possible reason why was because I paid right after I got my drink so there’s no hope for him getting a bigger tip! Haha. Anyway.
I probably won’t be coming here again anytime soon unless I get invited here. It’s a bit too romantic and the crowd is way old. Besides I really doubt I can afford dining here!

If you’re looking for a fancy place to have dinner or drinks, then The Big 4 is for you. We came for a nightcap and can’t speak to the food, but I enjoyed the drink I had while ending a night in the city. The appetizers that were heading out of the kitchen did look good, but we had unfortunately finished dinner shortly before.
The bar is small and dimly lit with a few tables available on a first-​come basis. The crowd skews older, so it’s definitely not a rowdy spot, but they have some live music which included a piano player on this particular night. For our group of four, it was a perfect way to chat while being super comfy.
I went with the Copper Mine Shaft that was made with Whistle Pig rye, cherry liqueur, sweet vermouth, Maraschino liqueur, walnut bitters and large cube of ice. The man slinging spirits behind the counter was fast at creating my cocktail and it was pretty delicious and well worth the $ 14 price tag.
I’ll for sure be back for more imbibing the next time I’m in San Francisco!

I’m unsure as to why I didn’t come to The Big 4 sooner. I’ve passed this place a million times, stayed in the hotel, had cocktails in the lounge but never sat down in the restaurant until recently.
While the menu isn’t huge think of this place as throwback to older times when service was good and lunch had much more meaning. The interior is dark but it contrasts well with the good service.
Not knowing what to choose I started out with the deviled eggs. They were very tasty but I can’t help but wonder what they do with the additional egg?
I moved on to the pot pie. The waiter warned me: Sir, you’ll need a nap after this!” Not really as the portions were very reasonable (This was not a Costco pie that requires several persons to eat it).
I rounded out the meal with ice tea and coffee at the end. A little pricey but it was worth it!

This place is a real pleasure to visit but don’t make the mistake of bringing your girlfriend or wife here, this is a gentleman’s lounge. While the food is not stellar, they went out of there way to make me something vegetarian and it was ok. This place is all about having a drink and snack with your Dad, Uncle, Brother, or some other male figure in your life. Amazing spot to bring someone you haven’t seen for a while and make a great impression.

The Big 4 is a Nob Hill institution. I have been coming here for over twenty years, and it holds a special place in my heart. While it is on top of the Hill, it is adjacent to the lobby of the Huntington Hotel and has no windows (no views). (FYI: this is the room service provider for the Huntington.) Instead, it is an elegant, dark wood paneled space with green leather banquettes and chairs, green carpet and white linen tablecloths. It has a very English horseman feel.
The service is exceptional. The wait staff is very friendly and very accommodating. If there is a large event in the area that brings an unexpected crowd, the service can be a little slow.
I have been here for breakfast, lunch and dinner (and had room service in the hotel) as well as cocktails (which are always awesome). My most recent visit was for breakfast. I had the Eggs Benedict ($ 21). Being allergic to potatoes, I was able to substitute sauteed spinach for cottage fried potatoes, which was excellent. The bene was amazing — a split English muffin is topped with Canadian bacon, perfectly poached eggs (with nice and runny yolks) and a fresh and well prepared Hollandaise sauce. Delicious! DH ordered the brioche French toast with raspberries and maple syrup ($ 19). It was good — I prefer the bene but it was good. LOs ordered and split the Buttermilk Pancakes with Maple Syrup ($ 18) which were very good. Three generous pancakes were sprinkled with powdered sugar and served with soft butter and syrup. I liked the pancakes much better than the French toast (which is the opposite of my usual preference).
It was a lovely morning in a place that holds a special place in my heart. I will be back, as I always am.

Great little neighborhood bar. Quiet, romantic, leather seats, and paintings on the wall. Bar is well stocked and everyone is talking to each other. Ah those romantics. Glad we found it on Unilocal and helped ourselves to an afternoon walk into a bygone era. Ordered drinks and their house made chips. Tasty. Five stars for romance, mood and ambiance.

Cozy bar, nice bartender, interesting interior, good drinks.

My #1 Meal!
(It use to be Buddakan in NYC in the year of 2013.)

Had a group dinner here in a private room a few nights ago. The spot was selected by our local sf coworker. Lotta history to the building and restaurant. As others have said walls are all dark wood panels. Piano at entrance and there was someone playing around 9 on a Tuesday night. Our server knows the history of the city Ike no other. The walls were all decorated with historic memorabilia and a panoramic photograph in our private room allowed him to tell quite the story about the city. We had a few bottles of wine among the group of ten. We had the scallops over truffle oil risotto appetizer which was good. I don’t remember the price but there was three scallops per order. The other picture is the fried squash. I forget what the red sauce was like. I had my lamb medium rare. The veggies were simple but cooked right. I would have liked more seasoning on the lamb but it wasn’t bad at all. My dessert was ok. I was expecting sweeter. I wish I would have had the seasonal peach crumble with ice cream that my coworker had instead. Someone else had the bread pudding which I was also envious of. Overall good experience I wish I paid attention to the bill but it was what you woukd expect in that area. I missed out on truing housr cocktails… That’ll be next time

My wife and I went to The Big 4 last Saturday, two days ago.
We came into the bar at around 11pm. The place is very nice, old style, and there was a very pleasant live piano music. We ordered a couple of drinks. The cocktail was very good. The waiter who attended us was very kind. The environment was in general nice.
We had seen on both Unilocal and The Big 4 website that the bar closes at 1am on Saturdays. However, we were «told to leave» at around 12am, when we hadn’t even finished to drink our drinks. I mean, all music stopped, all lights were turned on, and everyone had to leave.
We were so disappointed that a bar like The Big 4 treated their clients in such a way. If you say on your website that it is «open until 1am», you should not eject your clients from your place before that time at the very least.

Old San Francisco is a good description of The Big 4: dark woods, dark bar, warm ambiance, even romantic. Located in a corner of the classic Huntington Hotel atop Nob Hill, I almost felt underdressed without a tie. Fortunately, there is no dress code.
Service was professional and attentive, basically what you’d expect of a place trying to evoke the clubby feel that its name evokes.
The food was executed perfectly. We opened with the deviled egg and the foie gras. Entrees included the lamb chop, rib-​eye and the lamb shoulder (that was an Easter special), a side of roasted asparagus.
Don’t come here expecting groundbreaking preparations, creativity is not the star but what they do, they do well. The rest of the menu is what you’d expect. A chicken dish, a couple of fish dishes and a pork dish.
Prices were on the high end but it was not out of line if you’re staying at one of the Nob Hill hotels. Again, no surprises.

This place was just flat out wrong. So wrong that it should be called The Big Disappointment, not the Big 4.
Everything we had was just terrible. The deviled eggs had very little devil to them, some seriously bland shit. My steak was flavorless and also cooked completely unevenly, so bad that they took it back and apologized. The second attempt fell short as well, just a complete failure on the steak front. My wife’s pasta was edible but also bland, like it was some Kraft out of the box concoction.
The only thing that prevented this place from getting 1 star was our very nice and apologetic server. Pour guy.
Not sure where the good ratings come from but I presume it’s from the out-​of-​owners staying in the hotel.

Cher, mais bon !
Ok, le portefeuille en prend un coup mais c’est bon ! Même très bon !
Le risotto était excellent et le dessert original, pas lourd et bon !
Le petit dej est pas mal non plus …