Isola Osteria

Review summary

1. S

   Steven

   San Francisco

   8 reviews

   3.0

   8 reviews

   Dined 2 days ago

   1. Overall 3
   2. Food 4
   3. Service 2
   4. Ambience 2

   No table inside available for our Saturday reservation, dined outside and despite heaters it was very cold. Service glacial. Ordered a salad of arugula with melon, 95% arugula and only 5% melons. Linguine Vongole was excellent however.
   

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2. E

   Ed

   San Francisco

   1 review

   3.0

   1 review

   Dined 3 days ago

   1. Overall 3
   2. Food 5
   3. Service 3
   4. Ambience 3

   The food was amazing, we had the Branzino(whole fish) they deboned it at our table. Our server only checked on us when he brought the check, not great..... The noise level inside was very loud, we literally could not have a conversation. That sucks! We like talking to each other on our dates, and it was a real strain to do so.
   

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3. J

   JoAnna

   Baja California

   1 review

   5.0

   1 review

   Dined 3 days ago

   1. Overall 5
   2. Food 5
   3. Service 5
   4. Ambience 5

   We brought a party of 12 to celebrate my husband’s birthday and they were wonderful. The waitstaff was attentive to every detail. The frittata misto and eggplant appetizers were delicious. All of the main entrees were made to perfection.
   

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4. L

   Linda

   VIP

   San Francisco

   8 reviews

   4.0

   8 reviews

   Dined 5 days ago

   1. Overall 4
   2. Food 3
   3. Service 4
   4. Ambience 4

   This was my fourth visit to this restaurant. I have ordered the same dish each time; pasta Norma. The first visit service was bad (I never received my food, I had to take it home) but the pasta was really good. The eggplant in this dish was plentiful and some of the best prepared eggplant I have ever had. On the second visit, the service was better and the pasta Norma was served hot and amazing. On the third visit, the service was good but the pasta was not hot and the amount of eggplant was greatly reduced. On the fourth visit, the service was really good but the pasta Norma had been reduced to mostly sauce and the eggplant was negligible. Whether there is a fifth visit or pasta Norma in my future, I'm not sure; there is no consistency in the experience at this restaurant.
   

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5. J

   Jeff

   Seattle

   7 reviews

   5.0

   7 reviews

   Dined on January 13, 2025

   1. Overall 5
   2. Food 5
   3. Service 5
   4. Ambience 4

   This is authentic regional Italian cooking unfiltered by any of the overdone trends of the last twenty years. This is great food like you would find in a small town in Italy.
   

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6. PW

   PeterW

   San Francisco

   7 reviews

   5.0

   7 reviews

   Dined on January 8, 2025

   1. Overall 5
   2. Food 5
   3. Service 5
   4. Ambience 5

   This is an offshoot of the excellent Sicilian restaurant in Berkeley; Agrodolce. It’s in a more stylish environment with an outdoor space as well. This is my new regular Italian. Try the Porchetta or the sardine bucatini; both magic
   

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7. T

   Theresa

   San Francisco

   22 reviews

   4.0

   22 reviews

   Dined on January 5, 2025

   1. Overall 4
   2. Food 4
   3. Service 4
   4. Ambience 4

   Pleasant experience. Ate on patio even though it was a cold evening. Our table enjoyed the cioppino. Lamb shanks and bolognese. Branzino had too many bones.
   

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8. K

   Kim

   VIP

   San Francisco

   11 reviews

   5.0

   11 reviews

   Dined on January 1, 2025

   1. Overall 5
   2. Food 5
   3. Service 4
   4. Ambience 4

   The food is delicious and reminded me of Sicily. I recommend the caponata appetizer and the pasta Norma, however everything has been great!
   

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9. T

   Tom

   San Francisco

   1 review

   3.0

   1 review

   Dined on December 29, 2024

   1. Overall 3
   2. Food 4
   3. Service 1
   4. Ambience 1

   Our first visit here was really great. The food, the ambiance, the attentive service... We loved it. This time though, wasn't so good. We arrived a few minutes early and they showed us to our table. It was in some separate area. I assume business is good and they had to rent more space. The room was very brightly litand instead of the Italian music, they were playing Christmas music. Our appetiser was delicious but it took forever to be delivered. Then out main dishes were crammed into the tiny table. The salmon was over cooked. When we finished, we waited a very long time and had to flag down our waiter. He apologized but it seemed like he couldn't wait for us to go.
   

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10. G

    Geoffrey

    San Francisco

    6 reviews

    5.0

    6 reviews

    Dined on December 29, 2024

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5

    Wonderful meal. Service was excellent. Will definitely come back here again
    

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