Colombini Italian Café ~ Bistro
Inside the Nob Hill Hotel
Inside the Nob Hill Hotel
835 Hyde St.
San Francisco, CA 94109
(415) 447-8554
http://www.nobhillhotel.com/
The first evening I’m in San Francisco, three of us were happily on our way to the Nob Hill part of SF to Swan Oyster Depot based on Aramis’ review. We were bummed that it was closed, so we decided to have Italian. Lo & behold, there was an Italian joint a couple doors down. There were a couple of broads reading the menu, so I asked if that place was good. One said she hasn’t been to that place but heard of a good place a few blocks away that’s supposed to be “cute and really, really good.” Great! Umm… not so great. As the two resident San Franciscans briskly walked to the restaurant up & down the hilly streets, I was purposely trailing behind huffin, puffin, and sweating all the while trying to look cool. We find it and walk in.
Colombini has a small dining room that’s very intimate and dimly lit. It can be romantic with the right person with you. It’s the restaurant at the Nob Hill Hotel. The person serving us may have been the owner as he knew the food very well and was the only person that was there besides the kitchen staff. He recommended the grilled sardines, and we accepted. Of course, this being San Francisco, sourdough and olive oil were served as we waited for our food. Without looking at the menu, one person ordered lasagna as it is one of their favorite dishes to order at Italian establishments. We also ordered a seafood pasta dish. We shared the appetizer and the two dishes.
Grilled sardines – Nicely done. I would order this again. It went well on top of the sourdough bread. It wasn’t grilled too hard to get too much of a charred taste/feel to let the flavors come out and not get over-powered.
Frutti del Mare Ansio (Fresh mussels, prawns, calamari, scallops tomatoes over pasta) – Nothing outstanding in this dish to me, except “something with tomatoes” is what one of us wanted. Because of that, the sauce was very enjoyable, and they were smiling the whole dinner.
Meat Lasagna (Bistro Special, mozzarella, bechamel) – Ready? OMFG!!!!!! This was the best lasagna I’ve ever had in my lifetime. I was NOT expecting this! Though we split the dishes, I wanted it all to myself. When they asked us if we
wanted dessert, I wanted to place another order. Outstanding sauce, great cheese(s?), and delicious sauce. *Highly* recommend this dish.
Tiramisu – I like tiramisu, but I don’t go gaga over it. As far as tiramisus go, it was decent. I’m used to a moister tiramisu, but this wasn’t bad in the least bit. The presentation was nice.
Creme Brulee – Again, the one who always orders this at Italian places was such a happy camper. For me, the presentation was a nice, and the taste was good (normal), but what made me like it more was the reactions of the others. It’s a great feeling to look around the table from start to end and see smiles the entire time, from the company to the food.
(415) 447-8554
http://www.nobhillhotel.com/
The first evening I’m in San Francisco, three of us were happily on our way to the Nob Hill part of SF to Swan Oyster Depot based on Aramis’ review. We were bummed that it was closed, so we decided to have Italian. Lo & behold, there was an Italian joint a couple doors down. There were a couple of broads reading the menu, so I asked if that place was good. One said she hasn’t been to that place but heard of a good place a few blocks away that’s supposed to be “cute and really, really good.” Great! Umm… not so great. As the two resident San Franciscans briskly walked to the restaurant up & down the hilly streets, I was purposely trailing behind huffin, puffin, and sweating all the while trying to look cool. We find it and walk in.
Colombini has a small dining room that’s very intimate and dimly lit. It can be romantic with the right person with you. It’s the restaurant at the Nob Hill Hotel. The person serving us may have been the owner as he knew the food very well and was the only person that was there besides the kitchen staff. He recommended the grilled sardines, and we accepted. Of course, this being San Francisco, sourdough and olive oil were served as we waited for our food. Without looking at the menu, one person ordered lasagna as it is one of their favorite dishes to order at Italian establishments. We also ordered a seafood pasta dish. We shared the appetizer and the two dishes.
Grilled sardines – Nicely done. I would order this again. It went well on top of the sourdough bread. It wasn’t grilled too hard to get too much of a charred taste/feel to let the flavors come out and not get over-powered.
Frutti del Mare Ansio (Fresh mussels, prawns, calamari, scallops tomatoes over pasta) – Nothing outstanding in this dish to me, except “something with tomatoes” is what one of us wanted. Because of that, the sauce was very enjoyable, and they were smiling the whole dinner.
Meat Lasagna (Bistro Special, mozzarella, bechamel) – Ready? OMFG!!!!!! This was the best lasagna I’ve ever had in my lifetime. I was NOT expecting this! Though we split the dishes, I wanted it all to myself. When they asked us if we
wanted dessert, I wanted to place another order. Outstanding sauce, great cheese(s?), and delicious sauce. *Highly* recommend this dish.Tiramisu – I like tiramisu, but I don’t go gaga over it. As far as tiramisus go, it was decent. I’m used to a moister tiramisu, but this wasn’t bad in the least bit. The presentation was nice.
Creme Brulee – Again, the one who always orders this at Italian places was such a happy camper. For me, the presentation was a nice, and the taste was good (normal), but what made me like it more was the reactions of the others. It’s a great feeling to look around the table from start to end and see smiles the entire time, from the company to the food.
2 comments:
It all looks great. The sardines look tantalizing. Nice article. . . dude.
Gotta check that place out. Last time I was in SF, I couldn't find any good Italian food...funny that you dug the lasagna, since I've been thinking about lasagna recently. A food I loved as a kid, but I haven't really ever had a great one as an adult...
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