Bella Trattoria

We were so excited to eat delicious italian food in SF since we lack options back home on the Big Island of Hawai'i. The biggest problem was that there were too many options!!! Since we had a our 9 month old son with us, we figured we would choose a restaurant that was casual with lots rave reviews. Bella Trattoria popped up on both Yelp and Google so that is what led us here and it did not dissappoint!

The entrance was a bit confusing and when we checked in with the host. I immediately noticed the large bar counter with no dining tables and a pool table so I internally freaked out and thought I made a bad choice in coming here. The host walked us past the bar and turned left to go to another room which to our delight was an actual dining room! Very cozy intereriors with a high ceiling and modest furniture. There is a large painting of what looks like gondolas in Venice which reassured me we were at an Italian restaurant lol!

The menu had a lot of options within each section (Antipasti, Pasta, Pizza and Secondi) but we figured out what we wanted to try pretty quickly: Bone marrow, Brocollini, Cotoletta Di Pollo (chicken cutlet) and the Nero Di Sepia (Squid ink gnocchi). Everything tasted wonderful and the portions were generous. I've never had squid ink gnocchi and so I had to try it. The gnocchi was softer than I was used to but still very tasty and had lots of shrimp, spinach and mascarpone.

I hadn't had a sip of alcohol for almost 2 years since I was pregnant with my son so I decided to celebrate our last night in SF with a glass of wine. I shared that with our server and he chose a nice pinot noir which paired nicely with my gnocchi.

On top of our food being delicious, I wanted to give a special shout out to one of the servers who touched our table a few times, Gianluca! We heard his italian accent and felt compelled to share with him that we named our baby boy Luca because my husband and I both share Italian ancestry. That is when he told us his name and it's like he and our son had a special bond throughout dinner. He kept stopping by to say hi, smile, and pickup our son's toys and food that kept falling to the ground. It was so heartwarming to see and this dinner was the cherry on top to our last evening in San Francisco. We can't wait to come back again!

If you're coeliac or gluten-free, this is the top spot in San Francisco. They were incredibly accommodating to our dietary restrictions, and the menu offered plenty of alternatives.

The staff was exceptionally friendly, the interior was warmly dimmed, and the portions were generous--all at reasonable prices. Overall, we had a fantastic celebratory dinner. A big thank you to everyone at the restaurant for making us feel special.

We've been to Bella Trattoria 4 or 5 times, and it's always a must when we're in SF. Staff are always attentive and friendly, and we've enjoyed sitting inside and outside.

The pasta is fantastic. We've gotten multiple courses of pasta, sharing the carbonara for the table (highly recommend) and each getting ravioli, puttanesca, papparedelle and others.

The food is so flavorful and portions are generous. We always look forward to coming here when we're in SF.

This place was perfect for someone trying out gnocchi for the first time. I came here on my birthday, on a Monday early evening. There was plenty of space, and it did not feel crowded at all. We were seated in a comfy booth, with our beverages. The waiter was respectful, and knowledgeable about on the menu. The bread they gave out was hands down some of the best bread I have ever had. My gnocchi has Italian sausage in it and it was plentiful and delicious. I would definitely recommend this place for any Italian lover.
Just side note. We did sit at the bar and ordered drinks while our table was getting ready. It would've been more convenient if we were allowed to add the beverages to our tab, and also not have to carry them so far. I'm not docking any stars, just a side note.

Came for dinner on a Thursday evening around 7pm with a friend. We were immediately seated in a back room (I think there was an event happening in the main room), but it was just as spacious as the front.

The ambiance is pretty nice inside and when you're seated they give you free bread and tomatoes in oil to eat it with.

We ordered the arrabbiata pasta and mortadella e butatta pizza to share. The food was good but not outstanding. The pasta tasted like your average spaghetti. The pizza is more of a flat bread with toppings which is an interesting combo and could've used sauce.

Came here at 5pm on a Friday evening for their happy hour! Happy hour is only at the bar from 4-6pm. Most happy hour items are $5 which is super good value.

I got a sangria to drink and it was sour and strong. We got the tomato bruschetta and it was my favorite item of the night!! The bruschetta was extremely flavorful with the seasoned olive oil. The tomato was a good sweet and sour balance to the saltiness of the rest of it. We also got the meatballs and it came it a large bowl with tomatoes and other veggies and cheese. It was quite filling; the beef meatball was my favorite.

We also got the capricciosa pizza (not on the happy hour menu) and it was good but very salty. Next time I'll try a different pizza.

To be honest, thought the food was subpar, but the restaurant and service itself was nice.

Had been craving good Italian food for a while, so my partner and I got excited at the thought of knowing that the pasta here was fresh and made in-house.

I ordered the Carbonara which came in a cute metal sauce pan that I assume it was cooked in. Texture of the pasta was different. You could tell that the pasta was freshly made, but it didn't really have that al dente chewiness that I favor. The flavor was not what I was expecting either. It was disappointingly bland and had an interesting aftertaste? Hard to describe, but I wish it had a much more creamier texture. The pecorino tasted funky to me and honestly put me off. Kinda had wished I ordered the "not carbonara" instead, but probably a whole different dish instead. Anyway, carbonara is always my go-to order when I'm at an Italian restaurant, but this one was just not it for me.. :(

The squid ink gnocchi was somewhat of a special order not originally listed on the lunch menu, but my fiance was craving gnocchi in a cream sauce and that's what the waiter suggested to him. My fiance ended up regretting the order. The gnocchi didn't quite have the chewy texture - it essentially melted in your mouth and lacked density which was unexpectedly weird. The dish also left a bitter aftertaste, but he couldn't pinpoint if it was from the sauce or the gnocchi.

The last thing we ordered was the Italian-American pizza. This is the one thing we didn't think we would have comments about because it's a standard pizza with pepperoni and Italian sausage! Little did we know the pizza that came out would be straight up just a pepperoni pizza with giant meatballs placed on top. Already that was a red flag - almost... Lazy? I dunno, but didn't like it. The pizza wasn't cut either - it's a cut it yourself with our special scissors type of deal. Not only that, but the pizza was bland?? Like, how. Ugh, just not the way we would've wanted to end this disappointing meal :(

All-in-all, we wouldn't come back here. The food looks great, but there's more than meets the eye from our experience here.

From what I have heard or read in the past though, authentic Italian food (at least pasta) can be a bit more on the blander side, but that's not how I prefer to eat it. :\

Date night in our neighborhood! :) Came here around 9 and luckily their kitchen was still open as the host needed to check.

It was our first time here, so trying to quickly skimmed through the menu as kitchen closes at 9:30 was nerve wracking! -__- We try to be understanding of their time, so we picked the following items & my personal ratings ;) :

- Mortadella E Burrata 2/5 (bread was too hard)
- Spring Caprese 4/5
- Nero Di Seppia 2.5/5 (I didn't like the texture...too doughy/soft)
- Cab - Harper & Oak
- House Wine on Tap - Pinot Noir
- Bruschetta***on the house*** 10/10

Will mostly be back next time to try their other items.

Bon appetite!

Authentic Italian food and exceptional service transported us back to our cherished Italian memories, making us feel as though we were dining in Italy once again!

During Happy Hour, which is exclusively served at the bar, you can enjoy not only discounted drinks but also delightful house treats that are offered to enhance your experience during that special time.

Was craving some Italian food on a random Saturday night, so came by this place. On Geary, it can be a bit hard to find parking, but the time we went there was quite a bit of street parking available.

We arrived at like 8:15ish and they said there weren't any table until 9, so we waited, came back at 9 and were promptly seated. They have an additional dining room that gives a more cozy vibe.

They had a prix fixe menu and an al a carte menu which is nice if you want 3 courses. The prix fixe has some slightly different dishes from the al a carte as well.

We ordered the spring caprese, the linguine vongole, the margarita pizza with prosciutto, and pineapple mint sorbetto and panna cotta for dessert.

The spring caprese (from the prix fixe menu) was really good! Their aged balsamic vinegar is really good and fragrant. The combination of veggies is also really good.

Linguine vongole was interesting? The sauce was very liquid-y but it was good, the clams were nice and fresh, and the assortment of zucchini, eggplant, and tomato was a nice addition. My only gripe is that the pasta was a tad too al dente.

Marg pizza with prosciutto: yummy! Crust was really fluffy and thin which was nice. After sitting on the plate awhile, the crust started getting soggy, but not too much of a fault.

Table bread with sun dried tomato olive oil! So good!! I never had sun dried tomato dipping oil but it was a nice refreshing and light flavor. The bread was a fluffy brioche as well. Wish it was warmed up though.

Dessert was amazing. The panna cotta was perfectly sweet and dense. The berries were a nice addition, and they add a drizzle of that aged balsamic which was such an amazing touch! The pineapple mint sorbetto was very refreshing and light.

All in all, a good meal. Some of the things could've been better. I think the undercooked pasta hits this rating pretty hard. Service was really nice and friendly.