Truly a once in a lifetime experience with elegant space, beautiful harpist, fantastic meal & excellent service from Adam. Highly recommend.
Steve
We stayed at Fairmont for three nights and scheduled Sunday brunch with some friends who joined on this trip, also staying at Fairmont. To be candid, I was shocked at how mediocre this meal was, and that sentiment applies to the hotel in general as well. Four of us ordered: Ham & Brie omelette (good portion, good flavors, very bland roasted baby potatoes); Eggs Benedioct (overall, pretty good, same potatoes); Egg White Scramble (veggies likely parcooked but not reheated or finished before preparing the dish, same potatoes); Croque Madame (this plate obviously sat for several minutes before service, barely warm, limp fries with very little flavor) and a Brioche French Toast (piled high with whipped cream, reminded me of Denny's). We also had a bottle of delicious Sancerre, but it was $110 or something like that, but the food here isn't anywhwere near worth the ask or worthy of the Fairmont Hotel. The wine list has some really good bottles but pricing is likely 4x retail or higher. Service we had for brunch was good - timely and attentive - but another time during our stay it was downright inhospitable. We were shocked at how badly run this hotel seems to be; we had several issues during our stay and there was absolutely nothing that was convenient or that went smoothly. Would not recomment this restaurant to anyone.
Marcus
The overall rating of "3" is primarily due to the service. The Laurel Court room with live harp music was dreamy. The service wasn't horrible, but mediocre at best. In a hotel of this caliber, one would expect better. Now, there was another server that day on the floor, going above and beyond. Unfortunately, I was merely a witness to it, not a recipient. My server never once stopped by to see if everything was okay. I had to finally flag him down for the check. He did mention at the beginning that he had just returned from vacation; clearly, he hadn't returned entirely. There's more to critique on the service but will skip the laborious details of a regretfully forgettable day. The other disappointment was the tea itself. The earl grey tea I ordered did not have even a hint of early grey, but rather, seemed an extremely weak version of some unnoticeable variety of tea. Further, the tea temperature turned lukewarm all too soon. Other teas in the city to visit, but sadly won't be going back to this one.
Linda
Love this iconic spot. Service could definitely be improved. We didn't have napkins at our table and the servers were more interested in completing their tasks than getting us napkins and silver ware. Our primary server was really sweet but everyone else were acting like they'd rather be anywhere else but there. Which is generally understandable but not what you'd expect at a Fairmont hotel with those prices
Christina
The desserts were pretty terrible. I felt like I could have gone to Safeway and gotten better baked goods. With the exception of the biscuits, everything else was not done well. The blondie was horrendous. It lacked fat content and simply crumbled, but not in a decadent way that a shortbread cookie would. Almost like they forgot to add in the proper ingredients. It was shockingly bad. The other desserts were overly sweet, which might be a matter of taste level, but they tasted almost stale. The sandwiches themselves were decent and at a quality that I would expect at a four star hotel.
Ashley
Beautiful tea in a beautiful hotel. Very comfortable. Live music was excellent. We had a great time!
Derek Labian
A lovely old world restaurant but low volume means a limited buffet that just wasn’t good at all. The Fairmont in Whistler had an amazing breakfast buffet so I expected better. So while it’s convenient and elegant, I would go somewhere else. Ordering off the menu may have better results.
Oliver Pe
May 2025 Fairmont's main lobby restaurant serving standard American menu.
The menu also forms the in room service menu. The dishes are in good and standard portions.
Service may be a bit slow due to a staff shortage.
The historic interiors are stately and very grand benefitting the heritage hotel's ico ic status in the city of SFO.
Pat F
We had cocktails on a rainy afternoon in the Laurel Court Bar. The drinks were wonderful and the service as expected. Very nice area to chat and get ready for the evening.
Satyanarayana Vummidi
The ambiance was delightful, and the overall dining experience was enjoyable. However, the taste and menu selections fell somewhat short of expectations. The service provided by the staff was excellent, though vegetarian options were limited.
Server was good but the food was NOT worth it! Sandwiches are very small! Dessert is better from Trader Joe's. Save yourself the $125 and go elsewhere. Live piano music was good. Parking was $36.
Simon WONG
Overpriced food but excellent service
Cindy
Had breakfast here that was comped as part of our stay during the holidays. Buffet was ok but not great (fruits were not fresh) and we would have been upset if we had to pay the $49 per person but since it was included, it was fine. Service was satisfactory and the setting was nice.
Carolyn Beckerman
The tea is excellent, the food is terrible, and the service upcharged me without my knowledge. I was offered champagne and turned it down and was given apple cider instead. There wasn’t an explanation of this being a $15 dollar charge nor was it listed in a clear place on the menu. Had I known this was not included I wouldn’t have had a glass.
Of all the tea lunches I’ve had in San Francisco, this is by far the worst food I’ve ever experienced. For 120-150/person with gratuity already added to the bill, this is really disappointing. There’s nothing extravagant or special about the food. I’ve had similar food from hospital cafeterias.
The best part of holiday tea are the elves that go from table to table doing “elf magic” and a live pianist playing beautiful holiday tunes. Other than the unexpected upcharge, the food runners and bussers were highly attentive to our care and the server was kind and knowledgeable.
Ryan McCabe
Holiday breakfast buffet was overpriced and awful. At $49 per person, you would expect a phenomenal dining experience, but it is the opposite. Barely any food options, mediocre food quality, waitress was not filling up our water when we were out, and to top it off the food made me sick. Do not eat here
Truly a once in a lifetime experience with elegant space, beautiful harpist, fantastic meal & excellent service from Adam. Highly recommend.
We stayed at Fairmont for three nights and scheduled Sunday brunch with some friends who joined on this trip, also staying at Fairmont. To be candid, I was shocked at how mediocre this meal was, and that sentiment applies to the hotel in general as well. Four of us ordered: Ham & Brie omelette (good portion, good flavors, very bland roasted baby potatoes); Eggs Benedioct (overall, pretty good, same potatoes); Egg White Scramble (veggies likely parcooked but not reheated or finished before preparing the dish, same potatoes); Croque Madame (this plate obviously sat for several minutes before service, barely warm, limp fries with very little flavor) and a Brioche French Toast (piled high with whipped cream, reminded me of Denny's). We also had a bottle of delicious Sancerre, but it was $110 or something like that, but the food here isn't anywhwere near worth the ask or worthy of the Fairmont Hotel. The wine list has some really good bottles but pricing is likely 4x retail or higher. Service we had for brunch was good - timely and attentive - but another time during our stay it was downright inhospitable. We were shocked at how badly run this hotel seems to be; we had several issues during our stay and there was absolutely nothing that was convenient or that went smoothly. Would not recomment this restaurant to anyone.
The overall rating of "3" is primarily due to the service. The Laurel Court room with live harp music was dreamy. The service wasn't horrible, but mediocre at best. In a hotel of this caliber, one would expect better. Now, there was another server that day on the floor, going above and beyond. Unfortunately, I was merely a witness to it, not a recipient. My server never once stopped by to see if everything was okay. I had to finally flag him down for the check. He did mention at the beginning that he had just returned from vacation; clearly, he hadn't returned entirely. There's more to critique on the service but will skip the laborious details of a regretfully forgettable day. The other disappointment was the tea itself. The earl grey tea I ordered did not have even a hint of early grey, but rather, seemed an extremely weak version of some unnoticeable variety of tea. Further, the tea temperature turned lukewarm all too soon. Other teas in the city to visit, but sadly won't be going back to this one.
Love this iconic spot. Service could definitely be improved. We didn't have napkins at our table and the servers were more interested in completing their tasks than getting us napkins and silver ware. Our primary server was really sweet but everyone else were acting like they'd rather be anywhere else but there. Which is generally understandable but not what you'd expect at a Fairmont hotel with those prices
The desserts were pretty terrible. I felt like I could have gone to Safeway and gotten better baked goods. With the exception of the biscuits, everything else was not done well. The blondie was horrendous. It lacked fat content and simply crumbled, but not in a decadent way that a shortbread cookie would. Almost like they forgot to add in the proper ingredients. It was shockingly bad. The other desserts were overly sweet, which might be a matter of taste level, but they tasted almost stale. The sandwiches themselves were decent and at a quality that I would expect at a four star hotel.
Beautiful tea in a beautiful hotel. Very comfortable. Live music was excellent. We had a great time!
A lovely old world restaurant but low volume means a limited buffet that just wasn’t good at all. The Fairmont in Whistler had an amazing breakfast buffet so I expected better. So while it’s convenient and elegant, I would go somewhere else. Ordering off the menu may have better results.
May 2025 Fairmont's main lobby restaurant serving standard American menu.
The menu also forms the in room service menu. The dishes are in good and standard portions.
Service may be a bit slow due to a staff shortage.
The historic interiors are stately and very grand benefitting the heritage hotel's ico ic status in the city of SFO.
We had cocktails on a rainy afternoon in the Laurel Court Bar. The drinks were wonderful and the service as expected. Very nice area to chat and get ready for the evening.
The ambiance was delightful, and the overall dining experience was enjoyable. However, the taste and menu selections fell somewhat short of expectations. The service provided by the staff was excellent, though vegetarian options were limited.
Restaurantji Recommends
Server was good but the food was NOT worth it! Sandwiches are very small! Dessert is better from Trader Joe's. Save yourself the $125 and go elsewhere. Live piano music was good. Parking was $36.
Overpriced food but excellent service
Had breakfast here that was comped as part of our stay during the holidays. Buffet was ok but not great (fruits were not fresh) and we would have been upset if we had to pay the $49 per person but since it was included, it was fine. Service was satisfactory and the setting was nice.
The tea is excellent, the food is terrible, and the service upcharged me without my knowledge. I was offered champagne and turned it down and was given apple cider instead. There wasn’t an explanation of this being a $15 dollar charge nor was it listed in a clear place on the menu. Had I known this was not included I wouldn’t have had a glass.
Of all the tea lunches I’ve had in San Francisco, this is by far the worst food I’ve ever experienced. For 120-150/person with gratuity already added to the bill, this is really disappointing. There’s nothing extravagant or special about the food. I’ve had similar food from hospital cafeterias.
The best part of holiday tea are the elves that go from table to table doing “elf magic” and a live pianist playing beautiful holiday tunes. Other than the unexpected upcharge, the food runners and bussers were highly attentive to our care and the server was kind and knowledgeable.
Holiday breakfast buffet was overpriced and awful. At $49 per person, you would expect a phenomenal dining experience, but it is the opposite. Barely any food options, mediocre food quality, waitress was not filling up our water when we were out, and to top it off the food made me sick. Do not eat here
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