We had a pre-concert dinner (prior to the Castro Street Theatre since it’s walking distance) I had scallops for appetizer and pasta for dinner. I had a wonderful vodka martini. My friends also enjoyed their dishes.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Michelle Barajas
From the moment we walked into Poesía, we felt it — that true Italian warmth that you just can’t fake. The staff is absolutely exceptional. You can see the teamwork happening seamlessly behind the scenes, everyone supporting each other, moving with purpose, but never too busy to make you feel genuinely welcomed. There’s something special about a place where the energy feels joyful and authentic. It’s not just service — it’s hospitality. The kind where you leave feeling like family. You know a restaurant is fantastic when customers are greeting the staff with hugs. That says everything. We can’t wait to come back. ❤️🍝
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Joshua Yuan
Highly recommended authentic and traditional Italian restaurant and food. The owners and staff are Italian and very sweet (especially Bene). The food is amazing! There is great indoor moody seating and also a well protected and cozy patio round the back (likely not dog friendly though) that can support larger groups too.
Oh my goodness their pasta was phenomenal!! Sauce is sooo good. I will be back!
Space Train
Atmosphere's nice, service was fine, food was extremely mediocre. Ingredients did not taste fresh, extremely over salted, way too expensive for the price. Maybe fun for some drinks at the bar, but not for a night out. 2/5
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 2
Service: 3
Michelle
Had an absolutely amazing night here at Poesia, starting off with finding easy street parking downstairs. The immediate vibe we got walking in was artsy and cozy, and a bit of mysterious. Super good spot for meeting friends or a nice date <3
We came here with a toddler and service provided to us was amazing, not only did they have this nice toddler chair pulled out right away, they also provided option of kid pasta (pasta with butter and tomato sauce) which my toddler loved!
We really liked the Sardine Alla Griglia appetizer: Monterey Bay fresh sardines, stuffed with breadcrumbs and Romano cheese over spicy broccolini - it was quite interesting and super flavorful. I have not had this dish anywhere else before so was a nice surprise!
I also personally really liked the Agnolotti Al Plin: homage pinched pasta, veal-rabbit-pork filling, veal reduction - super rich in cheese flavors, and the pasta has this great chewy texture. The Paccheri Allo Spada in Puttanesca was also really good if you like spicy and tomato based sauce.
Overall I was super impressed with the pasta texture, and the great flavors they provide here. Wasn’t able to try the wines but I think they have really good selections cause I saw neighboring tables order by the bottles! Cocktail wise we had this old fashioned drink which was super tasty.
My biggest satisfaction was the service provided despite us having a toddler join us for the meal. The staff were accommodating and did not give us weird looks when we asked for plastic utensils etc. I will be looking to come back and dine again!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Olya Krasnykh
Charming place with excellent food and wine list. Great service. The sardines and fish of the day were fantastic. So was the grilled veggie appetizer.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Matthew Dolbow
$50 entrees aren’t good enough
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 2
Service: 3
Anthony Barros 'student'
Best drinks in the Castro, amazing Italian food, can’t go wrong with Poesia
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Morgan Prenger
Poesia is such a hidden gem!
Great food + cozy atmosphere + kind staff = a wonderful spot! My partner and I go often. It's a great date spot, and great for parties of 2-4!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
J
Friendly service, but really bad food on happy hour. Happy hour mini pizzas were bite sized and not served hot. Happy hour meatballs were tough, overcooked, and tasted like they sat in a pan for hours. The entree pastas were really good.
There is no good food in the Castro so I’m dead every time I see anyone in this place. I suspect it’s on purpose so no one eats anything to maintain their figure, but that said, if you’re actually looking to eat Italian food, go elsewhere.
Fred Soucy
Great food and atmosphere!!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Peter Athanas
Old school beautiful trip to Italy without your passport. Food was excellent, server was really on it. Back ground music was spot on.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Camila Raimond
Loved walking through the kitchen to the back patio. The food was good, a couple of the seafood dishes were definitely on the fishy side. My favorite was the Vitello Tonnato, thinly sliced veal over tuna salad, sounds strange but it’s a great combo with some fresh bread. I was slightly underwhelmed by their “signature” pasta dish, the Agnolotti, I found the sauce to be too rich and very greasy. The decor of plastic hanging on the wall printed with an old house in Italy I’m guessing 🤣 is quite a site, especially with the window holes ripped into them… Overall I think I’d come back to give some other things on the menu a shot, maybe skip the seafood.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 5
Micah Glaz
Absolutely amazing! Visiting SF and decided to take my partner here. We were both so impressed. He had the eggplant and I had the sea bass and we shared the tiramisu for dinner. The service was also perfect.
We had a pre-concert dinner (prior to the Castro Street Theatre since it’s walking distance) I had scallops for appetizer and pasta for dinner. I had a wonderful vodka martini. My friends also enjoyed their dishes.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
From the moment we walked into Poesía, we felt it — that true Italian warmth that you just can’t fake. The staff is absolutely exceptional. You can see the teamwork happening seamlessly behind the scenes, everyone supporting each other, moving with purpose, but never too busy to make you feel genuinely welcomed.
There’s something special about a place where the energy feels joyful and authentic. It’s not just service — it’s hospitality. The kind where you leave feeling like family.
You know a restaurant is fantastic when customers are greeting the staff with hugs. That says everything.
We can’t wait to come back. ❤️🍝
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Highly recommended authentic and traditional Italian restaurant and food. The owners and staff are Italian and very sweet (especially Bene). The food is amazing! There is great indoor moody seating and also a well protected and cozy patio round the back (likely not dog friendly though) that can support larger groups too.
Oh my goodness their pasta was phenomenal!! Sauce is sooo good. I will be back!
Atmosphere's nice, service was fine, food was extremely mediocre. Ingredients did not taste fresh, extremely over salted, way too expensive for the price. Maybe fun for some drinks at the bar, but not for a night out. 2/5
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 2
Service: 3
Had an absolutely amazing night here at Poesia, starting off with finding easy street parking downstairs. The immediate vibe we got walking in was artsy and cozy, and a bit of mysterious. Super good spot for meeting friends or a nice date <3
We came here with a toddler and service provided to us was amazing, not only did they have this nice toddler chair pulled out right away, they also provided option of kid pasta (pasta with butter and tomato sauce) which my toddler loved!
We really liked the Sardine Alla Griglia appetizer: Monterey Bay fresh sardines, stuffed with breadcrumbs and Romano cheese over spicy broccolini - it was quite interesting and super flavorful. I have not had this dish anywhere else before so was a nice surprise!
I also personally really liked the Agnolotti Al Plin: homage pinched pasta, veal-rabbit-pork filling, veal reduction - super rich in cheese flavors, and the pasta has this great chewy texture. The Paccheri Allo Spada in Puttanesca was also really good if you like spicy and tomato based sauce.
Overall I was super impressed with the pasta texture, and the great flavors they provide here. Wasn’t able to try the wines but I think they have really good selections cause I saw neighboring tables order by the bottles! Cocktail wise we had this old fashioned drink which was super tasty.
My biggest satisfaction was the service provided despite us having a toddler join us for the meal. The staff were accommodating and did not give us weird looks when we asked for plastic utensils etc. I will be looking to come back and dine again!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Charming place with excellent food and wine list. Great service. The sardines and fish of the day were fantastic. So was the grilled veggie appetizer.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
$50 entrees aren’t good enough
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 2
Service: 3
Best drinks in the Castro, amazing Italian food, can’t go wrong with Poesia
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Poesia is such a hidden gem!
Great food + cozy atmosphere + kind staff = a wonderful spot! My partner and I go often. It's a great date spot, and great for parties of 2-4!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Friendly service, but really bad food on happy hour. Happy hour mini pizzas were bite sized and not served hot. Happy hour meatballs were tough, overcooked, and tasted like they sat in a pan for hours. The entree pastas were really good.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 2
Service: 4
Restaurantji Recommends
There is no good food in the Castro so I’m dead every time I see anyone in this place. I suspect it’s on purpose so no one eats anything to maintain their figure, but that said, if you’re actually looking to eat Italian food, go elsewhere.
Great food and atmosphere!!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Old school beautiful trip to Italy without your passport. Food was excellent, server was really on it. Back ground music was spot on.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Loved walking through the kitchen to the back patio. The food was good, a couple of the seafood dishes were definitely on the fishy side. My favorite was the Vitello Tonnato, thinly sliced veal over tuna salad, sounds strange but it’s a great combo with some fresh bread. I was slightly underwhelmed by their “signature” pasta dish, the Agnolotti, I found the sauce to be too rich and very greasy. The decor of plastic hanging on the wall printed with an old house in Italy I’m guessing 🤣 is quite a site, especially with the window holes ripped into them… Overall I think I’d come back to give some other things on the menu a shot, maybe skip the seafood.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 5
Absolutely amazing! Visiting SF and decided to take my partner here. We were both so impressed. He had the eggplant and I had the sea bass and we shared the tiramisu for dinner. The service was also perfect.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
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