|
|
jro
(36) reviews
1/14/2008
|
|
Cuisine:
French
|
Mission |
| “ Both my friends and parents really enjoy it here. The dining room is warm, and the staff are clever and attentive. Order one of the highlighted menu items, or let your waiter steer you toward their picks to get the best of the night's offerings. I've gone in large groups, and have tried most of the menu. Their small plates really stand out and I found many to be great. The entrees varied. The rabbit and the duck were perfect, with the lamb and seafood stew a close second. The pork was dry the night I tasted it, and the vegetable sides lack interest compared to the well-considered meats and fish (but really I'm splitting hairs.)
”
|
|
|
ThurstonHowell
(18) reviews
7/27/2007
|
|
Cuisine:
French
|
Mission |
| “ Invited for Bastille celebrations to this Mission location turned my dining occurrence into deeper understanding of how one feels behind walls unable to leave, think or speak. Wedged into this small room, with loud, intoxicated patrons proved that even the french believe in brutal treatment. Food wise the provisions were acceptable even though most of it arrive tardy, indifferent as if plate were passing on a assembly line and the chow dropped from a mechanical arm from 3 feet high. My dish was a slow hare apparently either too fat or crippled unable to outrun Elmer Fudd. Disgusting slow, inept service partially due to too much wine and joie de vivre of the staff that evening. Pricing was moderate from what I remember thankfully I was a guest at this inconvenience. Possibility another nite, another time, better yet another restaurant would be more brilliant. ”
|
|
|
cyberdoggie
(49) reviews
3/7/2007
|
|
|
Cuisine:
French
|
Mission |
| “ In short, truly wonderful food with some of most indifferent service I've experienced this year. Cutting to the chase regarding the service, when food arrives before the wine it's remiss. When the first course is cleared and the wine still hasn't arrived, it's just plain wrong. I can't remember the last time I had to get out of my seat, go to the bar and interrupt the wait staff (who were chatting among themselves), and beg for some wine! The indifference was stunning.
That said, the food was outstanding, and I'd go back, maybe this time with my own bottle of wine (and opener). Not many places do a perfect rabbit for instance, but here its just one of many superrbly executed dishes.
Finally, if you can find parking you're living a charmed life. Expect to walk blocks and blocks or take a cab. ”
|
|
|
psjnsfca
(6) reviews
1/8/2006
|
|
|
Cuisine:
French
|
Mission |
| “ Meal at this restaurant was a thoroughly enjoyable experience. My favorite parts were the appetizer of Salade de Chèvre and the Moelleux au Chocolat dessert. For the main course, had the Daube à la Provençale, consisting of a beef stew in red wine sauce with sides of mashed potato and a touch of ratatouille. Food was tasty, althought the meat was a bit stringy - think is was brisket. Enjoyed it - but not blown away. Ambiance in the restaurant has a lot of charm and the owners were very pleasant and welcoming. I give this restaurant a thumbs up and will be returning. ”
|
|
|
SMNP
(22) reviews
12/14/2005
|
|
|
Cuisine:
French
|
Mission |
| “ Excellent good - great service. I had the crab appetizer which was delicious and then the duck. nice warm friendly atmosphere. ”
|
|
|
tenortom
(138) reviews
11/1/2005
|
|
|
Cuisine:
French
|
Mission |
| “ Wow factor missing. Knowing and loving extraordinary french home cooking, I was frankly expecting more from this charming neighborhood restaurant on Guerrero. Currently obsessed with mediterranean provence, I found few orgiastic flavors. With memories of morsels sending me into orbit and gourmet frenzy in the South of France, I wanted so much more. Still, due to enormous warmth from the french owners, the experience is positive. On the level of Chapeau or Baker Street Bistro, very good and enjoyable but lacking. As is the trend, entrees did not live up to the appetizers, though a burning, smoking rosemary branch in each entrée appealed to subliminal urges. Le terroir dans la Provence brule exceptionel but not in this food. My brioche with cream dessert dry and sous-normal but the owner's son's infectious delight at an overturned wine glass engulfing the table made up for everything. ”
|
|
|
rjewell28
(46) reviews
10/13/2005
|
|
|
Cuisine:
French
|
Mission |
| “ I have to go with a Neutral review here...the food was excellent, the staff very accommodating, and the Lavender Creme Brule outstanding, throw in the fact that they've got a $10 corkage and normally I'd be all smiles.
Unfortunatly both my boyfriend and I were incredibly sick later that night and all the next day...I wish I could find something else to blame it on, and maybe I should, but as far as we both can tell La Provance is the only common denominator. :^( ”
|
|
|
Superswank
(237) reviews
9/28/2005
|
|
|
Cuisine:
French
|
Mission |
| “ La Provence's family atmosphere is so inviting and makes you feel like you are in someone's home rather than a restaurant. The waitstaff is so inviting and pleasant. The food is very good, but not excellent. I think they are still perfecting their menu. The salad de chevre was delicious, but the pate could have used a little bit of help. I ordered the rabbit which was good, even though it was slightly overcooked. My friend ordered the lamb which was delicious and perfectly medium rare. We passed on dessert because we were too full, but the dessert menu looked good. They also have good wine offering by the glass. A great neighborhood find that I will be returning to soon. ”
|
|
|
hang
(13) reviews
9/9/2005
|
|
|
Cuisine:
French
|
Mission |
| “ The food is getting better from my first visit after opening and recently. Portions are quite frenchily small, for big eaters you can take revenge on the very good bread.
I like the food, very truly french. Not the one adapted to flavors-spoiled american palates expecting a wave of heat and/or of tons of flavors from herbs... ”
|
|
|
geordie
(83) reviews
9/9/2005
|
|
|
Cuisine:
French
|
Mission |
| “ A refreshing change for me was to try french Cuisine. Since I never had any french cuisine in this caliber, La Provence will be my reference.
The staff was attentive and kind... being very patient with my butchering of the french words in the menu.
The food to me, it tasted like what I would think comfort food would be in France.
We had Procencal Pie, goat cheese salad, the beef stew and the lamb...
Nothing disappointed. To end the meal we chose to share nice brulle with lavender honey, that was the perfect end to a delicious meal... most of the meals here are devoid of the heavy creams and butter often associated with french Cuisine, in fact our fresh bread came with a sun dried tomato spread instead of beurre. I will definitely go back. ”
|
|
|
punks
(110) reviews
9/6/2005
|
|
|
Cuisine:
French
|
Mission |
| “ There are three reasons that I would not go back to this place. First, the service was sooo slow and it's uncomfortable to sit at a table for 25 minutes before you get your glass of wine. The bread came and it was two pieces floating in this big basket (there were two of us). The food was drenched in sauce. The goat cheese salad was good but not the reason I would return. Parking was difficult and there are no close-by lots. I woke up the next day very ill and had just the lamb, salad, one glass of wine and that's it. I had made my lunch at home. Overall the slow service, heavy sauces on the meat and the scarce bread at the table made for an uncomfortable evening. I go out to about 8 restaurants a week from TuLan to Michael Mina and pay for my meals. I expect to have good service, clean and tasty food, and no hassles. I'm in the business of taking groups to restaurants and regularly check them out to make sure standards are met. This place needs some work. ”
|
|
|
cuisine4me
(1) review
8/30/2005
|
|
|
Cuisine:
French
|
Mission |
| “ La Provence is my new all time favorite restaurant. Not just the food but the service and ambience is fantastic! I had the halibut dish once and another time, the soup de poissons both were excellent. I love the details. They even have the sound of the cicadas in between the background music selections.
Bravo to them! ”
|
|
|
quinxi
(57) reviews
8/26/2005
|
|
|
Cuisine:
French
|
Mission |
| “ Visited this restaurant for the first time with some of our neighbors. For a Thursday night the place was pretty busy with the service a little slow although quite friendly. I had the Soup di Poissons which was actually quite good. It had a couple of nice pieces of fish and some nice large shrimp along with some squid and mussels and clams. The clams must have been added at the very end of the cooking process as none of the three were quite open and when I pried one open it was undercooked. Still overall a nice dish. My wife had the beef stew which was excellent. Our neighbors had the halibut and the red snapper dishes which they both said were good. Had a chocolate desert (like a chocolate ooze) that was ok but nothing too great. Will have to try this place again. ”
|
|
|
jadegyrlee
(106) reviews
8/18/2005
|
|
|
Cuisine:
French
|
Mission |
| “ When my bf and I entered the restaurant, there was only one other table there. After our appetizers, they left, so we had the whole restaurant to ourselves. The host (who is also the part owner; other owner is his dad) was very friendly, and we started some good conversation strings. His warm personality was one of the reasons we left him a big tip. the food there was prepared well. i had the lotte (monkfish), and i thought the consistency of the fish was just right...they had great sauces to go along with it. my bf had the beef stew, which was very hearty and would be good on a cold winter's day. i had the soup for my appetizer, and the macaroni in there was the best macaroni i've ever had. didn't think pasta could be that fresh. my boyfriend had the shrimp appetizer in the tomato sauce. the shrimp was undercooked, the way i like it. my only complaint about the food: i thought it was a bit salty. deserts were great: try the creme brulee. cute decor and i love the cicada theme! ”
|
|
|
bigtongue
(23) reviews
8/17/2005
|
|
|
Cuisine:
French
|
Mission |
| “ I had the Salade de Chevre and the Poulet aux Olives: simple dishes, fairly good food. Nothing extraodinary, quality simple day to day cuisine. Good contact with staff, keen to hear about sfsurvey.com. ”
|
|
|
y mas
(1) review
8/10/2005
|
|
|
Cuisine:
French
|
Mission |
| “ This is a nice addition to the 22nd/guerrero culinary corner. Old timers may recognize the old mangiafuoco bar which has been re-installed again, and which shows a nice bit of eco-mindfulness. The very friendly and very french owner, good french wines by the glass, and cute waitstaff should draw in the business... try the soupe de poissons, tastefully loaded with seafood, or the rabbit, or the salmon tartare - you can't go wrong. ”
|
|
|
nancee
(1) review
8/9/2005
|
|
|
Cuisine:
French
|
Mission |
| “ My two best friends and I normally catch up at someone’s house over a meal brought together dish by dish through our own thoughtfulness and gentle prodding. Occasionally, someone will remind us that we have a whole city of amazing options. We have been turned off by inconsistency, high prices for poor quality and terrible service. Tonight we ventured to try a new neighborhood restaurant that caught our eye. Our requirements: feel relaxed enough to talk, amazing food and wine, and at least attentive service. Well, San Francisco cast your fears aside, there is hope from overlit restaurants and the highly distracted artist-in-transition wait staff, and it may begin in Provence. Throw in exceptional food such as, Salmon Tartare, Goat Cheese Salad, & Rabbit -- and it may be hard to stop me from returning. For a moment, you too may believe the french really do love us, especially with $10 corkage. Merci! ”
|
|
|
mikemai
(6) reviews
8/9/2005
|
|
|
Cuisine:
French
|
Mission |
| “ As a neighbor living 2 blocks from La Provence I've been to this hidden slice of southern France numerous times. The owners and staff are friendly, service oriented, and efficient. And the plates tell me this family restaurant learned to deliver local flavors with finesse and attention to detail. Fish, rabbit, steak, lamb, or chicken - all great dishes. A key distinction between northern and southern french cuisines is that southern cooking is lighter and generally considered to be healthier. But this approach doesn't not distract from the flavor punch in any way. Wines are selections from the southern France and Napa, table wines that don't gobble up cash. I would prefer to see a few more wines on the list, but what's there compliments the menu very nicely.
By the way, the table/artistic theme is based on Locusts which are an appreciated part of southern french nature cycles.
”
|
|
|
petr0115
(17) reviews
8/7/2005
|
|
|
Cuisine:
French
|
Mission |
| “ This restaurant gets an A+. An adorable restaurant with a warm, clean inviting atmosphere. The food was excellent with a nice combination of flavors with nothing too overpowering and beautifully presented. The service was perfect. Highly recommend. ”
|
|
|
jamesdstaub
(13) reviews
8/6/2005
|
|
|
Cuisine:
French
|
Mission |
| “ very impressed, very reasonable food with a french flair. the beef stew was fantastic, seasoned perfectly. my guests had the lamb, the halibut and one shared two appeterizers. all thought it was excellent except the halibut was not hot when served.the owner was very personal and made our evening a sucess. since we live in the area, this restaurant will be one of our regulars. very well organized after only three weeks after opening. ”
|
|
|
catherineanne
(6) reviews
8/5/2005
|
|
|
Cuisine:
French
|
Mission |
| “ Wonderful food... beautiful and tasty. We had the Salade Chevre, Crevettes Provencales, Magret de Canard, Lotte, Apple Tarte and Molten Chocolate cake. delicious from start to finish. Very friendly staff. Fantastic wine... quality and unbelieveable prices! Can´t wait to return. ”
|
|
|
knowsfood
(3) reviews
8/4/2005
|
|
|
Cuisine:
French
|
Mission |
| “ If you want some really wonderful food that brings all of the best flavors of the south of France, go to La Provence. The prices are very reasonable, the quality is excellent and the staff is warm and welcoming.
The restaurant is new and will soon be "discovered" - try it now and become a regular here - this is destined to be a favorite for those who crave skilled french cooking that is not pretentious - simply delicious! ”
|
|
|
kushnir
(405) reviews
8/3/2005
|
|
|
Cuisine:
French
|
Mission |
| “ If it wasn’t for the appearance of the other patrons I could have closed my eyes and thought I was in the south of France. Americans no longer dress up or even clean up for almost anything anymore. The room was filled with a sea of logo shirts in various stages of distress, but still the food kept my attention to the refreshing taste and quality not seen here in medium priced establishments. This can only be accomplished in a family run operation and I hope they survive the real world out here. The service was good although a tad slow, to American standards,unlike the french, we eat to survive not to enjoy! ( well most of us) Our lamb dishes were done perfectly as was the duck breast. A tad loud for normal conversation because of the room acoustics, but with enough wine, (limited selection) this became less important! There are enough businesses around the area, so parking is not a big problem, the pricing was a great value for what we received and we didn’t have to fly for 10 hours! ”
|
|
|
Sailor Ger
(9) reviews
8/3/2005
|
|
|
Cuisine:
French
|
Mission |
| “ I have to say that this was one of my most positive restaurant experiences in recent times. The food was excellent & service friendly & prompt. The "Crevettes Provencal’s“ or sautéed shrimp as Wayne said above was delicious. I've never had shrimp taste so good. We also had La Pissaladière - a savory Procencal pie. We had it with the anchovies and the black olives and anchovies complement each other nicely. It had a nice balance of saltiness about it and looked like a little pizza. My girlfriend had the rabbit and I had the monkfish and both were very satisfying. Finally we shared a Tarte Tropezienne - a specialty of St. Tropez: Tart made of brioche bread and filled with “crème patissiere”. I could have eaten another one of these all to myself and I'm not a big dessert person. It was very light and not too sweet but very, very tasty and satisfying - a perfect conclusion to a wonderful meal. Oh, and the prices are very reasonable also! Please do yourself a favor and check it out! ”
|
|
|
Angela Von Buelow
(227) reviews
7/31/2005
|
|
|
Cuisine:
French
|
Mission |
| “ comfort food has been in vogue in SF for a few years now, how about some comfort food that does not include mac and cheese… how about comfort food that hails from the South East region of France, sound good? (Well it is) La Provence is family owned and operated; every element warms the spirit, from the gracious service to the hearty yet relatively healthy cuisine. No detail is over looked in the décor, which has a running theme, the mighty Cigale, which is a cricket like critter that symbolizes summer and prosperity in this part of the world. I started my meal with the Salade de Chevre (a lovely warm goat cheese salad), which was beautifully plated and quite tasty. Then I enjoyed the Magret de Canard (seared duck breast), which was served with peaches that complemented the duck very nicely. I ended with the Chocolate Mousse, it had dark chocolate shavings mixed in and topped with fresh raspberries (one of the best I’ve had) I highly recommend you try it for yourself. Enjoy! ”
|
|
|
Wayne Lambright
(212) reviews
7/31/2005
|
|
|
Cuisine:
French
|
Mission |
| “ My perception of tasty food just got expanded. La Provence has imported the La Provence style of cooking to San Francisco, the chief just arrived two-day’s ago from France, you can’t get more authentic then that. Milk is limited in the Provence region of France; so the dishes are a bit different from the normally creamy type of french Cuisine American,s are use to. I started off with the shrimp appetizer “Crevettes Provencal’s“ sautéed shrimp with olive oil. I could have eaten five plates of them :-), next I had the Roasted Rabbit with a reduction of Noilly Prat, jus and honey, and the rabbit w/its reduction was a real treat, To finish off the meal I enjoyed a slice of the in-house lemon meringue pie, this alone is worth going back for. Bathroom=ultra clean, neighborhood is on the edge of Neo-Valley and the Mission, the surrounding were clean. I found street parking across the street at 7pm on a Saterday. Cost about $25-30 per person. See our photos below :-) closed monday ”
|
|
|
poolshark
(63) reviews
7/29/2005
|
|
|
Cuisine:
French
|
Mission |
| “ Simple and unpretentious cuisine from southern France. The Daube was pretty authentic, real homestyle cooking. Short wine list but cheap. Main courses are in the $13 - $18 range. Friendly service. Will have to go back to try the rabbit course.
”
|
|
|
STB1
(52) reviews
7/11/2005
|
|
|
Cuisine:
French
|
Mission |
| “ Two weeks old as of this weekend (July 9, 2005). I felt like I was back in southern France, eating here. The food is, in a word, terrific! This is in the spot where La Fiamma used to be and they have done wonders with this small place. It is in a light, cheerful yellow with white flooring and dark wood tables and large colorful posters on the walls and fresh flowers on every table. Open kitchen. Owned by a man and his wife (his family is from Aix en Provence) My first course was a salad with heirloom tomatoes and goat cheese on wonderfully crisp toasts. Main course was the best rack of lamb I have had in San Francisco. Perfectly cooked, well seasoned and delicious. The accompanying vegetables were excellent - grilled eggplant and zucchini, haricot verts and a lovely cooked tomato mixture. A delicious lemon tart (house made) for dessert topped off a perfect meal. Service and kitchen a bit slow, but this was only their second week! More than satisfactory. ”
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Add
to favorites
Printer
friendly page
Facebook
Delicious
Reddit
technorati
Yahoo
Google
Furl
StumbleUpon
