Greens At Fort Mason
2.9032/5 (29 reviews)
204 Bay St
San Francisco, CA 94133
(415) 771-6222
Category: Vegetarian
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| Updated: |
October 19, 1999 |
| Cuisine: |
American, Deserts, Vegetarian, Vegan |
| Reviewer: |
Harry Wallbridge |
Relation: |
Not Related |
| Attire: |
Casual |
Reservations: |
Suggested |
| Ave. Wait: |
5-10 minutes |
Payment: |
Mastercard, Visa |
| Facilities: |
Delivery, Parking |
Phone Orders: |
No |
| Smoking: |
Not Permitted |
Meals Served: |
Lunch, Dinner, Brunch |
| Seating: |
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Alcohol Service: |
Beer, Wine |
| Type: |
Fine Dining |
Entertainment: |
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| Crowd: |
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Atmosphere: |
Normal |
| Uses: |
Romantic Evenings , Dining Only |
Nearby Places: |
Landmark, Tourist Spot, Waterfront , Busline |
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29 Reviews
REVIEW #1
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Laurie B.
Avg. Entree: $20-30
Rating:
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July 5, 2006
0 of
4 people found this review helpful
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I don't usually write reviews but I felt compelled to try to save
others from spending a lot of money on really bad food. I am from New Orleans.
We evacuated due to Katrina and became vegetarians after cleaning
our freezer due to no power for 1 1/2 months.We just came back from a much
needed vacation to beautiful California. The only negative experience
was at Greens. This was by far the worst food my partner and I have ever
had in our lives! It was cold, & tasteless. We had two main entrees
and one appetizer. We brought our own bottle of wine and the check was
$82 and paid $24 in cab fares to get there.There was a $15 corkage fee
however our white wine was never placed in a wine bucket to cool it and
we poured it ourselves.The server was rarely present. The tortillas
on the two enchiladas were hard. The beans were very cold . My partner
had Curry but couldn't even eat it....It was bland and cold. Our
appetizer was advertised as different cheeses with warm walnut bread.
There were three small pieces of cold walnut bread. Each piece was the
size of a 1/4 piece of toast presented with two small squares of two cheeses.Very
small portions and Horrible.We're still upset!
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REVIEW #3
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Robert C.
Avg. Entree: $20-30
Rating:
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May 1, 2004
0 of
4 people found this review helpful
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The first time I came to Greens, I was really disappointed with
it and disgusted that it had cost so much money (nearly $40 for
a boring salad and mediocre "Moroccan" curry with
brown rice). Perhaps it had something to do with the fact that
I had just returned from France, and the food simply couldn't
compare. Or maybe the fact that I'm not vegetarian and sometimes
a meatless dinner, when not prepared by an expert, is just too
blah and tasteless. But I actually think that Greens is just not
a good place for dinner - too pricey and just not special enough.
<br>
But then my co-workers and I discovered "Greens To Go",
the lunch takeout counter, and my opinion rapidly changed. The
sandwiches are original and delicous, although, again, pricey.
I'm not usually very fond of sandwiches, but their Egg Salad,
Caprese (fresh mozzarella and pesto on foccaccia) and Grilled
Tofu sandwiches are excellent and (almost) worth the price.
The daily soups are almost always wonderful too, and go really
well with any of the freshly baked rolls (50 cents each): Sourdough,
Olive or Walnut. (tip: on Mondays, the dining room is closed,
so you can eat your "Greens to Go" lunch in the restaurant!) <br>
But where Greens really shines is with the desserts. I often find
it impossible to resist a Strawberry Shortcake with whipped
cream or other fresh Fruit Cobbler to go along with my lunch. And
many people visit Greens simply for "Late Evening Desserts"
and forego the dinner.
<br>
Recommended: soups, any of the baked goods, lunch salads, Greens
To Go, Egg Salad sandwiches, Grilled Tofu sandwiches, Caprese
sandwiches, Tapenade sandwiches, yellow vegetable curry Tassahara
rice bowl, fruit cobblers, other desserts, molasses ice cream <br>
Avoid: dinner
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REVIEW #5
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Kae B.
Avg. Entree: $40-50
Rating:
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March 26, 2002
0 of
3 people found this review helpful
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This restaurant has great views that is for sure! The food is excellent,
however rather small in portion size for the price.
Pre-fix menu at $46.00 should provide atleast 3-4 courses of
actual food, (nuts and olives do not count as a course), The asparagus/onion
tart was great, but again, too small or not enough sides with it.
The baked pie was good, a bit too much bell pepper, but again very
small. Salads were good-but then again they should be.
Our wait staff 'Dickie' was very nice, helpful, and eager to please.
Only complaints were the difficulty in the reservation and the
pricey food for the small portions.
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REVIEW #7
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bernard H.
Avg. Entree: $15-20
Rating:
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June 20, 2000
2 of
8 people found this review helpful
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i really don't think people should be dissin' greens. greens is a really
cool restaurant. yes, it's got a nice view and interesting artwork deco,
but it also has very good food. i know people have tried to diss the
service they got @ greens. i don't think greens provides the most
attentive service, but that's not always a negative.i do understand
tho' that it was kinda weird that we were randomly served by 1 of 3
different waitpersons. our main waiter didn't talk much, wasn't
overly friendly, but really! it was enough 4 me.
we got a beautiful bay/ocean view from our table.
i'm so glad that they gave us a nice view. i
did make reservations, and i would suggest you do.
even on a mon nite, it was very crowded. the
window looks out to the water over a bunch of
boats. You can see the golden gate bridge and the sf
fog. You can see marin county.
the room has a high, high ceiling, a very nouveau
feel; a classy nouveau feel. it's very sf. many
pieces of nature.inspired artwork are on display.
it's a classy place. i think, thogh a bit loud,
it's a good place for a innovative date. it's a
date location w/ personality. of course, it's
really a bit daunting as you pull your car up into
fort mason bldg. You think You're going to some
abandoned warehouse, but "alas!" as they say... i
got a li'l lost getting there. don't use yahoo!
maps 4 this place! u'll end up @ the wrong side
of fort mason.
well, let's get to the food! the menu changes
every day, although they have a consistent take.out
menu.
letme discuss what we had: garden greens: lettuces w/ mango, avocado, n'
jalapeno vinaigrette. very good (~$8) asparagus w/ porcini mushrooms n' a hard cheese
w/ a asianesque vinaigrette dressing. very, very
good. served warm. ($11.50) brochettes on cherry/almond couscous: mushroom,
corn, potato, pepper, onion, pressed tofu. a thin,
vinegary, curryish sauce. more sour than i
expected, but very good. i enjoyed to bbq grill
taste. ($16) rolled tube pasta w/ cherry n' pear tomatoes.
simple yet tasty. ($15) peach/raspberry n' oolong sorbets w/ pistacchio
butter shortbread. yummy. i always thought that
there should be tea.flavoured sorbet! (~$7) they have an extensive selection of domestic n'
imported wine. they have beer, juices, soft
drinks, cofee, n' a long list of tea drinks,
including chai. i know some people complain about the prices @
greens. yah, it's a little expensive, but
really... let's say you've got a really hot date.
don't you think it's worth it?! this is real
food we're talking about!!! c'mon! if you are vegetarian, vegan, or just like veggiefood,
you gotta give greens a try.
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REVIEW #8
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kaela K.
Avg. Entree: $15-20
Rating:
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June 20, 2000
1 of
5 people found this review helpful
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i must agree w/ bernard hwang's review (which i seem to agree frequently).
the food here is delicious. but i'm not giving it five stars only
because of service.
this was my wonderful boyfriend's idea, and i thought it was pretty
romantic. but then again, i really like not just classy restaurants
but also restaurants w/ nouveau decor. i never expected a place
like this out of handful of warehouses in fort mason center. i
thought we'd be eating bbq on those picnic tables. i was starting
to worry about splattering bbq sauce on my clothes. so this was
a surprise dinner date.
we had a riesling wine, which i thought was pretty good. the appetizers
were delicious as well as the entrees. yes, the prices are...
well, save your $$$ for a special occasion like mine (5 month anniversary).
the view was beautiful. we missed the sunset because of the fog,
but the peaceful water helped me enjoy the dinner even more. the
pasta was a little on the hard side, but my definition of al dente
doesn't agree w/ most people.
i like the idea of changing menus. if we return again, most likely
we're not going to have to choose from the same menu. i like variety.
this place is a good place to fill up on your veggies. but be wary
of the fat content. it's better than steak, but don't splurge
here too much. i would've preferred red sauce over white for my
pasta, but beggars can't choose in a restaurant that only served
one pasta dish that night.
but definitely check it out! great dessert and impressive beverage/wine
list. kaela
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REVIEW #10
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Kenji H.
Avg. Entree: $20-30
Rating:
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June 12, 2000
0 of
5 people found this review helpful
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The restaurant has a good view and reasonable decor, but I'm not
convinced that the food is really worth the hassle of getting
to Fort Mason. Overall, they do good on the basics, but after
having tried a few times I've noticed that the quality of the
entrees is variable (going down for awhile, picking up
occasionally, but overall not as good as it was 5 years ago),
the wait staff is variable (sure, you can be real assertive and
get what you want, but it would be comfortable if the wait staff
were set up so they could chill out too--call it a management
problem). Some people may be quite surprised to hear about the
food here, given that the book recipes sound pretty good and the
chef has a big reputation, but reality doesn't care if you don't
believe it. Given a choice between this restaurant and, say,
the M word, I'd prefer Millennium overall (stare at the small
garden instead of the Bay :-), and they have been on
the upswing for a while now.
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REVIEW #12
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Avg. Entree: $20-30
Rating:
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July 2, 1999
0 of
4 people found this review helpful
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Greens started out fine, but has definitely gone downhill. Thatis particularly true over the past 8 or so years. We will nolonger use the gas it takes to drive across town to get there.The food has gone very far downhill, yet the prices have gone up.No, they have not gone up, they have gone UP, UP, UP. Greens still has the view. I wish they still had good food, as someyears ago we went there regularly. We quit going.
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REVIEW #17
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Avg. Entree: $20-30
Rating:
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May 27, 1997
0 of
5 people found this review helpful
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Whoa! Judging from the other reviews, there are a lot of
threatened people having bad experiences at Greens. As a
food professional (pastry chef for 12 years) I must add my
two cents' worth: SNOOTY WAIT STAFF: Dish it back at 'em if
you get attitude. I've been going to Greens (and other Bay
Area restaurants like Chez Panisse and Zuni) for years, and
if a wait person tries to intimidate me, I just firmly state
ALL my preferences, stare them down, and then smile sweetly.
It always works, and I've never had bad service at Greens.
If you get REALLY bad service here (or anywhere), then
"tattle" - ask to see the manager and calmly state your
case. No reputable place will ignore a customer's
complaints. But really: if you act intimidated or huffy,
then wait staff will walk all over you. Just give as good
as you get (to paraphrase Edina Monsoon in "Absolutely
Fabulous:" "You can cut the attitude -- you're only a
waiter, you know.") "MEDIOCRE" OR "AVERAGE" FOOD: Greens'
Annie Sommerville (and her predecessor Deborah Madison) is
one of the Bay Area's most gifted chefs. Like Alice Waters,
she uses only the best seasonal produce, local specialty
cheeses, etc., and her kitchen staff is extremely dedicated.
I have always loved her food: it's simple, straightforward,
thoughtful, beautiful and usually extremely delicious (food
doesn't HAVE to have fancy sauces, a million ingredients,
major architecture, etc. to be great. If you don't believe
me, go to Chez Panisse). Understand what you're eating; to
paraphrase Edina again: "You're not getting Linda bloody
McCartney's bloody tofu treats!" "EXPENSIVE" OR "OVERPRICED"
DISHES/MENU: The prices at Greens are about par with most
fine Bay Area restaurants. I think they're fair for what I
receive. Don't any of you people call ahead to find out a
restaurant's price range? If you don't, or don't walk out
after you've seen the prices and deem them too expensive you
have only yourselves to blame. Remember: Sommerville and
Co. use prime ingredients from local green markets and small
organic farmers -- this stuff ain't cheap. This restaurant
is NOT going to be priced like the deli counter at your
local hippie-style co-op grocery or whole foods store. Wise
up. In closing: I think the room and view are worth the
price of admission by themselves.
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REVIEW #18
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Rating:
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May 2, 1997
0 of
5 people found this review helpful
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Excellent food and great service. Our waiter was friendly,
knowledgeable, and took the extra effort to ensure a positive
dining experience.
We had the prix fixe dinner, which was well-priced at $38, and
included appetizer, soup, entree, salad, dessert, and coffee.
The appetizer was a medley of grilled vegetables, which were
infused with a smoky aroma yet still tasted fresh. The entree
a wonderful filo pastry filled with spinach and goat cheese and
walnuts. And the dessert: a white chocolate shortcake smothered
in fresh strawberries and mangoes, with a dollop of whipped
cream, was to die for!
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REVIEW #19
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Zaphod B.
Avg. Entree: $10-15
Rating:
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April 28, 1997
0 of
5 people found this review helpful
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The service has become horrible. Waiteresses are extremely rude.
The hostess seemed to have an attitude. This used to be a nice
resturant, but is no longer worth it. Avoid the resturant unless
you want to get lots of abuse from the waitress and the hostess
and some average quality food.
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REVIEW #20
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William C.
Avg. Entree: $10-15
Rating:
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January 12, 1997
1 of
7 people found this review helpful
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Green's started out pretty well, but what happened? Now
it has turned out to be a vastly overpriced place. The
view is still the same, but the food has gone to heck,
and the prices are as out of sight as ever. When the food
and service were better I paid the price. Not again.
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