Steps Of Rome Trattoria

Steps of Rome is a WONDERFUL place to eat, have a beer, or dessert. The staff is beyond great! They are attentive to your every need and are always around to make sure you're having a good time! The chicken parmigiana is terrific! My daughter had pasta which she loved and her friend had pizza and said it was one of the best she's ever had! Yes, my daughter would love to marry the host in about 8 years but that's beside the point! HAHA!! Steps is truly a great place! The fruit filled sorbet is a refreshing dessert after a long day of shopping. The Company I work for will be traveling to SF this month and will definately stop by Steps of Rome!! Give it a try, you won't be disappointed!

The first thing we did when we entered this cafe was ask if they take American Express; and the host indicated that they do. After ordering, we watched the activity around us while waiting far too long for the food to arrive.

The waiters behaved like juveniles, flirting and pawing the teenage girls while ignoring customers over the age of 20. After our entrees had not arrived for nearly 45 minutes we inquired with our estranged waiter - who nearly yelled at us 'It's coming!' Our food showed up a couple minutes after that. It tasted OK but was COLD...as if it had been sitting on a counter for quite some time.

When we were ready to pay, the waiter told us they not only refuse American express but do not accept any credit cards at all. I emphasized they had told us they accept Amex the moment we arrived - but he insisted that's wrong and refused to take any credit cards from us. No such policy was posted, and I think this boy was just upset with us because we asked for our food after waiting only 45 mins. Don't waste your money, or time. This place is strictly for teeny boppers.

Steps of Rome is a completely different cafe experience... this isn't the place to go if you want quiet dining
.. You can expect an impromptu party here any time of day or night, which adds to the allure of the cafe... There is Italian music blasting through all of the speakers, and the waiters and patrons are usually singing and dancing along... i would recommend coming to Steps of Rome Cafe for their delicious desserts and espresso.

We have lived in New York and know what real italian food should taste like, but even if we didn't, who doesn't know that vodka sauce is a creamy tomato sauce? The Gnocci with Pancetta and "Vodka Sauce" most resembled a warmed bottle of cheese wiz. The Fettuccini Carbonara tasted as if I was licking the inside of a salt shaker. The food was bad enough, but the sight of the waiters taking off their shirts and dancing provocatvely in between running out to the street with a menu to encourage people to come in was too much to take. Please, go to North Beach as it is a great neighborhood, but go anywhere but Steps of Rome Cafe!

In all fairness the food that we had our night there was pretty good. The atmosphere, however, was horrible. Unless you want to end up next to a table full of high school girls singing Bob Markley at the top of their lungs, do NOT come here!! We actually asked the wait staff very politely to turn the music down just a little and they turned it up and then made sure eveyone knew we'd asked them to turn it down so that we felt like the party poopers. Embarassing (for them, not for us). Really -- I've never had such a horrible dining experience in my life.