Il Caffe

Went here on my last visit to the city. My friends and I had been walking around non stop all day so decided to pop into this place. It had a very cute ambiance and wasn’t too busy at the time.
For whatever reason, the staff was extremely rude. The girl working the register had an attitude whenever I would ask her a question and the guy working with her would just stare at me giving is dirty looks? It was very odd. I didn’t expect such a small place to have crappy service.
Besides that, the pastry I got wasn’t all that great. I believe it was a cinnamon stick, very dry.

Just walked out of this place. The staff is yelling to customers about how they have run out of espresso drinks. NO LATTES, no CAPPUCCINO, NO MOCHAS NO NOTHING! Ignoring people who are trying to order. Employees addressing customers as Asian chicks what is going on. In a city like San Francisco where doors close quicker then they open establishments that are at the center of it all, should take pride in representing OUR city. The one star is because I had to

I love San Francisco and I LOVE finding new places to eat and drink. But after a long day of hiking and driving, I just didn’t feel up to walking far or fighting rush hour traffic in an über. So, I decided to make the short walk from my hotel over to union square and stopped at this caffe for a coffee and snack. It’s a cute little spot with lots of outdoor seating that allows for a great view of the happenings of the popular location in which it sits. Unfortunately, it was quite the disappointment.
Given the location (and the fact that it was a Saturday afternoon) I was not at all surprised at how busy the place was. But the first thing I witnessed was the girl at the register giving an old man who didn’t speak very good English a lot of attitude about his order. One thing she said that sounded a bit odd was, «I can not give you your coffee in a porcelain cup because we are closing in a few hours, so it has to be in a to go cup». Huh? A few hours?! How long does it take to drink a cup of coffee? I could see if they were closing in a few minutes, but a few hours?! Ok whatever, not a good first impression, but not a deal breaker. As I was waiting in the long line, the other guy at the register yells out to the crowd very irritably, «if you’re here for gelato, we’re out, sorry». Everyone in the line just looked at one another like, ok… Like he was subtly (not really) trying to tell some people to get the eff out. It was so odd!
When I finally reached the register, I ordered a salad and took probably a little over 5 seconds to decide on my coffee order. He actually rolled his eyes and looked so annoyed that I had paused for a moment before getting to my point. I even had the nerve to ask if they had sugar free vanilla, he looked over to where they were making the coffee, and it was as if he debated whether he should actually look or just straight up tell me no. Of course, he went with the easier choice, so he just said no. Haha! Even my man commented on how ridiculous that was (and he rarely comments on service). I continued to see the register clerks exude much annoyance and rudeness towards the other customers as well. I understand, I’m a nurse and have been one for 8 years. I’ve also worked retail and restaurants in the past as well. It’s very hard to deal with people in the service industry, but it’s a job, and during those hours at work you put on your best I love unicorns smile and just suck it up. It really puts a damper on my day when I come across a worker who’s rude! I’m not a high maintenance customer, give me a coffee and a smile and I’m set. But be rude to me when I’m giving you money to do your job, the Korean hulk side takes full control, and I wanna just yell, «if you’re so damn miserable in your job, find a new one cause you’re ruining my day!» Luckily my
man was there to quiet the Korean beast, and no scenes were made.
Overall, food and coffee were ok, everything was over priced, service was absolutely terrible. If it weren’t for the location, I’m sure no one would want to come here. I will definitely not be returning, I would much rather walk a few blocks or fight traffic to go somewhere else. Only reason I’m giving 2 stars instead of 1, is because the guy who brought out my salad and bussed our table was incredibly sweet and actually brought me an extra fork without making me feel like I was commanding him to wipe poo off my shoes.

Ordered the 2 eggplant panini for my wife and I and a beer. I did not get the beer and had to go back and ask. The semi rude cashier said «oh. You did not get it» and then filled a glass and gave it to me and walked away. My panini was burnt. My wife’s was ¹⁄₃ cooked. Actually it was cold. I notice after I ate mine and tried hers. I mentioned it to the cashier. They said «well maybe next time» :).

I paid about $ 4.75 for what I’m guessing was an 8 ounce latte. Wasn’t even a good one. It was a nice place to relax though.

They serve coffee, tea, beer and wine! All my favorite things. This place is super cute and right in union square the kind of place that makes you think it the service will be snobby and the items over priced. However, the prices are decent and the service is great! The cashier was patient and very helpful.

Considering their location right in Union Square, they definitely don’t fall into some tourist trap café, with sub-​par items. Better lattes than Starbucks (God, I hope they don’t strip me of my Gold Card for saying this)! The lattes here are made with love and great ingredients. The sugar-​free vanilla latte that I ordered was creamy, smooth and topped off with a beautiful heart in the foam. It was made with care and it showed from first to final sip. Also, their baked goodies are also out of this world delicious.
All in all, this place, the service and quality of food has earned them a 5 star review.

Great location for a quick non commercial smooth warm taste in your mouth. I ordered classic chai tea latte. They also sell gelato and other snacks. I wasn’t blown away, but I wasn’t disgusted either. Hence the 3 stars.
If you have asthma or anything like that, don’t enjoy your beverage outside. There are way too many smokers.
…these are my thoughts!

Great location, decent food, horrible service. The guy who made our drinks have me serious attitude when I asked where the cream and sugar was. He just rolled his eyes and pointed like I should have known all along. I know it’s a touristy area but at least have the decency to treat your customers with some form of respect.

Oh, Union Square. One of the many tourist traps of San Francisco. Just one thing– how have I spent a huge portion of the last six years of my life in SF and not known Union Square has a café right IN the square? Mind blown. The little tables are perfect for a warm day– so we miraculously managed to find one last Saturday and enjoyed refreshments in the sunshine.
Even if you can’t find a table, head on over, stand in the long line at Il Caffee, and find a seat along the grassy steps of Union Square. It’s a great pitstop in the middle of a day of shopping.

This place is such a great concept, and it especially pays off on a good weather day like last weekend in SF.
My friend and I were on the way to go ice-​skating at the holiday rink since it was the last weekend before closing for the season, and we happened to stop by here to grab something to drink just so we could sit at a table outside and enjoy our food we grabbed from another place earlier.
I ordered a small café au lait ($ 2.73), and like the rating implies, it was okay. I didn’t think that the foam on top was supposed to be on a café au lait, but I won’t be too nit-​picky about it.
Great place to sit down, enjoy a drink or two, and enjoy the day while basking in the sunlight!

Loved it. I had the apple cider and the roasted turkey panini. Sooo good! It’s right at Union Square. Sitting outside is so enjoyable.

I like the coffee, central location and outdoor seating. The latte, cappuccino and pastries are good. I haven’t tried their other food options, which are mostly pre-​made salads and sandwiches. Didn’t look exciting and way over priced for what you get. The location is perfect for getting some sun while people watching.
Service can be a hit or miss, sometimes even chaotic. The first time I came here, I ordered a latte to go, they call out a latte for here. I asked multiple times if the latte was mine and was told it wasn’t since I ordered to go. It sat on the counter for a long time and I kept waiting for them to call out latte to go. After waiting for a while and seeing multiple people that were in line after me get their drinks, I told them I still haven’t gotten my order. They finally realize they messed up and made me a new one but did not offer an apology. It does get hectic and service is not all that great.
Overall, it is a bit of a tourist trap but ok just to grab a coffee or snack and take a quick rest stop.

Worst crap you could order! Came in for a quick bite and it was pretty disgusting. Not a good example of what it’s like for tourists food. this is one of the worst cafés in Union Square that I’ve ever grab a bite at. Stay away.

Not sure if I’ll eat the breakfast food or lunch here but it’s a great place to people watch (tourist watch). Reminds me of being in Europe sitting in the Plaza. Beware of aggressive pigeons.

The best thing about this place is the gelato. It’s delicious, and they actually offer reasonably-​sized portions (4oz or 8oz). Surprisingly, I was not impressed by the coffee. That said, Union Square is really intended to cater to tourists, so I should have known better. My Americano was okay. There was nothing spectacular about it. My hazelnut gelato, however, was incredible. Gelato was a good choice.
The staff was friendly, and they handled the incredibly long line very well. There are tables for 2 inside the location, but you’ll literally be bumping up against the people in line if you sit there. Besides, you really can’t beat the outdoor seating on a clear, sunny day in the best city on this planet… San Francisco! We sat outside with our coffee and gelato, and we just watched the tourists and the passers-​by enjoying the sights and getting creeped out by the weirdos in San Francisco! It was a real treat.

Location is great especially if you grab a sunny spot. Really amazing central positioning and if you are a visitor a great starting or brake spot. Its ultimately very pleasant to be here.
Cappuccino here was OK as I didn’t notice anything off about it. However regular coffee tasted quite watery and I wasn’t able to finish it. If you are an avid coffee lover– skip ordering a regular coffee here. That being said I would also skip Chocolate brioche (as I am still not sure was it spoiled or just very bad)
Plain croissant was standardly good and tasted pretty fresh.
Some of the servers seemed to be excellent and the guy who usually cleans the area was very nice and was willing to help with watching my stroller while I was shopping in the Café.
I am still not sure how having a full meal would be at this place as my experience didn’t go beyond coffee and pastries.
I enjoyed the ambiance here and if you feel like having a coffee (which this would be a great spot for) my advice is to order cappuccino or perhaps some other specialty coffee.

It’s a good day to relax at IL Caffe on MLK Day. I enjoy sitting out there and people watching. it is next to the ice skating rank; therefore it is really busy and full of people. Also, the weather is nice day.
My hubby and I order a beer and EMporio Rulli. It was really good.

The Café on Union Square is a real good place to rest, have a beverage and people watch. The food isn’t so wonderful you need to eat there.
On a sunny day this place feels just about perfect as the tourists and locals walk by.
Folks I noticed:
Toothy Brit with hair in his ears
Leggy young woman in short shorts
Asian art School/​Fashion Institute girls
Buff dude with angry look
Buff dude with a smug look
Italian tourist family with no sense of vocal volume
Hipster couple making fun of Il Caffe
Drunk guy sitting on the stone steps
Business lady disapproving of something or somebody on the other side of her phone call
German kids looking lost and then running towards their mother and father
Fashionable woman with big sunglasses and a sneer
Pigeons attempting to take over my table

The little coffee shop in the middle of Union Square.
It’s a cute little place with a few table inside and outside, but on a nice day you can sit outside anywhere and soak up the sun.
I always try to get your basic coffee here, but I always get swooned by their melted chocolate for their hot chocolate. Luckily, they offer a hot chocolate and espresso mixture! It’s yummy. I hate hot chocolate that’s just powder and water. This hot chocolate is chocolaty coffee goodness.
Go get it. Go get some now.