Nonna Rose Seafood Trattoria

I’ve been to other restaurants around Fisherman’s Wharf and I must say there was nothing fancy about Nonna Rose Trattoria. I was just shocked when I got my bill with a hand written mandatory tip of 20%.
Tipping is never bad most especially to a great service, but this must be left on the discretion of the customer.

Bad restaurant, stranges waiters, really expensive, bathrooms dirty, supp service pût in your Bill with a pen, small Dish, no box to bring your food

At all costs, stay away! Service was terrible. Bus boy brought us water and bread. Server finally showed up as were about to leave. Ordered 2 kids meals, a combo cocktail and cup of chowder. Looking to taste fresh seafood, what a let down. Kids fish and chips, fish smelled bad, combo cocktail at $ 14.00 barely had anything I would consider a cocktail, cheap salad shrimp, shredded frozen crab. Aweful. Chowder was all potato, aweful. Add 2 sodas, bill came to $ 43.00; then server hand wrote a mandatory tip of $ 7.00? Server showed up twice, take order and give us the bill!, Stephanie, the server said automatic on groups of 4. Menu has no written gratuity policy.
Simply disgusted with the service and the food. Such a disgrace to be on the famed Fisherman’s Wharf. So disappointed. I can’t say enough for everyone to stay away. Ask about gratuity policy before you sit down.

WORST service ever and the food was not worth giving to my DOG!
two «gentlemen» that worked there were luring people in by yelling at people walking by «you’re going the wrong way!» which is not only RUDE but inconsiderate to tourists not really knowing where they are in fact going.
i sat outside, as i was looked up and down by one of these gentleman and they «politely» told me that the café outside was for casual diners. fine. i was in jeans after a long flight. it was getting late. i was hungry. after sitting there for 10 min, i had to ask them if there were any servers outside. finally someone came. my food arrived shortly after. clam chowder was salty and the bread tasted like it was made yesterday. dinner arrives. i ordered an assortment of fried items. what i received was rubbery calamari, fried shrimp w/​SOGGY breading, and ONE scallop. and previously frozen french fries. i can get FRESH fries down the street from in n out.
i am originally from the east coast and know what fresh seafood tastes like, and this was a far cry from fresh.

I recommend going somewhere else it’s tied in with the same cooks as the restaurant next door just at different prices. The food was eh and the prices higher than the quality. This place is only popular because it validated parking and on the wharf.

Umpf. The clam chowder was tasteless, more of a potato cream than anything. The skewers were more of a vegetable skewer than the expected seafood (and also quite tasteless), and the fisherman’s platter, although better, was also not great. All in all, never again.

With COMPLETE and ABSOLUTE truth-​this was the WORST dinning experience my boyfriend and I have ever had.
We went to Nonna Rosa due to a recommendation we received that the food was good and it was casual attire (we had a red-​eye flight in the evening so we didn’t look awesome).
We opted to sit inside because it was a bit chilly on the patio. The kitchen has an open layout so you sit at your table and watch the food be prepared and sent to tables. Our waiter took our drink order of a beer for my boyfriend and an iced tea for me. He returned a while later with those and took our food order. We ordered two whole crabs since it was/​is crab season. He brought out the soup that came with our order shortly there after and that was the last we saw of him for over a half hour.
We watched a food runner take our order to the table behind us that got there about 25 minutes after we did. About ten minutes after our food was delivered to the wrong table, the waiter notices that we didn’t have our food and says nothing to us. He proceeds to have a conversation about it going to the wrong table with the food runner and the entire kitchen staff. He is pointing at our table and talking with all the other people and seriously never comes to us to just say «sorry your food was taken to the wrong table.»
The waiter then goes to his manager and reexplains what has happened and she says and I quote «They look like fried calamari people.» She then orders the kitchen to make some as quickly as possible. Again keeping in mind that it has now been over an hour since we ordered, no one has addressed with us what has happened, they have had multiple conversations about it as though we are not there and apparently are idiots who didn’t figure it out and we have no food or drinks because no one offered to refill my tea or asked if my boyfriend would like another beer.
About 20 minutes later our crab arrives at the same time as a plate of fried calamari. Contrary to the managers opinion of us, we aren’t friend calamari people, so we did not keep it. When the waiter drops off the food he simply says «sorry for the wait.» He doesn’t address at all what actually happened. I said to him «they table behind us got our food» and he simply walked off! Didn’t even as much as nod.
When we asked for our check after having been there for about two hours, the waiter finally asked if I wanted more tea. Thanks but no thanks. The check came and not one penny was taken off for the wait, the lack of communication or the lovely comment made my the manager.
The food wasn’t good either.
Please save yourself a day ruining meal and go anywhere else on the Wharf!!!

In the heart of San Francisco’s Disneyland, AKA Fisherman’s Wharf, so aside from failing a city health inspection this place will make money BUT the food sucks although the service is good.
The seafood is fresh and that helps considering it’s sitting on top of the bay but I’ll never go back.

I ordered the chicken parmesan it was alright, nothing exciting i would compare it to some other chain restaurant out there but it did hurt my wallet!!! and it did took away some of my time, i’ve waited over 25 minutes for my order to come, its not too good when pricey and waiting for simple meals happen.

I visited this restaurant towards the end of my trip to San Fran. Let’s face it — money was running out, we wanted some fish and chips and this place seemed to have reasonable prices.
The service was extremely slow. When we finally got our food, the fish seemed a bit off. The breading and spices were kind of strange. Overall, it wasn’t horrible, but definitely not good. We left mad for spending money on unsavory fish.
While strolling through Fisherman’s Wharf and checking out the Jefferson St. shops, my stomach started to really bother me. 30 minutes later, it was bad enough where I needed to go back to my hotel room. After 30 minutes of lying down in fetal position, it still hurt and I knew that there was only one thing I could do to relieve the discomfort. You know what it is.
This has never happened to me before and I do not have a sensitive stomach. There was something up with that fish. I have not eaten fish in any form since then.

They have a really affordable happy hour selection on appetizers as well as plates.
A small reasonably sized basket of calamari was only 3 dollars during happy hour.
Bruschetta was only 2 pieces of bread, cost 2 dollars.
I posted some pictures of the food.
spaghetti with mussels. It was plain, but the sauce was great. Full of flavor. I guess the sauce makes up for the lack of ingredients in the spaghetti (just noodles, sauce and mussels)
I liked this place.
It has a little view of the wharf also and a partial view of the golden gate bridge. We went during the afternoon time so the sun was setting and it looked beautiful. Happy hour= Sunset time.

hmm… this place… no bueno. The food was bland, tasteless, no wow factor, I can cook it better at home, waste of money, and time. You’d think that any seafood place sitting in the wharf would be at least edible, nope… not here. My fish and chips was tasteless and soggy. The guys burgers was bland… how in the world can a burger go wrong? wow…
The only good thing about this place was the customer service. The hostess gave us great seating with a great view. Our waitress was interesting, but quite entertaining with her quirky charm. Regardless of the service, you won’t see me back here… sorry Nonna, unless your food is introduced with mr. seasoning, you won’t see me back.

I consider most of the restaurants that face the ocean at Fisherman’s Wharf to be tourist traps, so I just avoid them. The exceptions are Scoma’s (good food, but expensive) and perhaps Boudin Sourdough (it’s okay). And if out of town relatives want to visit this area, we might order the cracked crab at one of the food stands, that’s all.
So a couple of weeks ago, I met with a few old school friends from out of town. The wait at Scoma’s was too long, so the group decides to keep walking. And when we find this place, I go along with the group to try it. I’ll just fast forward to the food.
I order the filet of sole with lemon butter sauce, and fries — a basic dish at most seafood restaurants. Usually I ask for the sauce to be served on the side, but this time I forgot. No matter I thought, normally it’s just a couple of tablespoons of sauce over the fish. What I didn’t expect was for the fish filet and french fries to be swimming on a quarter inch soup of butter. Who eats food like this?
Not impressed by the slow service either, the waiters take many smoking breaks.
In the end, we pooled our money to pay for the bill, under $ 180. I felt like I was throwing money away. I did have a good time because I was with friends, but the food was disappointing and expensive.

Nonna Rose isn’t a terrible place to get seafood on Fisherman’s Wharf, but it’s not the best either. I got the grilled salmon lunch special, and while it was good, it was very greasy. I got the feeling they don’t do to many custom plates and you sort of have to take what you’re given, but it wasn’t too bad. Bonus points for serving grilled cheese on the kids menu– my daughter snarfed hers down hella quick, which is a good sign. The bathrooms here are the major reason my rating is so low. I realize being that it’s on a pier its going to smell a little bay-​ish, but come on. It was so dim in there you could barely see, but that was probably for the best, because it was a disaster in there.
The best part of the meal was when an elderly woman approached me (we were dining outside) and asked me in some Asian language which I cannot decipher if she could have the uneaten food off my plate, and then proceeded to take my entire plate of fries and walk away with it. I didn’t take off points for that, though, since it’s not the restaurant’s fault there are hungry homeless people wandering around. I’m just mentioning it so you know what to expect if you sit outside…
My dad did enjoy his fried squid platter, though.

FINALLY, I got the chance to indulge my clam chowder cravings. We’d had mediocre clam chowder a few months ago at the Rain Forrest Café, followed by OK clam chowder at Boudins in Walnut Creek. Neither of these experiences fit the bill. So, when we had family in town and they suggested Fisherman’s Wharf /​Pier 39 after a Farmer’s Market run, I KNEW that I would have clam chowder at one of the street vendors and get that craving satisfied.
Well, we were close. We had a three year old with us; in order to enjoy ourselves, we ducked into the restaurant. I’m not sure if this meal is considered odd, but we ordered a bowl of clam chowder (a mix between regular bowls and bread bowls) all the way around, plus a few fish and chips to share, and an order of oysters on the half shell.
Really, I felt a bit sheepish to order such a light «dinner» at a sit down place, but that’s all we wanted. Still, we didn’t get a single snotty look or any rolled eyes. We got what we wanted, and since it was with such smiling service, THEY got a nice tip to boot.
Was the difference in price between the street vendors and Nonna Rose’s worth it? You betcha. We got in out of the cold, got to sit down to enjoy dinner, and STILL got good clam chowder.
So, disclaimer, I really don’t know if their dinner is any good. The clam chowder, fish & chips, and the service — those I can vouch for.
Yum!
** EDIT: I’m still going to go to the street vendors one of these days. Even though this is my city, I can still play tourist, right?

Avoid Avoid Avoid.
Just another typical tourist trap restaurant on the wharf.
The only redeeming factor was the clam chowder

It was too cold to stand outside, so instead of my first option, Crab Station #2, I opted for Nonna Rose’s. I thought the carousel-​like seafood café across the street looked too empty, and I didn’t want to step into Alioto’s in my jeans and sneaks. We were welcomed in right away and seated by the window overlooking part of the pier. Not exactly the most romantic view of the water, and it wasn’t the most romanticly-​set restaurant, but I wasn’t there for the romance. I was there for some good olé steaming bowl of clam chowder and a good glass of Cab.
Our waiter had the most beautiful eyes. If only he had the personailty to match. He struck me as someone who had an ugly past and had gotten out of jail a few years back but was trying to do good. He laughed at my sarcasm though which is a definite plus in my book. We ordered:
Bowl of clam chowder (about $ 6): A little watery, but you can taste the freshness. The breadbowl was fresh as well and I enjoyed it with butter.
Shrimp and Mushroom tossed in linguini and cream sauce (about $ 17): Took a long time to cook but was very, very, delicious.
Fresh oysters ($ 12): Pass. Super skinny and small. Not worth $ 2.50 each.
Fresh crab meat ($ 12): Pass. I could fit the whole portion in my palm. Nothing out of the ordinary.
I’m glad I got to eat here, just so I could say that I’ve tried it out. Unfortunately, I’m a little too local for this spot.
ABBY A. will pass by next time on the way to Crab Station #2 for the best clam chowder in the wharf!

We do the touristy trap thing once a year.
We had Giants vs. A’s tix that we scored from a neighbor who couldn’t make the game. Cool! We have something to get us out of the SJ heat!
After leaving the game ashamed of my team in the 8^th inning, we decided to stick around and roam.
We ended up at Fishermans wharf. I was craving clam chowder.
I didn’t want anything from the sidewalk vendors b/​c it was pretty chilly out. Instead, we walked into Nonna’s. After a 5 minute wait, we get a nice table by the window.
I order a glass of German Riesling and clam chowder in a bread bowl. BF orders the Fish and Chips.
Everything was ordinarily delicious. Does that make sense? I guess it does since I gave em 3 stars.

Confirmation
Of most of the reviews here as aforementioned, however, everything becomes a 100% better plus one in ten million when you are sharing a table under the warming lamps with your special someone.
Sitting outside on a somewhat chilly evening calls for hot soup, so W pointed out the specials on the menu that covered shrimp in generic forms plus a cup of either their red or white clam chowder. He elected the shrimp sauté and I opted for the grilled, and I prepped myself with a little of their sourdough bread slathered with the little pats of Clover butter.
The bread was rather hard. In fact, maybe a little too hard, because I had to soften it with the clam chowder by soaking it a bit. Good thing he’s seen me eat enough, because I felt like I was working on a piece of leather fit for a mouth strap. Soup was good, but mediocre. I think my next experiment is to make my own clam chowder, since I honestly have never made some. But my dream chowder, will reflect that of major creamery reflective of the cumulus clouds floating around up on a sunny day. What I’m saying, is that I would not skimp on the cream and butter, nor would I keep the same pot on the stove until the cream separated. Tsk Tsk.
My grilled shrimp was pretty good, marinated and slightly crispy on the outside. The french fries were good and salted, something I was looking forward to and the pesto mayonnaise was yummy (yes, I dip my fries in mayo). I did not try a bite of W’s dish, but have a feeling that I may add a sauteed shrimp dish on a future homemade dinner for him soon… and it might be a little better.
It was pretty touristy, with a group of Japanese natives sitting to the right of me and unfortunately for them, I knew everything that they were talking about (hehe) and the street was busy with tourists
I’d have to say mediocre food but superb company, which makes the experience priceless.

My friend and I ate here on our touristy trip to Fisherman’s Wharf. I agree with most people. I think its pretty much over rated. The food is very very unexciting. Yeah, you’re at the Wharf and yeah you think the crabs are fresh out of the water. That doesn’t change anything though.
I did like the seating area so I guess thats where it earned the stars. I have to say — wtf is up with the sourdough? Since when is bread baked to break teeth??? Honestly, has to be the worst I’ve eaten. My friend liked her crab so I guess thats good.