The Cavalier

We attended a private event here in a secret back room, that if you blink twice you wont notice exists. The staff was friendly, there were plenty of vegetarian options, and all of the food was plentiful and wonderful.

Be sure to have a reservation when you come here during Sunday Brunch, or the host will give you a dirty look when you don’t. The only people who were friendly to my friend and I was our server/​bartender and also the support staff. The food was actually really great, but I still felt a bit uncomfortable with the watching eyes while I was eating. I gave this place 3 stars not for the food but for friendliness.

How does this place have four stars on Unilocal?As someone who enjoys dining exclusively as four star and above places, The Cavalier should actually receive TWO stars for their subpar food. I’ve had the misfortune to dine here twice. Their breakfast is worse than the breakfast served at IKEA, but 100x more expensive. Their typical lunch entrees are tiny, and will leave you full of regret but still very hungry. I ate 3 appetizers, my entrée (roasted breast of chicken), wine, coffee, and dessert before I was satisfied.
The real reason why I am writing a ONE star review is because of the service. There is so much I could go into about how they were rude. However, the worst part was when both me and a friend sitting across from me ordered the same dish, Two Hen Eggs. It comes with eggs, bread and fruit. When our orders arrived, we noticed that my friend had half a plate of scrambled eggs, while I had (literally) two spoonfuls on mine. We thought that maybe there was a mistake, so we called our waiter over and politely explained our situation. He instantly got defensive, and was like, «What do you want ME to do about it, huh?» He then grabbed my friend’s plate and started moving her eggs onto mine. We stopped him, and then spoke to the general manager about it. But all that transpired from this incident was that we got another plate of eggs, and I feel a bit traumatized whenever I look at scrambled eggs now. Went back a few months later for lunch, and yes, that demon waiter is still there.
If you do, for some unfortunate reason, get dragged into going to this hell on earth, try the lamb scrumpets and then ask for the dessert menu.
TL;DR: Worst four star restaurant I have ever dined at, mainly due to the service, but the food ain’t great either.

Very, very similar feel to Marlowe & Park Tavern — bright and sunny inside a trendy British-​looking restaurant.
We came here as a group for lunch and had a good time scouring the menu. The waitress was super helpful with helping us make decisions.
— Lamb scrumpets — this sounded SO confusing because there were so many ingredients listed but it’s basically a breaded lamb ball… more sophisticated than that, but definitely a must-​get. The lamb was so tender and flavorful!
— Scotch egg — very impressed by this one too and the attention to detail that went into making this! The center was soft and well done.
— Roasted breast of chicken — went for this one because it seemed relatively healthy and I expected it to be dry/​boring but it wasn’t the case at all. The side veggies were great too.
Overall, great presentation and prep in every dish. I’d come back for brunch!

Our first stop after arriving in SF for week. This was just a late afternoon snack to tide us over until dinner after a long flight from NJ. We chose the Brussel Sprout Chips along with an order of fries to compliment a Hobgoblin beer and Fort Ross Pinot Noir.
The fries and chips were excellent and our bartender friendly and talkative. This is a nice place to come for a drink or breakfast (have not been here for dinner yet). The ambiance is nice and relaxing.

Mothers Day Brunch with wife and daughter was very good with one caveat that took off a star. Arrived for our 11:45 reservation and was told by the hostess our table would be a few minutes and we were welcome to the bar area. No problem, a drink to start the day was just what I wanted. About 15 minutes later the hostess comes into the bar to tell us she received notice that our reservation was cancelled by Open Table and did we still want brunch.
Why we would arrive at the restaurant, check in, have a drink then cancel is beyond me but told her there obviously was a mistake.
After that was cleared up we sat down to a very good brunch. Earl Grey and honey scone to start followed by breakfast sandwich with fried hen egg, bacon, pepper cress, shallots and dijon, Came with a side of crispy potatoes. The ladies both had the Marlowe burger which was just the right size and came with cheddar, bacon and horseradish aioli. Thrice cooked fries were also tasty.
Came home and wrote Open Table a nasty note. Their reply was that THE CAVALIER had cancelled our reservation, not them. Could have dinged them for more than one star but the food was good.

I’ve dined here many times, and on Friday the 6^th of May I came for lunch. Long story short, I found a LIVE Cockroach crawling across my plate in the salad I ordered on the side of my burger. DISGUSTING. I grew up in NY and am quite familiar with what they look like — how did the kitchen let that happen!!!
The Manager handled the situation incredibly poorly, but that’s really not the point. My point is: this place is disgusting and with a Health Inspection score of 80 — I will never, ever be dining here again and have shared my experience with many people.

Brunch review.
Earl Grey and honey scone — ⁴⁄₅
Toast with raspberry blackberry jam, passionfruit curd — ³⁄₅
Hen egg hollandaise ham cheese soldiers — ³⁄₅
Corned beef scotch egg — ³⁄₅
Salmon avocado toast — ³⁄₅
Tomato benedict — ²⁄₅ — Overcooked egg
Corned beef potato hash — ³⁄₅
Overall, expected better. «A-​OK.»

I’ve been to The Cavalier 4 times now: 3 x’s for brunch and 1 time for dinner. And although I like the flavors (for the most part), the disappointing thing was the consistency of the food flavors and preparation.
…F O O D
{ ⁴⁄₅ } HEN EGG HOLLANDAISE: loved this the first time, and would’ve have given it ⁵⁄₅ stars, but it wasn’t as good the second time. hollandaise was spot on both times, the ham and cheese soldiers were luke warm the second time. not sure if that’s how it was supposed to be, but the first time we had them they were freshly toasted and hot.
{ ⁵⁄₅ } SMOKE SALMON + AVOCADO TOAST: great both times, had so much flavor, but didn’t overpower the salmon. the edges of the toast were a bit hard to cut or bite through though.
{ ³⁄₅ } THE ENGLISH: a LOT of food, just not my thing. to me, everything seemed a bit bland, especially compared to everything else they offer
{ ⁴⁄₅ } BRUSSELS SPROUT CHIPS: only had this once (here). it’s good, but not as good as marlowe’s
{ ⁴⁄₅ } TARTARE OF ANGUS: it’s a little pricey considering the portion. and it was a bit heavy handed on the shallots, otherwise the flavors were really good
{ ⁵⁄₅ } QUAIL EGG MAYO: only had this once, for dinner and it was AWESOME! for such a small item, it had so much flavor (and very well balanced)! we initially ordered 2 of them, we then ordered 2 more cause they were that good!
{ ⁴⁄₅ } RIB EYE: i had to average this dish out, the first time i had it, i would’ve given it a 5/​5, but when we had it for easter brunch it was sooo not the same (prob 2 or 3 out of 5). the first time we had it for dinner, the steak was perfectly med rare and the sauce. omg, the sauce was so good that i could’ve licked the plate clean (but of course i was good and didn’t). but when we had it for easter brunch, the rib eye was super thin which made it impossible to have a medium rare cook time and sadly it was well done. there was barely any sauce on the steak. we requested more and luckily they brought out more, but it also wasn’t as good as we had it the first time. not sure what it was lacking, but it definitely wasn’t the same. the trice cooked fries were good both times though.
…L I B A T I O N S
PIMM’S CUPS: we typically have pimm’s cups for brunch, and 2 out of the 3 times they were great. cups were HUGE and were so refreshing. the ones from easter seemed to be a bit smaller (or maybe i was imagining it), but they were still bigger than the standard pimm’s cups at other establishments and they just weren’t as good. not sure if they used some type of concentrate or mix, it just didn’t taste as refreshing as the first 2 times. maybe new bartender?
…S E R V I C E
HOSTESSES: have been very accommodating thus far. you are typically seated immediately. if their dining area is fully booked, they always offer tables at the bar, if available.
WAITERS: for the most part all the waiters are awesome here, friendly and attentive. we did have one waiter that was a bit MIA. he barely came to our table after our order was taken. although we wanted another drink, he was no where to be found.
happy eating!

Came here for lunch with coworkers and had a pretty good time. It wasn’t too busy considering the time, and service was fairly speedy.
We started off with the Crispy Brussels Sprout Chips, which were seasoned really well with tons of lemon zest. We also got the Angus Beef Tartare, which was tasty but I’ve had better at other restaurants. For my entrée, I ordered the «Marlowe» burger, which was okay, but not anywhere near as good as the one they actually serve at Marlowe.
Overall it was an okay experience. I think I’d go back to try some of the other menu items, but I wasn’t a huge fan of the things we ordered this time around.

Location: tucked away behind Hotel Zetta, it’s pretty hard to find unless you know what you are looking for. The inside is pretty big but packed — so I recommend a reservation when possible. I’m not sure if there is any parking nearby, but it’s right next to the mall so you can take Bart/​Muni to Powell and get off.
Service: We got stuck with a friendly but neglectful server. Trying to get her attention was like trying to get a seat on Bart at rush hour — impossible. It took so long for her to come and take our orders or check up on us. service was a huge turn off.
Food:
–Earl Grey scone (¹⁄₅): two very thin and dense scones — I think we were expecting more of the thicker biscuit style scone. These were not that good and definitely not worth the price.
–Smoked salmon/​Avo toast (⁴⁄₅): good quality, very beautifully plated, one piece of toast, comes with a huge salad.
–Corned beef hash (⁴⁄₅): really delicious, corned beef was tender and juicy — only downside for us was that the portion was small for A (but then again, he eats like a horse)
–Breakfast sandwich (³⁄₅): I was really expecting more from this since the description was heavenly. Personally, I think it’s served on too big a bun for what it was for (mustard, arugula, bacon, and an egg) so it was more bread than anything else. This would have been great on a smaller bun.
Overall, food was decent but I wouldn’t come here again bc it is so pricey for the portions and the bad service.

I’ve been here a few times and it’s the service that makes me smile every time. It’s close to home, I can put a fancy coat any time and feel dressed-​up; walk around the corner of my block and enjoy a nice dinner.
I love their bone marrow and roasted baked oysters that I’ve had in my last visit. I wanted the lamb on their entrée that I had before, but they didn’t have it. I settled for their pork loin chop, it was perfectly cooked. I did wish that it came with a more flavorful side dish.

My local friend from SF brought us here on a Sunday afternoon for brunch. I’m not too crazy about fancy places, but this was lovely –or should I say, nice as I’ve noticed a lot of people term «nice» as a great compliment. For a party of three, we were seated right away in table in the middle of the room surrounded by the open windows.
To start, we ordered the Corned Beef Scotch Egg ($ 16) to share. For what it was and that it was one of the most expensive items on the menu, I was quite disappointed. I would never order this again despite their beautiful presentation of the dish. The corned beef gave the egg some flavor, but sadly my favorite part of the dish was the mini spinach salad with vinaigrette on the side.
Following the starter, they switched out our plates and utensils and refilled our waters a couple of times. Eventually, our dishes arrived. I ordered the Tomato Benedict ($ 15) although I originally wanted the Smoked Salmon and Avocado Toast, but they ran out on me. I was pretty disappointed by that as well. My friends ordered the Marlow Burger with fries ($ 16) and Shakshuka ($ 14), which I had the opportunity to try as well. My benedict dish was kind of a blob with ham on top of a thick slice of tomato that served as the usual biscuit. On top was a lightly crispy poached egg, which was very interesting. Then it was sprinkled with baby dill all over the plate. The dish was fresh and healthy, but not to my liking. As for the other dishes, the burger was good and the fries were very thin and crispy. The shakshuka was something I’ve never had before, but the sauce was flavorful and had a kick of spice to it. We all thought the best pairing was dipping the fries into the shakshuka sauce, to be honest. Overall, food was okay.
When I asked for the bill, the server was quick and sweet. Due to our long wait for the food without complaining either, they offered to give us a complimentary dessert on the house –that was lovely. We had the Tri-​Layered Terrine ($ 10) composed of chocolate chip, coffee, and salted caramel ice cream. I enjoyed the dessert, but would probably not actually order it from the menu on my own.
This restaurant is lovely, but not exactly my cup of tea to bring me back.

Tucked behind the always busy Westfield Mall, I would have had no idea that The Cavalier existed had it not been for SF restaurant week. To be completely honest and transparent, the only reason why I made a reservation here was for the awesome RW deal, but turns out they don’t offer the RW menu on weekends, so we had to order off of the regular menu anyways. A little disappointed at first, but that disappointment quickly disappeared after looking over the scrumptious brunch menu.
Things here are on the pricier side. My friend and I didn’t wind up getting any starter dishes in an attempt to save money, so we ordered two entrees to share.
The Buttermilk Pancakes are TO DIE FOR. Get these. I will vouch for them 100%. Literally the fluffiest pancakes I’ve ever had. And the syrup. Oh my. I wanted more. They definitely didn’t give enough of the syrup. Best brunch dish– simple yet absolutely mind blowingly delicious.
We also got the Corned Beef & Potato Hash (trying to mix savory and sweet), which was much more underwhelming compared to the pancakes, but not bad. This was just my first time eating corned beef, so I wasn’t sure what to expect… a little too salty and chewy for my liking honestly. It over-​salted the entire dish!
Aside from the hash, another reason why I had to take down a star was because the service we relieved was mixed. One one hand, our main server was great– super charming and energetic. Our hostess and our initial server however were rude and blunt. Seemed like they wanted to be anywhere but in that restaurant in the moment. So I was initially really turned off by the service, but it improved as our meal went on.
Overall, I’d definitely give this place a try, especially if you’re a pancake person. Good brunch and good atmosphere, but if you want to enjoy the full experience with all of the best dishes, you’d better be willing to splurge on the meal!

TLDR — tasty food at a trendy spot that isn’t too pricey; definitely recommend the lamb scrumpets at lunch
I’ve come for both lunch and weekend brunch. Have yet to try dinner yet, but their lunch/​brunch food is good! The brunch menu is different from the lunch one, and while it was pretty good, I think I prefer the lunch food.
It’s reasonably busy for both lunch and brunch. It probably wouldn’t be too long of a wait if you didn’t have a reservation, but since they take them, I’d recommend just making one.
The ambiance is really nice. Trendy and lively and very British-​looking. Lots of windows so there’s lots of natural light. Service is friendly and attentive, basically what you would expect from a nice spot.
** LUNCH **
–LAMB SCRUMPETS ($ 16) — ⁵⁄₅
[w/​pickled mint and chile]
GET THIS. 2 years on 7×7’s Big Eat list and for good reason! SOOO GOOD. The lamb was super tender and flavorful, and the outside coating was crunchy and complemented the soft texture of the lamb perfectly. The lamb was pretty fatty though. I generally don’t like fat but even I cleaned everything off the bones! The rest of my group weren’t really a fan of the mint and chile, but I loved it. Light and refreshing and cut some of the fattiness of the lamb.
–ROASTED BREAST OF CHICKEN ($ 22) — ⁵⁄₅
[w/​broiled aubergine and tomatoes, herbed feta and cress]
Not gonna lie, I wasn’t really expecting much from this dish, but I was feeling chicken more than any of the other entrees. I figured the chicken would be cooked more tender than average but honestly expected it to be just average in flavor. Maybe it was just because I had low expectations, but WOW was I impressed! The chicken was incredibly juicy and tender and really flavorful. The eggplant and tomatoes were even amazing. I can’t think of anywhere that I’ve had better chicken!
–RIBEYE OF GRASS-​FED BEEF ($ 34) — 3.5÷5
[w/​bone marrow gravy]
Friend ordered this. It normally comes with beef dripping chips, which people have raved about on Unilocal,but my friend substituted for a side salad instead. The beef looked like it was cooked to a nice pink medium rare, but I found it to be kind of on the chewy side. Flavor was okay but not really amazing or memorable
** BRUNCH **
–SHAKSHUKA ($ 14) — ⁴⁄₅
[baked hen eggs, spicy tomato sauce, peppers, onions, crispy pancetta, yogurt, toasted baguette]
Packs good flavor! The eggs had a perfect runny yolk and the yogurt added a tang to the tomato sauce. The bread was perfect for sopping up the yolk and tasty tomato sauce.
Overall, food is pretty good. People I dined with said the Quail Egg Mayonnaise is good, but would pass on the Ribeye, the Wild Mushroom Pie and the Fish & Chips for lunch. For brunch, one of my friends ordered the Tomato Benedict, which looked yummy (I tried a bit of the crispy fried hen egg, which was amazing), and another ordered the Smoked Salmon & Avocado Toast, which was pretty much what you expect it to be — nothing super special.

I felt that I owe The Cavalier a review after having one of the best meals in San Francisco last year. I was in town with my British boss and clueless where to bring him for lunch in this city filled with endless good restaurants. My friend, who’s based in San Fran and a foodie (of course) suggested The Cavalier saying this place never disappoint. I concur.
The restaurant was rather empty when we walked in, probably still early from the peak lunch crowd. The restaurant is absolutely beautiful, classy and with waiter dressed to match the classic interior. We were then seated at the corner and presented with the food and drinks menu — both extensive to showcase what they have to offer.
As aforementioned, I was here with my British boss, so it was rather hard to convince him to eat anything British in America when all he wanted was a good hamburger and milkshake. haha. But i persevered and literally just ordered their bestsellers after reading all the tips and reviews on Unilocal (of course!!)
We started of with half dozen of oysters, Ahi Tuna Nicoise salad, and Duck Scotch Egg. The ahi tuna salad was really good and refreshing but the star of the appetizer has to be the famed scotch egg. Even my boss said it’s one of the best he has eaten so far outside the UK. The outer layer was cooked to perfection — crispy and flavorful and the portion is just right without being too cloy-​ey. For main, we shared a ribeye. The staff was so professional that he suggested to separate the meat into two portion when served even before I said it. Now, that’s 5 star service. The ribeye, done medium rare was very, very good drenched in bone marrow butter. We paired it with a bottle of pinot noir and it was out of this world.
After main, we still have room for dessert and ordered chocolate cake and rhubard crumble to share and end the meal with coffee, from Stumptown no less.
I would give this place a 6 star if I can but I guess I have to stop at 5. And my boss? He was impressed with the food and service and I couldnt be happier.
3 appetizers, 1 main, 2 desserts, 1 bottle of wine and 2 coffee = roughly USD270 (without tip). The wine itself already cost USD130.

They need more veggie options.
The chips are bomb tho.
The interior, all types of red leather sexiness.
Plenty of alcohol.
Improve your veggie game, and imma be there.

I dropped in for Brunch. Picked hollandaise benedict and shuksha (baked hen egg with spicy tomato sauce and crispy pancetta)
Pros: Nice first impression with the classic décor and clean venue. Warm greetings from the host and manager, immediately seated on arrival. Thumbs up for this.
Cons: The food didn’t wow me. Too much lemon juice on the hollandaise sauce which threw out the balance. It was too salty for opening menu. Shuksha was kickingly spicy, but still somewhat plain. No wow factor even with the itty bitty over crispy pancetta on it.
I understand I may be paying for the ambience. However, the place was too obnoxiously loud to have good conversation. I mean, thats why I go to brunch, to enjoy the company with good food and catch up for the week. Girl’s talk and whatnot.
Nope! Can’t talk here. The noises bounce all over the place.

Hmmm how should I say this… the food was great, and service was great, but I just wasn’t blown away. Especially when you’re paying a $$$ price tag, you want to experience that ‘wow’.
I ordered the Salmon and Avocado Toast and my friends and I shared the Early Grey scones. I loved both! I’m just not sure I’d visit again.

Nice bar. It’s inside the Zetta hotel.
Looked gourmet but there were both kinds of people — people in sweatshirts and people in dress shirts!
Loved my lamb appetizers.
Unfortunately, my husband hated his mushroom pie. May be it was a bad pick.

Wir sind hier zum Frühstück eingekehrt und ein erster Blick auf die kleine, aber ausgewählte Karte ließ zunächst Gutes erwarten. Sehr eierspeisenlastig und deftig, yes! Bei mir sollten es dann die Buttermilchpancakes und ein großer Pott Kaffee sein. Puuh, was soll man sagen. Der Kaffee holt einen ordentlich auf die Füße und die Pancakes waren schon ziemlich lecker — fluffig, nicht zu trocken und ein riesiger Klecks Butter. Allerdings war mir etwas zu wenig Sirup drauf (weniger Butter, mehr Sirup wäre ideal), daher konnten sie den schlurfigen und unmotivierten Service auch nicht wieder raushauen. Denn unsere Bedienung ließ sich sehr selten blicken und wenn, dann stand ihr die schlechte Laune ins Gesicht geschrieben. Dabei war unsere Gruppe nicht mal groß, wir hatten reserviert und sonderliche Extrawünsche hatten wir auch nicht. Noch dazu war echt wenig los, so dass einem für ein solches Verhalten echt das Verstädnis fehlt. Denn wenn man mir in einem Restaurant wirklich die Laune verhageln will, dann lässt man mich warten. Ewig warten. Ohne ersichtlichen Grund. Das hat dem sonst guten Frühstück echt die Luft rausgenommen und man verließ das Restaurant mit dem Gefühl, beim nächsten Mal doch nach etwas anderem zu schauen. Schade.

Ich hatte im Cavalier das Frühstück, kann also nur diese Kategorie bewerten — und leider wars eher eine durchschnittliche Erfahrung. Die Location an sich ist sehr schön und erinnert fast ein bißchen an ein Wiener Kaffeehaus. Dann gehts aber leider abwärts: unsere Kellnerin war sehr unfreundlich (erinnert auch an Wiener Kaffeehaus) und überfordert, obwohl nicht viel los war. Preislich gesehen gibts ein paar ganz gute Angebote, aber sobald man sich für die Eier entscheidet, wirds teuer, denn alles kostet extra (Achtung: wer Bacon bestellt bekommt eine Ladung die für vier Leute reicht). Es schmeckt alles recht lecker, aber nicht überragend. Last but not least sind die Tische extrem klein und die Kellnerin konnte nicht mal alles abladen, ich musste einen Teller aufs Fensterbrett nebenan stellen.