Contrada

We love this place - it’s our local and we always have delicious food. I have always had great service, so I’m confused about some of these bad reviews. The only issue we have with it is the price tag: $24-29 pasta dishes, which is significantly more than neighboring restaurants such as Roma Antica whose most expensive pasta is $19 and arguably just as delicious.

A surprisingly tasty spot that I look forward to revisiting. Ambiance - 3 stars. A really cute little joint on Union Street that immediately felt cozy. On interior itself it'd get 5 stars, but the clientele left something to be desired. Between a group of men standing near the bar talking rudely about the women around them or an older woman actively SCREAMING at her companions at the bar, the air of the place was just a bit uncomfortable. Service - 4 stars. Our server was great and attentive to our needs. I was surprised that the staff wasn't more proactive about asking the screaming woman to control herself, but they eventually got there. House made sausage pizza - 4 stars. I'd describe the pizza as Neapolitan style... thin, chewy crust that was almost naan textured, topped with house made sausage, wild nettle pesto, and fresh ricotta. The pizza was great. The cheese was really fresh and creamy. The sausage was ground little bits, a tiny bit spicy and really tasty. I wouldn't have complained about more pesto, but honestly... pesto is just awesome. Is there such a thing as too much pesto? Broccoli di ciccio - 2 stars. This one left a lot to be desired, the broccoli wasn't overdone and the garlic served alongside it was super tender, but overall the dish didn't have much flavor and I could have done without it. Overall I was pleasantly surprised with Contrada. Despite the clientele, I'd like to come back here.

Two things come to mind: they either have NEVER actually had authentic Italian cooking OR the owner/management is completely unaware of the high standards this city has when executing Italian food. With the price comparable to Flour + Water, La Ciaccia, Delfina and many others you'd better be avoiding this place at all costs. Pizza is soggy, the dough flavorless and clearly lacks any character compared to its many rivals in the Bay Area. The selection is limited, thus you would think that the 4 pizzas they have on the menu have been mastered so perfectly to leave you wanting or more. Not the case at all. Even the more inventive ones are a lazy attempt to be oiginal showing a major gap between wanting to be "smart" and knowing how to execute properly. Same exact story with the pasta that at times are over cooked and at others weirdly mixed with uninspiring and uneccessary ingredients. Startes average at its best, making you wish you picked up an actual Burrata at Trader's Joe and some heirloom tomatoes and save the $19 on the whole dish. Entrees are just weird, overly done and the steak weirdly cut lengthwise while presented with so much compound butter that you could bath a whole cow in. But if there is anything worse than bad food, that must be bad service and this place seems to have master it. The waiter smelled like an ashtray, lacked clearly knowledge of the food and disinterested at its best while customers dined in an environment that looks more like an overpriced fast food than anything closer to what they advertise. $250 dollars later we left wanting for this place to just get a grip and for all 3 of us to never wished this place even existed. 1 Star at is best.