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    Mel's Kitchen

    3.6 (323 reviews)
    Open 6:30 am - 11:00 pm

    Order Mel's Kitchen Takeout or Delivery

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    MEL'S KITCHEN ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Casual
    Moderate noise
    Good for kids
    Happy hour specials

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    Terrene

    Terrene

    4.1
    (208 reviews)
    1.6 mi
    $$

    The food is very good - we've been here twice and had great food all around…read more Our first visit we had some trouble with the service, feeling rushed thru for what is a pretty expensive dinner, but the team there contacted us after (we had a reservation so they had our email) and they made it right by inviting us back as guest of Rob, the Bev Mgr. The 2nd visit the service was impeccable, everything went exactly as we had hoped. We will be back. We can recommend the scallops and the Salmon, the chicken was very tasty. Also, for the food, I recommend the dips and the fresh pitas, so good. We'll be back just for that. Reminds me of the old Berkeley restaurant years ago, Holy Land (IYKYK). Mmmm. Thanks!

    We each ordered the sunrise sandwich - one with bacon and one with sausage. The sausage was super…read morethin and dry. The bacon was fine. The sandwich comes with a small dressed salad and three tomato halves. It was nice. The potatoes served with the sandwich were roasted but served cold and dry. Like they were left over from the night before. Randy enjoyed his mocha. We shared a very dry, flavorless except for the two small bits of jam in them, "cheese" danish. Definitely skip this $7 item that you could get at a circle k for $1.50 and it would taste fresher. You order when you walk in and someone delivers your order and then you're left to fend for yourself. We were able to locate some ketchup for the potatoes on our own. Nobody ever checked on us. This is the second place on this visit that's charging an extra 5% fee so that their employees can have a living wage and health insurance, which absolutely, every employee should have. With the prices they charge, they should already be able to do that, though. I read an article about this fee with many different names and I would rather pay a bit higher of a price and know the employees were taken care of than be surprised by this fee later. Two sandwich breakfasts, a mocha and a danish on top of tax and their healthy sf fee was $63. Steep for the quality we got. Won't be back.

    Photos
    Terrene Lounge
    Terrene Lounge
    Steak and eggs
    Steak and eggs
    Seared scallops

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    Seared scallops
    Hardwood Bar & Smokery

    Hardwood Bar & Smokery

    4.1
    (301 reviews)
    1.4 mi
    $$
    Catering service
    Locally owned & operated

    Great bbq in the city The sauce is the bomb doggy good…read more That Mac n cheese oh my so cute and creamy Get ya some wings too

    To celebrate America's 250th birthday, my friends and I decided to stop by Hardwood Bar & Smokery…read moreas it's one of the few BBQ establishments in SF. All seating is bar style with high tables hence the name "Hardwood Bar." The food was okay and I'd much rather go to Fikscue if I'm feeling BBQ next time to be honest. We shared ribs and each of us got an entree. One of my friends often orders from here for delivery and was excited to try it in person so that the food would be hot. Surprisingly, our tri tip and brisket came out slightly cold so it wasn't that different from delivery... The ribs were okay and not the most tender. Our server was great and service was good despite the restaurant being relatively full and served by one person. What I find the most perplexing is how they calculate the "SF mandate" fee and sales tax. I'm local to SF so I'm used to restaurants tacking on this "SF mandate"/"SF healthy mandate" fee, but their calculations just seem a bit off (see receipt). If we're calculating this correctly, 4% of $130.40 should be $5.22 and 8.63% of $130.40 should be $11.25. If you include the SF mandate fee in the tax calculation, then the $11.74 is right (if you include their calculation of the SF mandate fee). I'm not going to argue over a 50 cents or so but it's the principle of it! They should definitively state the actual % of 4.35% they're charging instead of just stating 4%. I mean at scale -- it adds up right? It rubbed me the wrong way for sure.

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    No description needed
    King Kong Platter
    King Kong Platter
    Shrimp Gumbo

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    Shrimp Gumbo
    Hillstone

    Hillstone

    4.0
    (2.7k reviews)
    1.7 mi
    $$$

    Hillstone is a favorite among Telegraph Hill locals. My go-to's here are their French dip or lamb…read moresandwiches for lunch, and salmon or rotisserie chicken + artichoke for dinner. Good wine and cocktail selection from the bar. I would pass on their burgers though which are mediocre. What makes this place 5-stars is the service and ambiance. Some of their staff have been there for several years, which is a testament to how well the restaurant is run. Since it's along the Embarcadero and close to Fisherman's Wharf, a lot of tourists tend to wander in. And this is probably why their website says there's a strict dress code. But I feel comfortable coming here in shorts and a t-shirt. The staff is always welcoming. I also go to the Los Altos Grill which is the same restaurant as Hillstone. The menu is pretty much the same, but the service at Hillstone is just excellent.

    Skip it. The food…read morewas very good, the attitude of the hostess made us feel like they didn't want us there. They won't seat parties of over 5 together-fine, they've got nice booths. Then they said "please don't move around so we can get the right food to you" which, like fine but that's not the reason they didn't want us to move. You're aiming for a hoity toity atmosphere, we can move plates around. There's an obnoxious but unenforced dress code (no jerseys then someone came in with a jersey and was as seated, no baseball hats...), but the straw that broke the camels back was when the hostess asked me to stay seated while I was seated. My 4 year old needed entertainment as we were paying the bill, we were in our last few minutes there and she told me that I had to stay in my seat. Which I was. They didn't get the order right for said 4 year old: hamburger, no cheese. Showed up with cheese. If you don't want kids in your restaurant, just turn people away. But also you're on the Embarcadero, not in a fancy neighborhood. Overpriced by 20%.

    Photos
    Inside
    Inside
    Grilled artichokes
    Grilled artichokes
    Knife & fork barbecue ribs

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    Knife & fork barbecue ribs

    Mel's Kitchen - tradamerican - Updated July 2026

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