Original Us Restaurant

My favorite from the old location was the half spaghetti and half ravioli and it is still on the menu and delicious. Prices are higher and the place now has white table cloths and waiters but the waitresses that worked at the former location were so down to earth that you could be eating with an Italian family in Italy. Still serves nice fare but at a steeper price.

Original U.S. Restaurant is a wonderful experience--both for its food and service. This is a real, old-school Italian restaurant set in the heart of in North Beach, the heart of San Francisco’s Italian neighborhood. I have been going to this restaurant since I was a kid and its menu continues to feature classic U.S. Restaurant Italian dishes plus family recipes from Sicily. This week we held our office Christmas Holiday Party at the Original U.S. Restaurant (which stands for “Unione Sportiva” after the fact that the restaurant used to feed SF’s Italian American athletic clubs in the late 19th century). The food is as great as ever, the wine selection from both Italy and California was wonderful, and the friendly, loving service makes you feel like you are eating at someone’s home. It was an honor to be greeted by one of the owners, San Francisco Giants executive Mario Alioto, who came by to say hello to our table. The Alioto family and a member of the restaurant’s founding family, Alberto Cipollina, own the place. If you want to eat great homemade Italian food in a traditional San Francisco restaurant this is the place to come to. And the food is reasonably priced and the portions are hearty. Our group was especially fond of the following dishes that I list below: I have to put in a special word for the Chicken Milanese, homemade grilled Sicilian pork sausages, Gnocchi in pistachio cream sauce, and the Spaghetti alla Carbonara. Simply great! Pasta Spaghetti alla Carbonara (pancetta, eggs, and parmigiano) Ravioli Bolognese (meat filled ravioli in meat sauce) Gnocchi al Pistacchio (homemade dumplings in pistachio cream sauce) Fish/Pesce Petrale Sole Piccata Chicken/Polo Chicken Milanese Meat/Carne Veal Marsala Veal Piccata Salsiccia alla Griglia (homemade grilled Sicilian pork sausages) Desserts Tiramisu Cannoli Siciliani Enjoy!