Reviews of August 1 Five (Restaurant)

eve menger

Great food, great service, nice atmosphere.

Alex France

Great lighting and ambiance. Food (we had the vegan options) was a little too sweet. Lots of sugar. The main detractor was the bench seating. The bench was so low I could barely reach the table. My seat was at least a half foot lower than my date's. I wanted to ask for a booster seat. Thankfully we were able to switch to a different table because this would have ruined the experience. Hopefully they fix the bench situation because it's otherwise a nice date spot with great service.

Priya Parul

Great ambience and the food is tasty and very tastefully presented. The servers are friendly and know a lot about the cuisine.

Kara R

Unique twist on Indian food and a bit unexpected. Everything was delicious, but could have passed on the Bison dish, even though it was recommended. The Sea Bass was cooked to perfection. I wish we had ordered more of the first and second courses to try. Decor was unique and somewhat modern. Service was just ok, taking about 10-15 minutes to give our table water and another 10 to put in a drink order.

Anand Byrappagari

Upscale Indian restaurant with good appetizers. The menu is fairly small compared to other Indian restaurants. Overweighted on lamb dishes. You are paying for the presentation and service more than the taste. Roadside parking available close by and couple of parking garages are in walking distance. Staff is aware of allergies. Plenty of gluten free and peanut free options available.

jinesh lalan

This is a fine dining contemporary Indian food place. You order your food in courses. The service is great and they take care of you well. Their cocktails are just too good. You need to try them. Food's great but can increase the number of vegetarian items served.

Lutful Islam

Good flavours. Authentic vibes

Brandon Long

Indian California fusion, the mix works really well. Do the chef tasting menu to really explore the flavors. They make an excellent cocktail as well.

KaT

Pricey. But good food and even BETTER cocktails!!!

Sumit Gerela

Overall good place, I wouldn’t say it was the best. Food: Gol Gappa: This was really good! Must try. Chicken Tandoori: Chicken was tender but was really warm. Lacked flavor a little. Tandoori Prawns: These were king size prawns and taste was really good. Bison Keema: My favorite dish of the night was keema. It was served with 4 buns. Palak Paneer: This was not good, there was no panner, it was more like indian veggie lasagna, too bland. Fish: Fish was really good, sauce was in the form of foam and tasted amazing. Drinks: Mango Lassi: I would probably come here again for mango lassi. It was the best I’ve had in bay area. Love Potion: Decent drink, it has golden fizz! Fancy ! Desserts: Malai Kulfi: Complete flop, there was no taste of malai and cinnamon flavor was very dominant. Gajar Halwa: Complete flop. There was no taste of gajar halwa and was very very sweet. It was topped with whipped cream instead vanilla ice cream would have been good. Altogether, this was decent place, service was quick. Booking recommended.

Aditya Somani

They have great appetizers, but their entrees could use some work. The prices are a bit steep for what you get and the decor is simple, but the service is excellent!

Hadi Akharas

Excellent service

Divya Tatiraju

This is fine dining; be prepared for a wait while your food arrives and do not expect large portions. We were a party of 8 and had the opportunity to try several dishes, including Madras Chicken, Shrimp and Upma polenta and green pancake with vegetable stew. I loved all of them, but the Madras chicken stood out for me - so flavorful without being spicy. I've eaten at several Indian restaurants, and never tasted anything as good. My favorite drink was the 'Holy Cow.' Service was courteous and prompt; the food was heavenly and I will be back for sure. My favorite restaurant in the Bay Area.

Shikhar Chauhan

The palak chaat and lamb chops are excellent!

Philip Gissen

Met long lost family at August 1 Five for dinner. For the sake of peace, I absolved myself of control, and let my brother and sister in law choose the dinner restaurants on this trip to San Francisco. They’re locals. While August 1 Five was very cool looking and San Francisco hip, the cuisine was far from classic Indian food. No curry was to be found. My martinis were hiply served in wine glasses. Huh? It was a wonderful night, meeting up with nuclear family members I haven’t seen for years, but the food, service, and ambiance at August 1 Five was a bit “much.”

Sage McRae

The cocktails were just what we wanted, the advice on-point from our server, and the ambience friendly and vibrant

Arpit Maheshwari

Amazing food.. great blend of fusion and Indian spices.. it keeps the underlying Indian Taste but with a new fusion.. make sure to do the toffee pudding desert (it’s out of the world)..

Douglas Wilson

Indian food is not for everyone. I'm one of those who could take it or leave it. I am a limo driver and i dropped of passengers here who sent me out a meal as i waited. However I had the chicken and rice plate and I must say it was just right on the seasoning. Very tasty. I would say I would even consider going there and recommending it as a place to go in the city

Nahom Abegaze

My first experience of Indian fusion--at least that's how my good friend described our experience. Delicious starters. Cocktails were aesthetically pleasing and yummy. The main was especially filling and made for hefty leftovers. Service was exceptional!

Vinay Chandra

Nice decor, good service, and an inventive menu.

Sarah Hody

Drinks were excellent, and the place has a lot of potential, but food and service weren’t on par with the price point. After going through a lactose intolerance with the server in the ordering process for the breads and dips, we were brought the standard versions of the dishes that were largely inedible to the person avoiding dairy, which would generally be more easily dismissed but for the extent of discussions in the ordering process. The entrees were tasty, but portions were small - especially when considering the price.

Lexy Savvides

I really wanted to like this place. Interior and decor is nice, service was friendly and the flavors from the starters were great. But the meal went downhill after, especially the dessert which was really disappointing.

Kevin Chou

Food is pretty solid although a bit pricey. The small plates were better than the entrees. Would definitely come back to try more cocktails - very diverse and interesting selection

Pravin Prakash

Have been wanting to try this place for a while. Decided that this would the place where I treat a couple of friends to dinner. The ambiance is nice. Dim lighting that makes the place look pretty upscale. The hostess is super friendly and seated us right away. The server came around a couple times and refilled our waters, by the time my friends arrived. We started with a beer, a cider, and two cocktails. Beer was meh, cider was too sweet, but the cocktails were good! Points for that. For food, we got three starters (some kinda salad, and the gol guppa, grilled shrimp). The salad was good, gol guppa felt very over priced, and the shrimp was great. Main course was the bison kheema, which I do recommend, and a vegetable kofta in some cream sauce, which I highly don't. The sauce tasted good, but kofta's consistency was not great. We also got a bread basket, which was decent. Wish they had simpler bread options, like naan. The only other carbs you can get is rice for $5. I'd ordered one, but it never showed up. Overall, portion sizes are pretty small. Some of the menu items taste good, many taste pretty meh. If you're craving Indian fusion, maybe this is a good place, but if you want Indian food, this really isn't. Also, obviously is pretty pricey. Service was fine, but nothing to write home about. Our server was a little on the "oh I know it all" side. Go for the drinks, and maybe the bison kheema and grilled shrimp, if you must.

Anwar Haneef

What is the deal with this restaurant? I looked forward to dining here. I was hoping for a restaurant comparable to Rooh and maybe more innovative than Amber. The food tasted like amateur hour: - Lamb chops were not tasty, I make better lamb chops at home and I'm just an amateur. - The lamb biryani was salty, with undercooked rice and tasted like rice and curry. - The palak entree is not something I would subject my worst nemesis to. - The chicken Tikka appetizer was tasty, but maybe slightly undercooked. It was tougher to flag down the wait staff than at a bad diner off a highway exit, but at least at a diner they may smile at you. We returned a dish (palak entree) and the staff didn't bother to ask to substitute or apologize. Never again! Seriously, take your money and go elsewhere.

Vincent Chen

Tasty dishes. Interesting presentation. A bit pricey, but we enjoyed it. Salmon was especially done well, moist and tender.

Marzia Cen Della Corte

Great service, great decor, great twist of Indian cuisine. Did I mention great? Location: a block away from City Hall as well as the Jazz Center. Event hough located on the busy street of Van Ness as soon as you step in you feel enveloped in an oasis. Decor: modern and posh. Exquisite matching of the colors, the lighting was beautiful creating a suffuse atmosphere that was intimate and cozy without being pretentious. F&B: Cocktails: pricey but well executed. Appetizers: we had two vegetarian options. Creative although not a fan of fried food. The flavors as well as the texture was a great pairing. Main: I had the striped bass. Beautiful presentation as well as beautifully cooked. The texture was perfect, seasoned to perfection. Originality shine through in the dishes as daring ingredients are paired together in new forms. As for the flavors of the sauce it was slightly too sweet but that's a matter of opinion. Dessert: finally one of the few places that offered a vegan dessert that was not a sorbet. Service: very attentive to my allergies and well versed in navigating through the menu. The staff went for the extra mile even asking us if we preferred a different table (my partner and I prefer to seat next to each other rather than facing other) Price: Creativity does cost and be prepared to spend minimum 50USD per person as appetizers are small, mains price are average 25-30, desserts 15USD and cocktails are about 15 with non alcoholic around 5 USD. Price quality I would say that it's reasonable, and the service was Michelin star worthy. Food came well paced, presentation perfect as well as noise level and table distances. Hygiene: bathrooms are kept clean.

SOBHI Z Eleita

Difficult to know what to choose, not your typical Indian food. The service was very good

Leo Benkel

We got the special chef menu. That was a lot of food but everything was delicious.

Caitlin Holt

Great place to relax, people watch, eat good food or all the above. Definitely worth a return trip. This place has a nice feel to it.

Vrusha Chauhan

Great service and nice ambience. The food is definitely worth the price.

r reeves

Great staff, delicious food. Close to theatre and ballet. BART nearby, too.

Rachel Anne Pagador

Good place for fancy and unique cocktails, definitely recommend. Food is good but definitely on the pricier range. Featured on the photos are their delicious Paneer Kebab and their specialty cocktail (which was great, but I can't remember the name, and it had whipped coconut froth on top).

apuducheri

The mushroom pot pie was the highlight but I enjoyed everything we had here and the service was good.

Luke Belz

Definitely high end Indian cuisine with a modern fusion twist. I particularly liked the various types of naan provided, but overall the price didn’t align with either the taste or the atmosphere. I would recommend it for ‘new to Indian cuisine’ customers that don’t mind spending ~75 per person.

David Paluy

The food was very good and the service was very good. I recommend visiting this place.

R D

Went with a lot of expectation. The ambience and service lived up to it, but the food was average. We had the truffle chicken kebab, lamb chapli kebab, sunchoke salad, panner kebab and figs and honey kulfi. We basically stuck with apps and dessert, and did not try the mains. I thought that the fusion of flavours while seemed exciting on menu, was not that flavoursome to have. Amongst all the things we ordered, I liked chicken kebabs the most.

Tripti Bansal Burman

Interesting menu and good ambience. Staff was friendly. Good place for special occasions, make reservations in advance. Really liked the Chicken kababs and palak chaat.

Mike Shwe

Food was delicious and creative. Our server was polite but didn't seem to like the food much and probably wasn't all that excited to be working there.

Richard Chen

Great place for dinner. Great service. Portions are not “American” portions, but a real single adult serving.

Savvas Dimitrios Petridis

Pretty good, a bit overpriced for what it is. The pheasant was dry and the bison was pretty much a simple beef chili. The lamb kebab we had as an appetizer was the best part.

Michael Coleman

Delicious. I'm a bit basic when it comes to Indian food, so I had the Chicken Tikka. It was good. Recommend getting the naan appetizer as it has some kind of Eggplant chutney that was one of the most delicious things I have ever eaten. Plan for a longer lunch as the place gets busy. Worth it.

Camille Despringhere

We were a table of 7, each payed about $90 for dinner and we all came out disappointed. Food and service was meh... We took the wine pairing option, big mistake. What’s the point of serving wine with spicy food? (At least a warning from the staff would have been nice). Won’t come back again!

Mohit Sahu

If you love Indian food then go for it. They have good variety of veg and non veg. Good Ambience. We had a team dinner, food was good.

Surbhi Verma

The ambiance and service was good, food can be hit or miss depending on what you order. Lot of vegetarian options. Expect to pay higher than usual for this upscale ambiance, and get your fancy clothes out as people are usually dressed up. 3.5 stars overall! I'd booked a table in advance for a Wednesday evening, and to my surprise the place did get crowded so highly recommend a reservation. Slightly disappointing since I'd asked for a special table / booth for a friend's birthday celebration, but the host didn't accommodate for that. [Food] Tried the paneer kebab in appetizers which was great. Paneer was soft and extremely flavourful. For mains, we went with the server recommendation of spinach paneer which seems to be their popular veg dish, but I found it to be average. Definitely go for the bread basket, for only $10 you have three choices of bread (plain naan, cheese tomato naan and one more), which is served with chutneys (Indian sauces). [Drinks] Lot of cocktail selections on the menu and I'd love to go back to try more of these. The Patiala Peg was a nice strong bourbon drink and most cocktails seemed to have an Indian twist.

Teddi Baggins

$75 tasting menu - 4 appetizers, 4 mains, 2 desserts. Complicated, gifted cooking, delicious and beautiful.

Homer Ong

Brunch here is quite good. The flavors are surprising yet they work really well. We got the green pancake with veggie coconut stew and tomato chutney, and the chicken and waffles. The pancake was like a mix between a dosa and a crepe? Slightly crispy exterior, slightly "spongy" interior. Great contrasting textures. The chicken was moist and well seasoned. The waffle is green and subtly aromatic. Submerged in the accompanying syrup are crushed red chillis, adding a nice heat to the dish. We also ordered masala chais, not too rich and creamy and perfect with a couple of sugar cubes.

Beck Marquis

Came here for a Mother's Day Dinner this past Saturday. This happened to be my second visit in about four weeks so I had an opportunity to try quite a few of their cocktails - all of which are well prepared. I had the Bengali Sour and the JRD Tata Sour which were pretty good. We also tried the ABCD and the Crazy Jutt. They also have a unique set of appetizers with a good mix of Veg and Non-Veg. They have a set of Cold Appetizers from which I would strongly recommend the Gol Guppa's and the Sunchoke & Lotus Root Chaat. For those of you who love Sea Food - the Razor Clam Ceviche is pretty good.

Satish V

Love the ambience, food, drinks and desserts.

Mark Dorado

Amazing service, wonderful atmosphere, and the food was fantastic.

Dixon Lu

Food was wonderfully modern. Wait staff were attentive and coordinated.

Ananth Bhat

Innovative menu and nice flavors. Slightly pricy though. Liked the ambience too.

Leticia Goodman

Great food at a great price! Will definitely be back for the chicken tikka masala. Staff is also extremely friendly!

Ashish Kelkar

Great ambience and food, the lamb dishes are particularly great. Do not expect the traditional breads with gravy type Indian dishes. This is a different take on Indian food, it’s delicious and worth visiting.

Sumit Singh

Great food and service. The lunch plates are very reasonable. We ordered a Madras Chicken lunch plate and Palak Paneer along with a paneer appetizer. The paneer dish was so uniquely made. All food tasted fresh and delicious. What a gem!

Bogdan Kyryliuk

Incredibly delicious Indian cuisine ! In addition to that desserts are good too.

Amy S.

The food was mediocre. We ordered the chicken briyani and I'm glad we split it. It was very overpriced for the small, dry dish we received. Never had Indian food that bland. The naan was very good though and it is the only dish here I would recommend. The service was good and they didn't seem to mind that we stayed for 2.5 hours catching up with friends.

Hamsta Pa

Some delightful choices on the fusion inspired menu that won't disappoint. Good atmosphere, with nice options for booth seating or high table/chair. Heard it gets very busy when there is shows on across the road so if you're struggling to get a table book when it's not theatre evening. Portions are not large, so order a few things more.

Chris Fabiano-Rice

I love this place. We're a mixed Vegan/Omnivore Family and always find many options to delight. HUGE fan of the Cocktails. Perfect place for Brunch before an SHN Show! I'd even be so bold as to say THIS is my favorite restaurant in SF. Taking friends there tonight!

nitin jindal

Best modern Indian cuisine in San Francisco. I'd still rate rasa higher. Palak chat and masala omelette were the best. Everything else was great too.

Nisarg Brahmbhatt

One of the best Indian restaurants in SF!

jyotika gupta

The food has a unique twist to the traditional way of Indian cooking, but their chicken was pretty dry. Their pork appetizer is good. Overall service is good and a good vibe to the place.

Ranjal Agrawal

Quantity is very very less. Main dishes are only able to serve 1-2 person only with very high price. Still I gave two stars as taste of the dishes was good.

Kushal Vora

I am little disappointed with the drinks, appetizers and bread. I found them lacking at their core and tipped my overall experience of dining towards overpriced and overtried Indian affair! Are there any high points? Certainly. Service was good. Spinach paneer and panner kebab were finger licking. Paneer kebab can handle some spice. Didn't try dessert. But I promise - sweetness (sugar) in all form is pleasing =)

Priscilla Manning

looking forward to coming back with my coworkers. it has a good atmosphere.

Prabal Sidana

Amazing Indian food, the best I've had so far in the Bay area!

Marian Cashman

Very expensive wines by the glass-highest we've seen. Food is tasty but main dishes over priced.

Nikki Roth

Very fun and unique cocktails. I got the Jaipur Emerald - the toasted coconut made it. The food was delicious. My favorite was the crunchy and flavorful Palak Chaat. I also highly recommend the pulled pork.

Akshay Datar

Food was ok, was a little overpriced for the quality, flavor and variety that was available during lunch but cocktails were excellent.

Sayantan Mukhopadhyay

One of the better Indian fusion places in the bay area. Food improved a lot in last couple of years. It's pricey and not exactly value for the money you pay.

Eric Mattson

Very flavorful and tasty food. Small portions and overall decent ambiance. Would get the truffle chicken kebab!

Samantha Nelson

I can say this place does it for me. I will be back with my coworkers. It has a cool atmosphere. Kinda of like a cafe in Phoenix that I enjoyed.

Abhijit Borude

August 1 Five, like it's name which represents India's Independence Day August 15, attempts to provide freedom to the Indian food from its traditional recipe, taste and presentation. The place feels upscale and modern with subtle hints of tradition and royalty. The cocktails are carefully crafted to compliment the food really well. The food itself is innovative, tasty, flavorful and presented with lot of art. All this doesn't come cheap though and you would end up spending about $75 per person or more. Overall, it's a great place for you to visit on special occasions!

Hope Niblick

Wonderful selection of unexpected foods. Fabulous cocktails.

Alberte Katrine Schmidt

Great place to come for some good and upscale indian food. They also have quite the selection of wine and cocktails! I’ll be back for sure!

Ilya Grigorik

Modern Indian fare. Definitely try the mushroom potpie

Lakshmi Javadekar

Did not live up to expectations based on earlier amazing visits. Service was off, food was okay.

Preshank Saxena

Loved the food, desk fusion Tacos with jackfruit will be my recommendation.

Toma Fortin

Menu looks great and creative but is misleading. I ordered Palak Chaat and expected some Spinach stew but got a deep fried spinach (like kale) which was too oily. A side of Dall came with a creamy base which was also a bit heavy. Kheer pudding was good. All in all expected a more polished experience with better prepared dishes.

Brad Jackson

Second time here. Every dish and every drink is seriously crafted with love. Gorgeous dining room, stellar service, truly memorable dinners.

Trip Hosley

We had a great meal here, 6 people I think we ate everything on the menu. Not typical Indian (wich I also love) lighter spicing and lots of flavor... Really great

Chetan Bhadricha

Great appetizers but the entrees are not that great for the price.

Chris Koehncke

Ugh. I wanted to like this place but couldn't manage to. American inspired Indian food. Flavor combos came off as odd. Prices are high for portion so expect to go eat someplace else after this. High top tables are so large you're screaming at the person across from you and a tad uncomfortable. The place is trying, but trying too hard. Another SF miss I'm afraid.

Malhar Thite

Good food, great ambience and excellent service. We ordered Prawn Pea soup, truffle chicken, salmon entree and Blue Cobia. The only reason I gave 4 star was because the entree sauce and soup was a little on the spicier side so couldn't taste the Cobia fish.

Nikhil Kapur

If you are looking for authentic Indian food, look elsewhere. Appetizers and cocktails were un-inspiring.

Priya Rao

Nice snug place with great service offering interesting cocktails and food both having Indian touch. We went there from work and had a really good time.

Omar Ghani

August 1 Five was a phenomenal experience. A bit overpriced for the portion size but this is great place to spoil yourself or enjoy dinner for a special occasion. My personal favorite was the lamb chops. And the toffee cake was so so amazing. May come back just for that!

Manish Khan

If you are new in town this is the place to go very easy to socialize and make new friends and connections here people is very friendly drinks are pretty good more upscale place

Ajith Prabhudev

Nice ambience. Be prepared for small food portions. And for a lighter wallet on your way out

arul sam

Platters r awesome.they have really good dessert.expensive place.worth the price

Kalpana Sondhi

Love the decor! Cool bright colors! Food was good.

Tejas C

One awesome upscale Indian restaurant in San Francisco. Menu is quite interesting. Uniwue and exquisite.

Ishan Kaul

The signature spinach and fig was okay, I felt it was a bit bland, the aloo & fig was very good, it melted in my mouth and the taste was amazing. Asked for additional chutney and was charged $2 for it. The entree portions are small to share but more than enough for one person. For a group of 4, you could order 3 and share family style.

Santosh Kumar

One of the few good Indian Fusion restaurants. Prices are bit high, so is quality. This is pork chop that we are eating.

Evren Eryurek

Love this place, has become our fav u can't go wrong w any choice

Lisa Hazarika Das

Loved the food. Went for lunch, but now want to go back for dinner. Awesome Chicken rolls.

km_beast

Place is nice but food was horrible.

Brian Adam

This was several months back as I was visiting the so-called City for the Ring cycle opera ~[[[[[[ h u m b l e b r a g ]]]]]]~, and I walked by a couple times before resolving to eat here with my s/o. I liked it a lot! It was pretty busy, thus a little loud; we had a naan sampler, the bison ground beef, and sauteed vegetables, along with some drinks (try a white Russian, why don't you). The portions border on comically small, but I was satisfied. The menu isn't huge but there were enough options to cover the bases.

TradewindsHD

Almost missed this place, I had to drive by a couple of times. I went here with about eight friends for a birthday dinner and was shocked on many levels. The food was diverse and incredible. So many different flavors and the quality was off the charts. My friends who had been there a couple of times did all the ordering so I really have no specific recommendation on dishes. However every single one of the dishes we ordered was excellent. The portions or slightly small but perfect for the group. The servers and service can only be described as five star excellence. They took the time to explain the dishes, how they paired with our drinks and in what order we should order them going from Sweet to savory too spicy. Mixologist or bartenders or on point with creative and delicious drinks. This is not a quick in and quick out cost-effective option for dinner. This is fine dining with an international flair and expect to pay for that. I can’t afford to go to restaurants like this every week but it’s definitely my spot for the special occasion in San Francisco.

Samuel Cuadra

The food was amazing!! Can't go wrong with anything on the menu. The staff was very friendly. Highly recommend. Perfect for a nice dinner or date.

Jackson Pitts

The service was very helpful and welcoming. The bill was appropriate.

Tommy Hughes

Excellent food a little overpriced for the portions served, excellent customer service

Hema Bajaj

The cocktails and the food are delicious! The must try apps: palak chaat, paneer kebab and prawns! For main, I highly recommend the salmon and chicken biryani!

David Pescetti

Fantastic drinks. Food was delicious. As my girlfriend said, "Best Indian food I've had since I've been to India"

Regina S

Fun cocktails, fusion of Indian and Californian cuisine (that's how it was explained to us), yummy desserts. Very attentive service. Multiple gluten free choices. Will visit again!

You Travel

Awesome food awesome drinks

Chandana Hosamane

Brunch here is damn good. They serve Indian food with an interesting take. The Pani for Pani Puri is served in little carafes. Highly recommend the lotus and taro root salad, not something you find often on the menu in Indian restaurants. They have added little touches to Indian food which sets it apart from usual Indian food. Like the fried onion on top of the aloo kut or green pea stuffing in the Puri. There's limited things to order from, the portions are small and kinda pricey. But it's worth the price.