Nirvana

I?ve been going to Nirvana for years and am sorry to say this is actually the first review I?ve written about them (Sorry Nirvana). This place has a great Asian-infused atmosphere, amazing specialty cocktails and excellent food. I highly recommend the Kamikaze Steak Noodles and the Pink Cucumber Cocktail. They also have an excellent chicken curry dish (has a little bit of a kick to it). The food is reasonably priced, but the cocktails add up quickly, so watch your bar tab. Pros: Excellent food & heated patio Cons: Expensive cocktails more

This establishment was my fav for many years but it has lost my well earned money. The tables were sticky from the years of rubbing off the varnish, our entree were served on worn plates that were chipped. The teapot was so old and dented it should be used as a planter for the garden out back. Should we say anything? Well you can't! There's a lot of servers but which one? One dropped you at a table, another gave you water, another took your orders and someone else delivered the food? All were really busy but doing what. I asked one of them for 2 rice bowls. I got to scoops of rice on a plate? WTF? That FREAKN LOUD RESTAURANT PHONE! The staff expects us to turn off our cell phone and yet their phone is at a deafening level! It rings and rings and rings. URGH! SO LOUD! The restaurant has lost it's sight of good food and service. It needs to be cleaned from top to bottom. Invest in new china, new paint and new table tops. It just needs a new make over... No one wants to eat on a sticky table and chipped plates! That was the last time for me... STAY AWAY! Pros: Strong Drinks to help you forget the bad food and service! Cons: Dirty and worn tables, plates, service was non-existant! more

When I got there last weekend at around 7:30 it was so dead I couldn't believe it. Usually when I go there it is fairly busy. I was sat by a very rude and rushed gentleman at the front. I thought it was unusually rude considering it wasn't busy. more

I went there with a friend a couple of weeks ago. The food was OK, nothing to write home about. Cocktails are expensive, at $9-$10, and watered down. OK, Nirvana, you can either charge a lot for your cocktails, or water them down. But not both. I ordered some chicken pasta w/aspargus. It arrived without the most expensive ingredient, Asparagus. I really got the impression that this place was trying to cut costs, to the point where they don't provide customers with what they paid for. I'll never go there again. more

A guy I dated once took me here for a first date, and I was impressed! It is super-small, so it had a cozy, neighborhood feel to it. Service was good and the food was excellent! If I wasn't such a good girl, I would've let him get further than first base... ;) Pros: Loved everything Cons: ? more

the spinach noodles are delicious with their sauces. also a very nice atmosphere, very relaxing, defintely a date spot! more

We go to a lot of fancy places that give you pretty plates with hardly anything on them. Not here. The portions are generous and the food is yummy- not super fancy, just tasty. They also have a fun drink list. more

Asian fusion cuisine and cocktails splash. Good service. Great back area. Nice ambience. Popular but not hard to get in. more

THE WORST FOOD IN SAN FRANCISCO. The ambience is fun, the drinks are inventive, the waitstaff was good. The calamari salad was sad and uninspiring. The dumplings could have been frozen then popped in the microwave. The noodle dish was something from a bad boil in a bag variety. To call this a ""fusion"" of Burmese food is a sorry and innacurate description. Try Mandalay or Burmese Superstar for Burmese. We cannot understand how it has been so popular for food while in such a great food city. Pros: good atmosphere, interesting drinks Cons: the worst food in town more

I have tried maybe 8 different dishes at Nirvana Restaurant, and every one of them was very tasty. I'm quite impressed with their usage of sauces and flavors. Service was good, and the restaurant is well-managed. more

I had lunch here for the first time. The food was great, but the open back patio stole the show. It felt like I was eating in a Thai jungle ;) There service was a little slow, but the scenery well made up for it. more

I had dinner at Nirvana last weekend. I could not make up my mind because they have three dinning rooms and I wanted to seat in all of them! The food was spectacular. I had Buddha Vegetables or something liked that, covered with this delicious, out of heaven sauce. Meat was tender, exotic to taste, and definitely well marinated in some Asian herbal sauce, I think. Coffee was good, drinks okay. It was the ambience that absolutely made quite an impression on me. Flowers, candles, and Buddhas everywhere. The red painted walls as well as the soft jazz make you feel you are somewhere else. The patio is well heated. Servers are friendly, respectful and some of them very cute. I'll bring my visiting relatives next time. (Oh God they are picky!). Pros: Food, Ambience, Service more

My last 2 visits here have been awful. The previous visit, the waiter spilled a drink on my boyfriend. The food was so good, however, that I wanted to go again. The last time, it was busy but we were seated at the bar waiting for out table, where we pre-ordered food. But as we were notified our table was ready our food was served to us at the bar. Then the bartender dropped a glass on my plate as I was eating, shattering all over the place, absolutely ruining my evening. Both times meals were comped but that does not make me want to ever go back. I highly DO NOT RECOMMEND Nirvana to anyone. more

What have they done to this place? I agree this place is so different ,it used to be such a fun experience eating here!, I heard that they have fired all the CUTE Nirvana boys...too bad because the food and drinks are soo good! Who ever is in charge of this place needs to realize that they are making this place go DOWN! more

Different place My friends and I have come to this Restaurant for a long time; we came in tonight expecting an amazing experience, like it was before, but we came to a very different Nirvana the food was the same, but the ambiance that it was before is not there, the staff is still really friendly and cute but not what it used to be, we sat in the second room in the back which was really nice but little crowded , our server was friendly and funky, he was really busy it seems like he was serving the other room in the front part, the drinks took so long and not as good as before, the owner or manager kept asking us if everything was ok every 5 min, really annoying!, the music was like some bad Latin jazz.very bad experience, my friends decided to not come back!C- Pros: inexpensive, friendly servers more

as a vegan this used to be one of my favorite restaurants. they offer pleanty of vegetarian dishes and can even make some of them vegan upon request. however, when dinning there last night i found that they not only no longer offer vegan dishes upon request, but the waitress also informed me that they put shrimp in ALL their dishes!! doesn't that even make their ""vegetarian"" dishes not vegetarian? and isn't calling a dish that contains shrimp ""vegetarian"" false advertising? when questioned about this the waitress simply said that she was sorry and hoped it wasn't a problem. well, no, it's not a problem but i will never eat at nirvana again. more

My wife and I eat here often. The food is very creative with a twist on all the Pacific Rim dishes and ingredients. Great vegetarian options for my wife. Never had a dish we didn't enjoy. Service is casual but good. Patio out back is wonderful. Value of food is oustanding. Drinks are fun but beware they will double your bill. If you don't order drinks you could get out for under $20 depending on what you order. Weekends can be a long wait and parking is tough so plan accordingly. Pros: Inexpensive, Creative dishes Cons: Parking is tough more

An institution, this place is a trip -- go for the experience (and the food!). They'll hustle you in and out, will order for you whether you like it or not, and there's a wait, to boot! But it's fun, if taken in stride. Good comraderie. Amiable, underdneath the gruffness. And solid, good food. more

This is one of the few restaurants that I have ordered specialty cocktails at and enjoyed. The drinks are creative without being odd combinations. The food is very good for it's price. I tried one item that was a bit too fishy for my taste but, it was loaded with a lot of different types of seafood so, that should have been expected. It's a fun space yet, also romantic due to the small tables intimate seating. The music goes from exotic to electronic depending on the mood of the crowd. They seem to be in tune with what people want from day to day. Pros: Location, Price, Atmosphere more

Went here a couple months ago. The food is OK but it is not what it used to be or maybe my tastes have changed. The food used to have a more ethnic flare but is now a bit more bland than it used to be; maybe catering to the midwestern toursits. Drinks are iffy. Sometimes watered down. The rice is a bit bland. Pros: Location Cons: , Food is bland more