- Restaurants |
- Nightlife |
- Shopping |
- Movies |
- All
Bob's Broiler - CLOSED
Categories: Restaurants Diners Restaurants Burgers Diners, Burgers [Edit]
1601 Polk St(between Clay St & Sacramento St)
San Francisco, CA 94109
Neighborhood: Nob Hill
(415) 474-6161
- Attire:
- Casual
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Street
- Price Range:
-
$
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
- Takes Reservations:
- No
- Delivery:
- No
- Take-out:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Good For:
- Lunch, Breakfast
- Alcohol:
- No
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
Kindra S. said: "This is honestly how I think every burger joint should be - create your own burger!! On a warm sunny day my husband and I made our way to the patio, hungover and starving. Two clipboards were plopped in front of us and we began…" read more »
113 reviews for Bob's Broiler
Review Highlights
-
"Five stars for the biscuits and gravy alone." In 10 reviews -
"Breakfast all day, best in the area." In 3 reviews -
"Far and away my favorite greasy spoon diner in the city." In 9 reviews
Loading...
113 reviews in English
-
Review from Raymond L.
San Francisco, CA
2/21/2010
After passing by Dottie's with a line out the door in the rain in a sea of umbrellas, my friend and I were like "oh hell no" and I wasn't trying to get wet so we decided to go elsewhere. Luckily my friend knew of this place that he used to go to with his Dad when he was little. I agreed so he can get in reminiscent mode.
It's a nice little cozy spot on the corner of Polk and Sacramento and was very comfortable and clean. The server was pretty informal and was even talking on his cell phone while serving customers, but it didn't bother anybody. This seemed more like a neighborhood diner, but I wouldn't mind driving the distance and look for parking to eat here.
I looked on the white board and saw their many daily specials which all looked good and mainly consisted of different omelettes, but I went with their florentine special. Just your basic eggs florentine but they add avocados and their hollandaise was very creamy and lemony...it didn't taste like that powdery stuff I'm used to. And it came with some home fries instead of the normal hash browns. My friend got the corned beef hash and eggs. Both were generously served up and it was a great breakfast.
$20 for the two meals and a coffee. Well worth it. -
Review from Luis C.
7/20/2010
Another one bites the dust, Bob's is no more. CLOSED. But don't worry this place is not related to Bob's Donuts on the same block.
I never liked this place, not just because of how dirty it was or the subpar diner food. Like some people would say, the place gave me the heebie-jeebies: because the layout reminded me of the Pinecrest Diner (another place I'll never set a foot in), which is famous for a SF murder more than 10 years ago - waitress shot by the short order cook, after arguing about an order of poached eggs. The cook died later in prison from a brain tumor (might explain his actions).Listed in: CLOSED, out of business,…
-
Review from Devon F.
3/9/2009
As a kid, I always knew I had done something stupid when my mom started singing the old Sound of Music song, "Maria," except that she would change the lyrics to "How do you solve a problem like a Devonnnnn?"
The lack of the necessary third syllable in my name always added to the thinly veiled condescension. A not-so-discreet way of saying "my daughter is a dumbass but she's only 7 so I will sing a song from a popular musical of my youth so she won't know I am making fun of her."
Well, she was wrong. Dead wrong. Hello therapy!
Repressed issues talked over with my therapist aside, I did a classic "Maria" move Friday night. After an evening at various bars along Polk, my friends and I headed to Bob's for greasy sustenance. I was only moderately satiated by my grilled cheese with avocado sandwich, and the fact that it cost $11 also was rather disappointing, but they were friendly and didn't bat an eyelash when one of the guys passed out face first in his fries.
Plain and simple, Bob's is a two star going on three star establishment, not unlike Rolf and Liesl's "Sixteen going on seventeen" gazebo scene. So what bumps it up?
Maria moment: It's 2:30 AM, I am in the back of the cab on the way home when I realize that I have LOST MY PHONE. I may lose a lot of things on a semi-regular basis (wallets, jackets, dignity), but the cell phone was always the one I held onto. ("How do you solve a problem like a Devon? How do you catch a cloud and pin it downnn?")
After a freakout that lasted easily into the next morning, and after a number of my friends called my number and no one picked up, I finally called Bob's. To my great delight, they had my phone and even better, had respected my privacy by not opening it once, not even to answer the incoming calls. That's class.
...Avocado with cheddar and fries made to order
Dinged up diners with help from south of the border
Recovering my phone without any attached strings
These are a few of my favorite things... -
Review from Ed U.
9/14/2009 3 photos
I'm sure you remember that early scene in "The 40-Year-Old Virgin" when Andy unwisely goes home with a drunken woman from the bar (actually it's director Judd Apatow's wife, Leslie Mann). She curdles out, half-conscious behind the wheel - "I'm starvin'...Let's get some (ahem) French toast!" - before vomiting on him in her car. Well, if they were to ever make it to a place with French toast in one piece, this is where I pictured where they would end up. It does have that post-hurling vibe about it. Must be the formica and the squeezed-in naugahyde booths.
Anyhow, Jamie W. and I had a similarly humiliating experience preceding our visit to Bob's. We had been summarily ignored by the late-night wait staff at Grubstake and walked out in a huff (see my updated review: http://www.yelp.com/bi...). The oblivious host told us to "have a nice evening". Whatever. We trudged up Polk recognizing that Bob's would be our alternative to satisfy a sweet tooth. But we went gonzo that night and ordered breakfast.
We were just happy we had a waitress who actually took our order this time. Jamie went for the $4.25 (ahem) French toast, and I had the $5.50 short stack of New England Blueberry Pancakes (see photos). I'm not sure what part of the plate was supposed to remind me of a Vermont inn, especially since the blueberries had that unmistakable canned look to them. But I have to tell you our standards were pretty low after the Grubstake fiasco that anything short of a pile of manure would have suited us. Luckily, it was better than manure.
FOOD - 3 stars...typical diner fare that meets expectations
AMBIANCE - 2.5 stars...well, it ain't French Laundry
SERVICE - 3 stars...a bit absent-minded - but she at least showed a conscience when she served unlike others I don't need to mention...(cough) Grubstake
TOTAL - 3 stars...."I'm starvin'...Let's get some (ahem) French toast!" -
Review from Janet W.
San Francisco, CA
8/19/2008
I originally posted this review in the wrong business! Sorry Bob's Donuts!!
I ordered sausage & eggs, daughter ordered a French burger (cheeseburger on a French roll) and our guest ordered biscuits and gravy. With the sausage & eggs, you have a choice of toast or a biscuit. I went with the biscuit and when I requested gravy, was told it would be 1,005 cents more. Thinking my ears may be playing tricks on me I reiterated "1005 cents?" Affirmative. "Okay, we'll see how this translates out on the bill", I though to myself.
In our booth, daughter and guest were seated so they could see the server coming from the cooking area and, as our food was being brought to the table, they both get really funny looks on their face ... it seems that the lady who served us, who told me her name was Louis (not Louise, Louis), momentarily lost control of daughter's plate and the food slipped onto her chest ... not a problem for Louis, she pushed the open faced French burger back onto the plate with her BOOBIE! I must say, I almost didn't believe daughter when she told me this, but the melted cheese was clearly imprinted with what could have been a BOOB! Daughter is fussy. She only ate about 3 fries.
My sausage and eggs were just that, sausage & eggs, with home fries. I ate it all. Now, for the biscuits & gravy, guest scarfed his down but I couldn't get past the mystery ingredient, a jell like substance, in the gravy so I only took a bite or two.
During the course of our visit, I had my back to the cook(s) & server but it was difficult not to hear part of the conversation going on behind me. I kept hearing Louis say the word "motherfucker". Daughter did not believe me when I told her this but, then the phone rang ... "MOTHERFUCKER YOU BROKE MY HEART!". Now, the kids and I thought this was downright hilarious. Each time she said the word, it was at least five decibels louder than any other word in her sentence and she said it often. There seems to have been a shift change while we were there and the last thing we heard was MOTHERFUCKER YOU GOT TO LEARN spoken to the cook coming on shift, as I went to pay our check.
The gravy did not cost 1005 cents, I was charged $1.70 for B&G, but guest was charged $4.75 for the exact same thing. Total check $28.00 and change for our food and three coffees. Oh, and Louis had a big fat glass of red wine that she drained before accepting my money which could explain her fondness for motherfuckers.
Gotta give it a 1.5 on the food/service but definitely the fun factor brings it up a notch or two. I promise to be back ... for donuts! -
Review from Daniela L.
San Francisco, CA
7/22/2007
Yummy! Potatoes older than my great-grandmother and omelettes with cheese that hasn't been taken out of the fridge in a decade. Mmmmmm...that sounds good. I think I'll have that.
WHAT YOU SEE IS WHAT YOU GET.
The place is a dump and that's basically what I thought I was eating.
What did I expect? High class dining? I should stick to what works and that would be my own cooking or the Pork Store on Haight St.
And yeah...I'm angry. I take breakfast very seriously!
Update: I'm completely shocked. It's been hours and I've yet to suffer any complications from eating here. -
Review from Autumn K.
5/23/2008
I haven't dined here and I probably never would because this place has "DIET SUICIDE" written all over it. But, DAYAM, Bob! Where'd you learn to make an apple pie like that? The term "panty dropper" usually applies only to alcoholic beverages, but I'd like to make an exception for the apple pies Bob's churning out over there. Three bites in and Heidi A and I were staring lustfully at one another, fighting the deep primal urge to rip our tops off and roll around in that hot, steaming mess of apples, sugar, and delicious vanilla ice cream. Talk about a birthday treat!
Is this the effect you have on all women, Bob? Is it? Because I am dying for more...and more...and more...
Thank you, Matthew R for providing the birthday pie and the supervision we required during and after devouring that monster. Like I said- I probably wouldn't dine here, but I will so be back for the pie. And next time, I'm taking Starla. Look out, Bob! Here we coooome. -
Review from Angelo F.
San Francisco, CA
11/21/2009
After a dinner party, a couple of glasses of wine, a couple beers, and some decent bourbon, we are in need of second dinner. As it's 2:30 in the morning Sat, our options are limited in SF. First choice was of course Grubsteak but the line was out the door. Scratch that idea. So we drive by this place that looks practically empty ...this looks OK.
So I guess we will be "that" table. The table of people who either can't regulate volume or are trying to be obnoxious (aka hilarious). The waitress has obviously been there forever and is tired of:
a) working that late at night.
b) serving belligerent drunks.
c) life in general.
In any case, this review won't take that too much into consideration. I mean my party was the LOUDEST/only one there.
We all order the same thing, the Bob's Burger w/ fries. Which came out 2 mins after we order. There were two problems. The fries that came w/ it; not enough of them. The burger was WAY under done. When she took our order, she didn't ask how we wanted it. I completely forgot to specify. I would describe these burgers as rare...actually more like flame kissed...so basically luke warm in the middle. The size was decent and it came w/ avocado and bacon so I wasn't so bummed. I like my burgers medium well and my steak medium rare. Over all though, I would come back .....unless Grubsteak's line dies down. Then I'm all over Grubsteak. -
Review from Cat of a Donut J.
San Francisco, CA
4/24/2009
So you're having an early morning hang-over or a late night drunk greazy burger craving on a Polk street. Not in TL yet, but you're pretty close.
NOW, STOP! Do you see any other breakfast alternatives? Wanna go shadier? Lower Polk? Nah, I know, you DON'T!
Eggs? Hash browns? Thick old fashioned milk-shakes?
Make your life easy, come in, sit your ass down.
Don't try to be all gourmet about it, give me a break, it's greasy - yes, it WILL make you full - YES! Don't be picky about it, it's just a "Bob's dinery" not a "Petit Robert" -
Review from Lauren S.
Stockton, CA
Updated - 9/5/2009
BISCUITS AND GRAVY!
and the waiter who always remembers me and points out that every time i come in i am hungover.
what a creepy memoryListed in: Tenderlovin, BACON!!!!
1 Previous Review: Show all »
-
9/8/2008
After a night of "catching up" after the return of my friend on business trip- we were starving in… Read more »
-
-
Review from Ben G.
San Francisco, CA
2/25/2007
On a Sunday at 3 PM (feeling torpid and haggard) there is NOTHING on planet earth that makes more sense than biscuits and gravy with fresh roasted coffee (regimented health aware people are excluded from this conviction of course)...
Because I live in a new hood and I haven't learned every good spot to hit yet, I typed biscuits and gravy into my little yelp search bar and Bobs Broiler comes up. Perfect - 2 blocks from my doorstep to a much needed diner experience.
I go in, grab a table for 1 and ignore the menu the waitress sets down in front of me - I know what I want and if it is closed I will be able to order sooner (in my head, a closed menu is symbolic of a decision being made). It wasn't very crowded in there (which is a relief to me - living in the loin for the past year has conditioned me to be patient waiting for all of Dottie's goodness on Jones).
The waitress was cracking me up - 2 excerpts from dialog I picked up on:
*** elderly man gets up from the "bar" after deciding to move to a booth***
Waitress says, "hey poppa, you're gonna scare momma when she gets back and sees that you're gone"! He waves a brown spotted hand at her and says, "ahhh, she'll find me".
*** lady standing lost and concerned at the bar***
Waitress says from across the room, pointing her index finger in a back and forth motion at the elderly man, "he's over here momma" and goes over to assist her to the booth.
*** young couple walks in, grabs a booth for 2 to the right of me***
"Hi, excuse me but do you have any freshly squeezed orange juice?" the man says.
"We have fresh orange juice" the waitress replies.
"Yes, but do you have any 'FRESHLY SQUEEZED' orange juice?" the man says.
"We have fresh orange juice. It wasn't just squeezed, it is fresh. You want orange juice?" the waitress asks.
".......I'll have an avocado cheeseburger --- medium" the man says closing his menu, handing it to the waitress while looking out the window instead of at her eyes.
It was very hard for me to hold in my belly laugh, but I tipped 25% for the entertainment. The food was spectacular as well --- hefty portions of some damn good sausage gravy and that was seriously some of the best coffee I have had in a long time (I love coffee --- cup a joe is my favorite, but this little diner did it up right).
I'm a fan. -
Review from Katie Anne N.
San Francisco, CA
6/3/2007
I ALWAYS pass this place while walking off to some other restaurant on Polk Street. For the most part, I've been scared to go in.
A. It seems like a senior citizen's joint. No offense. I almost would feel as if I was intruding on their turf.
B. Seems sketchy....not a big chain..who knows how the food would be.
C. No lines. Hummmmm........
I have to say. I LOVE that there are no lines here. You seat yourself here. The menu is filled with every joy possible. Combos of everything you love. And yes, there are old people chilling by the bar counter, but there are the straggling yuppies who want good food with their chums as well. They are asian owned- which means I need to support my peeps. Service is attentive and fantastic. Always filling your water, coffee, whatever.
Friendly, fast service, super cheap prices, family owned. Love that its a few blocks away, with no long lines. No scene, just good food. Bob's has proven that you shouldn't judge a place on the outside (in the case of seniors- the inside).
P.S. The OJ is expensive. -
Review from Cathy H.
San Francisco, CA
7/29/2006
DEAL: $5.75 for 2 eggs, 2 sausages, 2 bacon strips, 2 pancakes
The pancakes were fluffy, the sunnyside up eggs were fluffy, the bacon strips were perfect, and the sausages were juicy. This definitely beats the hit or miss diner quality at Mel's.
NO DEAL: $3.25 for a large OJ
The breakfast was a deal in a $an Fran, but spending more than 1/3rd of your meal on juice sounds relatively absurd. -
Review from Randy F.
San Francisco, CA
10/13/2007
Thick bacon merits no less than four stars. And the bacon is THICK, and cooked under an iron, so it's nice and flat. Also, the buttered toast is worthy of mention...a nice multi-grain with real, soft butter. They have hash browns WITHOUT onions (thank you JESUS! I HATE home-fries!!!).....and the eggs? Well, they're eggs.
This is a great spot for a quick and cheap breakfast. The decor is vintage 1970's double-wide, and they even have a backlit picture of a waterfall, where the water actually appears to be falling. Hell, that's worth four stars by itself.
Classic hangover food at it's finest....don't worry baby! You're only about 25 minutes and $10.00 away from feeling "normal" again.Listed in: My Favorite Diners
-
Review from Craig E.
Denver, CO
10/17/2007
I saw no one who could pass as the fabled 'Bob' of Polk Street here, nor did I eat anything that could pass as more than two stars. The burger was average, the pancakes were pancakes, thereby impossible to ruin, and I don't even want to comment on the 'steak' and eggs.
The servers were all really nice though, but what about Bob? -
Review from Ben P.
San Francisco, CA
12/1/2007
All you need to know about this place is that it's totally average.
The food? Okay.
The service? Decentish.
The prices? Not bad.
The tables and decor? Meh.
This is the dining equivalent of one of those all-white houses you see in Swedish design magazines, where the walls are white, and the carpet is white, and the sofa is white, and the light fixtures are white and the fireplace is white, and the table is white and the chairs are white and the people who live there are just incredibly white because they're Swedish. And you look at that room, which cost many thousands of dollars and the following of many thousands of pages of assembly instructions starring a blobby guy and no words, and you think to yourself "Well, I guess that's.....okay."
I ordered eggs. The waitress brought me what were, in fact, eggs. I ordered pancakes. The circular cooked batter on my plate was indeed pancakes. I order OJ. The orangey-liquid in my cup was OJ, from concentrate.
Bob's is sorta like a restaurant from an anime future where all food is just a blob of concentrated nutrients shaped into food-looking shapes. Like a tofurkey. So, in this future, you could order a t-bone, or you could order an apple pie, and the difference will just be that the food will look different, so that when it arrives, you will say to yourself "Yep, that's a t-bone." -
Review from Jim L.
San Francisco, CA
7/16/2006
Classic diner action in the heart of Polk. Great old-school decor with vinyl boothes, a counter and a stone wall at the back of the dining room. Wasn't quite sure what all the carved wooden ducks and farm animals were about. The place is somewhat clean, but you don't want to look too closely.
The food is pretty decent. Charbroiled bacon cheeseburgers were tasty, as were the fries, which were crispy and well-done. The chili was pretty good and came with a slice of american cheese melted on top and grilled onion flavor crystals. My cousin said the chocolate cake was good too.
Service is just fair. The waitress would not let me substitute a cup of chili instead of a cup of soup with my burger, thus forcing me to get the fries AND a cup of chili on the side instead. Whoa is me. Had to have both. *sigh* As diners go though, this one is pretty good. There was a prostitute named Maria standing out front too. So that was a nice bonus.Listed in: Late night grub
-
Review from daphne w.
San Francisco, CA
5/30/2007
Five stars for the biscuits and gravy alone. The best in the city, and perhaps the bay area (and believe me, I know my biscuits and gravy).
Other greasy-spoon fare is top-notch, like chicken fried steak and hash browns. In this day and age of home fries, it's become increasingly harder to find places that still serve hash browns -- and good ones, at that.
Amusing decor and late-night diner ambiance, too. -
Review from Alison p.
San Francisco, CA
9/14/2007
Now, I've only ever gone here for breakfast, but that's what greasy spoons are for, isn't it?
I've searched in vain for a replacement to my beloved hamburger haven ever since moving to pac heights. I was hoping Bob's would be the answer. No such luck. I gave them a fair run, eating breakfast here probably 10 times in a month.
Even after my 9th visit, the tired and obviously hardened waitress still acted as if she'd never seen me before. The poached eggs continually arrived swimming in water and tasting of vinegar. The hashbrowns - sadly lacking the golden brown crispiness I adore.
And it's not like this place is inexpensive. The exact same meal that would cost me $5 at hamburger haven is $12 here. The coffee keeps coming which is nice, but not enough to tempt me to become a regular patron. Polk street is in desparate need of a good diner. It's an embarrassingly easy standard to achieve. Not sure why it's so rare in this city.
hamburger haven, I miss you! -
Review from Mateo S.
San Francisco, CA
1/2/2008
So I went to Bob's ChristmASS morning and I wondered to myself why I had never been there before. I think the main reason is Polk Street Station was down the street and served a killer freakin breakfast for a hot ass price!!!
Everyone working in this place was female and I think Chinese which made for some great comedy when the ol' folks would try to order from them.
I had a simple breakfast with eggs, pancakes some sort of meat bacony sausage combo thing and decaf coffee. IT was yum! They actually had Christmas specials which sounded interesting. Prime Rib, Lamb, Turkey and Ham dinners were being served as early as 10 am.
This crotchety old lady came in and ordered it up and apparently the meat was pretty tender cos for the most part her teeth were on the table! I think I'll try Bob's Broiler again but I will say I was a little confused by the wait staff and how we had a different waitress every 5 seconds. If you like old school diners give it a try you might like it. -
Review from D.B. C.
San Francisco, CA
7/1/2009
I'da given it four stars, but I felt like the server had her fingers in my drink. Explanation below. As for the food: Call a bacon cheeseburger what you will. I'll call it health food. And the one I ordered here was perfectly decent. What I like in a good burger is a charry or grilled flavour, and that's what I got here.
I think I'd go here before going back to Sliders, really.
Perhaps that makes me too forgiving of how I ordered Diet Coke with no ice and witnessed the following: the server scoop ice into a cup, start to fill it, realize she had filled it with ice, grab another cup, and use her hand to hold back the ice in the first cup while draining 2 ounces of Diet Coke into the new cup.
Seemed a little distasteful to be so conservative about wasting two ounces of Diet Coke that accidentally went into a cup with ice that you had to fondle a bunch of cubes and drain a trickle of liquid across your fingers into a new cup. But at least she remembered I didn't want ice! -
Review from Annie S.
San Francisco, CA
2/19/2008
I've eaten here on and off for years, yesterday, I went and got a really good breakfast...
The downside? Two women, servers? owners? were bitching back and forth the entire time I was there.
It's a diner, this I know, but I expect to not have to listen to two asian women go at it with such hate and venom that at one point I actually felt like saying something to them, like.....SHUT-THE-_ _ _K-UP!!!!!
I actually wrote on the check that they shouldn't argue in front of customers! I hope they took the suggestion to heart!
I'll go back, with ear plugs handy the next time! -
Review from Mike K.
12/21/2008
Oh Bob's...
I really wanted to like you, especially because I'm such a Diner nut, but it just didn't click here.
Breakfast was ok, I don't think it's too hard to fry eggs and bacon, but my biggest complaint was the cleanliness of the whole place. Just not sure if the silverware's being washed properly, and 4 dollars for a glass of Sunny D is cutting it.
I thought the staff was great, and the menu had the traditional items, but Bob's lacks the down home charm that a diner should have.
Where's the neighborhood special? What makes this place tick? Nada.
So I guess I'll continue my search for the perfect diner elsewhere. -
Review from Lemar H.
San Francisco, CA
10/20/2008
This place definitely excels at decent quality food for low prices, not décor. I've come here on Sundays for a quick brunch near where I live, and they do a good job on eggs, pancakes, potatoes, and all of the other must-haves from a hot breakfast standpoint. It never amazes, but is great value for what I'm spending, and the service is prompt. Although known for burgers, I have yet to try those (I tend to be a burger snob).
It's also always fun to run into like-minded morning after going out people on Saturday and Sunday afternoons; it's easy to tell who is a little "weary" from the previous nights exploits. -
Review from Green Mango Y.
San Francisco, CA
5/23/2007
It's not that bad at all. It just... if you eat them all on your dish, you kid of get sick. Not because their food is bad, I think it's toooo much - big portion.
So you (or I...) have to stop yourself in 3/4.
I like Grandma's Special (Biscuit, Sausage Gravy, Home fried potatoes with eggs). It's good so it is hard to stop myself. But I ate them all once, I was kind of sick for 10days.
I would go back, but I am kind of scared of myself doing the same thing again. CAN'T STOP EATING!!!!! -
Review from Dustin H.
Foster City, CA
5/21/2008
Um, Mediocre. Although I can see it being a good place to go when it's super late-night or something.
I had a tuna melt on rye and my friend had a chicken Caesar salad. All of it was just okay. They randomly gave us some texas toast which apparently went with the salad.
Overall just a really whatever place. -
Review from Jordan A.
San Francisco, CA
2/19/2008
This place is good for drinking endless coffee and writing your "Great American Novel" you'll never ever finish.
I've been here twice this early year and both times I've had different experiences. The first was a little near closing time so the service was prompt and on top of things. The Second time was about 7:30ish with about 3 other tables with patrons including mine and there pretty much WAS no service. The waitress looked annoyed as she took our orders and never came back to refill our coffee because she left the diner after giving our table our food so we had to wait a while to pay because none of the other people "working" there wanted to deal with our bill. WTF?!?!
Yeah, I know diner food isn't really suppose to be THAT great but potatoes that taste like dish-washing liquid doesn't quite make the cut. -
Review from Audrey B.
12/17/2006
This is a place where food is not so much an art form as a means to a paycheck. It's a family run joint where not one of the light fixtures has all the lights working, and the decor includes half vases sticking out the walls, an ornately gaudy huge bird scene made with abalone shell, a billiard ball clock, a frying pan clock, and a plaque that says "love, happiness, friendship" or something equally cheesy. There are also lots of fake flowers, although the Christmas tree was real.
The food was greasy and made with lots of Kraft cheese. The ketchup bottle was sticky and covered in grime. They did show the football game while we ate, but otherwise it wasn't remarkable and reminded me of dorm food.... -
Review from Keith M.
Berkeley, CA
3/13/2007
Every town has a diner
Where I meet you
And you freinds too
We can talk over coffee
You can tell me all about your day.
Where I come from there aren't many diners, except for one or two in Somerville. Even then, those aren't what I consider real diners, since like many of the Powell street diners they try too hard to imitate 1950s concepts than be their own thing.
Here, there is beauty in its simplicity. A diner like this is what I envision from the lyrics of the above song (and if you recognize it, God bless you.) I'm not much into coffee shops, so a place like this is nice. I can go to meet up with a friend or two and just talk and relax, with out much hassle or expense. And if you can name the original artist, coffee and pie are on me.
Sometimes I can't escape from my room
So excuse me
I'll be just a little lateListed in: Down the Hill
-
Review from Ripley P.
San Francisco, CA
6/23/2009
For those of you that don't know me....I am a shy, Montana boy....so my standards for cuisine are kind of low...so i LOOOVE this place...it reminds me of home!!!
THe wait staff are friendly to me...probably because I am a repeat customer. They even know my dog...benson...and know he is a service animal (dont ask) and they even fry up an extra hamburger patty for him as a special treat..one time she brought him a piece of bacon on the house...i thought that was really sweet! When I first started eating there i thought they were kinda rude...but you know, a diner wouldnt be a diner if you didnt have rude wait staff...the only thing more perfect would be if the waitress was named Flo.......
THis place is excellent for a quick meal after a night out drinking...or if you are meeting a friend and want someplace chill to hang out and talk..if you are coming here looking for a life altering meal, you wont get that.
I usually get a hamburger with a salad....so yummy..just the right about of grease!!! Occassionally I get the the french toast for breakfast...or later..they serve breakfast all day!!!
SOOOOOOoooooooooooo! Next time you are out and about to go tits up from drinkin too much on polk street...come on in so you have something to throw up in the morning! -
Review from J B.
San Francisco, CA
10/6/2007
I'm still trying to figure out why I like Bob's. It doesn't have much to do with the food, which is passable diner fare, or the service, which is passable diner service, and you really wouldn't be surprised to see them with a C grade on a health inspection flyer, so what is it?? I just love going to Bob's on a late weekend morning and ordering scrambled eggs and bacon, even though when the plate comes I think, "damn, I could've made this at home. . .and damn, my coffee's a LOT better. . ."
I think it might be my back east high school/college age relationship with diners. We never had a bad time at the Elm Diner in New Haven at 2:30 in the morning. Bob's is just an unpretentious little hole in the wall that you keep coming back to, because, yeah, I can make scrambled eggs and bacon but I don't own any of those heavy white oval plates and I don't have a little diner booth in my kitchen.
For those who are looking for a similar experience in the inner Sunset, visit Art's on Irving. -
Review from Matt W.
San Francisco, CA
11/4/2007
The food at Bob's Broiler is tasty greasy spoon Americana. Let me tell you about Bob. Bob is apparently a middle aged Chinese woman with a dream to own a greasy spoon and decorate it like a Chinese Buffet.
There is something to be said for living the dream.
There is also something to be said for eating a Patty Melt at someone else's dream. -
Review from Mike C.
San Francisco, CA
1/14/2008
At least they have lottery tickets...
Everything here is rather mediocore - service, quality and taste. But we visit every now and again - mostly for pickup on extremely lazy days. They do have pretty good blueberry pancakes and the atmosphere is oddly captivating, in a very strange sort of way. -
Review from Sheena C.
Los Angeles, CA
3/5/2008
A couple of friends and I came here one night after a few pitchers at Zeitgeist. Originally, we had planned to go to some Mexican joint around the corner, but it was closed. Scanning the street, it was either 1. sushi, or 2. a diner. Of course I ran into the diner.
We ordered a french dip, mashed potatoes, eggs, pancakes, and an omlette. The food wasn't bad, however, at $3.25 a scoop, the mashed potatoes were way overpriced. The pancakes were good. The french dip was.. well.. small. I mean, the roll of bread was huge, but there was barely any meat.
The service was okay. I love little kids, but I don't think they should be up at 1am showing customers to their seats. Not only was a 12 year old boy playing host, but our server had a black eye. She was probably one of the women mentioned in Annie S.' review (although I don't know what being Asian has to do with anything).
Anyway, seems like a family operated business and I would go back again to support (as r m said). I won't be ordering the mashed potatoes though. -
Review from Aubrey S.
Manhattan, NY
4/18/2007
They served me a phenomenal grilled cheese at 3am. It was awesome. I shall return.
The end,
Love Aubrey -
Review from Scott W.
San Francisco, CA
6/29/2007
Say you've skipped a couple meals and you need some calories. Go here and order Grandma's Special. Biscuits and gravy, hashbrowns and two eggs. It's around $5 or $6. If you eat it all, you get a "good boy" pat on the head. Yum.
They do take out and have lottery tix. LOTTERY -
Review from James F.
Sunnyvale, CA
1/2/2009
Man I hate not supporting my fellow Asians trying to make it, but I'm sorry Bob ... your food was horrible. I think the first sign or crappiness should have been the fact that it was 2AM on NYE and we were able to get a seat right away. Usually there are reasons for long lines. I thought Bob's would be ok because I have seen long lines here on weekends before, but now I'm not quite sure why.
I ordered the eggs benedict and my hollandaise sauce was sour ... like extra sour. I ate half of it because I was so hungry until I polled my table about the sauce and they all agreed that that ish ain't good! Strawberry shake tasted like it was from Burger King and there weren't even any strawberry chunks ... just that pink strawberry syrup. Ore Ida fries you get from the frozen section of Safeway are 10x better than Bob's fries. At the end of the meal I still wanted to go to Mel's to wait in line for my post drinking fix. That didn't happen so I had to go to Ruth's Chris for dinner the next night to make up for it. At least that meal was cash money!
Sorry Bob's ... I won't be back. -
Review from Mr Bolo B.
San Francisco, CA
2/23/2009 2 photos
I really like BOB's BROILER, it's been at this same location for at least 25 - 30 years? I use to live a half block away on Sacramento street.
They must be doing something right to stay in business for such a long time. -
Review from Carlin S.
San Francisco, CA
7/18/2009
I'm really only giving bob's 4 stars because it's my grandma's favorite place and I love my grandma. If it were up to me it would be a 3 star at most.
My grandma loves it because she has lived a few blocks away for almost 20 years, is a regular here, knows everyone, and they're all really nice to her. They'll make stuff for her that's not even on the menu, but that she requests (they probably did have it on menu about 20 years ago when she first started eating there, but anyway...) The waiter that a few other reviewers complained about is indeed the owner's son, and yes, he's not the best- the owners are way nicer and more helpful.
I give props to a place that grandmas feel comfortable in.
That being said, if you're not a grandma, or accompanying your grandma, or extremely hungover, I don't really think there is much at Bob's to draw you in. The food is really mediocre- which in a town like San Francisco just doesn't cut it. I mean, even at local burger dives they serve Niman Ranch meat around here, so why would I pay comparable prices to my neighborhood joint for just plain greasy omelettes and burgers? I tend to order a tuna melt sandwich or sometimes the catfish, or eggs. It's passable, but really it's just a service to my grandma, self-sacrifice for the older generation if you will.
If you're not in the self-sacrifice mode don't do it, plus the less others who go there the more tables will be free for my grandma- not that it's every really full anyway. -
Review from Evie S.
San Francisco, CA
3/7/2010
EXPENSIVE poor quality food. Everything is cooked in soybean oil. I ordered a plate of eggs, hash browns, sausage, and bacon. No toast since I'm gluten intolerant. Coffee on the side.
The hash browns taste like water. The sausage is some weird stuff not palatable to American tastes. The bacon, all 2 slices of it, is dry and bland. The poached eggs have VINEGAR in them. What is vinegar doing in my eggs?????
The service is extremely slow, and there are more employees than customers.
I couldn't eat the hash browns, but managed to down most of the rest. So I'm pretty unsatisfied and definitely not full, but I'm sure I can recover from this bad experience. Until the bill. The total? $17 .. what what what??? Truth be told, I'd be willing to pay this much for high quality and tasty food, but this stuff is garbage, and probably cost them less than $1 to prepare!
I try to argue about the bill to no avail. I got probably about 1 breakfast platter's worth of food, but I got billed the price of 2 breakfasts. It came out to $7 base, $4 add hash browns, $3 add sausage. And this is with skipping the bread.
So what do I do? I leave without tipping. They sure as hell got their money's worth already. I don't think I've ever before left a waiter-ed place without tipping in my whole life!
