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    TRACE

    3.8 (378 reviews)
    Closed • 6:30 am - 2:00 pm
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    TRACE Photos

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    TRACE ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Trendy
    Classy
    Moderate noise
    Happy hour specials

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    Recommended Reviews - TRACE

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    Reviews With Photos

    7/1/23 Breakfast with FRA-mily (friends since high school)
    Jennifer W.

    7/2/23 Day 2 at TRACE, today our server is Jane, the fabulous Alvin, our server yesterday, was so amazing with the attentiveness & service....and the food being delicious, my friends & I decided to return the next day. We're staying at The W, so this is also convenient. There's a myriad of options in this beautiful city but this makes the most sense due to the wonderful experience we've had. In short, check out the pictures posted of our food-just tasty, delicious with superb service from Jane. By far the most attentive of our servers this stay at the W at TRACE. Coffee is definitely more than decent & the detail of how the service made for a very delightful experience, I cannot express that enough. Everything at this establishment has been stellar except for one individual which I will mention for my review of The W San Francisco, stay tuned because, I will try not to leave a scathing review of his behavior. Will definitely return if were ever in this fair city.

    Menu
    Deb C.

    Nice place. French toast was really tasty with crispy texture I enjoyed. Would have liked to have known ahead of time that there would be cream on top for anyone lactose-intolerant. My friend had the cinnamon bun and enjoyed most of it though. Seemed very filling as she couldn't finish it. Good deal for $8 while the French toast was $26. Little steep on coffee being $6. Good combo with the $40 destination package.

    Menu 1/2 - August 2023 - VN
    Vince N.

    Trace is a brunch eatery located in the lobby of W San Francisco. An included daily room credit brought our gang here for some morning fare. ATMOSPHERE: High ceilings, big windows, trendy decor and lighting. RESERVATIONS: Not needed as there were lots of open tables. PARKING: Hotel valet, street or the garage on Howard Street. BRUNCH MENU: Handful of continental and traditional breakfast selections, alcohol. BEVERAGE: Mimosa - $13.00 Adequate, conventional offering. FOOD: Avocado Toast - $23.00 I was hoping it'd be a light dish but it was very hearty. The single, oversized toast was blanketed with mashed avocado, two eggs and seasoned pea sprouts. Very good. SERVICE: Host service was immediate and professional. Our server was equally good. OVERALL: Slightly pricey with delectable offerings.

    Lox and bagel and I got eggs and sausage.
    Ted C.

    I had checked in early enough at the W that I was looking for a breakfast spot and after trying to find an entrance but found it was in the lobby of the hotel. I did that slow, 'looking for someone to help' walk since there wasn't anyone at the host stand and there were 2 tables occupied; had they closed down early because it was so quiet? Someone came up and asked me if I'm staying at the hotel and I said I had just checked in. She didn't seem to register that but I got seated adjacent to one of the occupied tables, a little weird since there was so much space in the place. I guess it ended up making sense, less space for our server to traverse. I looked at the menu and saw they had bagel and lox on the menu. I ordered that and since I found myself to be exceptionally hungry get 2 eggs and links as well. My server took my order came back, with curt efficiency and let me be. I wasn't expecting much from the bagel and it was thin but pretty tasty, not just bread with bagel seasoning on it. The lox though was pretty good as well, not overly salty or greasy. The eggs and sausage helped with that. My meal got assigned to my room.

    Hot tea + bagel and lox

    Tasty, but expensive! If it wasn't for the food credit I don't think I would've had breakfast at Trace since the omelette & lox/bagel was rather pricey at $26 each when I dined here. The omelette and roasted potatoes I ordered was simple, but executed very well. Nice and hot when it arrived to my table and it didn't take too long either. My sister enjoyed her lox/bagel as well, but didn't really have anything to note. I also ordered one to go to eat before my flight back home and it traveled well and was still very delicious when I ate it like three hours later lol.

    Eggs Chilaquiles
    Hemali S.

    Okay hear me out. This place is amazing. We had breakfast today and never imagined a service like this. The food was prepared quick yet had all the flavors of hours of manual labor. The staff was attentive and never let a glass go empty. The ambiance was relaxing while also classy. We have a few more breakfasts coming up this week, but if this is what it is like, I can't wait for the morning to come!

    Eggs Chilaquiles
    Kayli D.

    We stumbled upon this place after the line for a place down the street was too long. It's inside the W, and you have to enter through the lobby. We got confused as there's a door with a menu and the name on the side, however the door is locked (and we weren't the only ones that had this issue). The inside was pretty, we got seated immediately. Good looking menu, but the food was just blah. Lacking flavor. After we paid, we ended up having to wait for someone to meet us so we tried to order another round of mimosas, however they never came. Our waiter was nice, very knowledgeable about allergies. Overall it was fine, convenient for where we were located, but wouldn't come here for the food.

    Twisted Cinnamon Roll
    Nicole K.

    While staying at the W hotel, I had $40 each day to spend at the property. I was able to enjoy a light fare and coffee at Trace. I got the twisted cinnamon roll, fruit bowl and a cup of coffee. I didn't realize that if you're staying at the W hotel, the coffee is waived until I got the check. I enjoyed everything that morning and the staffs were friendly and efficient. Would recommend if you're nearby or staying at the W.

    Breakfast burger
    Adnan C.

    Very good burgers. Everything on the menu is good. This is one of our go to breakfast amd brunch spots. Customer service is outstanding and staff is friendly.

    Lovely table setting
    Winnie W.

    Not happy with this place. We had a party of 14 on Mother's Day and as expected, Trace is not busy. We KNEW that this place would be overpriced, BUT, we came for the nice decor and relaxing environment and just wanted to get away from the usual Mother's Day crowd... what we didn't expect is the POOR and INATTENTIVE SERVICE. From the moment my party was seated, we were pretty much ignored the entire time while other tables were being served and greeted. Our server was nowhere to be found. What seemed like a long time (I'm sure it's like 5-10 mins) someone finally brought the table water. We waited some more... Still, no menu, no waiter, no greeter. My sister finally walked to the Maitre 'd to complain about this. Then long behold, the waiter FINALLY arrived. By this time, we're 25 mins in after being seated. Well, he simply passed some menus around and then left... again.. and again, no where to be found. By the way, he was also short 3 menus... ok, no big deal I guess; we can share. But this just speaks to the level of inattentiveness. Then, after reviewing the menu for another 10'mins, we need to FIND OUR WAITER so that we can order our food. My sis has to go to the Maitre'd to ask for someone to help us, AGAIN. This time, we're told that there are actually 2 servers who back each other up and apparently, our primary server is pretty awful and the other waiter was supposed to pick up the slack... well, sorry, I don't really care! Can we just get some help here, and mind you, we're paying $20 for a bagel here so I do expect some service!! Well, throughout our brunch, my sis pretty much had to coach the waiters every step of the way... take away the empty coffee cups, more half and half for coffee please, more sugar, more coffee, more water, take away the empty plates... what the heck! For our party of 14, we pretty much ordered everything on their limited menu. All items tasted decent to pretty good, but everything is twice the price than what one might expect to pay : $16 pancakes -- very good, 3 very fluffy pancakes $23 smoked salmon bagel -- good but a similar bagel at New York Bagel would be $7 $28 Crab benedict - pretty good $19 Chicken Club sandwich -- ok, but awful chips $16 -- Steel cut oatmeal. Well, it's oatmeal When servers brought out the plates, they were very confused and did not have a clue which plate goes where and simply yelled out the name of the dish, waiting for us to raise our hand to claim the entree. AWFUL SERVICE. Again, we KNEW we'd be paying for mediocre food but we came for the nice ambience and to avoid the crowd. What we didn't come for is a 18% mandatory gratuity and awful service. Yep, there is a reason why this place is never busy.

    Cinnamon Roll. Flaky croissant like and amazing

    I drink my coffee, black, theirs was very good. The bowl of berries was ok, I had to pick a few old ones out. Eggs Benedict was perfect. We came back that afternoon to the Living Room Bar, which is the same menu and enjoyed the guacamole and chips but the cinnamon roll was amazing, flaky layers of cinnamon sugar like a croissant.

    Pork belly with octopus
    Claire W.

    Dined here on New year's Eve with a few girlfriends. We chose this spot since some of the girls in our party really appreciate good ambiance and this is one of the cuter spots in town. Overall service was fine. Nothing to rave about and I would've actually expected a bit more and better service from a place like the W, but since we were able to get someone's attention regardless if it was our server or not, I'm fine with it. As for the food, I was pretty disappointed in their selection. There wasn't a lot to choose from on the menu. I ordered the crispy brussel sprouts and pork belly. As for the brussel sprouts, I found those to be tasty, but they were sitting in a bowl of what tasted like oil, potentially with some of the marinade sauce. I would've wished they separated the oil so that my sprouts weren't drenched by the time I got to the bottom of the dish. As for the pork belly, I wasn't a huge fan. It was too dry for my liking, so I only ate one bite. I did eat the octopus that came with it however and that was tasty. Overall, not a spot I would recommend specifically to try the food, but if you're looking for a good restaurant in the SOMA neighborhood with a full bar connected to it, and good ambiance, this is a spot to check out.

    Roasted pork belly - 2018 SF restaurant week
    Jennifer H.

    Went here for the SF restaurant week's dinner option. Starters - Ahi Tuna Tataki: The tuna was paired with a black olive vinaigrette, which brought out the sweetness of the seared tuna. The creaminess of the avocado really made the dish blend well with all the ingredients. Also, the portion was very generous. :) Roasted Pork belly: The pork belly was accompanied by a squash puree. The pork belly was cooked so that the fatty bits were filled with pork-olicious fat and juiciness. YUM! Entree - Liberty Farms Duck Breast: the menu listed duck confit croquettes, but croquettes were no where to be found. :( The duck was nicely cooked but we both thought the saltiness of the entire dish made it hard to finish. Would not order this again without asking for more bread. ;) Dessert - Chocolate ganache bar with cookie butter ice cream: beautifully plated but in terms of taste, it was not very creamy and had more of a cake texture. Vanilla bread pudding: Drenched with a butterscotch caramel sauce which made it ultra sweet and the perfect way to finish off the meal. Without a doubt, we both thought that the first course was the best dish that suited and satisfied our taste buds. The decor and environment is great for lunch meetings or client meetings. It is also located inside the W hotel and just a few blocks away from the conventions center.

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    1 year ago

    Nice place to sit down and eat. Good food, fresh salads, deliciously combined dishes .. we thoroughly enjoyed the food and the company.

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    2 years ago

    Amazing Food. Super local, tasty, responsible. Service was great. Ambiance is nice, close to many things to do. Nice hotel.

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    Ask the Community - TRACE

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    Lapisara Eatery - Iced Ube Latte ($8.50)

    Lapisara Eatery

    4.6(2.1k reviews)
    0.7 mi•Lower Nob Hill
    •$$

    Damnnn this place is so good. I hardly visit SF so I asked Chat for a recommendation for my…read morebirthday brunch and it recommended Lapisara and how thankful am I! I made a reservation through Yelp but it seemed like they don't really check yelp for that so I would recommend to call for a table. Luckily, we showed up 30 mins early and there was a corner table near the kitchen available for my party of 5. I had the smoked salmon toast because I'm a basic bitch but whatever it was really yummy with a nice fresh half of avocado, salmon, capers.. all the fixings. The only issue about it was the two giant patty sized slices of red onion was intense. I only ate one ring of it because that's all it needed but I guess it's better for the option of more than too little? Idk not that serious. It came with a side salad that looked undressed but whatever magical dressing they put on it.. hello I need the recipe!! Peach Bellini pitcher was yummy and the brut was acceptable. My party of 5, including 2 brunch fiends and two fabulous locals, said they all really liked the food. If I'm in the area I would definitely come again! What we ordered: Chai latte Mocha Regular latte Peach Bellini liter Smoked salmon toast Smoked salmon cruffle (croissant smashed in a waffle iron) with an added poach egg Holy Chili bomb basil omelette Thai panang omelette Meat lovers omelette The restaurant is cute with a beautiful natural light. I just wish we had a better table but again, it was acceptable. We did metered parking 2 blocks away for $6 for 2.5 hours.

    Let me start with the salad- the dressing was so tasty I could eat this all day! The rest of the…read morefood was delicious as well including the crisp potatoes. Service was great! I love the casual, bright room. The tree adds a warm touch.

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    Lapisara Eatery - Indoor area of the restaurant.

    Indoor area of the restaurant.

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    That bacon, tho...

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    Marlowe - Crispy Brussels Sprout Chips

    Marlowe

    4.0(3k reviews)
    0.5 mi•Mission Bay
    •$$$

    Wow this place was so amazing! Not only were the servers so friendly, kind, and accommodating but…read morethe food was also incredible. I loved the decor all around the restaurant with adorable cow art and a very clean feel. The servers and hosts were coming over to chat with us and just made us feel so welcome and special. From the second you walk in until the second you leave you are in good hands. It's also right across from the train so it's super easy to get there! I don't normally like horseradish, but the burger came with the perfect amount of horseradish where it tasted very fresh and added a good burst of flavor without being overwhelming! The fries were delicious and crispy. 10 out of 10 food, service, and environment. I would give them more stars if I could.

    If you happen to stumble upon Marlowe like we did I'm confident that you will leave as full and…read moresatisfied as we did. A charming little bistro inspired by the Marlowe cows, I'm assuming, managed to stun us with several memorable dishes. The warm deviled eggs were an excellent start. Savory yet delicate enough to not weigh us down right at the beginning of our meal. The horseradish aioli wasn't for me, but I can see its appeal for a certain audience. You give me a Calabrian chili sauce and it's guaranteed to make me happy and this shrimp with sweet corn was no exception. Again, light but a punchy flavor that was enjoyable. I could go on and on about the different dishes we tried but the real standout of the night was the pork tenderloin with chorizo and peaches. The sweetness from the peaches somehow managed to enhance the flavor of the chorizo. This dish gives you a bold, savory and sweet bite all together but still won't have you feeling super heavy. The portion size is perfect. Im hoping to return soon for another exquisite meal.

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    Marlowe - Clean and inviting bar

    Clean and inviting bar

    Marlowe - Marlowe Burger with side of fries

    Marlowe Burger with side of fries

    Marlowe - Brunch cocktails

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    Brenda's French Soul Food - 3 way beignets- plain, chocolate, apple

    Brenda's French Soul Food

    4.2(12.9k reviews)
    1.0 mi•Tenderloin
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    What went well? Everything! Brenda's is the only place you need to know if you want great Creole…read morecooking. The beignets are amazing and they have so many great flavors! The gumbo is great but so yourself a favor and upgrade to the premium seafood version! I love the cream biscuits and gravy. They have ridiculously perfect fried chicken and a great spicy fried chicken sandwich. Come once a week and try something new and you'll always leave wanting to come back again. Being so good wait times can be a factor so leave extra time and be patient! It's worth the wait.

    Delicious Beignets & Breakfast!…read more We were visiting the area from San Francisco, and a friend recommended this restaurant. Get there early because it fills up very quickly! We arrived just in time before it started getting busy. I was especially excited to try the beignets, so I ordered the Beignet Flight--crawfish, cinnamon apple, chocolate, and the classic regular beignet. Très bon! They were all delicious! The crawfish had great flavor, with dough that was crispy outside and soft inside. The regular beignet was especially good--crispy outside, soft inside, just perfect. And definitely eat the chocolate beignet while it's still warm. When you bite into it, that warm, gooey chocolate comes out. So good! The coffee was excellent too. I highly recommend a latte with the beignets. My husband had the Eggs Benedict with deep-fried green tomatoes and bacon, and it was another level! The crispy green tomato with the eggs and sauce was such a great combination. If you didn't tell me it was green tomato, I might have thought it was an apple! We also loved seeing so many locals there. You know a place is good when the locals keep coming back. Highly recommend this restaurant to visitors and locals alike. Give it a try--you're going to love it!

    Photos
    Brenda's French Soul Food - Dining area and entrance

    Dining area and entrance

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    Plow - French Toast

    Plow

    4.1(3.6k reviews)
    1.6 mi•Potrero Hill
    •$$

    Located on the corner of Texas St & 18th is a cute brunch spot. Inside has limited seating but they…read moreeven have a nice set up for outdoor seating. Came on a Tuesday morning & the wait wasn't too bad for a party of 2. It was my bf bday and we ordered mimosas, we got ID and the waiter noticed it was his bday and said happy bday. We didn't expect a candle to come with his breakfast plate and it did & was so thoughtful & cute. I ordered the plow which has: two eggs, two lemon ricotta pancakes + plow potatoes with choice of house made pork sausage patties, bacon, or chicken apple sausage link. I went with the bacon and it did not disappoint The lemon ricotta pancakes were the star of the show so soft & yummy. My bf ordered the steak & eggs which has: hanger steak, chermoula, two eggs, simple green salad & buttered toast. We both grubbed & can't wait to be back to try the rest of the menu.

    Finally had a Friday off. So we decided to go to San Francisco. This has been on my list for a…read morewhile. Didn't expect such a line at 9am on a weekday. The wait was 45 minutes. Actually closer to a hour. The restaurant is not really that big. It looks bigger in the pictures. They have tables set up outside,but it was too chilly to sit outside. We ordered the egg sandwich,and the plow. I felt like the plow gives you a chance to try most of the popular items on the menu. The potatos were crispy and litely salted. The lemon ricotta pancakes were slightly dense . The lemon flavor was intense,not sure if there was lemon zest in the batter. The egg sandwich tasted great with the apple. It was messy. But we were warned when ordering that it could be messy. The egg yolk spills over the sides The food was 5 stars. But the service was 3.5. Not sure it it was the waitress being slow,or it could have been the kitchen not getting the food out quickly

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    Plow - Indoor ambiance

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    TRACE - breakfast_brunch - Updated October 2026

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