Can't say I have had a better brunch meal in a long time, period. And I have high standards. Used the travelzoo deal, 2 brunch + 2 mimosas for basically half off. You do pay auto-18% gratuity onsite, but it is worth it. lady and I both had the steak and eggs. BOMB. phenomenal. Huge 8-10oz steak, two scrambled eggs, potatoes. Just absolutely perfectly prepared. Big meal, She would have taken leftovers if we lived local. service was decent, good. the Hotel and restaurant are typical trendy upscale clean awesome W style, love it. Would recommend, and go back in an instant if in town. read more

I was very pleasantly surprised by Trace. went for a Dine-about-town lunch (solid Pate, Yellowtail salad, Croque, etc) and really enjoyed all the food. The space is very cool, very good service (Joey was great!) and fun food choices. I usually avoid hotel restaurants, but I'd go back to Trace. read more

Lunch review -expensive? but then again, its a trendy hotel restaurant -small portions... practically rabbit food -left really hungry and contemplated grabbing a cheeseburger on the way home -took the server 10-15 minutes to refill my water glass I had the salad and yellowtail, while my friend had the risotto. Came to about $65.00 w/tip read more

Great restaurant, great waiter, very accommodating for us and our baby. I would definitely come back again. The steak and salmon were amazing! read more

TRACE - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - San Francisco, California

I have been to TRACE a few times for breakfast meetings. It is in a great central location around the corner from Moscone center and a close walk from the Montgomery BART. I think it is good for a meeting environment, but I have to admit it is a bit pricey for the food you get. I happened to think the food was average- not bad, but nothing spectacular. But, the service is great. The staff is quick and very friendly. I do not think I would go here unless it was for a work related breakfast. read more

My boyfriend and I ate at Trace and thought it was great. The service was impeccable: there was someone to fill your glass, refill your bread, fold your napkin, serve the food, etc... The food was also delicious. We had the Yellowtail, oysters and liver mousse for starters. All three were fabulous. For entrees we had the seabass and the steak, again there wasn't a single complaint. After all of that food, we also had some yummy coffee drinks to aid in the digestion. The only negatives of the experience were that there was construction, so you had to go outside and then come back in to a different part of the restaurant in order to use the restroom. Also, the music was very loud, so it wasn't ideal for good conversation. read more

I often come here for dinner after (corporate) drinks in SOMA. The place is a hidden gem: modern, spacious, and delicious. Never crowded, most of TRACE's patrons belong to the W hotel, which means that there's always room for the city savvy corporate guy who needs to find an elegant table for his elegant ladies at the last minute. Order the champagne, oysters, and pasta. read more

The food is good The service is excellent ask for Roger he knows his craft well !!! Super nice guy read more

Great Place! Being in the wine business it's crucial to take clients out and wine and dine them. Priya was awesome in accommodating our party and gave us spit buckets etc so we could taste wines with our dinner guests. The Service? Impeccable! Roger was awesome, best service I've had in a long time! Food was perfect, bee hives on the 24th floor-just pretty much as cool as it gets Thank you! read more

The food here is amazing, great taste combined with a modern way to cook farm products. The new decoration looks great. And also the location is good. I definitely will go again. Despite the fact that is located inside a luxury hotel (W San Francisco), their prices are acceptable! I recommend it to everyone! read more

I really enjoyed my trip to Trace with a colleague. I was attempting to be healthy so had a blue cheese salad, my colleague had another type of salad. We also shared the little chicken meatballs which were really tasty. Needless to say I left no TRACE on my plate (mwa ha ha). I liked the decor. It was weird. Kind of like I was in some kind of Tom Cruise generic space film (take your pick on which one), with a little cool dusted on the top for good luck. It's difficult to explain sans photos. I'd go back though. read more

Came here for DAT lunch 6/6/14 with a friend, we had a hot mess of a day with scheduling and communication ( she lost her phone, I was driving all day, no bueno) BUT. we managed to get to TRACE for our DAT lunch. My salad was wonderful, had huge portions of grilled beets that were cooked perfectly. I have NEVER liked beets and I really enjoyed the way TRACE prepared them. Sweet but not overly sweet, with a nice bite. There was burrata as well ( gah to die for )and the greens were fresh and crunchy! My pork shoulder was flavorful and the fried gnocchi made me feel spoiled eating it :) The portions were huge!! But my highlight of this meal was my server - we were the only table left ( we came right before closing at lunch time ) AND I was late. He kept the food warm for me, was gracious and so kind. Thank you for making my lunch such a nice one!! Seating in here is beautiful and can be very intimate, so this place would be wonderful for a date or dinner with a loved one :) read more

Went for lunch, very crowded but the staff was awesome and kept on their game. Very happy about that. I tried out the lamb pastrami and have to say it was incredibly good. Very impressed with the flavor of the dish and liked everything about it. Wish there was more of a side option to it, but overall very happy. read more

3.5 stars I had breakfast and a light snack here. I attest that the food is absolutely delicious. Breakfast portion was spectacular that I decided to come by for din-din, I was not let down. Everything is fresh and of superior quality. Trace's lamb meatballs are a must! I wished they could have added some more balls, as it was too good. My only gripe was the bread service, I had to wait a while for balsamic to arrive. Also, it would have been great if they provided freshly baked bread, as their aim is to provide local/sustainable products. Pricing is reasonable for the calibre of food being served. read more

quality and flavor disappeared without a trace..... Service - 3 stars - friendly but no where on par with a top quality restaurant Food: 1. salad starter 1 star....boooooooorrrrrriiinnnngggg.... 2. pork main 2 stars.....pork was a dry, and quite flavorless. The only good thing was a lentils which was yummy 3. bread pudding 1 star - booooorrrrrriiiinnnngggg Then in the middle of this expensive dinner ($100 pp), they start taking chairs and tables away all around us for some party....geezzz! How CLASSLESS! Look folks, if you schedule a private party then DO NOT allow RSVPs for dinner the same night. I will NOT be rushed when spending $100 pp for dinner! So lame! And the dreadful wallpaper....good grief, I know they were trying for the artistic distressed look but unfortunately, the only thing it looked like was a poorly conceived dirty wall....... I would not return and would not recommend it. read more

Had a recovery brunch here a couple of weekends ago whilst staying at the W. The space is nice and well lit, right next to the bar space with a funky bearded Mission hipster dj playing old school soul, disco and hip hop on his MacBook. Food was pretty decent and there seemed to be a good portion of non hotel guest diners specially there for Sunday brunch. Issue? They need to revise their hiring policy in the restaurant and not hire affected wannabes in their establishment. We had a male waiter and a male server and both acted like the sun shone out of their behinds. The middle aged preened waiter was the worst. Super patronizing and a complete douche. I'd expect this in LA where I'm from, but SF? What a downer. Trace management, fix his attitude. read more

I went there for lunch with my work colleagues. The ambiance is very sleek, modern and comfortable. The dishes we ordered were beautifully prepped, fresh and bursting with colors, flavors and textures. One of our favs was the Brussels Sprouts appetizer. It was so good we asked for the recipe and our server YaYa got the Chef to come over to share it with us AND brought us some of their magic hot mustard oil. The service was impeccable, and I must say I have not seen this level of attention to detail, helpfulness and genuine customer care in a long time. One of my colleagues is coming back for lunch next week, not only because of the food but also for this incredible customer experience. Thank you! read more

TRACE - Braised pork shoulder with crispy gnocchi! So yummy - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - San Francisco, California

Amazing food with service and management to match! We had a college dinner for 21 with a coursed out menu. As we were all aspiring hospitality and restaurant managers, Rocio as well as the Executive Sous Chef were amazing enough to even tour us around the facility. Everything is made fresh and to order. It reflects in the flavor of the food. If we are ever back in town, we'll be sure to drop by again! read more

restaurant week. I can't think of a single thing that was good about this meal. San Francisco is known for "fusion" and that's fine, but this restaurant was a sad example of not knowing what the heck you're doing and instead just mixing a bunch of ingredients together that make no sense. The mussels appetizer with way too much lamb and onion which drowned out all the other flavors (ironically the mussels tasted like nothing else but steamed mussels) The fish entree which had a sauce that didn't do anything, and edamame which had no place for taste or its texture. It is embarrassing for the W to have this restaurant inside its doors. read more

We went here on Friday as part of San Francisco's Restaurant week. My sis in law chose it as it would have been out of our price range normally. The selection suited everyone's palate, vegetarians & carnivores alike. The food was amazing, in particular, the mushroom tagliatelle, in my opinion! My beet salad was so good with the creamy and smooth barrata, I would have personally chosen walnuts over pistachios for the salad to provide a little more of an interesting flavour. All the deserts were amazing, the rice pudding was sumptious and the ice cream biscuits looked like huge Oreo cookies, very tasty! The service was great, wine o.k, though as usual that bumped up the bill. read more

Had a reservation a month in advance for a business meeting. They called the week before to say they had a buy out. Can not recommend booking with them unless you are making a day of reservation. read more

We dined at TRACE on Saturday night before going to see Smuin's Christmas Ballet. Very convenient as the venue is right across the street. I have to say that everything was delicious, the portions were surprisingly large and the service from our waiter Roger was outstanding! We had the brussel sprouts and the "tater tot" to start and they were both creative and tasty. Next was the pumpkin soup which was perfect on a chilly December night and Roger was kind enough to split it for us. After that, we had the pork belly w/ octopus which again, was unusual and delicious. We were so full at this point that we took our mains home and had them for dinner the next night and they were both awesome as well. I don't understand why the restaurant is not busier as there was only one other couple dining while we were there? Overall, we had a wonderful meal with great service and they really deserve more business! read more

The eggs benedict i got was pretty good. My friend reallly liked her scrambled eggs. Not a bad breakfast place inside a hotel.

I did not realized that TRACE was inside the W Hotel, the ambiance of the restaurant is modern, elegant and classy. Services was incredible - I had two different waitress helping em and a third person serving bread, water was being refilled throwout the whole evening. The food was cooked to perfection, we had sirloin steak and suck and the meat was tender and juicy. For dessert we had the carrot cake that does not taste like carrot cake and throwout the whole evening I was drinking Rose Pedal cocktail that was light and oh so yummy. read more

Service is fantastic; had a small dinner here for my birthday last weekend. Yahya made me a special birthday drink (virgin) and a beautiful dessert plate decorated with Happy Birthday:) Dinner was good and the ambience is gorgeous here. I recommend! read more

Gorgeous layout!! Located right next to the Bar inside Whotel but without the loud noise. Good list of wine choices and the servers are more than happy to give you some sample taste. Must order the liver pâté mousse!! Brussels sprouts is freaking awesome...sweet and tangy. Three of us shared the salmon with mandarin orange and chicken with snap peas/gnocchi entrees, very fulfilling. Almost forgot about the scrumptious bread (olive, sour dough or nut/wheat) an amazing dinn experience! read more

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We dined at Trace last night, before attending a show at The Masonic. We had 6:30pm reservations, but they were able to seat us earlier at 6pm. There was a prix fixed menu offering, due to it being Restaurant Week in SF. However, we chose to veer away from this selection and stick to the main menu. We each got a salad: the wild mushroom salad and the caesar salad. Both were pretty good. We wished that the wild mushroom salad had more wild mushrooms. But it was delicious regardless. The caesar had some serious slab bacon on it, just enough, very tasty. Yummmmmy. Entrees were crispy bass and pork chops. I didn't finish my bass, due to feasting on some delicious bread that was brought to the table. Our server made strong recommendations for these selections, but I think that our tastes were different. I enjoyed my dish, but in hindsight, I would have preferred something else. That's my choice, my bad. My boyfriend finished his dish and enjoyed it. The ambience and the service were 200% above par, ensuring that we would return again. (In fact, my boyfriend noted that this was the best service that he has ever had in CA. - He just moved here 2 years ago.) read more

food: 3 service: 4 ambience: 4 location: 5 I've only tried the brunch there. Loved the modern ambience. The server was pretty friendly. The food, however, is a bit disappointing. The presentation of the french toast was absolutely fantastic but the taste was at most average. The coffee was not remarkable and the Mimosa was a little too sour. That being said, it was still a pretty positive experience. My friend was happy with her breakfast platter, we had a good time catching up in a super relaxing atmosphere. Tip: If you check in on Yelp from your phone, you can get a shared appetizer with purchase of 2 entries (at least this is the case when i visited a week ago). However they only make the appetizers at dinner time so technically it only works for dinner entries, but our server was kind enough to waive the coffee and cocktail from our bill :) read more

TRACE - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - San Francisco, California

I love the lit up bar! I was drawn to it right when I walked in. I also like how it's dark inside even though it's not so dark outside. People tend to look better in low lighting. :P Coming here for happy hour after the remodel took me by surprise. The bartenders are nice and attentive and the drinks are still a couple of dollars more than other places but I guess someone has to pay for the remodel. Can't say much about the food because we didn't have any. I will definitely come back. read more

Stayed a the W for a conference, and decided to try out the downstairs restaurant for a brunch before our flight out. Definitely swanky with large windows and modern decor. The food was OK - definitely not a wide selection but choice dishes including an eggs benedict and ricotta pancakes. I would say the service was just OK - our waiter was nice enough - but there was a definitely lack of attention to detail: 1) I ordered the "huckleberry ricotta pancakes" which appeared to be a "special" for the morning. What I got appeared to be french toast. I flagged down a server (not our waiter, so not really his fault, though I would have appreciated getting the order right the first time) and asked her if these were the "huckleberry ricotta pancakes" to which she waved me off with a "yes yes." Dumb question? Sorry. Except after I had eaten most of it, I asked my waiter as he was clearing the table, and he was like, "those are clearly not pancakes." Thank you. I had gotten the "huckleberry french toast" (which I don't recall even seeing on the menu). Thanks. There was no offer to take it off the bill. 2) I ordered a side of bacon to my french toast/pancakes. My friend ordered a side of fruit with her eggs benedict. We got neither. Oh, and we got charged, so we had to send the bill back. 3) My husband's granola with fruit ended up coming with what appeared to be a single sliced up banana and apple. Seriously? He had seen another patron's granola the day before, heaping with strawberries and grapefruit. Seriously? What a disappointment that a meal can differ so much in quality from day to day. All in all, the food was just OK and the service a little lacking. Everyone was perfectly nice, but I really just expected more from a restaurant of the W. (I do want to note that our experience at the HOTEL was awesome, so this review definitely only applies to TRACE). read more

We were walking towards Union Square to do some shopping from the Embarcadero and needed a place to get brunch so we decided to give Trace a try at the W hotel. They have a great happy hour breakfast menu from 11am-1pm. Mimosas ($5) Bloody Mary ($7) and a few other selections including savory and sweet bites. We ordered from the regular brunch menu the market omelette which came with potatoes+bacon+toast and the chilaquiles (my fav); we were fighting for the last bite not to mention huge portions. Additionally, the service was pleasant and speedy. We are looking forward to returning since it's just a short walk from home. read more

Bottom line: Great bars in the area make it hard to suggest Trace My friends and I went to Trace for TBT or the Q102 sponsored event every Thursday that plays "Old School" (90s 00s hip hop) music. The music was great! There were 5 of us and we had a very good time but the fun was more due the company than the venue itself. The drinks and food were at 90s prices* but the prices are high and drinks less than average that it does not feel like deal at all. Side note, the burger is $19... which is the same price on their normal bar menu. The previous night, I went to a happy hour and got a very good cocktail for $8 and at Trace I got a subpar $8 cocktail. Pretty disappointing. *Hotels do charge more than the average bar so yes, the prices are discounted but the quality should be much higher. To my surprise, the service was actually very very good. Very attentive waiters came to our lounge area so we didn't have go to the bar. The bar seemed organized and seemed like you didn't have to wait to get a drink. Overall, with so many cool and fun bars on Howard and on alleys nearby it is hard to make a case for Trace. read more

The experience was not as pleasant. They had a discrepancy between their Yelp menu and real menu. My husband brought a bunch of students there and it was obviously too much for the students to afford. We talked to the manager afterwards. The lady was rather rude. She turned the issue around and claimed that we could have walked out of the place when we saw the difference. Sigh.. read more

Fried Brussels Sprouts are a must. Plus vegetarian. Crispy w pecan and a bit of honey. Roger our waiter is the resident beekeeper and the best waiter. Recommended the salmon, which I was not super excited about ordering. OMG! The best ever crust seasoned crust and skin w a bit of ginger. The oysters of the day, again highly recommend by Roger were fantastic. My husband had the pork chop, huge, tasty, and juicy. Had a fresh corn base. We got a free chocolate dessert. It was my birthday. With a candle. Highly recommend going better than lots of other seafood places at about 1/2 the cost. I want to eat here everyday. read more

This place use to be the old XYZ. I guess they changed owners? I came here since they are on the dine about town selections. Sadly i checked out their online menu selection. I was so excited about their desert. Once i got to the restaurant i looked a the menu and the desert was not the same as the one i saw online. I was kinda bummed. However the waiter was really nice and told me everything is seasonal and changed and i can understand that. The restaurant is super pretty and it has that "vegas" feel. The food overall was really good. I had their salad and chicken and almond pudding. read more

The food was super good, but it's a little too pricey for what we got. The space is great, the service is very good and the food was good. We had raw oysters and pork belly pizza as appetizers, and then I had honey something pork chop with spaetzle. I probably wouldn't eat here agin unless I, either had a friend staying at the W, or I was staying there myself. read more

Excellent poached eggs and prosciutto, it comes eggs benedict style. Yum! Delicious latte, yummy croissant, the 'pop tart' was ok (tasted more like a toaster strudel lol. Kind of hoped it'd be better) and the mimosa was lovely. Service was good and we overall had a lovely breakfast! read more

TRACE - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - San Francisco, California

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Review for breakfast: scrambled egg whites (roasted sweet peppers, arugula pesto, walnut bread crispy Yukon gold potatoes, soy breakfast sausage) I really enjoyed this healthy meal to start off the day. The meal was not salty (like many scrambled eggs prepared in restaurants) and the portion size was perfect. This place is appropriate for business meetings. read more

Part of W Hotel San Francisco Have "Remix" brunches on weekends 4 entrees w/"drink" pairings: Tasty pizza (non-cheese) w/spicy Bloody Mary Waffles Ricotta pancakes w/sour lemonade drink Food service was just okay; bus service was friendly & very helpful Hotel being remodeled; slight hassle High noise level; heavy beat music Trendy Won't come back read more

Okay, this place may be good for dinner, but brunch was a serious disappointment. My roommates, who love coming here for dinner, took me out here to celebrate my recent employment. I want to believe that Trace uses brunch hours to train their new staff because they pretty much screwed everything up. Coffee came without sugar, cream, or spoons to mix with. After pouring the coffee, the waiter just plopped the container right in front of my friend. Least to say, she was not too pleased. To make matter worst, they also brought out the wrong plate for my friend and we had to wait an additional 15 minutes for his plate to arrive. Sloppy and unprofessional. And this isn't just a review based on their service. I'm not that stupid. We had the french toast, waffles, and trace egg sandwich. The food was nothing to write home about neither. Definitely needs improvement. read more