Il Massimo Lounge
Categories: Italian, Sandwiches [Edit]
Neighborhood: Financial District5 Embarcadero Center
San Francisco, CA 94111 (415) 399-0222
- Price Range: $
- Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
- Parking: Street
- Attire: Casual
- Good for Groups: Yes
- Good for Kids: No
- Takes Reservations: No
- Delivers: Yes
- Take-out: Yes
- Waiter Service: No
- Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
- Outdoor Seating: Yes
- Good for: Lunch
- Alcohol: Beer & Wine Only
16 reviews
Neighborhood: Union Square
"Sammy's Smoke & Snacks made a great lunch sandwich for me today. I had roast beef w/ everything on dutch roll. There was the right amount…" read more »
36 Reviews for Il Massimo Lounge
Though I would rather walk in here every day and chow down on a salumi panini, it isn't a wise choice for a weekday lunch staple. Still, I like the half sandwich and salad options as well as the outside seating when the weather cooperates. I should really buy one of these sandos and take it home and have it for dinner with a glass of wine.
Simple and basic lasagna, salad and sandwiches. On the board they said they had polenta but not today [sad look]. And there were only a couple pieces of lasagna left [disappointed look]. I know it's closet to 2pm but... they still had the gigantic looking panini, which I felt full by just looking at them... [hmmm]
Fortunately they still had a good fleet of salad! I had the trio (broccoli with purple cabbage, rice with cheese and olives, and lentil on arugula.) All 3 were fresh and refreshing. And maybe since it's end of day they packed the clear plastic box! $6.95 was not bad.
The place is pastel-colour based with beige wooden furniture. Basic but even it's clean, it looked like it could use a bit of fresh paint as I can see some black marks on the bottom of the walls...
Service was fast and courteous, almost military style, which I prefer, especially since I was in a rush.
People thought this was:
Useful (2)
Cool (2)
Aw another Yelp disappointment! After reading such glowing reviews, I hopped over for lunch today. I ordered the Pollo Panini (on wheat) with a side of pasta salad.
That panini was grossly thin and dry! I had to dig through my desk for a pack of ketchup to make the sandwich a little wet. It was the worst panini I ever had (how dare they call themselves an Italian deli!). You get a couple of thinly sliced (maybe 1/8" thick) chicken and a few pieces of lettuce. Where was the roasted bell pepper sauce described in the menu? It would have certainly come in handy to make the sammy more palatable!
Pasta salad was bland but at least I get a slice of fresh tomato with it.
For $11 that's one expensive lunch (I didn't even buy a drink!). No thanks, not coming back here again!
People thought this was:
Useful (2)
Cool (2)
1:25 PM
::ring ring::
Guy: [mumblemumble]Massimo[mumble\
Me: Yeah hi, I'm just calling to confirm a catering order for tomorrow morning at 8:30 AM.
Guy: -silence-
Me: Hello?
Guy: Well what about it?
Me: I'm calling to confirm. You know...if you have the right information.
Guy: Oh..what is the name of your company?
Me: [Name of Company]
Guy: Morgan Stanley?!?!
Me: NO! [Name of Company]
Guy: So it's not Morgan Stanley?
Me: No it's cal...
Women in background: WHAT IN THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING!??!?
Guy: Confirming a catering order for some women.
Women in background: Hang up on that bitch. It's the lunch rush!!!!
Guy: -click-
Me: o_0
::ring ring::
Women in background who is now answering the phone: MASSIMO
Me: Hi, may I speak to a manager?
Women: What?
Me: Hi I just called to check on my catering order and a very rude women yelled in the background. She said fuck at least once and called me a bitch.
Women: Well it's the lunch rush. We'll call you back -click-
People thought this was:
Useful (8)
Funny (15)
Cool (7)
The location of this place is its best feature I think, especially on a sunny day when there's nothing better than eating a panini outside. I felt like they were going for european style (with the paninis and the gelato) but that it was a very americanized version of that, so it was neither california awesome or european awesome. I'd rather they picked one or the other.
I always like a place where a single girl can eat lunch alone though.
The panini's are on the small side, but are usually enough for me. I like the rosemary ham & mozerella grilled. Nice selection of cold drinks, expresso and wine. Choose your poison! I'll usually go here on a hot day and eat outside.
In terms of taste, triple the yum. Espresso to warm me up and get my brainjuices going in the am... the trio salad(choices incl. roasted beets, lentils, risotto-ish rice, fresh fruit,etc) after my long lunch run to recharge... Sumptious italian cakes and gelato(for pairing with afternoon coffee). Other factors, nice ambient music(salsa, etc)... and a super sweet staff.
People thought this was:
Cool (1)
This place has awesome sandwiches and espresso you definitely need to checkout. If you want lunch with a pick-me-upper come here. And it's close to the Embarcadero so plenty of outdoor seating.
Came here for lunch w/a girlfriend. Good lunch spot. Paninis are pretty good and a wide variety to choose from. Supposedly salads are good too. They have good lunch specials. If you eat there, they bring the food to you which is nice.
You kinda expect skinny Italians with long hair, candy-striped t-shirts and little red scarves as they pass by on their Vespas and yell "Ciao!" to the owner. Well, all I saw were suits in a hurry to get their lunches. We ain't in Capri, that's for sure.
Today for lunch, I finally tried this inviting place at the bottom of the Hyatt Regency within spitting distance of Justin Herman Plaza. It's mostly white interior had a crisp European feel like you are about to enter a trendy Neapolitan lunch counter. But the young bucks running the counter give an All-American Boy Scout vibe that is both refreshing and a bit Stepford-like. Alas, they are a sincere bunch, and my order was taken with, shall we say, courteous discipline.
I had the $6.95 Portobello Panini. Although available in half and full sizes, the server looked somewhat surprised that I went for a full one. Bitch. But the sandwich was warm from the grill and the portobello mushrooms were sliced thinly to make it most manageable to eat. On a hefty focaccia roll, it also had balsamic-drenched onions, some bits of bleu cheese and rucola greens. Pretty good, nothing too outstanding. OK, I'm still hurt about that reaction. Did he think I shouldn't eat the whole thing? ...Have I gained weight?
Even though there is an abundance of tables for two in sleek 1960's style, it was too nice a day to be indoors. So I sat near the ugly fountain only to discover Marshall's was having an ad hoc fashion show which everyone was ignoring. I felt sorry for those poor models, looking like bored hookers in the mobile bordello run by the DJ-type pimp announcing the details of their bargain clothing ...but seriously, do you think the server thought I was fat?
FOOD - 3 stars...nicely grilled, too much bread for me to feel good about later
AMBIANCE - 4 stars...clean, wide-open with a kinda sixties vibe
SERVICE - 3.5 stars...but seriously, do you think he thought I was too fat to eat a full-size panini?
TOTAL - 3 stars...a nice lunchtime option next to the plaza
People thought this was:
Useful (12)
Funny (11)
Cool (8)
This is a nice little place. I went for lunch with a coworker. It is one of the rare places near my work where you can sit down with your coworker and not do the whole sit down big meal wait service thing. You can also eat vegan here. I ordered the lunch special, which is a half sandwich and either soup or salad. I got a lentil soup, and the grilled vegetable panini. The total was $7 something. They have beverages, but they also have pitchers of water you can have. When they brought me my meal, I was a little worried I'd still be hungry, because it looked small. But it was fine. The sandwich was small but yummy, and the soup, which looked watery, was filling and had lots of stuff in it once I stirred it. It was comfortable and a nice place to eat with a coworker. I'm looking forward to going back and trying the three types of salad meal. They have several prepared salads. But you don't know what they are in advance, you have to look at them when you get up there. They have several vegetarian sandwiches, and the meal I had was vegan. I'm glad my coworker showed me this place and maybe I can show it to someone else!
If you're looking for panini sandwiches and gelatos near the Embarcadero, stop by Il Massimo. The sandwiches are fresh and the gelato is excellent. Sample each flavor and pick your favorite, of course.
The seating outdoor is under umbrellas and along the wide sidewalk. Overall, this a good choice for a tasty panini for lunch.
I skipped brunch Saturday morning in favor of gelato at Il Massimo's. Good deal! I paired the blackberry Cabernet with chocolate. Heaven. The gelato server was pretty hot too. I'm grateful my gelato didn't melt. Next time I'll try food. I spied a couple drinking white wine with their meal. I guess this cafe is fairly upscale. It's very sleek and modern looking.
If it's a beautiful day downtown, I always have the urge to come to Massimo's and eat outside. I've never had a bad sandwich here (everything ranging from Vegetarian, portobello mushroom, salmon, turkey, chicken). I know they also have half sandwich/salad combos too. Great location, great scenery (outside) great service.
Great Italian coffee drinks. Their chai comes from a bag (although not that bad) wouldn't be my first choice there, the coffee is what you want to get.
The sandwiches are decent and the soups aren't bad. The salad trio is my first choice personally.
Also they have delicious desserts if you like anything in the way of chocolate (brownie, cake, gelato) & much more.
The staff is also very friendly & they have punch cards for coffee drinks & lunch. You can also chill out with a glass of wine in or outside the cafe, seating available in both.
Oh & good breakfast foods to boot, (breakfast sangys, pastries).
With a new job comes new lunch spots! I've only had the Massimo sandwiches delivered to my office in the past, but I now have the chance to experience Massimo first-hand. It's been hit or miss on the delivery sandwiches -- sometimes the prosciutto tasted like it had been sitting around for a day or so. The vegetarian options are great though, the eggplant and zucchini sandwich is tasty. And the bread! Oh, the bread. I have a *thing*, if you will, for bread and the bread is soft and delicious. They also have a variety of paninis with your usual deli options.
3 stars for their delivery sandwiches, 4 when you eat-in.
People thought this was:
Useful (2)
Cool (1)
Great lunch spot if you work in the FD. Prices run around $7.The Portabello is my favourite. Simply made, like true italian food, you can forget about super sizing it. Comes w/ spinach, onion, feta and a little balsamic. Yumm! Their Panini are also very tasty. Half of a panini is enough for me though as the bread is super thick - and this is coming from a gal who likes a hefty meal every now and then.
People thought this was:
Cool (2)
TASTY four cheese sandwiches (huge, too) and who doesn't secretly want a glass of wine or Fat Tire in the middle of a workday?
Everyone who works here is really nice, too.
Delicious food and gelato - try the wonderful Quatro Formaggio panini. Its one of the better non-meat sandwiches. Although, the Portabello panini is quite good as well. They actually import their tiramisu from Italy and they come in really cute little glass dishes.
The cafe is really cute and is one of the best places to people watch as the area attracts some characters, for sure. I dig. They have another location in the Financial District, somewhere on Washington Street.
People thought this was:
Useful (2)
Great lunch special of 1/2 a panini and a salad, which can be a leafy salad, or something like marinated beets, pasta, fruit or potato salad, or cole slaw. They offer several veggie panini options, as well as prosciutto, chicken, beef, tuna, and turkey. Everything tastes fresh. Service is friendly and efficient. And they offer a sandwich card, which entitles you to a free 10th sandwich after 9 paid meals. They serve beer and wine!!!!
There's also a coffee bar, with pastries and gelato. I've only tried the gelato, which was very good.
In warm weather, you can sit outside under umbrellaed tables. Or you always can sit inside the very loungy area.
My coworkers had to stage a crudo intervention on me last year. I became completely obsessed with the half crudo (always toasted) and cucumber salad, to the point that, whenever someone asked where I wanted to go to lunch, I automatically shouted "CRUDO!" without thinking. We changed the name of iL Massimo to simply "crudo" after awhile. So good. I stopped going after the intervention, but I went back today with a friend for lunch. Brilliant. Bonus star awarded for the opera singer guy who is often out in front. He is a dead ringer for Chris Farley and has the voice of an angel.
El Massimo is bellissima! After getting off the ferry from Sausalito, tanked, iL Massimo is the 1st happy hour joint on land. On a cloudy afternoon - join the cool folks hanging out on the sidewalk, drinking beer & wine and listen to the fine house tunes scratched by the deejay. (altho he's said to be missing for the past few weeks). I'm sure you can stand this place for a coupla hours. Check it out
People thought this was:
Cool (1)
An opera singer... dj... yummy desserts... and fabulous sandwiches (generous portions too). The friendly staff & cozy seating (indoor and out-) will remind you why you love SF.
This place reminded me of Italy, with the glass case full of beautiful sandwiches and salads. Try the cole slaw-looking one -- it's really good! The desserts and gelato looked lovely, but I was too full from my panino/salad special ($6.75). They'll have to wait for an afternoon snack run. I took off a star for disorganized service. They have a lot of folks behind the counter, but we still had a wait for a bit for someone to acknowledge us.
The paninis come hot, which is nice, but they're nothing to write home about. I'd love to see a bit more veggie on top to give it some crispness and perhaps an interesting texture. Flavor is not bad, given the garlic sauce (I got the turkey one), but could use some pepper. And while it's just barely enough to eat to get a whole sandwich, they aren't worth the $6.75.
some weeks, i don't get a chance to venture out of the office for lunch because i have numerous lunch meetings scheduled. as much as i would enjoy a bit of fresh air and sunshine during the noon hour, i should look on the bright side - were it not for all these catered lunches, i probably wouldn't have discovered so many good places to eat!
a lunch meeting w/ massimo sandwiches is a good meeting. i'm a sucker for their salame soppresseta, w/ baby lettuce, gorgonzola & mascarpone on wonderful foccacia like bread. it's definitely not the healthiest option, but it's oh so good once in a while! and i'm in love with their pasta salad - bowtie pasta, fresh tomato & red bell pepper, a little red onion, parmesan cheese and this yummy roasted bell pepper dressing...mmm...and finish w/ an assortment of cute lil' bite sized cookies!
If you're like me, and little lonely for a taste of Europe every now-and-again, you'll love this place! Great selection of Italian cured meats grilled to perfection on a variety of breads! The service is quite friendly...they gave me a free scoop of gelato for waiting a few extra minutes for my sandwich! Give it a try...you'll be dancing on the way out...no seriously, there's a DJ for the lunch crowd!
Quaint little cafe with great panini sandwiches and salads. Great outdoor seating right on the sidewalk which is perfect for people watching coming to and from the ferry building on a sunny day. Funky furniture and a DJ makes your lunch a little more energetic. Just found out today they have a great little happy hour. Can't wait for more sunny weather!
Good selection of classic paninis... the pasta salad is amazing, absolutely my favorite. Great location for people watching, pretty trendy/funky atmosphere, always with music or a dj spinning during lunch. Happy hour now??? Hmmm, I'm interested to see how their wine selection is!
When I was a conference manager I used them for years to cater lunch meetings in our One Market office. Always great service and tasty food. Then they put in Massimo Lounge across the street on Market St. and I got to enjoy it in person - great capuccinos in the morning in the nice & funkily-decorated space inside, lunches on the sidewalk while people watching, or DJ music and wine after work on Fridays. Happy hour M-F 3-7pm. Live opera Thursdays, DJ Fridays and some music at other times, too. Apparently the lounge is no longer owned by the same people who started Il Massimo.
To be fair i've never been here for happy hour nor have I stayed there to eat my lunch. BUT ONE THING I DO KNOW: THEIR PANINI's SUCK.
I've tried and tried (and tried again) to like this place. They're across the street from my work, so the relationship would have been beautiful. However, their paninis have consistently failed me. Either it's bland (leaving me scrounging for salt, pepper, or Jesus-i'm-desperate-gimme-the-ketchup), or just plain weird-- (hello, Mozarrella & tomato s/b paired up w/ BASIL, NOT SPINACH!! GROSS)
The desserts however, have been fine - especially the gelato. And the decor does seem like it would be a cool place to chill out-- but only if im having dessert.
I agree that the paninis are kind of sub-par here, especially the tomato mozerella one. But I am giving this place four stars based upon their DELICIOUS TUNA SANDWICHES. I always go for the "Tombo"; they say it's meant to be cold but I always have it hot and you should too. Their focaccia is delicious and crunchy, and the tuna salad has all kinds of delicious surprises inside, like little carrot pieces! I usually get a half sandwich and that's plenty. Occasionally i'll get one of their salads, like their coleslaw, but those have just been OK and are overpriced.
-
People thought this was:
Useful (2)
Funny (2)
Cool (2)
Sit outside outside on a nice day and people watch! Salad trio is great!
People thought this was:
Useful (1)
Funny (1)
Cool (1)
Great atmosphere, with lots of tables outside and music....however, the real good stuff is the tuna sandwich and the beet salad. Other paninis need a bit more on the flavor side, but the tuna really rocks!
Oh, pollo panini. You're my favorite.
People Who Viewed This Also Viewed...
Related Lists
-
I Would Be Richer if I…
Some of the many lunch venues I frequent in this… -
So you want Vegan food in…
You'd think SF has so many veggie and vegan… -
BLTs and Bahn Mis, Heroes…
What you order between two pieces of starch is… -
Top Restaurants
Some of my favorite dining destinations in the… -
Italian Restaurants I…
Noodles/pasta are one of my favorite things.… -
Tuna Sandwiches!
When you're working downtown, slaving, And you…
Hot and New
- Lime Tree Southeast Asian…
244 reviews
Neighborhood: Inner Sunset
- Brenda's French Soul Food
441 reviews
Neighborhood: Civic Center/Tenderloin
- La Palma Mexicatessen
125 reviews
Neighborhood: Mission
- Woodward's Garden
103 reviews
Neighborhood: Mission
- Ike's Place
366 reviews
Neighborhood: Castro
