Ristorante Portofino

Being a lifelong resident of Pacifica I was excited at the prospect of having a "north beach" type of Italian restaurant. Well I'll have to look further because Portifino certainly does not fit the bill. Started with two cocktails in the bar for happy hour, waited about 1/2 hour for the drinks they were fine, and were advertised as half price. Asked if you could carry our cocktail tab to the restaurant and was told that was fine. The service was pretty bad, the prices were very high for the average quality of the food. We ordered a chocolate cake for dessert which was to come with some delicious sounding sauce, the dessert came "ice cold" with no sauce, when we asked about the sauce the reply "don't have any tonight". Then the topper was, upon investigating the bill, we were charged full price for the drinks, and an 18% service charge was added to the bill (2 diners), when questioned, the drinks were an oversight, and 18% is company policy. Hey they don't even let you know this, I'm sure a lot of diners have not "checked" their bill, and add a tip on top....What a ripoff...Oh yeah the ocean view is unsurpassed, more

Located right off the beach, Portofino offers spectacular views of the ocean. Perfectly lit, it makes for a very romantic dinner. The food is great and the service magnificent. Worth a trip down the coast. It is located inside the Lighthouse Hotel.......make a weekend of it! more

Portofino probably the most romantic and authentic Italian restaurant in Pacifica. It is a bit out of the way from other restaurants, but is close to the beach, and is casual enough to make a great date restaurant after a good day at the beach. The food is good and reasonable for the prices asked. more