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It was our first time trying cioppino.
I would def go back and get this again, although be warned it can get messy. A bowl of this and appetizer of clams was enough food for two, and it was very good food. They have effectively mastered this dish over the years.
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Service: Service could have been better.
Although they were attentive, they weren't very friendly (even to each other). Food: They start you off with complementary bread and you have the option to make the lil olive oil and balsamic vinegar mix Italian places always have. The bread was not warm at all once we got it, I can't remember if it used to be baked and warm before when I used to come here. The risotto with seafood is so good. Appearance-wise, when I first saw it, I was kinda lowkey thinking my home-made risotto was going to beat it, but once I took a bite, everything changed. This surpassed all my expectations. Everything down to the texture, flavor, and variety was nailed. All I can say is, if you're coming here, don't doubt that seafood risotto. The Fettuccine with bay scallops on the other hand, looked very good, but once I bit into it, the lack of seasoning was evident. I ended up just putting a bit of black pepper in there to kick up the flavor a bit. Tip: We came here in between lunch and dinner time so we were seated really quick.
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We were excited about their cioppino after watching a
We were excited about their cioppino after watching a YouTube video. Not believing the order served two people, we ordered 4 of them for take out. They came in 4 plastic pails and bread. Since the pails were not full, we had no idea how much we went overboard. Three of us finished all the foods in 4 days. Definitely need to take a break from cioppino. Delicious and worth it.
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this place is located in north beach next to Golden boy
5/5 by
Mr B. on 04/04/2022
this place is located in north beach next to Golden boy Pizza. I have been here maybe 10 times and the food is always delish. this time I ordered the crab salad, streamed clams and mussels and a couple shooters and of course lots of sourdough and butter. washed it down with couple of classes of wine. Sometimes the wait is kind of long, there is a bar next door that the pager will work at to let you know your table is ready.
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I first visited this place 12 years ago with a friend.
When we arrived, there was a line, so I think the owner came out and started giving everyone a glass of wine while we waited. I ordered the Cioppino during that visit, and it was excellent.Today, I the fish of the day, which was a Monkfish served in a creamy tomato sauce with blistered cherry tomatoes and fresh herbs. With it came a side of buttery white wine risotto. The Monkfish was beautifully prepared, and the first taste of the tomato sauce mixed with a bit of the risotto made me want to cry it tasted so good. I had a small bottle of Chinotto, which was really a lovely alternative to my normal beer or wine. It was a perfect day and a perfect meal.
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If you like seafood and Cioppino, this place is a must.
I would definitely recommend making reservations because this place is popular and you'll want a table. We sat towards the back of the restaurant at a four top. It was quite loud but it's a fun environment. Everyone is excited to be there because the food is so good. The group of us split the Lobster Ravioli per the recommendation of a friend and this did not disappoint. The pink sauce was a great topping to some of the best lobster raviolis I've ever had. I would definitely get this again as a starter/sharing dish. And for the star of the meal, the Cioppino. Both of us couples each got one to split with our significant other. This is worth the wait and worth the hype. It's enough food for two people and comes with some noodles at the bottom of the dish. There is plenty of fish and seafood in the dish to satisfy two hungry people. This is my favorite Cioppino in all of SF and it does not disappoint.
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Oh wow, where do I start?This is the quintessential San
Oh wow, where do I start?This is the quintessential San Francisco seafood restaurant. The staff treats you like a member of the family. Everything on the menu is delicious and fresh. I love and will always order the cioppino.
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Cioppino isn't worth coming for.
2/5 by
S L. on 04/02/2022
It's bland. In addition, we made a reservation for 1 PM, and the lady owner didn't sit all 4 of us until my hubby found a parking space, so we ended up waiting so long because the vacant seats were given to other people. I also had my mom in the wheelchair who waited that long.
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The seafood dishes here are amazing.
We went here to celebrate my dad's birthday on a Thursday night. We made a reservation by calling them (they don't use an online system) and were able to book it for 6pm just a few days prior. We were a group of 6 and sat at the lower level. The seafood is so fresh and the service was fast in serving the food. I highly recommend! Just note that street parking in North Beach is difficult, but there are a few parking garages nearby. Favorites- Best Damn Crab Cioppino: very generous serving of seafood. Can definitely serve more than two! Tomato stew was super rich and deep in flavor. Also good the next day if you can't finish it at the resto!- Seafood Risotto: amazing! Must order!- Seared Sea Scallops: so fresh and the spinach side was also delicious.- Linguine with Seafood (white cream sauce): sooo creamy!- Crab Louis Salad: super generous with the already shredded crab. Crab was so fresh!!! Great for crab lovers who don't want to do the work of de-shelling. Alright- Boston Clam Chowder with Bacon: my family thought it was good but has too much bacon flavor that overpowered the seafood- Lobster Ravioli: very creamy but was overshadowed by the other dishes
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Delicious seafood in a very cool and unique space.
5/5 by
H H. on 04/02/2022
We had the clam chowder soup, linguini with seafood, and prown saute with fettuccine. All were great. Super crowded around dinner time. Definitely recommend.
Best seafood! Had the risotto and the seafood pasta with shooters. All of it was so wonderful including the singleness crab. Service was wonderful and place was so busy. Worth it
We made a reservation and our table was ready early which was nice. We sat outside in a parklet. It was a bit loud since it was on the street.
We were seated by the hostess and had to wait almost 15 minutes for wa waitress to come to the table. We ordered the blue cheese salad, the Cioppino, the sauteed Calamari and the Mussel and Clam combo
The food was average. The one thing that was really good was the Mussel and Clam combo. The Cioppino had a bit of flavor but needed a bit more salt. The salad was good. The pomodoro sauce on the calamari could have been a bit better.
I wish the food and the service was better.
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came on a wednesday around noon and the place was already
came on a wednesday around noon and the place was already packed! luckily we got the last outdoor table so we didnt have to wait. we ordered the raw oysters, clam chowder, crab cioppino, and seafood pasta with white sauce. everything was so delicious! we loved how fresh the all the seafood was. the portions were also generous, the 3 of us left with super full and happy tummies. highly recommended to make a reservation first especially if you're coming on weekends.
5/5 by
Darin on 03/23/2022
What an amazing experience. We cannot compliment this place enough! The food, the atmosphere and especially the service were all incredible.
We read about Sotto Mare while planning a visit to SF from Colorado. We love Italian cuisine and seafood. We didn’t have a reservation and it seemed like it might be tough to get in, but we decided to hustle over after our Alcatraz tour for and early dinner. The owner met us at the door and was very friendly and sat us immediately. We flew in really early that day and had a huge day of walking around the city and Alcatraz Island, so by the time we sat down we were worn out and starving. The server was so accommodating and brought us bread right away. She also took her time to explain some of the options we were not as familiar with. When we were uncertain about which bottle of wine we wanted, she brought us a taster of each, both were delicious and a decent deal at $35/bottle.
The food was incredible. We started with oysters. Our oldest had the seafood risotto. Our two youngest had seafood pasta (mussels, shrimp, calamari, scallops, etc). My wife and I split the cioppino and it was heavenly and more than enough.
Being in SF everything is pricey, but I can honestly say that I thought that for what we got that this place was a value. The prices were more than fair for the quality of the meal.
I highly recommend this place whether out for a date or with your family. Make a reservation or go early because it deservedly popular!
The fish is always cooked to perfection. The veggies were perfectly al dente. Such a pleasure.
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I came here last night for late dinner.
We came at a off time to avoid the wait but didn't miss the wind. The hostess said that the wait would be an hour. So me and a friends just explored the north beach area. We probably stopped by 4 other places before we came back. After a full hour we. Came back and they said it was going to be another 20 minutes. After an hour and a half of waiting we saw an empty table and since we were at the top of the list we asked if we could sit there. They were in area of the free table. After being seated we waited 45 minutes to even order. The prices of oysters is now $2 and not 1.50. After we finally placed our order it took them another 30 minutes between our oysters and our entree. It seemed like there was only one person running an extremely busy night. Honestly the oysters were good but the entree itself wasn't anything to write home about. I got the risotto and it was over all fine. We sat down at 9:30 and we left at closing. The other tables that sat down after us left before we did. The service was so slow and the food was so average.
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Absolutely incredible food.
The cioppino was to die for and the fresh oysters were amazing.
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Great food and awesome environment.
We enjoyed the Cioppino and the Linguine with Seafood! I can't decide which was better! We will definitely be back for more. I thought the wait would be longer than it was, but there's a bar right next door and we were able to grab a few drinks as we waited so it wasn't too bad at all.
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My first time here and the best experience.
Food was absolutely delicious. Service was extremely excellent. This place is always jammed pack. I definitely know why. Will be returning again.
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The cioppino was damn delicious! It is full of crab,
The cioppino was damn delicious! It is full of crab, mussels, shrimp, squid, baby octopuses, scallops, and a whitefish of some sort (we think). The crusty bread was perfect for sopping up the rich tomatoey broth. It's a huge bowl and even though there were three of us, we couldn't finish it. We also had the prawn cocktail and the cocktail sauce actually had a nice horseradish kick to it. We sat inside for lunch on a Sunday and it was bustling! It's pretty cramped but it's fun to watch the kitchen staff do their work.
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Have loved this special seafood spot since our first visit
Have loved this special seafood spot since our first visit many years ago. Lots of locals -- always a good sign -- including one gentleman we met on our last visit, in late 2019, who told me he eats lunch at Sotto Mare most days, usually the Crab Louie salad. On this visit, I followed his lead with the Crab Louie. So glad I did -- the perfect combination of sweet crabmeat & crisp iceberg with a tangy dressing. Supposedly this recipe was invented by a chef at the iconic St. Francis Hotel in the early 20th century, but Sotto Mare has perfected it. Husband loved his grilled branzino with veggies, tonight a combo of carrots, haricots verts, and parsnips. The bread at Sotto is another highlight. Best Italian loaves in the city -- whether we've had lunch or dinner here, I am guessing the bread is delivered ahead of each service -- it's that fresh. Owner (manager?) always on the premises, and very personable. Waitstaff deftly handled our meal at one of the outdoor two-tops. Pre-COVID, we enjoyed the lively bar (thanks to which we met the regular Crab Louie connoisseur), but nice to have al fresco option now.
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Excellent food and even better service!! This place has
Excellent food and even better service!! This place has been operating for 15 years, locally and family owned. all you could ask for out of little italy !!
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Finger Lickin Good! Wow this was the freshest seafood I
Finger Lickin Good! Wow this was the freshest seafood I have ever had. Nothing tasted fishy. My mom who is originally from the west coast of India gave it an 11/10 and called it the freshest seafood she has had since coming to US! A place must be good if they give you a whole paper towel roll and bibs :) By the end of the meal, expect to have a full stomach with a table filled with paper towel and shells everywhere. The food was spectacular and was worth the wait. I placed reservation as soon as they opened same day for 8pm and got the table at 8:20. But the wait was definitely worth all that amazing food. You must get these dishes if you go here they were so flavorful! THE WAIT IS WORTH IT TRUST ME
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Honestly probably some of the best food I've ever had.
Made a reservation in advanced by phone and we were seated immediately. The interior is a bit cramped but there is plenty of outdoor seating. Prices are a bit high but really worth it. The oysters (EAST COAST!) were so sweet we ordered another round. For the main we got the ciopinno, linguine with seafood (white cream sauce) and risotto. All were amazing. Like the first bite was unbelievable. I'm still so full 18 hours after the meal. I guess the food was a bit heavy (?) or maybe it's because it was a lot of seafood. The only down would be the complimentary bread but who cares if the food you pay for is worth it! Also be patient because the servers are really busy and it's hectic for them too! No dessert but plenty of places nearby within walking distance.
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This is my last meal here.
Gave benefit of the doubt too many times. After a standard wait during a busy sat night dinner service, we were seated. We ordered two hot whole crab plates.Two plates were served quickly, but ice cold. The sauce if that's what you'd call it was also clumpy and cold.Shredded lettuce used as a layer between the plate and the crab was floating in this strange water /oil puddle... Literally looks like dropping oil in a plate of water, decorated with drowning shredded lettuce.Now for the crab. Two plates of what appeared To be less than two whole crabs were served in inequal portions.One plate had what appeared 1 1/3 crab on it, the other with 2/3. Crab was not well seasoned, and in addition to being cold, had the taste and texture of being frozen, despite the lovely fresh crab signs everywhere.For the price a complete let down and failure.
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The crab over noodles with shrimp added.
Not disappointed at all. They need a bar but there's literally one right next door. Had a drink while i waited so they get a pass on the bar lack
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This review is solely for the customer experience, I did
This review is solely for the customer experience, I did not taste the food. Called for a reservation at 8:00 pm on a Friday night. I arrived at 7:50 and there were a few people behind me. I reminded the manager's wife several times that I was still waiting for a table as she gave the people behind me a table, probably because they were more adamant than I. After about 30 minutes, I asked the manager's wife how long it would take to get a table and she said 10 minutes, however, it didn't happen. So, I told the manager's wife that I was going to leave unless I was given a table but she was not able to give me an answer as to when we would be seated after 45 minutes. We ended up leaving and going to the nearby restaurant California Fish Market and got seated right away. The service was much better, the wine selection was delicious and the food was amazing.
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OMG! The food here is AMAZING!! I highly recommend this
OMG! The food here is AMAZING!! I highly recommend this spot! Please stop by an try this Restaurant out! I had the Crab Diavolo was divine!!
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Hands down the seafood dishes were amazing!! My Italian
Hands down the seafood dishes were amazing!! My Italian friend introduced us to this place. Perfect weather in San Francisco for outdoor dining. We went during the week and we were able to find parking pretty fast given the area is always busy. Inside the restaurant is pretty vintage looking but we decided to dine outside were they have made some booths in front of the restaurant. Not cute but just basic seating which I believe they did during the whole Covid-19 shutdown. However, food is amazing. We ordered their branzino grilled fish with sautéed vegetables,grilled petrale sole fish with garlic sauce, oysters on half shell, bread, and crab Louie salad. I ordered the branzino which was a special that day- again amazingly delicious my taste buds danced!!
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One of my favorite seafood place in San Francisco.
They don't take a reservation for small group but the waiting time is short
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Off the charts Italian cuisine!
Cioppino was exquisite! Get there early, long lines but well worth it! Reservation strongly suggested.
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This place did not fall short of the hype.
And I'm going to tell you why. My experience at Sotto Mare was a 5 star experience. As soon as me and my date arrived around 3:30 , we noticed the place is small and already noisy due to the amount of people enjoying themselves. Me and my date were seated right away inside at the bar. Right as we sat down delicious bread was served to hold the hunger until food arrived. Later we got the menu and asked what we would like to drink. I got the ice tea unsweetened and my date had peroni beer(a smooth light beer, pretty damn good). The food wait was just long enough for me to wonder where the food was and at that moment it arrived. I order the famous Cioppino bowl my date had the lobster ravioli. Could not have asked for happier taste buds. It was outta this world. Definitely will be going back. Total meal set me back $90 not bad. Cause it was forsue worth it. The nicest people to ever serve food work here. The only things to give a heads up on, its extremely crowded inside, and they didn't have dessert. But I'm not a complainer. They exceed my expectations
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Delicious Cioppino and generous with the portions of
Delicious Cioppino and generous with the portions of seafood and crab. My first time eating there! I will be back for more. Giving them 5 Stars!
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OH MY CODAnother one of those kitschy places in North Beach
OH MY CODAnother one of those kitschy places in North Beach you check off the bucket list. IMHO, growing up in SF, I don't frequent North Beach for cioppino. There's a myriad of restsurants in SF. I used to get my cioppino fix on at Cioppino's, then again Fisherman's Wharf is another tourist trap. I'm always down for friends who want to try, and out-of-towners who must go to North Beach. It's a small tight space at the bar, many of these restaurants are grandfathered in, so they're not super big with added on floors or ADA compliant. Parking is difficult in this neighborhood. Gets busy, service is attentive, and corkage fee is decent. Overall, their cioppino is ai-ight.I came, I dined, I Yelped. Cheers & see you on Yelp (YELP)!
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I was super excited to try this place, but wasn't in the
I was super excited to try this place, but wasn't in the mood for cioppino so we got Pasta/Calamari. We came on a Thursday around 5:30 and JUST beat the line; the wait became super long around 6-6:30. Honestly, the food didn't blow my mind. The Half Crab Diavolo was bland and oily with barely much pasta, and the Calamari Pomodoro was good but not great. Love free bread but it was just normal. The vibes were great though, bustling and warm! Service was also good. Maybe next time trying their signature dish would be better?
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Only bad thing I can say is it's a bit crowded.
The seafood is amazing! Fresh and generous portions and plenty of flavors. We had the clam chowder every bite had clams , crab linguine (whole crab) and the Cippino amazing. We were stuffed and had left over for dinner the next day. Definitely recommend
.. by far the best seafood pasta I've ever had... quality of the food is top notch, service is great, and the atmosphere is SF proper. I will definitely be back here... the cioppino for 2 is also a must
That's all you need to know when going to Sotto Mare. Enough for two and perfect for special occasions.
We visited on a busy Friday night after being tipped off about the restaurant the day before by a local bartender.
There was an hour wait for a table, which he had warned us about, so we put our names down and grabbed a drink nearby while we waited.
It was packed inside and we were seated at the counter - the perfect spot to watch the chefs at work! The food coming out looked fantastic and smelled incredible.
We were not disappointed. We had starters of smoked salmon and crab, and mains of lobster ravioli and salmon pasta. All absolutely delicious and generous portions.
Worth the wait - would return and would highly recommend for seafood lovers.
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Tasty fresh plentiful seafood! A popular longstanding Sam Francisco restaurant. Was perfect for the four of us! We would all go
We were in from out of town. An awesome bar tender tipped us off about Sotto Mare. It did NOT disappoint! Very San Francisco!
It was Valentine's day and the place was packed and they managed to fit us in anyway! The four of us split the cioppino ( it's huge! ) with a couple of entrees which we couldn't even finish... A lot of delicious food! They were very nice and definitely knew what they were doing. Lots of seafood choices with an Italian twist. Would go back! Felt very North Beach neighborhood. Popular with the locals!
We went back for another cioppino meal here. It is my husband's favorite. It did not disappoint. It would easily feed two people. My husband doesn't usually finish the pasta in the serving. It has all of the seafood in it; crabs, clams, scallops, fish, mussels, shrimp, squid. I had the seafood risotto which was also delicious. It had scallops, squid, mussels, and clams. It comes with their wonderful bread. And, we had the house red. My only complaint was the lax covid enforcement. They didn't look at our vaccination card. The tables are not socially distanced and the employees were not good about masks. You have to make reservations to eat outdoors., which I would strongly suggest.
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Only want to eat seafood? This might be for you.
A friend recommended this place and we hiked (it felt like it was completely vertical!) from docks to try it. Luckily, they had a space for us. My whole family likes seafood so we had no problems ordering. My kids said their food was ok but nothing to shout about. My husband liked his crab diablo. My mom and I split a shrimp louis salad and it was literally unseasoned shrimp on a bed of shredded lettuce. I've had Shrimp Louis salads at many other places...some give you hard-boiled eggs. Usually a cucumber or two. Tomato, asparagus. It can vary. This was the blandest, saddest salad I have ever seen. Plain shrimp with a garnish. Now, it was a LOT of shrimp...but nothing else.
The prices are very decent. Our waitress was great. But the blandness of the salad and the pasta dishes was disappointing.
We celebrated the first night of our 50th anniversary trip at Sotto Made, drawn in by their rating and drooling for the ciopino. In the center of North Beach, it's a quintessential Italian eatery, tight, loud, welcoming, with an enticing aroma of bread, sauce and wine. We were seated immediately at the bar where we could watch the kitchen action. The menu had lots that would have been great but we were after the ciopino, a steaming tureen of perfectly seasoned flavor contains dungeness crab, mussels, clams, bay scallops, shrimp, calamari and penne pasta. It exceeded expectations and was surely among our top 5 lifetime meals. The warm bread was as it should be and helped to sop up the last drops of sauce. The Sotto Mare bibs saved our shirts. Service made the experience fun and a manager delivered complimentary flutes of prosceco for us to celebrate each other. For rich seafood and authentic Italian ambiance, this is the place.
Covid rules were very much enforced. We came here from recommendation from our hotel. It was a Saturday night and we did need to wait a bit outside. But the two of us got a seat at the counter and got to watch the kitchen do their thing. Service was fast, and the food was great and large portions. Too much. Shouldn't have eaten the bread. It definately is a high energy place and I wouldn't come here on a romantic date. But we enjoyed the whole scene.
Small place, but the food was excellent, especially the sea bass dish. Portions and prices were decent. Our waitress was not very good - kept us waiting a lot and not personable at all. Unfortunately the area the restaurant is in has a lot of homeless people and we saw 2 instances were homeless people were harassing people in the street. The police had to be called in one instance it was so bad.
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Fantastic Value perfectly cooked seafood
Super great deal on nicely prepared seafood. The sauce is kind of like creativity but are a solid for appealing to the masses. I can't stress how much I appreciate the care that goes into not over cooking the seafood or vegetables. This is also one of the best deals you can get around town. The sea scallops are huge perfectly prepared and you get a whole plate of them with vegetables for $24 unheard of in the city! Cioppino is insane Filled with seafood and a great bye! The oysters are kind of basic and the small ones are super small but the price is right for the larger ones for sure! Beer and wine are inexpensive. The staff hustles like nobody's business. I love coming here and am a regular.
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Last Reply by FluffyStar64 (03/30/2022 5:42 pm)
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It can be under your name or a name you choose! Some reservation offers already include the AppointmentTrader Transfer Service which will transfer the reservation in to your name. If its not included you can add it on after buying the reservation for a small fee. One thing on that though: As many reservations become available at last minute, taking a reservation in someone else name is quick and great for privacy. Most reservations on AT are listed with a virtual phone number, so all you need to do is present the phone number at the hostess stand and you are good to go!
Best answer by ColorfulRod45 (07/09/2021 5:17 pm)