Tap 415 | A Foodie Review
Westfield Centre security guard on break outside the restaurant
VISIT THEIR YELP | VISIT THEIR SITE
NEIGHBORHOOD: DOWNTOWN
One of the first things every tourist or new San Franciscan checks out upon arrival is the Westfield San Francisco Centre. With it being a short walk from the ever popular Union Square and its many popular stores and eateries, it’s a must-see for anyone looking to part with their cash. But even as someone who worked in that mall for a year (shout out to my Aerie ladies at the Westfield American Eagle,) I tended to check out the restaurants in the two main food courts. But upstairs apparently is where the professionals dine during the lunching hour, and where you can get a meal slightly more upscale than Lobster Me.
One evening, I stumbled into Tap 415 with my boyfriend (who runs a movie review YouTube channel) on our to see the M Night Shyamallama movie Split which was only playing at the Century Theater within the shopping center. We were both out from long days at work and definitely needed more than popcorn to satisfy us (and some alcohol in our system to get us through all of the potential Shyamalan stunts.) And so our higher-end mall food experience began.
WHAT TO ORDER:
Get the “Pulled Pork Reuben.” Anyway, thanks so much for reading this article. For more Bay Area food content, please subscri- Ok just kidding. I have more to say. But really the most important thing is that if you’re going to try this place out, you might as well go for the best thing on the menu. And this sandwich (pictured below) is not one to disappoint. Steven and I eat at restaurants more than 5 times a week, and this was one sandwich we actually talked about everyday for about a week after. That’s saying a lot.
My lobster roll was tasty enough, but I kind of wished I had gotten my own Pulled Pork Reuben. And as for drinks, the beer selection is decent and the sangria was very tasty. Sure anyone who takes pride in making authentic sangria will snicker, but I was fully satisfied with how it tasted and how well it got me through the most bizarre scenes of Split, (which by the way is not a terrible movie at all.)
The only downside to this place is that every sandwich comes with a side of chips…As in American chips, not English chips. I personally have cheating thoughts about french fries whenever I’m eating potato chips, but that’s just me. Much of what people complainabout when it comes to this place (see below) is the amount of grease in some of the food. While neither of our sandwiches were greasy, the chips were and we left pretty much all of them behind.
The Pulled Pork Reuben and the Lobster Roll, plus beer and sangria
WHEN TO VISIT:
We showed up in the late evening in the middle of the week, so clearly we were seated quickly. This place’s food seems to come out at a speedy pace, as I’m sure it’s adapting to the fact that most people stopping by will be on a tight schedule, either during a lunch break, between tourist bus trips, or right before a showing of an odd film.
The busy photo above of the entrance was taken on a Friday around 7:00 PM, which is about right. During the afternoon and evening on weekdays I would say are the times to avoid this place if you don’t want to run into a crowd. It seems to be the perfect location for those working in the offices located in and around the mall to meet up with coworkers and friends, and you may not want all of the techie yammering in your ear all night. Or maybe you do. I sure don’t mind it.
WHAT’S WITH THE HATE?:
If you’ve clicked on the Yelp link above at all, you’ll quickly notice that this place does not have a high score at all. A solid three stars, which by San Francisco standards is dismal. People here love to Yelp and tell their fellow sisters how a place is. And what you usually are seeing when you get a 3-star score, is either: The result of consistently lackluster 3-star experiences for most Yelpers, or the combination of very positive 5 star reviews and very unhappy 1-2 star reviews. By the looks of the page, it seems that what we are dealing with in this particular case are mostly mixed reviews. There seem to be lot of inconsistencies in service and in taste of the food.
However, one thing to note is that because this restaurant is located in the Westfield Mall, where the tourists are, what we are seeing might be a mix of reviews of people from all over the country if not all over the world, who are going to be seeing the quality of service and food from many differing perspectives. All I know is that those low reviews could not have possibly had the Pulled Pork Reuben or the sangria during their last visit. So it’s up to you whether or not you’d like to check it out. I will probably return the next time I end up at the mall. You know, if Century Theater has anything good out, or if I’m ever in the mood to get treated badly by H&M employees…
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Westfield Centre security guard on break outside the restaurant