Max's Opera Cafe Dinner before Rigoletto

Rigoletto on September 10, 2025 at 7:30 at War Memorial Opera House
buy tickets: Rigoletto Tickets ($28 and up)
Verdi’s masterpiece is a study in dualities: cynicism and tenderness, hope and despair. Gossip is Rigoletto’s stock-in-trade as the court jester to a womanizing duke.
Buy tickets early

Max's Opera Cafe
601 Van Ness Ave.
San Francisco, CA 94102
tel: 415-771-7300
Dinner at 5:00p

The first Max's opened during 1978 in Burlingame, San Francisco's Max's Opera Cafesoon followed, featuring singing servers, bistro style deli food, and their restaurant empire took off. Founded by Dennis Berkowitz on the principles of treating people fairly and providing high quality food at a great price.
from San Mateo Daily Journal (2012)

Currently Michael Adams is the General Manager and Executive Chef Carlos Salcedo.
Burlingame's Max's was my first experience with this Northern California staple, they all have a large menu, with delicious selections of deli sandwiches, seafood, pasta, steaks and huge desserts. I especially enjoyed their made at your table iced tea, providing an elegance to a simple order, like hushed angel wings you could only imagine what would arrive later.

Bring your sense of wonder and appetite, for this day we dine as kings.

Menus and Reviews
Max's Opera Cafe requests no reviews
Max's Opera Cafe
Max's Opera Cafe Location

Administrative Trivia
Max's Opera Cafe's menu shows three course dinner pricing is about $35-$50 per person, excluding tax and tip. Alcoholic drinks can easily increase this average.

Dress is smart casual.

Each diner is responsible for their own orders and costs but we will have to consolidate and divvy up the final bill accordingly, if we cannot have separate checks. Please bring cash or have Zelle or Apple Cash available.

Taxes and Fees
Dining in San Francisco has a sales tax (8.625%) and probably an employee health mandate (3-10%), a tip (20%) may be automatically added, even on individual bills. I calculate each diner's orders separately unless the meal is shared or family style, and round up.

Parking and Transportation
MUNI: California Street Cable Car is 8 blocks away, 49, 47, Civic Center Muni KLMN
BART: Civic Center
Finding street parking in Civic Center/Hayes Valley is usually difficult.
Parking garage can be found nearby (3-4 blocks)
Use event comments for Car Pooling and Ride Sharing.
Photos and history from San Francisco Opera website